**Crater Dominates Redmond to Advance to 5A Girls Basketball Championship**

MCMINNVILLE – The No. 1-ranked Crater Comets put on a dominant performance Friday afternoon, defeating No. 4 Redmond 72-44 in the Class 5A girls basketball state semifinals at Linfield University.

Crater set the tone early, jumping out to a commanding 30-15 lead in the first quarter and never letting up. By halftime, the Comets were ahead 41-28 and continued to build their lead throughout the second half.

Junior guard Taylor Young was unstoppable for Crater, scoring an impressive 34 points on 14-of-21 shooting while also dishing out six assists. Lydia Traore contributed a strong double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds.

For Redmond, Mylaena Norton led the team with 13 points, while Freya Snow battled on the boards with eight rebounds.

Crater’s aggressive defense forced 20 turnovers, converting them into 32 points, and the team shot an efficient 53% from the field.

With this win, Crater (26-1) advances to the championship game, where they will face the winner of No. 2 Silverton vs. No. 3 South Albany on Saturday at 3:30 p.m.

Redmond (21-6), which won the Intermountain Conference title and made its second straight trip to the state semifinals, will now play in the third-place game on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. against the loser of Silverton vs. South Albany.

This was the second meeting between Crater and Redmond this season. The Comets also defeated the Panthers back on Dec. 6 with a 61-43 victory.