1998 Boy's Basketball
State Champions
Two words will always be associated with the 1998 Astoria Boys Basketball Team – State Champions. The team was lead by veteran Head Coach Mike Goin entering his 20th season at the helm. Defense was the key word for the Fishermen as they compiled a record of 28-2, winning their last 24 games in a row, including the State Tournament.
Some highlights of the regular season included defeating Knappa (who won the 2A State Championship,) 57-46 in winning the Vince Dulcich Christmas Tournament. The Fishermen also defeated Sisters High School 74-68 to win the Madras Tournament.
Astoria won the Cowapa League Championship with a record of 14-0 and finished the regular season ranked the number one 3A team in Oregon. Austin Houghtaling and Eli Ettro were named Cowapa League Co-Players of the Year. Chuck Heiner also made All-League, with Adam Swenson Honorable Mention.
A big highlight for the legendary Fishermen Basketball Program came in the opening league game at the “Brick House.” Astoria defeated Clatskanie to become only the second high school west of the Rocky Mountains to win 1,500 games with number 800 at home coming on the same night. Talk about the stars aligning.
In the State Tournament, the Fishermen cranked up their defense to another level as they help their first three opponents under 50 points each. In the opening round, Astoria defeated Gold Beach 66-49. During the quarterfinal game against Henley, fans held their collective breath as the Fishermen has not won a quarterfinal game in their last 10 tries. Once again the defense stood tall as Astoria prevailed 55-47 to get the beast off of their backs.
The semifinal fame saw the Fishermen route Taft 70-45 to set the stage for the State Title Showdown. The night of March 21, 1998 has been described as magical, as 3,000 Fishermen faithful packed the Chiles Center at the University of Portland. Astoria’s opponent was the Sky Em champion Pleasant Hill Billies (25-5) who were ranked fourth in the state. The Fishermen bolted out of the gate leading the Billies 16-6 seven minutes into the game, but Pleasant Hill refused to roll over. During the next nine minutes they outscored Astoria 25-9 to take a 33-25 halftime lead.
At the intermission, Coach Goin calmly explained that the Fishermen had to get back to what they did best – tough defense. Over the entire second half, Astoria held Pleasant Hill to two field goals out of 31 attempts. The Billies did not convert a field goal during the last 12 minutes and 17 seconds. The Fishermen pulled into the lead 39-38 near the end of the third quarter, and from there on, they applied air tight defense. In an ironic sports moment, the Fishermen won 56-46 on a night that was 56 years since Astoria’s last State Championship in 1942. The Fishermen have now won seven State Titles.
Houghtaling was a unanimous selection as the tournament’s most valuable player, and Ettro made the All Tournament Second Team.
After the season, Houghtaling was named First Team All State, and Ettro Second Team, both played in the 3A All Star game, with Coach Goin serving as one of the head coaches.