Consolation: Soldotna boys 72, Homer 30, FINAL

PALMER — The Soldotna boys cruised to a 72-30 win over the Homer Mariners Friday morning in the consolation quarterfinal round of the Northern Lights Conference tournament at Palmer High School.

Homer cut the deficit to three points, 15-12, late in the first quarter with a Dean DeVaney rebound and put-back. But Soldotna cruised in the second quarter, capping the half with a 12-2 run. The Stars pushed their lead to 30 points late in the third, took a 40-point lead in the fourth and the game ended with a running clock.

Larson Kohler led SoHi with 18 points, while Brad Blossom had 11. Kohler had four of Soldotna's six three-point field goals.

Colton Tutt had 10 points to lead the Mariners.

With the win, Soldotna moves into the consolation semifinals and will face either Wasilla or Kenai at 10:45 a.m. on Saturday. Wasilla and Kenai play for a spot in the conference final Friday night at 8:15 p.m., with the loser earning a date with the Stars.

Homer was eliminated from the tournament after the loss. In two games the young Mariner squad surrendered a total of 152 points. Homer dropped an 80-17 decision to Colony in the quarterfinals.

See www.frontiersman.com for continued updates throughout the weekend.

STARS 72, MARINERS 30

Soldotna 20 19 17 16 — 72

Homer 12 16 4 4 — 30

SOLDOTNA (72) — Br. Blossom 4 2-2 11, Grubb 2 0-1 5, Bauder 2 0-0 5, G. Blossom 2 1-2 5, Geller 1 6-6 8, Barkman 1 3-4 5, Kohler 6 2-2 18, Andrus 1 0-3 2, Bo. Blossom 3 0-0 6, Shelton 3 1-2 7. Totals: 24 15-22 72.

HOMER (30) — Gilbert 2 0-0 4, Rose 1 0-0 2, Parker 1 0-0 3, Tutt 4 2-2 10, DeVaney 4 0-0 9, Pate 0 2-4 2. Totals: 12 4-6 30.

Three-point field goals — Soldotna 6 (Kohler 4, Br. Blossom, Grubb, Bauder), Homer 2 (Parker, DeVaney). Total fouls — Soldotna 12, Homer 19. Fouled out — none.