May 28, 2003 • The Clackamas Print * 7
SPORTS
Injuries plague baseball team's season
Nic Delzell
The Clackamas Print
Clackamas baseball had a disap
pointing season, finishing the season
well below the .500 mark. The
Cougars were 13-17 in league play and
16-23 overall.
“Next year we are going to have a
different game plan," said Head Coach
Robin Robinson. We are going to be a
little more assertive in our expectations.
To be specific, we are going to be more
demanding. Too many guys played the
game their way instead of ours.”
Robinson said that the loss of play
ers to injuries also hurt the Cougars.
Five pitchers were lost during season
play, including Ricky Gonzales and Ty
Combs, who Robinson said were big
losses.
“We were really down with all
kinds of injuries this year,” said
Robinson. “(Gonzales and Combs)
would have gone out to be number one
guys.”
A few Cougars did step up for the
team, said Robinson.
Freshman catcher Barry Humphrey
hit .366 this year and was selected first
team all-Southem Region. Sophomore
Chris Runyon was selected second
team all-Southem Region after hitting
.311 at the plate this year.
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Sophomore Nik Mason was an hon
orable mention all-NWAACC recipient
as well a second team all-Southem
Region utility player. He played first
base, catcher, designated hitter and
pitched.
“Mason was tremendous in all
those
spots,”
said
Robinson.
“Statistically our pitching was not good
this year, but Mason lead the pitchers
with an ERA of 1.90. I will really miss
Nik. He was a key player and a tough
competitor.”
Outgoing sophomores Josh and
Jesse Gaylord both gave big efforts
during their time at Clackamas. Jesse
will be playing for Western Oregon
University in the fall. Josh is in the
process of finding a school where he
can continue to play ball, according to
Robinson.
“They have packed us for two
years. They are great kids and hard
workers,” said Robinson. “I think all of
the sophomores will go on to play ball
somewhere.”
According to Robinson, the
Cougars biggest wins came May 1
Track produces 14 All-Americans
at NWAACC championships
when the Cougars swept cross-town
rival Mt Hood 5-2,3-1.
The Cougars ended their season on
May 12 after getting swept by
Chemeketa CC; those losses were the
most disappointing, said Robinson.
“A lot of guys were beat up at the
end of the season,” said Robinson.
"That's athletics-sometimes it’s about
playing when you don't want to.”
The 22-man Cougar roster looks
very full for next season, with the pos
sibility that quite a few players could
return.
“If everyone comes back including
freshman, red-shirts and injured players
we could have 18 guys to start next
year,” said Robinson.
Last weekend Edmonds CC (43-7)
defeated Lower Columbia College
(34-9) to win the NWAACC tourna
ment for the second consecutive year.
During the tournament Edmonds set
an NWAACC record for wins in a sea
son, getting win number 41 against
Columbia Basin.
“(Next year) we need to maintain
that fine line of discipline that the
NWAACC winners have,” said
Robinson. “We can't have a break
down.
The winners in the
NWAACC didn't have one break
down this year.”
CORY PRICE Clackamas Print
Freshman catcher Barry Humphrey takes a hack during a season-ending loss to
Chemeketa. Humphrey hit .366 this season to lead the team’s offensive attack.
Softball recruits, sizes up next season
Frank Jordan
The Clackamas Print
Clackamas softball finished the
2003 season with a second-place finish
at last week's Northwest Athletic
Association of Community Colleges
championship tournament, and the
future looks bright for continuing one
of the most successful programs in
NWAACC history. ’
“We are pretty excited about the
girls that we have returning, and
although we are early in the recruiting
process, we are looking forward to
signing some high-quality players,”
said Head Coach Paul Fiskum. “We
have approximately 10-15 kids that we
are looking at from the high school
level, and we try to recruit the best ath
letes that we can.”
The season concluded last
Thursday at the annual NWAACC All-
Star Series at Mt. Hood CC. Brooke
Comstock, Miranda Gillaspie, Morgan
Huffstutter and Carla Lillis represented
Clackamas on the Southern Division
team. The South defeated the Eastern
Division 10-4 and lost to the Northern
Division 11-6.
“These were all-star games, pure
and simple. A lot of players were play
ing out of their normal positions during
the games and it showed,” said Fiskum.
“Miranda pitched the second game and
got roughed up by a series of bunt sin
gles by the North. The first baseman
and third baseman during the all-star
game had not played-those positions
during the season, and the defense
showed.”
Five Cougar sophomores are mov
ing on to bigger and better opportuni
ties as they have accepted full scholar
ships to four-year universities in
Oregon. Comstock and Huffstutter will
play at Western Oregon University.
Lillis and Gillaspie have been given
full rides to play for Southern Oregon
University. Melissa Gibson will have
three years of softball eligibility
remaining as she takes her play to
Portland State University.
“Western Oregon had a first-year
coach this season, and when she came
to the NWAACC tournament to watch
recruits, she told me that she wished
she could have all five of our sopho
mores, they impressed her so much,”
said Fiskum. Brooke and Morgan have
been a big part of the success that we
have had the last two years (NWAACC
runners-up both years), as well as Carla,
Miranda, Melissa and all of the rest of
the girls. I am so proud to see them
move on to the four-year level. They
deserve that and so much more.”
As far as the rest of the NWAACC,
Fiskum said that Lower Columbia
College (five-time NWAACC champs)
will have two of their starting pitchers
back next year. Mt. Hood has already
signed 4-5 recruits and Chemeketa CC
hopes to ride their strong finish to the
season (fifth in the NWAACC tourney)
to greater success next season.
“You never know at the junior col
lege level how your team is going to
stack up really until you hit the diamond
the next season,” said Fiskum. “A lot of
that future success will be determined in
the next three weeks. The Oregon high
school state tournaments, the state
metro all-star series and the early sum
mer softball camps and games will go a
long way in determining recruiting suc
cess. ' Like I said before, we have our
prospects and a couple of kids that we
would like to sign, but that is why this is
called recruiting.”
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CORY PRICE Clackamas Print
Josh Carlson sets himself to launch the javelin at the
NWAACC championship meet held at CCC May 22-23.
Carlson threw a distance of 208-03, three feet better
than his closest competitor to win the title and
become one of 14 Clackamas All-Americans. Paul
Etter won the men’s hammer throw with a distance of
199-03. Rebekah Yancoskie set a four-second per
sonal record as she won the women’s 800 in 2:15.45.
Kari Rissmiller won the women’s 1500 in 4:44.63.
Clackamas swept first, second and third in the
women’s pole vault; Erin Schafer led the pack with a
height of 11-06. Men’s track and field finished fifth
while the women’s team took fourth in team scoring.
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