13
Tennis Teams look toward defending District titles
m M ark C hipperfield __________
Staff Reporter
Last year the Boys' Varsity
Tennis Team won its sixth
Three Rivers League Title. The
team is looking to take on all
challengers and is confident of
another successful campaign.
"Our goal is to win the
league title again and to
possibly send four or five
players to state/' Ward Lewis,
coach, said.
They return nine players
from last year's team including
State runner-up Doubles Team
of Christopher Erbin and Miles
Rifkin, seniors. Of those nine
players, eight of them are
seniors, such as Brett Wright,
senior, who brings valuable
experience to the team.
"There are many seniors
on this team that we will
be depending on for their
leadership and their vast
experience," Wright, co-captain,
said.
The five newcomers to the
team are extremely talented
and will bring exuberance that
is valued by returning team
members according to Wright.
"We have some younger
kids who are really good
and are excited to start their
careers," Wright said. "They
have this swagger about
them that helps us look more
intimidating."
A top prospect to look out
for this season is William
Risenhoover, freshman, who
has impressed early with
his pure talent and beautiful
strokes according to Wright.
The early season has been
a bit disheartening due to the
large amounts of rain.
"The rain has made us have
less available practice time but
Brett Wright, senior, serves in a match against Tualatin High School.
He and his teammate Sam Tingey, senior, won their match and helped
the team to a 6-2 victory.
Photo by Nico Varela
^5oys Rugby win to remain undefeated,
Girls rebound after disappointing loss
, G alley L athrop ____________
Staff Reporter
Tensions were high as the
rugby season began. The
boys' team was looking to
prove its worth after a winless
2008 season, and the girls
were attempting to hold off
increasingly Competitive teams
and defend their State title. So
far, records have been made
and broken, with climactic
final games in the offing.
After a 52-0 shutout against
North Clackamas on March 7,
the boys were confident about
their abilities against Bend, a
new team who they took on
March 14.
"Unfortunately they're very
optimistic. It's easier to get
everyone's attention if they
lose. We're a bit cocky right
now," Tim Medearis, head
coach, said.
The boys attained their
second shutout of the season
against Bend, 31-0. The next
week also produced a 32-7 win
over Newberg, bringing the
team to first place in Division
II.
Medearis attributes much
of the team's pre-season and
league success so far in their
athleticism and experience.
"We have a mix, about one-
half of the team is returning
s, and half are new, but
ithletes in general,"
Medearis said.
*
Also contributing to their
success and positive attitudes
is the addition of a new
member to the program—the
Scrum Machine. Large and
rolling, it simulates one side
of a "perfect" scrum, allowing
a team to match itself against
it and test its skill. It does for
forwards what a row of fake
linemen do for a football team.
Pat Hogan, coach, bought
the $9,000 machine from
University of Oregon for a
mere $150.
According to Medearis,
captains Charles Stevens,
senior, and Matthew Kilby,
Lakeridge senior, have been
"very outstanding" in leading
the younger team.
"A lot of goals have been
met so far, and the team
is playing amazingly well
together. We are looking to
repeat our 2007 trip to State
semi-finals," Kilby said.
On March 7, the girls
team traveled to Edmonton,
Canada, on their bye-week
to test themselves against the
best team in all of Canada
and North America, Carson-
Graham. The final score, 15-25
in favor of the Eagles, was a
disappointment. However,
many players saw the two-
try margin as a near victory.
The girls are confident after
their domination in the
Rugby Oregon Pre-season
tournament, in which they
skunked all opponents, falling
only to Canby. Following
that was a 35-0 win against
Columbia County.
Over spring break, the
Renegades travelled to
Fullerton, Calif., to participate
in the international Fullerton
Youth Rugby Tournament.
Twenty-six teams were in
attendance from California,
Washington and several
districts in Canada. Their
first three matches were
successful, the biggest win
coming against the home
team, Fullerton, in which they
won by two points in the final
minutes.
They then lost by a narrow
margin to Carson Graham,
who went on to take gold.
The next day, the team fell in
the semi-final round to rival
Kent, Wash.. They left the
tournament with a bronze
finish, which many saw as a
great accomplishment.
