Image provided by: West Linn High School; West Linn, OR
About The amplifier. (West Linn, Oregon) 1921-current | View Entire Issue (June 1, 2010)
2010 Sports 11 Softball team relies on early success to propel through playoffs C lara A ltemus After winning 13 of its 24 games this season, hopes were high for the Varsity Softball Team. The team had "(In past years) we have been the team that tries to beat the better teams," LeVeque said. "This year we are the better team they are trying to beat." The team, confidence this season," LeVeque said. Some of the star players on the team include Mary Scofield, senior, Kylie Crawford, Mackenzie Domann, and Sommer Figone, juniors. Some of the team's biggest highlights included its two wins against Oregon City with clutch hits by Domann and Crawford in both of those wins. Scofield excelled in the first game against Oregon City by grabbing an "outstanding catch" according to LeVeque. "2008 we weren’t so great. 2009 we were lookin' fine. 2010 we got in our zen. 2011 is goin' to be heaven 'cause we are goin' be makin' it to State and that is going to be great!" Domann said. In the team's first two games against Oregon City, West Linn won by one run, putting them fourth in league. They also continued their winning streak against Milwaukie and Lakeridge, out scoring them each by at least 10 runs. They also beat Lake Oswego 13-4 and Wilson 12-7. "You never know what is going to happen, you just have to anticipate," Domann said. The team's goal was to make it to playoffs, according to LeVeque. The team's style of play helped to make that happen. "We're scrappy, but we are all really talented," Figone said. Baseball Team loses in first round continued from page 10 Photo by Alex Houston Briana Barzola, freshman, takes a swing in a recent 5-4 win over Clackamas. The Lions finished fourth in the Three Rivers League, but lost their first gam e in the playoffs against South Salem 3-7. never won a league title or made it past the third round of playoffs. This season, the team started with a string of wins and anticipated a season that would make school history. However, the Lions finished fourth in the Three Rivers League and lost in the first round of playoffs to South Salem, 3-7. which ended the season with a disappointing streak of losses, hoped to rely on its early season success to propel it through playoffs. The players planned to capitalize on the lessons they learned early in April. "What makes this season so great is that we have been playing so smart and with The team had been on a 5-1 winning streak. Riley Wilkerson, junior, has been a bright spot in the team's pitching, with three wins on the mound. Wilkerson was named First Team All League both as a pitcher an infielder. Kramer Lindell, senior outfielder was also named to First Team All League and Erik Stadell, senior infielder, was named Second Team All League. Honorable mentions include Jordan Porter, sophomore first baseman, Mitchell Locke, senior infielder, and Tyler Weber, senior pitcher. Improvement in the team's hitting has partly been the result of eight season home runs from Lindell. He is one of nine seniors who will be graduating, but according to Lord, the team shouldn't have that difficult of a transition next year because of its balance of juniors and seniors who have contributed this year. A highlight of the season, according to Lord, was the game against Oregon City in which West Linn scored 21 runs. The previous two times the teams met, West Linn won 8-2 and 11-5. The trio of wins against Oregon City was followed by two victories over Wilson, 8-6 and 5-3. The following week the Lions took on the Lakeridge Pacers. They started off the series strong with a 2-1 win, followed by a 3-10 loss and another win, 6-2. The team's final complete series was against Milwaukie. The Lions scraped by with a 3-2 win for the first game, but came back for revenge with a 14-2 win two days later. The team finished out league play with a 5-7 loss against the Clackamas Cavaliers. Photo by Alex Houston Tyler Weber, senior pitcher, w inds up, hoping to strike out a Wilson player. West Linn won the game 8-6; it was one of the last non-league games before they finished third in the Three Rivers League. siiawiMagaain We live in an amazing city: the pristine weather, the beautiful green trees, the clean air...and crazed, loyal, Blazer fans. Yes, it's somewhat cliche and it's a subject that has been hashed over many times in the last few years, but it's still undeniably true—Portland has some of the most loyal sports fans, athletes and media in the world. Take for instance, the NBA playoffs. Regardless of where you go the day of a Blazer playoff game, you will see flags flying on cars and Portland citizens, old and young, proudly bearing Blazer jerseys. The Oregonian has devoted up to four pages of coverage for just that one game. Regularly scheduled television shows were postponed to broadcast the game. It's as if the whole world stops for that four hours. But it isn't just playoffs when fans come out of the woodwork. True fans have supported the team for the entire season. Consider the old man who thinks he's the greatest dancer ever. He * wears his too-tight jersey and dances disco proudly during the fourth quarter of every game. Another Blazer game staple is the older woman who lives to shake it on the big-screen jumbotron. Just last night, I heard a story about a woman who celebrated her 81st birthday by watching the playoff game in her home. She has had season tickets for years and years and always catches away games on TV. She is such a true fan, she won’t even let family members talk when the game is going on. We even have our very own "sign lady" at WLHS. Keely Jacobson, math teacher, is known around the city for her Blazer spirit. Jacobson MF- € < -V W * '// fJtitLtSS I ft r and her husband have season tickets in the sixth row across from the Blazer bench. Each game she attends, she brings fun and creative signs to support her team. Jacobson has been featured on the news multiple times for her signs. On game days, she wears a Blazer jersey to school and her classroom is plastered with Blazer paraphernalia. We all know Blazer fans are the best, but think about all the loyal players who return to Portland. Michael Harper, Larry Steele, Jerome Kersey, Darnell Valentine, Terry Porter, Brian Grant and Craig Smith are just a few of the former Blazers who had such strong ties to Portland that they came back here to live and raise their families. We can't talk about Blazer loyalty without mentioning Bill Schonely. Schonely was the first play-by-play broadcaster for the Blazers and coined the term "Rip City." He announced for the Blazers for 28 years and continues to be a part of the immediate Blazer family. His Trailblazer business card reads "Ambassador." At 80, Schonely still attends every single game, greets regulars at the entrance desk and has created lasting relationships with Blazer fans. He represents everything the Blazer franchise stands for. Whether you care for professional sports or not, you can't deny that the Blazers are infinitely important to this city. We have the Rose Gardens, Powell's books, Pittock Mansion...and the Portland Trail Blazers. At the beginning of every fourth quarter, the announcer revs up the crowd by letting everyone know "It's sixth man time" because it's true Portland—we're the sixth man. Without us, the Blazers wouldn't be the Blazers and Portland wouldn't be Rip City.
