Canyon View High’s memorable night marked by victories on and off the court

Written by Jeff Richards
February 6, 2022
Canyon View students, players and supporters following the boys basketball team's win over Emery, Cedar City, Utah, Feb. 4, 2022 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

CEDAR CITY — Friday night was a memorable evening at Canyon View High School, for several reasons.

Canyon View coach Robbie Potter on the sidelines during his team’s game vs. Emery, Region 12 boys basketball, Cedar City, Utah, Feb. 4, 2022 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

First, the Falcons honored head coach Robbie Potter, who is stepping down as Canyon View’s boys basketball coach after 10 seasons. Potter, who was recognized before Friday night’s game, said he plans to continue teaching at the school.

It was also senior night, with seven Canyon View seniors playing in their last regular season home game, an eventual 61-52 win over the Emery Spartans. One of the 12th-graders was reserve player Davey Evans, who had a career night as he scored a game-high 21 points, including five clutch 3-pointers in the second half. Evans’ crowd-pleasing heroics helped give the Falcons more breathing room as they fended off Emery’s late attempts to rally back into the game.

In addition to Evans, the other Falcon seniors who will soon be wrapping up their high school careers are Jaden Crankshaw, Shane Gardner, Skylar Hignite, Xavier Kadous, Jace Mitchell and Cole Springer. The Falcons are now 8-12 overall and currently ranked No. 14 in the statewide RPI, which means they will still probably play one more game at home, most likely hosting an opening-round playoff game on Feb. 16.

The Falcon players and coaches stayed out on the court at halftime, as a pair of $4,500 checks were given to two local cancer survivors and their families. They were the beneficiaries of the proceeds raised a little over one month ago during the annual Steve Hodson Cancer Classic.

Bob Tate is surrounded by family members as he receives a $4,500 check as one of two beneficiaries of the 2021 Hodson Cancer Classic, Cedar City, Utah, Feb. 4, 2022 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

The popular invitational tournament is held in late December each year in memory of Hodson, a former basketball coach at Canyon View, Cedar High and Southern Utah University who died in 2008 after battling cancer for eight years.

Friday night, Hodson’s wife, daughter and granddaughter helped hand out the oversized checks to the following recipients, both of whom were surrounded by numerous family members:

  • Gloria Truman, a Cedar High graduate who has been battling breast cancer since January of 2020. Gloria and her husband, Jeremy,  have three children.
  • Bob Tate, the former parks and recreation director for Cedar City who was also involved with the Utah Summer Games for many years, battled lung cancer for more than two years before finding out in October 2021 that he also has a brain tumor. He and his wife, MaryAnn, have six children and 17 grandchildren.
Gloria Truman is surrounded by family members as she receives a $4,500 check as one of two beneficiaries of the 2021 Hodson Cancer Classic, Cedar City, Utah, Feb. 4, 2022 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

Just two nights earlier, Hodson family members had also been recognized on the court during the halftime of Cedar High’s home boys basketball game against Dixie, when Steve Hodson’s posthumous induction into the Cedar High Athletic Hall of Fame was announced.

Cedar High cheerleader Roslyn Greenhalgh, who is Steve Hodson’s granddaughter, sang the national anthem before the Cedar High game on Wednesday and gave a repeat performance on Friday before the Canyon View game. She told Cedar City News she has been singing the national anthem each year before the Hodson check presentation games since she was about 5 years old.

Last but certainly not least was Friday night’s news that the Canyon View High School Talons drill team had won the state 3A championship up in Orem. Word of their accomplishment came trickling into the arena around the same time as the basketball game was ending.

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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2022, all rights reserved.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jeff Richards, a native of Salt Lake City with family roots in Panguitch, lived in Moab for 20 years before joining St. George News in 2017. Jeff is a longtime journalist and secondary school teacher. He and his wife Penny are the parents of five daughters. They also have three young grandsons. Jeff and his family enjoy swimming, camping, sightseeing, reading, and taking pictures.

Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @stgnews@moabjeff@stgnewssports

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