12
Schools
April 15
2021
VHS Sports Report: Vernonia Boys Take 5 th at State XC Meet
Draeger finishes 11 th in
girls meet, Gump 19 th
The Vernonia Loggers Cross
Country squads finished a successful
season on Saturday, April 10 with a
strong showing at the State Champion-
ship, held at Cheadle Park Lake in Leb-
anon.
The Vernonia boys team took
5 th place in the team standings, while
freshman Delany Draeger finished in
11 th place and Sadie Gump took 19 th
running individually in the girls race.
For the Vernonia runners, the
journey to the State Championship
started back in September during the
traditional fall season. “When our run-
ners found out that the season would be
postponed, they decided to still run to
prepare in case the OSAA decided to
proceed with some type of season lat-
er in the school year,” said head coach
John Roady following the conclusion of
the season. “They ran through the cold
winter months. Led by the 600 miles
put in by senior Nick Costley, a few oth-
ers ran over 300 miles during this time.
They all worked hard without being
guaranteed a season.”
And it all paid off at the State
Championship. For the Vernonia boys,
it was again a team effort, just like it’s
been all season. The team’s top five
runners all season have been a senior,
Nick Costley and a group of four sopho-
mores, all swapping finishing places
throughout the season. At the State
Championship it was Evan Miller who
straight state meet. Freshman Eloise
Pedersen continued to show promise for
the future as she finished in the top half
of all of her races.”
led the Vernonia group, finishing 40 th
overall in a time of 18:54, followed
closely by Seth Scheuerman in 43 rd
place in 18:57. Next up for the Loggers
were Costley in 51 st place in 19:22 and
Peter Hahn in 52 nd just a split second be-
hind him, also in 19:22. Finishing the
scoring for Vernonia was Max Anderson
in 76 th place in 20:18, giving the Log-
gers team 173 points and their 5 th place
finish. Sophomore Isaiah Rodriguez of
Knappa finished 3 rd in 16:45, while Jew-
ell junior Nicholas Nikander took 37 th in
18:48.
“Even though we did not have
an elite runner on the boys team, our
pack was always pushing some of the
state’s best,” said Roady.
The Vernonia girls did not have
enough runners this season to qualify
as a team for the State Championship,
but did place their two runners as indi-
viduals. Draeger, who has led the team
all season, finished in 20:44 to take
11 th place while Gump finished 19 th in
21:47. League rival Jordan White, a ju-
nior from Neah-Kah-Nie finished 8 th in
20:22.
“The girls had an outstand-
ing season as individuals,” said Roady.
“Delaney was first in several meets dur-
ing the season and was outstanding at
the state meet. Sadie was Delaney’s
sidekick and qualified for her second
Volleyball – The Vernonia Lady Log-
gers competed in the Northwest League
Playoffs, winning one match before be-
ing eliminated in the semi-finals.
The Lady Loggers easily han-
dled Faith Bible on April 6 in the open-
ing round, winning the match 3-0 by
scores of 25-12, 25-15, and 25-17. On
April 8 they faced league leaders Co-
lumbia Christian and fell 3-1 by scores
19-25, 19-25, 25-16, and 20-25. On
Saturday, April 10, Gaston beat Co-
lumbia Christian 3-0 to take the League
Championship.
Head coach Teresa Williams
said the team struggled with their pass-
ing and serve-receive in their final
match. “We were competitive and the
girls didn’t give up.”
Vernonia concluded regular
season league play on April 1 with a
3-0 loss to Nestucca. The Lady Logger
finished their season with a 8-5 record
overall.
“Considering the amount of
time we had to prepare for the season,
and with a small and somewhat inexpe-
rienced team, I was pleased with how we
finished,” said Williams, “but of course
I would have liked to make to the league
final game. I think our veteran player
did well to help the rest of the team play
their best.”
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