2011
11
Camaraderie and commitment unify wrestlers
J ack L ammers ________________
Wrestling is often
considered to be an individual
sport, relying solely on self-
motivation and work ethic. For
members of the wrestling team,
the program offers something
more. "Many of the wrestlers
on the team won't ever work as
hard as they do on the team,"
Geoff Bingham, assistant coach,
said.
"This year we don't have
Putnam and Milwaukie, teams
we could count on beating.
Instead we have Canby,
another competitive league
team that is ranked fourth
in the state," Bingham said.
With a resurgence of tough
competition at the league level,
wrestlers face a season which
will continue to push them.
"Only the top four out of
22 will advance to the State
Tournament. This will make
the State Tournament a very
challenging 16 man bracket.
Want to accomplish a big step
in wrestling? Qualify for state,"
Doug Samarron, head coach,
said. With league opponents
Oregon City ranked third and
Canby ranked fourth, the
competition calls for a strong
team with depth, something
Bingham believes isn't a pipe
dream.
"This year's freshman class
Photo by Trade Kreliwitz , Stop Action Memories
Braden K reliw itz, junior, takes down Lake O sw ego’s Tyler
Cunningham, senior. Kreliwitz defeated Cunningham with a pin that
gave West Linn the lead and secured a 55-21 victory.
is pretty normal in terms of
size, but individually they
suck it up and get it done.
The team's improvement
week over week shows their
potential to lead the team in
Team captains lead Debutantes
with experience, knowledge
S ean R ebler
The D ance Team is led by
three captains this season:
A lyssa Bridgm an and Tay
lor Sw anson, seniors, and
M ackenzie Johnson, junior.
"They all use their di
verse skills to gu id e the
team in the right direction,"
H ailey Zaayer, dance team
be great," W ilcox said.
Both coach and players
believe in pu tting in extra
effort to achieve success.
"T h is y e a r is u n iq u e
b eca u se w e are all v ery
dedicated to going the extra
m ile and to grow as a team
and really lift each other
up and not leave anyone
Photo courtesty of Angie Sharpe
Alexis McKinley, junior, commands the other dancers in a floor
competition on Jan. 29 at Canby High School. The Debutantes
placed second out of eight teams, falling short of first place by
only 1.61 points.
m em ber, said.
T h e c a p ta in s le a d b y
exam ple, calling on their
past experiences in dance
to p e rfo rm to th eir b e st
abilities.
"Being chosen as a ju
n io r cap tain w as at first
very intim id ating b u t I feel
like A lyssa, Taylor and I
all w o rk e x tre m e ly w ell
together, w h ich m ade for
an easy tran sition into the
position," Joh n son said.
A n in ten se w ork ethic
and drive to succeed is key,
accord in g to h ead coach
A m anda W ilcox.
"T h is is th e h a rd e s t
w orking team w e have had
in a few years. It's so great
to coach girls w ho w ant to
the future," Bingham said. The
determination of this freshman
class might one day rival
that of the senior arsenal of
Anthoney Chay, Brian Schiewe,
Christian Wilson and Travis
behind," Z aayer said.
W ilcox believes that the
team creates a healthy bal
ance of fun and hard w ork
w hen they step out onto the
dance floor.
"W e a ll h a v e a g re a t
tim e to g e th e r , w h ic h I
think com es from a m utual
resp ect for one another,"
W ilcox said. "The girls are
m otivated and hard w ork
ing, bu t w e also know w hen
to have a good laugh."
In her seventh year at
W est Linn and her 16th year
coaching dance, W ilcox is
respected by her athletes.
continued on page 12
Schutzler.
"Toney Chay is the most
proficient performer this year.
No one from Oregon has
threatened him as of yet. I don't
think there is another person
walking the halls of West Linn
who could go six minutes with
Toney," Samarron said.
As a whole, the team has
demonstrated the application
of its improvement to
accomplishments including
a 10th place finish at the
2010 Pac-West Tournament
against top teams from
Oregon, Washington, and
California. Throughout the
season, wrestlers such as Ryan
Harman, junior, have scored
personal victories.
Most recently the team lost
to Clackamas in a dual meet
19-48 after losing to Oregon
City 19-48 and beating Lake
Oswego 47-19.
"Harman did very well at
the Pac-West Tournament,
beating some incredibly skilled
opponents including one top-
seeded wrestler," Bingham
said.
