6
March
Student athletes hit field with start of season
% m tm Sports
continued from page 5
What was your funniest
moment in the sport? "I
guess I look back on the time
when Cal (Calvin Spearing)
was pitching in Federals in
a game against Westview.
We were losing really bad,
and Coach (Monahan) was
yelling 'Cal, what's wrong?
What's going on?' Cal yells
from the mound, in front of
everyone, 'Coach, I'm just not
in the zone.' Well that didn't
fly too well with Monahan.
He went out to the mound
and pulled Cal aside and
talked to him. It was great.
We still joke with him about
it."
Varsity
Boys’
Lacrosse:
Spencer
Smith,
senior
How
did you get
involved
with your sport? "During a
seventh grade summer camp
one of my counselors was
playing. He showed me how
to play and it sort of sparked
my interest."
W hat was the best team
you have ever played on?
x'The Oregon A Team that I
played on over the summer
was really good, but I hope
that this year's team will be
the best and we will be able
to make it to win at the State
Tournament."
What is your best memory
from your sport? "My best
game was when I scored four
goals against Tigard in my
sophomore year and got the
game ball for being the best
player from that game."
What about lacrosse do
you like the most? "Lacrosse
is so much more unique than
the other conventional spring
sports like track and baseball,
in that it is sort of a hybrid of
sports together at once."
Varsity Girls'
Lacrosse:
Jenna Steele,
junior
How did you get involved
with your sport? "I started
the summer before seventh
grade. I went to a camp with
Addie Brown and started
playing the first year my
middle school offered it."
What was the best team
you've ever been on? "The
team I'm on now. The team
is awesome, it's way fun."
Who was your favorite
teammate? "Everyone. My
team is my family, we all get
along. The seniors this year
make it extra fun."
What was the most
interesting coach you've ever
had? "I 've only had
like, two coaches,
Bunch has been
the best."
What is
your best
memory
from your
sport? "Just the
team, and how well we mesh.
Also, last year was great; we
made it to semi-finals."
What about the sport do
you like most? "Constantly
moving. It requires a lot
of team involvement,
and something's always
happening."
What was your funniest
moment from your sport?
"Funny things happen daily, I
can't pinpoint one time. Girl's
skirts fly up when they fall,
though, that's funny."
Do you have any
superstitions or traditions?
"We have secret sisters, and
that's usually funny. No
superstitions, though."
Anything else? "Come to
our games because we are
legit."
Varsity Softball:
Amanda Sutton,
sophomore
How did you get
involved with softball?
"I started playing softball
in fourth grade. I joined
because my brother has
played baseball, and I like to
play catch with my family.
A lot of my friends were
also playing at the time.
This season is my seventh
season."
W hat was the best team
you've been on? "I have two
favorite team experiences.
W hen I was young my
mom, dad and other parents
coached the team. Last year,
the team was so fun. We all
had a great time together
and got pretty close. We
saw each other everyday, so
we really got to know each
other."
Who was the most
interesting coach you've
ever had? "LeVeque is a
great coach. The JV coach
was amazing last year. I
spent more time with him
so all the girls had a bond
with him. He was pretty
young too, so it was
easier to relate to him.
The coaches I had when
I was young, were all
great too. They all helped
me develop my skills and
were good for the team as a
whole."
W hat's your best
m em ory from the sport? "A
m em ory for m e is having
my fam ily at all the games^
My brother cam e to a ton
of gam es last year w hich
w as great. Also my parents
alw ays com e; the whole
team has a great support
system ."
W hat's your best
achievem ent? "In
seventh grade I w ent to
a tournam ent in M olalla
w ith my team. Each coach
from all the different teams
w ould vote for 10 girls that
should make up an all-star
team. A long w ith two other
girls on my team I was
voted onto the team by the
coaches. Our team had the
m ost on the all-star team. It
was a great experience!"
Do you have any
s u p e r s t i t i o n s or
traditions?
"One of the
traditions our
team has
is lots of
sunflow er
seeds. We
bring a
couple of
bags, and
everyone shares them. They
disappear so quickly. One
superstition is I can't touch
my hair on the field. I am
alw ays afraid that w hen I
do the ball is going to come
right at me!"
Girls Rugby kicks off regular season with national prestige
a C alley L athrop ____________
Staff Reporter
The Prez Fest Tournament,
which took place Presidents
Day weekend, gave the boys'
and girls' rugby teams a chartce
to take on the best teams from
players on Sunday. Our
rookies were playing with the
experienced vets and really
proving themselves," Ernesto
Espinoza, head coach, said.
