Jimenez, Marroquin named to 4A All State team
North Marion senior Sergio Jimenez and Woodburn junior Jeovanny Marroquin were each named to the 2019-20 4A boys basketball All-State team this month.
Jimenez marks his second consecutive year on the All-State team after picking up a Second Team nomination as a junior for the 2018-20 season.
In his senior season, the North Marion forward was even more impressive, putting up averages of 20.7 points, 8.6 rebounds and 4.3 assists for a Husky team (20-5, 9-1 Tri-Valley Conference) that spent large swaths of the season at No. 1 in the OSAA rankings and finished the regular season third overall.
Along the way, Jimenez led the top-scoring offensive team in the state at the 4A level, scoring 1,706 points (68.24/game). North Marion eclipsed the 70-point mark 14 times over the course of the season and broke 80 points on four occasions, including their final game of the season — an 85-73 win over Hidden Valley in the first round of the state playoffs.
North Marion scored a season-high 89 points against Corbett on Feb. 4 — a 42-point win over the Cardinals that also marked the Huskies' most significant margin of victory on the year.
Jimenez was named Conference Player of the Year for the second consecutive year in the Tri-Valley, sharing the award this season with Gladstone junior Jude Ashpole. Jimenez is joined on the 4A All-State First Team by fellow seniors Ryan Hague of Seaside, Matthew Neubert of Henley, Jacob Slifka of Banks, and Nick Stice of Marist.
Marroquin gave Woodburn a second straight All-State nomination after former teammate R.J. Veliz earned First Team honors last year. Marroquin averaged 11.2 points, 5.2 assists and 2.4 steals to earn Second Team honors, adding one final accolade on the season after being named to the Oregon West Conference First Team.
Woodburn (18-7, 8-4 Oregon West) spent the majority of the season ranked in the OSAA top 10 but lost three of its final four regular-season games to finish third in the league standings.
The Bulldogs bounced back in the postseason, though, beating Siuslaw 60-39 in the play-in round on Feb. 28 before surviving a 67-63 overtime victory over Marshfield in the first round of the state playoffs a week later. That victory put Woodburn in the state quarterfinals in consecutive years for the first time in program history.
Marroquin was joined on the All-State Second Team by Ashpole, juniors Michael Lundy of Philomath and Carson Molan of Cascade, along with Baker senior Caden Long.
Jimenez and Marroquin were set to square off against each other on the opening day of the state quarterfinal tournament in March before the event was canceled due to COVID-19.
Woodburn had taken a 73-66 win over North Marion on Dec. 4 in the season opener for both teams.
2019-20 4A BOYS BASKETBALL ALL-STATE TEAM
COACH OF THE YEAR
Bart Pollard, Marist
FIRST TEAM
Sergio Jimenez, 12, North Marion
Ryan Hague, 12, Seaside
Matthew Neubert, 12, Henley
Jacob Slifka, 12, Banks
Nick Stice, 12, Marist
SECOND TEAM
Jeovanny Marroquin, 11, Woodburn
Jude Ashpole, 11, Gladstone
Michael Lundy, 11, Philomath
Carson Molan, 11, Cascade
Caden Long, 12, Baker
HONORABLE MENTION
Jacob Cook, 11, Klamath Union
Jarred Evans, 12, Banks
Darius Hall, 12, Henley
Ethan Hutsell, 12, Phoenix
Ben Morehouse, 11, Marist
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