Last modified: Wednesday, December 19, 2007 11:56 AM PST Ontario’s Chad Allen (middle) gets his shot blocked by Vale’s Russell Seals (left) while teammate Alex Miller (21) helps out during the second half of their non-league boys basketball game Tuesday in Vale. The Vikings defeated Ontario 57-41. Viking boys get first win By Ray Rodriguez Argus Observer Vale - Vale had come so close to a win in its previous four games, but late game lapses, some turnovers and missed shots kept them off the board. Not Tuesday. Alex Miller scored 14 points and Russell Seals added 12 points to lead the Vikings to their first win of the season, a 57-41 win over Ontario in boys basketball action in Vale. “Coach just tells us to keep our heads up and play hard and we’ll get our wins.” Miller said. “This builds our confidence a lot. We’re just going to keep on going from here and hopefully we’ll keep on winning.” All the damage was done with a 12-0 run spanning through the final four minutes of the second and two minutes of the third quarter, which broke open an 18-16 Vale lead. Matt Robertson scored on a layup and Matt Dentinger added back-to-back baskets which capped a 6-0 run that stretched the lead to 24-16 at the break. Vale jumped right back to start the second half on another 6-0 run for a 30-16 lead with 5:56 left in the third quarter. Ontario’s Josh Mejia stopped the bleeding with a 3-pointer and the Tigers were down 30-19 with 5:25 left in the quarter. The Tigers would add a jumper by Bryson Bottorff and a layup by Dan Heninger, but sandwiched in between was 12 points by Vale. Miller scored on a jumper, a foul shot and a layup and Seals gave Vale its biggest lead at 40-21 with a shot from downtown. Tyler Huston capped a successful third period with a layup and Vale was up 42-23 heading into the final stanza. In the fourth quarter, Ontario got as close as a 49-38 deficit with three minutes left in the game after back-to-back baskets by Haueter, who drained a 3-pointer, and a layup by Bottorff. “We got off to a slow start and the kids battled back in the fourth quarter,” Ontario head coach Scott Helmick said. “We just need to come out with that effort from the opening tip.” But Vale’s Huston then put any thoughts of another letdown to rest with four straight points and the Tigers could only muster a free throw and a basket over the final 2:47 of the game. Seals and Miller were followed up by Dentinger, who finished with 11 points, while Robertson and Huston tallied six points apiece. “This is a big win for us. Our kids played really well together tonight,” Vale head coach Tom Snook said. “They moved the ball and made nice adjustments to the defenses Ontario ran. I’m real proud of the way they played.” Everything went right on this night for Vale, as the zone defense worked wonders, holding Tiger standouts Mejia and Haueter to a combined 17 points. In fact, Mejia scored on two free throws in the first half and was held to one field goal in the game. Bottorff was the high-man, scoring 15 points, and Anzaldua finished with seven points for Ontario, which shot 16-of-52 from the field. Ontario has been dealt a tough schedule, with 13 of their first 16 games on the road, but Helmick is confident his team will be ready when league play starts Jan 19. at Mac-Hi. “I think it all starts with practice. We just have to be more consistent in practice,” Helmick said. “We got a tough road ahead of us, but we have to continue to play. We’re all going for league, is what we’re doing.” Ontario (1-4 overall) next travels to Skyview Thursday, while Vale (1-4 overall) next hosts Weiser Thursday.