1 B SIUSLAW Sports News: NEWS The Siuslaw News For more photos and updates, visit our website at www.thesiuslawnews.com. P.O. Box 10 Florence, OR 97439 Fax: (541) 997-7979 SATURDAY Email: sports@thesiuslawnews.com FEBRUARY A Sporting V iew By Mark Vasto The Dean’s List For the first month or so, times were fun — even a bit giddy — in Cole Field House at College Park, Maryland. Led by head coach Gary Williams, the early ’90s edition of the Maryland Terrapins were off to a hot start, and their newest recruits, like Joe Smith and Exree Hipp, were electrifying to behold. Smith played center with a calmness and physical grace that made watching him a pleasure. Hipp, who would later go on to play for the Harlem Globetrotters, spent most of his time above the rim, or trying to get there. The Terps were on a roll, and the See 14 • 2015 Ocean Dunes part of Three Rivers Casino and Resort evolution W ith the acquisition of Ocean Dunes Golf Course and an entertainment venue, Three Rivers is taking the next evolutionary step to becoming a full resort in Florence. As reflected in its new logo, the facility is now known as the Three Rivers Casino and Resort. The casi- no’s director of consumer marketing, Rich Colton, explained these addi- tional amenities will provide a more complete experience for visitors. “We want the local people of Florence and visitors to have a truly fulfilling experience,” Colton said. “This expansion allows people to do that — to bring their families and enjoy a wide variety of activities. With added amenities, we expect people to stay longer in Florence and provide more economic boost to this community,” he added. The evolution into a full resort property also reflects the Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians long-term commitment to the local On the Bite A weekly fishing report for the local region www.dfw.state.or.us/RR MID COAST LAKES: COURTESY PHOTO Director of Golf Operations Bob Rannow (right) and Grounds Manager Mike Poston (left) makes upgrades to the course. Florence community. With increased resort offerings, more local jobs will come about as well. “Building and maintaining See GOLF 4B The rainbow trout stock- ing program will begin in many mid coast lakes in early February. Be sure to check out the 2015 stock- ing schedule for the most up to date information. Fishing for the various warm water fish species can still be productive dur- ing the winter months but anglers may need to target different areas of a lake (typically deeper) versus when fishing in the spring or summer. ALSEA RIVER: Steelhead The winter steelhead fishery has produced fair to good results recently. This week should be productive in the mid to lower reaches of the river while flows are low and river temperatures are warming. VIEW 4B Little league signups, meeting Feb. 19 SALMON RIVER: Steelhead Winter steelhead fishing is starting to pick up in many coastal basins. The Salmon River is now open to harvest of wild winter steelhead (Jan 1 – March 31). Anglers are advised to read the new regulations as there are harvest restric- tions and new deadlines in effect. Little league baseball in Florence is gearing up for the soring season. Siuslaw baseball little league signups will be Thursday, Feb. 19, at the Siuslaw High School com- mons beginning at 6 p.m. Boys and girls ages 5 to 12 are encouraged to come sign up for the program. Baseball assessments will be held Feb. 21 and 22 at Miller Park. Specific times for grade levels will be announced. An open board meeting als will be held Feb. 19, follow- ing the little league signups at the high school. The program is also look- ing for volunteers to help in a few extra projects this year. Anyone interested can con- tact Siuslaw Baseball Association board members John Meier at 971-221-3896 or Mike Blankenship at 541- 991-7826. SILETZ RIVER: Steelhead Steelhead fishing is slow to fair but should start to pick up in the coming weeks. Fish can be found throughout the river for both bank and boat anglers. River conditions should be See T IDE T ABLE Entrance Siuslaw River High Tide Feb. 14 7:20am / 7.3 9:08pm / 5.6 S p o r t s Feb. 17 at Douglas 6 p.m. • SHS boys BB at Douglas 7:30 p.m. Feb. 18 • MHS boy BB MWL playoffs hosts Alsea 7 p.m. Feb. 20 • SHS girls BB hosts N. Bend 6 p.m. • SHS boys BB hosts N. Bend 7:30 p.m. Low Tide 1:06am / 3.4 2:38pm / 0.6 Feb. 15 8:23am / 7.7 2:19am / 3.3 10:01pm / 6.1 3:32pm / 0.0 C a l e n d a r • SHS girls BB FISHING 3B Ned Hickson/Siuslaw News Mapleton freshman forward Dominic Wells leaps for a block as Chris Free, Daniel Collins and Hunter Simington put pressure on from below. Sailors secure playoff spot Mapleton will host Alsea Wednesday for a chance to advance B Y N ED H ICKSON Siuslaw News M APLETON : 58 M OHAWK : 38 L OWELL : 60 M APLETON : 50 The Sailors were a dominant force Tuesday night, hosting Mohawk to an easy 58-38 win that helped secure fourth place in the Mountain West League — and a playoff spot next week. Utilizing a halfcourt trap and 1-3-1 defense, Mapleton picked up multi- ple steals and kept Mohawk along the perimeter, where the Indians met with no baskets for most of the first period. Seniors Chris Free and Tucker Ford helped establish an early 16-0 lead. Both players scored in double digits, along with sophomore Hunter Simington, which gave the Sailors a three-pronged approach to its offense. Though the Indians were able to mount a short rally in the second period with some outside shooting to close the gap within 10 points by halftime, shooting from Free at the end of the third quarter and through the first two minutes of the fourth resulted in eight consecutive unan- swered points for Mapleton — and a 51-33 lead. Pressure at the point from sopho- mores Tyler Packebush and Daniel Collins kept the Indians from pene- trating the key and resulted in sever- al late-game turnovers and easy buckets for the Sailors. “Having Tyler and Daniel rotate at the top of our defense was very suc- cessful for us and led to a lot of turnovers and easy scoring opportu- nities,” said Mapleton coach Will Crook. The win put the Sailors into a tie for fourth place in the Mountain West League as they hosted a match-up with Lowell (10-3) last Thursday night against the second-place Devils. See SAILORS 2B Feb. 16 9:21am / 8.1 3:23am / 2.9 10:47pm / 6.6 4:21pm / -0.6 Feb. 17 10:15am / 8.4 4:19am / 2.3 11:29pm / 7.2 5:06pm / -1.0 Feb. 18 11:07am / 8.6 5:11am / 1.7 5:50pm -1.1 Feb. 19 12:10am / 7.7 6:01am / 1.2 11:58pm /8.6 6:33am -1.0 Feb. 20 12:51am / 8.0 6:51am / 0.7 12:49pm / 8.4 7:15pm / -0.7 S S IUSLAW IUSLAW N EWS 148 Maple St. Florence 541-997-3441