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47 °F Forecast | Road Cams Wednesday, March 23, 2005 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Health Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley SHOP OUR VALLEY AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Classified Place an ad TOP JOBS EXTRA Ashland News NIE Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Moving here? eSouthernOregon CUSTOMER SERVICE FAQ's Advertise with us Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend January 22, 2005 Raiders stun No. 2 Warriors Former South Medford star Eric Fiegi scores 27 points for Western Baptist in losing effort By EZRA MANNIX for the Mail Tribune ASHLAND — The Southern Oregon University men’s basketball team crashed the boards all night Friday and crashed a homecoming party for a local star on the visiting team in the process. The Raiders used their inside dominance to knock off second-ranked Western Baptist, 73-70, at McNeal Pavilion Friday, spoiling the return of former South Medford High star center Eric Fiegi. SOU center Shea Washington scored 28 points to go with 18 rebounds to lead the 24th-ranked Raiders, who outrebounded the Warriors 43-29 en route to the key Cascade Conference win. Fiegi paced Western Baptist with 27 points, matching his nation-leading average in front of numerous family and friends. Advertisement Fiegi, who had made eight straight shots, had a chance to tie the game with 11 seconds left, but his 4-foot jumper off the glass danced around the rim before falling into the hands of Washington for his most important rebound of the game. Washington was then fouled with 7.2 seconds left and sank both free throws to put the Raiders up by four. Western Baptist closed to within 72-70 with two seconds left. An inbounds pass then bounced off Washington’s hands, but he was fouled by Travis Elam and made one of two free throws with 1.2 seconds left to seal SOU’s seventh straight triumph at home. The victory also put the Raiders (11-7, 8-2 Cascade) in a tie for first place in the conference with Oregon Tech, and a half-game ahead of the Warriors (21-2, 7-2). "I know if you’re going to have a chance to win this league, you’ve got to win this one at home," said elated Raiders head coach Brian McDermott. Friday’s win was SOU’s biggest upset in more than a decade, its second straight upset of a top-five team and its third of the season. It was a close game from the start as the Warriors and Raiders were each 14 of 30 from the field in a first half that found SOU leading, 37-34, at intermission. SOU came storming out of the locker room to claim a 42-34 lead on a Washington fastbreak dunk that brought many of those on hand to their feet. Friday’s crowd of 1,100 was the most to watch a Raider indoor sporting event in five years. During a 7-1 SOU run in the first four minutes of the second half, Fiegi missed four straight short jumpers as the Warriors not-so-coincidentally started slowly. Western Baptist managed its first lead of the second half on a fastbreak basket by Ben Sisler that put the Warriors up 53-51 with nine minutes remaining. But Warrior starting point guard Matt Larson got his fourth foul with 7:51 remaining and was forced to sit. The foul also put the Raiders in the bonus, and they capitalized by going 12-for-17 from the foul line in the second half. Washington was often the recipient of those fouls, and he converted 10 of 15 from the line. "We played great defense and we played at our tempo," said McDermott. Center Jeff Williams added 12 points and seven rebounds for SOU, which enjoyed its biggest win over a ranked opponent since the Raiders upset No. 1- ranked Hawaii Pacific, 92-91, during the 1993-94 season. Raiders point guard Steve Farley had eight of his team’s 20 assists, while the Warriors countered with 13. SOU next caps a four-game homestand at 7:30 tonight against Concordia. WESTERN BAPTIST (21-2, 7-2) Larson 4-6 0-0 8, Jo. Worcester 0-6 4-4 4, Dunn 3-12 6-6 12, Roberts 2-6 0-0 4, Fiegi 11-21 5-6 27, Sisler 1-1 0-0 2, Je. Worcester 2-2 0-0 6, Morris 2-5 2-2 7, Steed 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 25-59 17-18 70. SOUTHERN OREGON (11-7, 8-2) Farley 2-6 2-2 7, Coen 2-7 1-1 7, Washington 9-16 10-15 28, Williams 5-13 1-2 12, Gabel 1-3 0-0 3, McAllister 2-3 2-2 6, Cowell 0-1 0-0 0, Ward 1-1 0-0 3, Elam 3-8 1-3 7. Totals: 25-58 17-25 73. Halftime—SOU 37-34. 3-point goals—WBC 3-16 (Je. Worcester 2-2, Morris 1-2, Larson 0-2, Jo. Worcester 0-5, Dunn 0-3, Roberts 0-2), SOU 6-19 (Coen 2-5, Farley 1-2, Williams 1-6, Gabel 1-2, Ward 1-1, Washington 0-1, McAllister 0-1, Cowell 0-1). Rebounds—WBC 29 (Fiegi 8), SOU 43 (Washington 18). Assists—WBC 13 (Larson, Sisler 3), SOU 20 (Farley 8). Total fouls—WBC 19, SOU 15. A—1,100. Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback Student Loan Consolidation Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers home equity loans helzberg Slippers Student Loans afsa teleconferencing Memory Foam Mattress w2 forms Tatoo Advertisement s