For the young girls team,
experience and hard work will
be the best weapon against
Players attempt to win back possession after a Columbia County
player is tackled. The Renegades dominated Columbia County on
Mar. 8 with a final score of 47-5, taking them to a 2-0 record so far this
Photo submitted by Cathryn Lambeth
season.
all over the Northwest and to
see where they stood before
the first regular season games.
Results were mixed, and by
the end of the day tensions ran
high.
The girls' team took on
Eugene on Feb. 16, mopping
the floor 70-0. On Sunday they
played a Canadian team from
Earl-Marriot, British Columbia
(it's about 15 minutes from the
U.S. border). The Renegades
sent them packing, 54-10.
"We played really well,
despite losing some key
the top-caliber opponents they
will soon face. Espinoza thinks
the packed pre-season yielded
positive results and helped in
seasoning new players.
"At one point, we played
four games in eight days,
which is very impressive. I
figured we'd be more beat
up by now, but everyone has
stayed strong," he said.
There is always room for
improvement and Espinoza
hopes that a focus on defense
in practice will produce good
results for the small team.
"We have to keep working
towards going forward at
pace, and supporting each
other to maintain possession,"
Espinoza said.
The girls' first season game
was on Feb. 23 against North
Clackamas where they pulled
out a 51-0 win against the
rivals (West Linn beat them in
the quarterfinals of last year's
State championship, 85-0). The
final pre-season game was
Sunday, when the girls hosted
Washington powerhouse Budd
Bay at The Farm in West Linn.
Their 25-17 loss proved hard
to swallow. However, coaches
were impressed with how the
young team handled itself.
"We knew we could take
them and we fought really
hard," Espinoza said.
The boys' team was
routed by nationally-ranked
Lamorrinda, California, on the
first day of the tournament.
Although the team was
outmatched, coaches were
impressed with the team's
overall improvement. The next
day they took on nationally
ranked Chuckanut, a team out
of California, losing 47-10.
The boys were worried
about fielding an A and B side
this year due to low turnouts
the first few weeks of practice,
but scraped by with enough
people in the end. Their rosters
are not fully set, as new players
have entered after the end
of the-winter sports season.
Despite the tournament losses,
their regular season is off to
a promising start. The B-side,
comparable to a JV team, won
its first game against Columbia
County on Mar. 1,17-5.
Tim Medearis, head coach,
was impressed with the
victory. "We've got real speed,
our new players are really
starting to understand the
game. We may be a young and
small team but we're sticking
with it," he said.
The A-side suffered a tough
loss to powerhouse and 2007
State champions, Beaverton,
in a 24-0 shutout. However,
the team is staying positive.
Medearis hopes there will be
more consistency and more
attendance at practice, so they
can prepare for the tough
games that lay ahead.
"We've had fluctuation in
who shows up. I'm hoping
we'll get down to who's going
to play. We're looking for
consistency, so we can get the
two teams more solidified,"
Medearis said.
The boys' team is
considered the underdog
in its division with young,
inexperienced players taking
on positions normally held by
upperclassmen.
"This is kind of a building
year for us. It's great that there
are lots of new kids, and we're
already playing against top-
notch teams," Medearis said.
Girls'Basketball falls short in
playoffs, future looks promising
m M ax H ays
Staff Reporter
The Girls' Varsity
Basketball Team's hope of
making the elite eight in the
playoffs came to a close on
Feb. 27 against the Sheldon
Irish during the first round.
The Lions managed to stay
close for most of the game
but the number six ranked
Sheldon pulled away in the
fourth quarter, handing the
Lions a 61-42 loss and an
early exit from the playoffs.
"It was a little
disappointing to lose in the
first round, but it was still
a really fun season," Emily
Wattman-Tumer, senior,
said.
The Lions had an
incredible regular season
finishing third in the Three
Rivers League with a 9-3
in league record and 14th
in State with a 17-8 overall
record.
Eight Varsity players will
return next season including
Elise Miller, Andrea
Maleike, Amy Christensen,
freshmen, M organ Joscelyn,
Kelsey Stuart, sophomores,
and Brittany May, Avary
Kolasinski and Hannah
Schumaker, juniors. With so
many players returning, the
team will hope to improve
upon this year's record and
make it deeper into the
playoffs.