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About The amplifier. (West Linn, Oregon) 1921-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 1, 2008)
8_ ______________________________________ SpQ CtS________________________________ February Rugby teams prepare, partake in pre-season matches u CALLEY L a THROP________ - Staff Reporter The boys' and girls' rugby team s rucked, tackled and ran, dom inating their opponents in last year's state com petition. The girls won first, and the boys took fourth. The rugby season began on Jan. 15, and both team s anticipated victory as pre-season games and tournam ents against top- caliber opponents drew near. The girls have gained a new arsenal of freshmen. A strong set of returning players including A riel H eston, Alison M cDonald, Kylie Rogers, seniors, and M egan Hackney, Katherine Linday, Zchonae Jones, juniors, that are expected to make an im pact. The first pre-season game was on Feb. 1 against Canby, the Renegades successfully fought through the Cougars' powerful offence w ith a final individual talent and drive, we ju st need to work on tightening up all the loose ends and pulling together as a team ," Espinoza said. Their second m atch took place Feb. 10 against the Kent Crusaders, who placed second at last year's national com petition. The Crusaders swept the floor when a player drove through the offense, scoring w ithin the last few minutes Shelby Patterson, freshman, practices her creating a fined tackling with Rachel Sommers, 2007 Canby graduate. The Renegades have played two score of 22-15. Both teams preseason games since their Jan. 15 start. They took on powerful Canadian opponents during w ill participate the Prez Fest tournament held last weekend and in the Prez Fest won two of their games. tournam ent on P h o to b y C a fle y L a th ro p Feb. 16 and 17, score of 22-7. "A fter the Canby game I noticed that we have a lot of With State approaching, Snowboard, Ski teams continue preparations B M a x H ays _________ ;____ Sports Editor Snowboard Team looks for strong season finish Top finishers at Three Rivers League competitions held each weekend have been collecting individual points, helping their teams in the quest to qualify for State. At the Jan. 26 Varsity Half- Pipe competition, Tanner Kewley, junior, came in first place for the boys with a best score of 183. For the girls, Mackenzie Bruns, senior, came in third place with an overall score of 82. In the Jan. 12 Varsity Banked Slalom competition, Spencer Smith, senior, blew away the competition with an impressive time of 43.522 seconds, and Jonathan Lambert, sophomore, came in third place for the boys. For the girls, Susanna Taylor, junior, Carolyn Barnwell, senior, and Bruns, took second, third and fourth with times of 44.6 seconds, 48.2 seconds and 50.0 seconds, respectively. In the Jan. 19 Varsity Slopestyle competition, Nick McMillen, freshman, had a strong showing for the boys and tied for fourth overall with score of 135. For the women, Bruns and Jali Henry, sophomore, placed third and fourth with scores of 99 and 71 respectively. According to Nannette Boggess, team adviser, 24 members qualified last year for the Oregon Interscholastic Snowboard Association (OISA) championships. But with three long term injuries, including Barnwell, one of the girls top snowboarders who is out for the rest of the season, the Snowboard Team will have to make up for the members lost in the next few competitions. _ This year championships will be held at Timberline and will occur over a three day span, each day being reserved for a separate run. As of press time the results from the Feb. 3, Feb. 10 and Feb. 17 competitions were unavailable. 2:33.73 seconds for the boys. Girl's Varsity came in third place overall and Boy's Varsity came in seventh place overall. In the overall league standings, Martus is currently in third with 216 points and is Ski Team gears up for State Competition With State approaching, many skiers are scrambling to improve their Three Rivers League standings and establish themselves as top contenders. "The Varsity team is doing really well this year and everyone should be qualified to go to State," Kevin Slossar, sophomore, said. With Giant Slalom and Slalom runs, skiers use the practices each week to work on increasing their speed and endurance. From the competition on Jan. 26, David Hinton, junior, won the Three Rivers League Giant Slalom, completing both runs