Photos by Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com – Ryder Mitchell in action for the Loggers on Tuesday night.

The last remaining H-DNL boys team in the North Coast Section basketball playoffs will look to make some history this weekend.

On Tuesday, the Loggers held on late to beat Redwood Christian 70-63 in their Division-5 semifinal at Eureka High.

The win sets up a championship game showdown for the No. 2 seeds in the bracket at No. 1 Sonoma Academy on either Friday or Saturday, as they look to win a first-ever Section championship.

And if the Loggers continue to play as well as they have been over the last eight days, there’s every reason to believe they can secure that elusive NCS title.

“I thought we played really, really great basketball at times, and it’s a testament to the way the players are coming together at the right time,” Eureka assistant coach Andrew DeHart said.

Junior Ryder Mitchell had a big night in the win, which was the Eureka boys’ third in the postseason after they barely missed out on qualifying for the Dick Niclai Tournament..

Mitchell finished with a double-double, scoring 17 points and pulling down 14 rebounds, but his influence on the game was felt in more ways than that.

“Man, you talk about a lunch pail kind of guy,” DeHart said. “He leads by example. He does all the right things, and then we need him to, he really steps up.”

The Loggers started fast and held a comfortable 41-25 lead early in the third quarter, stretching the advantage to as many as 18 late in the period.

But they were tested in the fourth, as the visitors cut into the deficit with a 12-2 run.

Redwood Christian would continue to battle and narrowed the gap to just six in the final minute.

But that was as close as the visitors would come, and the Loggers held on late to secure the win and give themselves a chance at making some history.

Xavier De La Rosa also impressed in the win as he continues to play a pivotal role for Eureka.

The junior standout finished with 16 points and seven rebounds, while teammate Owen Hiscox added 13 points and Eddie Gonzalez chipped in eight points.

Senior Jamarion Ireland also had a big impact in the win and has raised the level of his play in the playoffs.

“He continues to flourish,” DeHart said of Ireland, who scored nine points and appears to be really enjoying his role with the team right now. “He had a great game offensively, but his impact defensively was felt just as much.”

Interestingly, this is the second straight year a Big 5 team that didn’t qualify for the Dick Niclai Tournament has gone further in the postseason than any of its conference rivals, following Del Norte a year ago.

“We’re playing team-first basketball, and that’s kind of what gave us the lead,” DeHart said. “We’re really focused on finding the right shot on offense, and we’ve stepped up and taken it to another level defensively.”

With the win, Eureka improved to 17-12, while Redding Christian dropped to 21-10.

Sonoma Academy beat Middletown 49-43 in the other D-5 semifinal on Tuesday.