"We played the best we
have in all four years I’ve been
playing," Megan Hackney,
senior captain, said. "Our loss
to Kent, well, sometimes we
win and sometimes we lose,
but we will play them again
later and be ready as ever. We
got a really nice flow going
in California, we just need to
keep working hard and finish
the season strong."
we will still be ready to take on
the season," Wright said.
The season started on a sour
note for the team with a 1-7 loss
to Sunset. The lone win came
from the four doubles team
of Blake Beehler, senior and
Nathan Aden, junior. However,
the team's loss was without
Erbin, Rifkin, and Andrew
Brown, sophomore, three
key contributors to the team.
The team did rebound from
that loss with an 8-0 victory
against Reynolds High School,
followed with a 6-2 victory
against Tualatin High School.
The Girls' Varsity Team
is also looking to defend its
League Title from last year.
They also have nine returning
players who will bring
experience to the team.
A newcomer to the team
this year is Ke Ounaphom,
coach. He previously had
been the Boys' Tennis Coach
at Clackamas High School.
He is energized with this new
opportunity.
"This is my first season
coaching at WLHS, and I am
looking forward to getting to
know all of the ladies. I am
looking forward to a great
season!" Ounaphom, coach,
said.
The recent run of rain has
also ruined the beginning
of the practice schedule
for the girls, but they were
looking forward to starting
their league schedule April 1
against Clackamas and April
2 against Lake Oswego. Those
two teams are most likely to
be the toughest competition
for the team this year.
"Lake Oswego is an
obvious competitor and
always a tough team, however
we can’t count out Clackamas
High School," Ounaphom,
said.
The team is looking to
improve throughout the
season and peak toward the
end of the season.
"I hope to see the
team make consistent
improvements and learn from
each others strengths and
weaknesses in order to peak
before the District and State
competitions" Ounaphom,
said.
Districts begin May 11
while the State tournament
begins May 21.
The teams will face off
against Oregon City today,
with the boys team hitting the
road and the girls playing at
home starting at 4 p.m.
Kelly's high powered
offense takes over
continued from page 12
Although many people
thought he would stay for one
more season as coach, Bellotti
decided that the team is in a
good state to be handed over
to Kelly instead of giving
him a team that needs to be
rebuilt. As the third most
winning football coach in
the history of the Pacific-10
Conference in league wins,
Bellotti's 62.6 percent
winning percentage is 16th in
conference all-time. He trails
UCLA's Terry Donahue and
Washington's Don James.
Kelly will be the Ducks'
third head coach in the past
33 years. During his two
years as offensive coordinator,
Oregon established school
records in scoring, rushing
yards and total offense
according to the Statesman
Journal. In 2008, the Ducks
have ranked second in the
country in rushing and
seventh nationally in both
total offense and scoring.
Kelly created an offense for
the Ducks that has accounted
for 50 points or more in 10
games. His offensive attacks
have been responsible for
establishing no fewer than
24 school records in his time
with the Ducks.
Kelly previously served
as the University of New
Hampshire's offensive
coordinator and quarterback's
coach from 1999-2006. Kelly's
offensive teams averaged
better than 400 yards of total
offense in seven of his eight
seasons and more than 30
points a game in his final
four years. In 2005, Kelly's
best offensive output was
when the University of New
Hampshire finished second
nationally in total offense,
third in scoring and fifth
in passing. The team also
completed the season with
an 11-2 record. In 2004, the
school broke 29 offensive
school records, compiling
5,446 yards of total offense
and scoring 40 or more points
in seven games according to
GoDucks.com.
Some new changes that
have begun are that Kelly
will be starting practices
earlier beginning at 8:30 a.m.
Practice will be extended over
five weeks rather than four.
With Bellotti as coach every
practice was divided into five
minute periods. The team
could then spend 10 minutes
in 7-on-7 drills or 15 minutes
in full contact scenarios. Kelly
will base his practices around
six minute segments which
will provide 12 minutes for a
typical drill.
The team has been handed
over with a good record
and plenty of potential for
next year. Kelly should be
able to succeed with the
team, especially with Bellotti
helping during the spring
practices. There will be
changes, but with Kelly's
previous records the changes
should only help the team
grow.