"This year's coaching staff
has come out ready to contend.
With the league's changes, they
are holding nothing back,"
Braden Kreliwitz, junior, said.
Kreliwitz wrestles for most
of the year and when he isn't
wrestling, he is running on the
cross country team. "Braden
is always the first one done at
track workouts and comes out
with the same intensity every
round. Braden's attention to
technique is what makes him
such a talented competitor,"
Bingham said. Both the
coaches and Kreliwitz see
this year as one of rebuilding
and preparing to compete at a
district level.
"Our goal is to see at least
ten wrestlers at the state
competition, and our team has
the potential to do that. Coach
Samarron's focus on fine-
tuning has definitely helped
our team to compete at a
higher level," Bingham said.
The coaches' expectations
for the team are high and
with less than two months
until State, the season is far
from over. Ultimately, it is the
wrestlers and the experience
of total commitment that
will carry the combination of
ambition and desire from this
season into the rest of their
lives according to Samarron
and Bingham.
The sport does have an
individual level, but the
team's members push each
other to improve. "We push
our entire team to the limit so
that the team can encourage
one another and improve,"
Bingham said.
Boys' Basketball Team finishes second
round of league games with 3-7 record
J ennifer S itton
After a somewhat rocky
start that included numerous
injuries and a 3-5 preseason
record, the boys' basketball
team is hoping to settle into
league play, while continuing
to improve.
The Lions began league
play with two losses against
Lakeridge, 49-53, and Lake
Oswego, 57-66.
"We didn't play our best
against Lakeridge and Lake
Oswego," Riley Wilkerson,
senior, said. "They were both
really beatable teams."
However, the outlook of the
Three Rivers League has been
changed this year with the
addition of Canby and the loss
of Rex Putnam and Milwaukie.
"The league isn't as strong
at the top this year as it has
been in the past, but you
also don't have those gimme
games like you used to,"
Eric Viuhkola, head coach,
said. "It's made all the games
competitive. Lake Oswego is
the most talented of the teams,
but every team in the league is
beatable."
The Lions found their first
league win at Oregon City. The
team led the entire game and
finished with a 64-50 win. That
win was followed by a 46-59
loss to Clackamas and a 65-58
win over Canby to finish up
the first round of League with
a record of 2-3.
To start the second round of
league games, the Lions faced
the Lakeridge Pacers and Lake
Oswego Lakers. The Lions
fell to the Pacers 43-58. That
game was followed by a tough
50- 71 loss to Lake Oswego.
However, the Lions
bounced back in their
game against Oregon
City, winning by a
decisive 23 point margin,
80-57. The team then
fell, 62-51 to Clackamas.
The Lions finished the
second round of league
play falling to Canby,
51- 70. Mitchell Cokely,
junior, put forth a strong
individual performance
with 24 points.
Early in the season,
Viuhkola didn't want to put
a numerical goal on how
he expected the team to
finish in league. "We just
want to try and get better
every game," Viuhkola
said. The team traveled to
Arizona over winter break,
where the players learned a
lot, according to Viuhkola.
In the Arizona
tournament, the team went
2-1, beating a team from
Edina, Ohio 63-57 and a team
from Gilbert Christian High
School 83-69.
"We had a disappointing
two point loss in overtime
of the championship game,"
Viuhkola said. "But I think the
team learned from it that little
mistakes will cost them."
The tournament also saw
the return of two injured
players, Devon Hawkins,
sophomore, and Connor
Kelley, senior. According to
Viuhkola, their return gave the
team more athleticism, even
if their play was still a little
disjointed.
"We played really well in
the first two games. Plus
we had our whole team
back which was nice,"
Wilkerson said. The five
day tournament also helped
the team to come together
as a whole. "Everyone really
bonded. We spent a lot
ms. of time together and had
a
lot of fun going
to restaurants,
the mall and
hanging out at
the hotel."
While TRL
standings and
post-season
playoffs lurk in the
back of everyone's
minds, the Lions are
taking things one
game at a time.
According to
Viuhkola, the
most important
game is
simply
"the next
one."
Photo by Rachael W oolley
Mitchell Cokley, junior, drives to
the basket for a layup in a game
against Canby on Jan. 18. The
Lions beat the Cougars, 65-58, to
finish the first round of league
play with a 2-3 record.