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1974 Basketball (Boys) - League and District Champion

Name
1974 Basketball (Boys) - League and District Champion
Class
1974
Category
HoF Team
Induction Year
2018

Pundits perused the R.A. Long boys' basketball roster in 1973-74 and surmised that this had the makings of a pretty solid team.

Then real life set in. Before the Lumberjacks even touched the practice floor, their season seemed doomed. Injuries to starting center Dean Hawley and key reserve Greg Price transformed RAL from a solid squad to a shaky one. The Jacks were a 747 without a pilot. Perhaps the Jacks could stay airborne long enough for the gimpy to return. More likely, however, the Jacks seemed destined to crash and burn.

In his postseason wrap up, Coach Duane Magee called Hawley's injury the most demoralizing.  "The most traumatic shock came early in October when Dean Hawley fractured his kneecap and was pronounced inactive for at least three months," Magee recalled. "Once we made this mental adjustment (to Dean Hawley's absence), we were again blasted by the reality that Greg Price's knee injury would undoubtedly rule out any chance of basketball.  "Many felt that R.A. Long was doomed basketball-wise for this year," Magee said. "We were down and looked out particularly after our first five games and a weak performance in the jamboree."  Without its 6-foot-9 inch pin in Hawley and perhaps the best sixth man around in Price, the Jacks stumbled out of the gate with a 1-4 record.

Coaches Duane Magee and Wayne Hayes put their noggins together and with solid players up and down what was left of the roster, the Jacks wouldn't fold.  If Jerry Dickson didn't deliver, Guy Hamer did. If it wasn't Hamer, Andy McLauchlan stepped up. When McLauchlan ran dry, Kirk Morris filled the void. Game-by-game the Jacks proved their mettle.  On January 4, Dean Hawley returned and a few games later, Greg Price made his season debut.  From that point, the AA Jacks, playing in a predominately AAA Southwest Washington Conference, won 10 of their next 15 games and won the AA League title heading into District.  In District at Kelso, the Jacks edged Hoquiam 65-60 behind Dean Hawley's 10 field goals and then handled Timberline 69-58 to claim the District championship and a trip to regionals.  In Regionals at Mark Morris, the Jacks fell to Tumwater 64-61 and to Elma 74-64.  The Lumberjacks, based on Coach Magee's season wrap up, posted a 13-11 record.

Roster:

  • Greg Dietrich
  • John Rogers
  • Joe Searing
  • Dave Melin
  • Bob Cramer 
  • John Watson
  • Kirk Morris
  • Dean Hawley
  • Warren Walker
  • Guy Hamer
  • Jerry Dickson
  • Greg Price
  • Andy McLauchlan
  • Ken Laufmann (Manager)
  • Buzz Siefert (Manager)
  • Duane Magee (Head Coach)
  • Wayne Hayes (Assistant Coach)