Vandal hoops teams head to state in first place

Both Eureka Vandal varsity basketball teams are headed to state as the 1A East Regional Champions.

The Lady Vandals captured the title last weekend in Elko, first defeating the Wells Leopards in the semi-final, 46-21, and then taking down the McDermitt Bulldogs, 49-34, to clinch the regional playoffs. They play the Smith Valley Bulldogs in the state quarter-final at 6:50 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 20, at Faith Lutheran High School in Las Vegas.

The Vandal boys defeated McDermitt, 41-33, in the regional semi-final Feb. 14. They then beat the Owyhee Braves in a nail-biter of a game on Feb. 15 to capture the regional title. With the Vandals down by two in the final few seconds of the game, sophomore guard Dean Benson came in with the clutch shot, sinking a triple to give Eureka the 41-40 win.

The Vandals play Virginia City at 8:30 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 20, also at Faith Lutheran High School.

The winner of both games advances to the state semi-finals on Friday, Feb. 21 at Southeast Career Technical Academy in Las Vegas.