in a total time of 2:06.38. For the girls, Madeleine Martus, freshman, came in third place with a combined time of 2:41.35. Boys' Varsity took home fourth place overall finish while G irl's Varsity took third place overall. In the latest competition on Feb. 9, Martus camé in third with a total time of 2:42.96 seconds for the girls and Sean Campbell, sophomore, came in seventh with a total time of M adeleine M artus, freshman, works her way down the slopes during the Feb. 9 Giant Slalom at Ski Bowl. Both the boys' and girls' teams are enjoying solid seasons with the girls in fourth place and the boys in fifth place in the TRL. which w ill include the best team s from Canada, Oregon and Northern California. The girls are still set to take on the Budd Bay Barracudas (second at the 2007 regional cham pionships) on Feb. 24. The boys team is a young and sm all one, w ith many returning sophomores and few seniors. They are not, w orried, because, according to Tim M edearis, head coach, the team is a determ ined one. "Our good conditioning was a saving grace for us last year, we may not have been big but we were fast. So far, turnout at practice has been low, but there are people ■ who have w inter sports to finish up, so w e're still hopeful," M edearis said. An issue that both teams faced was where to practice. Lacrosse becam e a school- sanctioned sport this year and was given priority use over the rugby team s. "We were really worried that we w ouldn't have a field to practice on," M edearis said. The issue was resolved as both teams w ill move to Athey Creek M iddle School to enable them to practice at an earlier tim e and avoid the early darkrtess until daylight Savings takes effect. Work standards guide Girls' Basketball Team to strong league play u L.EX1 WELP ______ ______ Staff Reporter The Varsity Girls' Basketball Team welcomed two sophomores and four freshmen who have combined with returning players to gel as the group heads into the second half of league play, according to Glenn Lee, head coach. The team played the "highlight game of the season," on Jan. 25 at home against league nemesis, Clackamas. ~ Lions scored a huge win, 64-59, over the Cavaliers who were ranked fourth in the state. "Everyone was playing really well> and we got a win," Amy Christensen, freshman, said. The Lions have won six out of their last seven games in Three Rivers League play defeating Milwaukie, 74-31, on Jan. 18 and 76-28 on Feb. 15; Lakeridge twice, 51-41, on Jan. 8, and 53-49, on Feb. 5; Putnam, 57-36, on Jan. 31; and Lake Oswego 51-50, on Jan 29. Beating Clackamas, though, boosted the team to second place in the league and gives it a better shot at making it to state. "We have to come to play every day and not take practices or nights off," Lee said, referring to what the team needs to do to prepare for state. According to Lee, if the team stays focused, follows game plans and stays healthy, it really has a good shot at making state. "It's not about age, it's about work ethic. But experience is also part of it and we still have seniors and juniors that have that," Christensen said. Seniors on the team include Natalie Pittenger, Emily Wattman- Tumer and Rosetta Adzasu, guards. The team is currently preparing for state in hopes of making it to the Chiles Center on the University of Portland campus, where the state tournament is being held on Feb. 27-March 8. The Lions end their regular season in a home game on Feb. 21 against Lake Oswego on senior night. "The youth of the four freshman and two sophomores, coupled with all the other experienced players, help make this a solid team. A team built on character, hard work and togetherness," Lee said. P h o to s u b m itte d b y J e ff M a u r e r closing in on second. Chelsea Spitzer, senior, is the closest to Martus for the girls in 12th place with 83 points. For the boys, Hinton is in second with 200 points, and Campbell, and Alec Ramsey, freshman, are in ninth and 16th place respectively. With the Oregon Interscholastic Ski Racing Association (OISRA) quickly approaching for the skiers, the team must transition into work mode improving favorite tricks and increasing speed. Both the Snowboard and Ski teams will continue to compete until the Snowboard State Championships take place March 6-8, and the Ski Team State race on March 5-7. David Barey, O.D. Optom etrist a t Clackamas Costco EYE EXAMS - CONTACTS - COLOR CONTACTS for appointments call: 503 - 652-7467
