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About The amplifier. (West Linn, Oregon) 1921-current | View Entire Issue (June 1, 2011)
June Girls' Lacrosse Team utilizes solid chemistry to earn third place in Three Rivers League departure in the State Playoffs, Elston still holds high aspirations for the future of the program. "We're a young team, and I think there's a lot of maturing that will happen in the next few S ean P esler _________________ The Girls' Lacrosse Team advanced to the third round of the State Playoffs before falling to league foe Lake Oswego, 20- 9, capping a season where the team fought against the odds to win many games. Despite having a young team, a contributing factor to the team's success was the development of chemistry between players, according to Hannah Gulgren, junior. "This year we have all become a lot closer on and off the field, and I think that's really helped us become a stronger team," Gulgren said. Another key aspect that propelled the advancement of the team was the progress that younger players made, according to Megan Elston, head coach. "This season has been a huge turnaround," Elston said. "We've scored a lot of goals, and competed well against the top teams in the state. I'm very proud of the team and their progress." The Lions carried their momentum from the regular season into the State playoffs, where the team defeated Corvallis and Liberty by the same score, 12-10, before falling to Lake Oswego. Elston feels that the team showed immense improvement regarding a pivotal aspect of any sport: league play. The team's Three Rivers League record after the regular season stood at 5-5. Timely hits, lock-down pitching add to triumph of Baseball Team S ean P ebler Photo by Laurei Massaro Mariah Gatti, freshman, wards off two defenders in a game against league rival Oregon City on May 5. The Lions lost to the top-seeded Pioneers, 18-5, finishing 5-5 in league play. "We held onto an early lead against Lakeridge for our first win against them in many years and have competed against Oregon City and Lake Oswego," Elston said. "We came out really strong against LO, leading 4-0 at the beginning of the game." Continuing their early dominance after a disappointing loss to Lake Oswego on April 18, the Lions reeled off three straight wins against Putnam, Canby and Oregon Episcopal School. The team then lost two league games in a row; an offensive shoot-out to Lakeridge, 12-11, and a loss to top-tier Oregon City, 18-5. After clinching a playoff berth with a win against Canby, the Lions set out to tweak minor aspects of their game in order to compete with the elite teams in playoffs. To wrap-up regular season play the girls defeated league foe Riverdale, 18-7. In their final game of the regular season, the team fell to Lake Oswego, 16-12. Even though the Lions experienced a third round Young Track and Field Team sends five athletes to State - T y C larke _________________ With many new athletes, the Track and Field team sent six improve in all areas," head coach Joe Cerny said before State. "We are never satisfied, we always want to do better in all events." Photo by Laurel Massaro Zachary Boyd-Helm, senior, leads the pack during his race at Districts. He was one of multiple Lions to advance to State, where he finished third in the 800 meters. to Hayward Field in Eugene for the State meet. As a team, the girls nearly took third place at Districts, falling one point behind Grant to end in fourth, while the boys finished seventh. "We are always looking to seasons," Elston said. "There have been some glimpses of it this season, like the win against Lakeridge and the competitive play against Lake Oswego. I can't wait to see where this team will go." advice. For the boys, Zachary Boyd-Helm, senior, was one of two male athletes to head to State, held on May 20-21, where he took third. "I was very happy with my performance at State, I didn't expect to get third," Boyd-Helm said. "The only thing I am disap pointed about is I was hoping to run a faster time." Fellow distance runner Cul len Wannarka, senior, joined Boyd-Helm. Wannarka finished seventh in the 3,000 meters. For the girls, the team ad vanced four athletes and a relay team to Eugene. Casey Livesay, senior, finished seventh in the 100 meters hurdles. At State, Maria Green was a single inch behind first place in high jump while coming in third. Madison Leek, sophomore, took fifth in the 100 meter dash and sixth in the 200 meters. Leek ran the 200 meters in25.23 seconds, securing a school record. The girls also had a 4 x 100 me ters relay team advance to State. Livesay, Green, and Leek were joined by Cara Boucher, sopho more, on the team that finished sixth. Additionally, Benedicta Wilsted, sophomore, took 5th in the 100 200 and 400 meters in the wheelchair division. The Baseball Team is sitting atop the Three Rivers League with Lake Oswego after going 12-3 against other league opponents. Much of this success can be attributed to clutch hitting and stingy pitching, according to Mike Lord, head coach. To begin the State Playoffs, the fourth-seeded Lions went toe-to-toe with fifth-seeded Forest Grove on May 23. The team defeated the Vikings 4-2 after an explosive second inning and only three total hits given up by Riley Wilkerson, senior. The team's next playoff game will be against Jesuit on May 25. "We have been getting the key RBIs (runs batted in) with guys in scoring position," Lord said. "And Riley Wilkerson and James Coghill (junior) have done a great job on the mound for us this league season." On May 2, the Lions began their three-game series against Lake Oswego, conquering the Lakers 3-0 after Wilkerson pitched a stellar two-hitter. "After the LO game and the two-hitter it felt really good," Wilkerson said. "Pitching my best game this season against LO is very nice. I had to for our team to win." The team followed up the win with two consecutive losses, losing the series to Lake Oswego, two games to one. Despite the disappointment of falling to the Lakers, the Lions roared back to sweep their final league series against Clackamas. The wins allowed the Lions to become co-champions of the TRL with Lake Oswego. "As we close out the season, I expect our team to be playing better and better," Wilkerson said. "We want a State Championship this year." Photo by Laurel Massaro Riley W ilkerson, senior, completes his throwing motion in a league game against Clackamas. The Lions finished the season with a three-game sweep of the Cavaliers, earning them a place a share of the Three Rivers League title with Lake Oswego. Many successes and surprises propel Boys' Tennis Team to State C harlie C raft Photo by Laurel Massaro Preston Rattle, senior, grimaces w hile attem pting a backhand in preparation for State. Rattle and M icah Wiard, senior, were unseeded going into Districts but defeated the second and fifth seeds to go on to State. The Boys' Tennis Team finished up its season with results at Districts that exceeded expectations and advanced five players to State. Doubles teams Ken Tsuruta and Arthur To, seniors, and Preston Rattle and Micah Wiard, seniors, all made it to State, along with Ian Reisenhoover, junior. At State, To and Tsuruta had a bye for the first round. The fifth seeded duo won its first match versus Sprague to advance to the quarterfinals, where the team was defeated by South Salem. Rattle and Wiard lost their first match and went into the consolation round. There the team was victorious in its first match but fell in the second round. Risenhoover also had a bye for the first round but was defeated in his first match. continued on page 18