Central Valley: West Salem Narrowly Escapes South Salem 64-60

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This game recap uses rankings from the <a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/2026/02/top-12-teams-in-6a-west-linn-nelson-nudge-up-in-week-9/">Top 12 in 6A</a>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The No. 9-ranked West Salem Titans narrowly escaped the No. 10-ranked South Salem Saxons 64-60 after trailing by 4 points going into the fourth quarter on Friday night. Round two of the Central Valley Conference rival series featured 11 lead changes and a game-high 8-point margin to the Titans' advantage in the second period.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>West Salem's [player_tooltip player_id='1617969' first='Lilea' last='Burns'] led all scorers with 18 points, including 9 in the last frame. The sophomore guard was clutch in the final three minutes to secure the win. Burns hit a pull-up three, finished an athletic drive inside, and iced two bonus free throws to give the Titans a 6-point lead with 16.9 seconds remaining in the game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It was a tough loss for South Salem (16-3, 3-2), who had a stellar offensive night early and appeared in control late. A win would have forced a round-three tiebreaker between the rivals. Instead, West Salem (11-9, 5-0) remains undefeated in the Central Valley Conference and is two games clear at the top of the league table.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/box-score {"name":"acf/box-score","data":{"game":["1485494"],"_game":"field_6a1b2c3d4e5f7"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6987e088cfed1"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Both teams started fast on offense, on pace for a 100-point game. Portland State-commit [player_tooltip player_id='502352' first='Emma' last='Zuniga'] netted 10 of her 15 points for the Titans in the first frame. The senior finished the game with 6 rebounds.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>South Salem led by as many as four points and ended the first quarter with a 26-25 edge. Autumn Palmer, [player_tooltip player_id='921583' first='Chica' last='Casas'], and [player_tooltip player_id='842740' first='Emma' last='Burlison'] led the way with a combined 21 points in the opening frame.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Palmer finished the game with a team-high 17 points, knocking down 4 three-pointers. The freshman was not afraid of pulling up from deep in front of her defender. Senior point guard Casas consistently got to the rim for athletic finishes on offense and disrupted the perimeter to force turnovers on defense, ending the night with 15 points and 5 steals. Senior [player_tooltip player_id='842740' first='Emma' last='Burlison'] added 13 points, 4 rebounds, and a block.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>West Salem mounted its biggest lead (8 points) in the second quarter. South Salem had a hard time keeping sophomores Tamara Kosso-Quaye and [player_tooltip player_id='1232849' first='Lily' last='Griffin'] off the glass—the pair combined for 6 offensive rebounds in the second frame—but the Saxons fought back to level the frame (13-13) and keep a 1-point edge (39-38) at halftime.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Power forward Kosso-Quaye finished the game with 9 points and 6 rebounds. Point guard [player_tooltip player_id='1232849' first='Lily' last='Griffin'] added 6 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 assists.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Senior [player_tooltip player_id='921624' first='Sami' last='Griffin'] stepped up to run the point and scored 6 points for the Titans in the third quarter. The 6-foot forward is fast on the bounce, has nice length, and is a strong rebounder on both ends. Griffin ended the game with 9 points, 8 rebounds, and 2 blocks.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Casas and Palmer continued to produce, combining for 11 of South Salem's 15 points in the third, and extending the Saxons' lead to 4 going into the fourth.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>West Salem leveled the score (54-54) halfway through the final frame after [player_tooltip player_id='921624' first='Sami' last='Griffin'] tipped an offensive rebound to [player_tooltip player_id='1223934' first='Johanna' last='Diaz'] for a wide-open putback.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Still tied with 3:14 left on the clock, [player_tooltip player_id='921583' first='Chica' last='Casas'] nearly picked [player_tooltip player_id='1232849' first='Lily' last='Griffin']'s dribble at halfcourt, but Griffin was able to recover and pass to [player_tooltip player_id='1617969' first='Lilea' last='Burns']. Burns blew by [player_tooltip player_id='842740' first='Emma' last='Burlison'] on the perimeter and drew what appeared to be a pushing foul from behind that was upgraded to a flagrant.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>West Salem scored 3 points from the single possession after the technical foul—Griffin went 1-for-2 from the line and then assisted Burns on the ensuing baseline inbound play.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>South Salem's Autumn Palmer finished a tough drive down the center of the paint over the outstretched arms of [player_tooltip player_id='502352' first='Emma' last='Zuniga'] to put the Saxons back within 1 point. But [player_tooltip player_id='1617969' first='Lilea' last='Burns'] responded with a jab fake and a pull-up three on the next time down to put West Salem ahead by 4 points, the same margin that won the game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Although West Linn is favored to win the league title, the Titans still have business to take care of in the CVS. Sprague is not an easy win, and McNary could cause some trouble.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Next up on Tuesday: West Salem goes to Sprague and South Salem hosts McNary.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->