10 Sports
Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2007
T vlackamas Print
Winter sports gear up
for 2007-2008 season
All stories by Melanie Fisher
Expectations high for wrestling this season
After coming off one of the best years in the
team’s history, the Cougars are expecting a lot of
themselves. Last year, they finished an impressive
fifth at the National Junior College Association
Division 1 Wrestling Championships.
The Cougars are known for producing impres
sive wrestlers. According to the college Web site,
many go on to more advanced levels of competi
tion. The team is excited for the upcoming season.
“We have recruited some very talented kids, and
I am excited to start working with each of these
young men,” states Head Coach Josh Rhoden on
the college Web site’s wrestling page.
The Cougars are counting on Marty Eng and
John Bates.
Eng has been an Oregon Sports Athletic
Association state champion and a Greco state
champion, plus a Triple Crown winner.
Bates was a 4A state champion and a two-time
4A place winner. As a senior at Oregon City High
School he had a 38-0 record. Last year, he was the
Region 18 heavyweight champion, and placed third
at the NJCAA National Championships, which
earned him All-American honors.
The wrestling team hopes to throw down the
mat and beat the count. They have already com
peted in three tournaments this year.
The Patriots are carrying
on their dynasty with an
undefeated streak and are
taking down any team that
gets in their way
Andrea Simpson
| Sports Editor
Robert Crawford Clackamas Print
A wrestling team member tries to escape John Bates’ (top)
hold in wrestling practice. Bates placed third at the NJCAA
National Championships last year.
Women's basketball shoots to score
Josh Hudson Clackamas Print
A Clackamas player dribbles around an opponent. The
basketball team is currently 3-2 this season.
The women’s basketball team is coming off a sec
ond-place finish and a 20-10 record, and is hoping to
carry on the tradition of talent.
“We expect the season to go as normal, which means
coming in first or second and qualifying for tourna
ments, which we havg done for the past eight seasons,”
Coach Jim Martineau said.
“The Cougars have won four out of the last six
league championships and are hoping to win it this
year,” he added.
The team has only four returning players and is
counting on their seven new players to help carry the
load.
Talented players to watch for include Rachel
Copeland, who was 1st Team All-Regions and averages
16 points per game. Kelsey New, an honorable mention
for all regions last year, averages 13 points per game.
New puts up impressive numbers with her three-
point range. She made 79 three-pointers last season,
the second greatest amount of three-pointers made in
one season.
Then there is Monique Tribble, who was injured last
season and is entering her third year here at the college
and on the team.
“When she is healthy, she averages double figures
in both rebounding and scoring,” Martineau said of
Tribble.
The team has the momentum to have an amazing
season.
Men’s basketball aims
After last season’s championship win, the Cougars
have a lot to live up to.
The team finished with a 29-4 record and won both
the Southern Region Championship and the Northwest
Athletic Association of Community Colleges champion
ship. They are hoping to repeat fate this year under the
coaching of Clif Wegner.
This is Wegner’s ninth season at Clackamas, and he has
proven himself with impressive numbers, which include a
recap of the team’s achievements in 2006 and 2007. Last
year, he was named Coach of the Year by the league.
However? the Cougars are going to have to find a new
recipe for success after having lost nine of their players.
“We are still a team that you are going to have to work
at to beat,” Wegner said. “We do still have size and tal
ent.”
Some key players to watch for this season, accord
ing to Wegner, are Scott Martin from Rex Putnam High
School, Adam Brickley, who was 1st Team All-League
his senior year, and Jeff Sego, who was team captain
during his senior year in Black Hills, Wash., a three-year
varsity letter and a two-time 1st League All-Team mem
ber his junior and senior year.
Clackamas just finished hosting the NWAACC jam
boree Nov. 3.
to top last season
This season, as I watch and root for
my beloved Patriots, the question on
my mind is: Can anybody halt their
winning streak?
The team has a record of 11 -0. They
!are the only undefeated team in the
NFL.
Possibly the sweetest match-up for
all Patriots fans was the one against
the Indianapolis Colts.
Ever since the Colts defeated the
Pats to advance to the Super Bowl last
year, Patriots fans have gritted their
teeth and felt the bitter sting of defeat
every time Peyton Manning has shown
his face on T.V. - and with all his ad
campaigns lately, it seems like that is
every other commercial.
Most recently, the Patriots went
head-to-head with the Philadelphia
Eagles.
Head Coach Bill Belichick gave
a press conference on Friday, Nov.
23, and answered questions about
what they would be up against on
Sunday. As quoted from a video on the
Patriots’ Web site, Belichick said that
Eagles have a good defense and they
just needed to be on their toes.
The game was back-and-forth and
ended up coming down to the wire.
It was the fourth quarter with four
minutes to go, and the Eagles had
possession. The scoreboard had the
Eagles with 28 and the Patriots with
31.
Patriot’s fans were on the edge of
their seats as Eagles quarterback A.J.
Feeley threw for a touchdown, but it
was intercepted by Patriots comer-
back Asante Samuel. The Patriots ran
the clock down and won with the same
score.
Tom Brady has been considered
the star of the team since he secured
his first Super Bowl ring in 2001. But
other key players make up the unde
feated team.
Randy Moss was thought by sports
analysts to be washed-up and done
with his career when he played for
the Oakland Raiders. When he was
drafted to the Patriots, however, he
truly had a chance to shine as a wide
receiver.
Another player who was outstand
ing was Wes Welker. He broke through
the line, and Brady found him for
some amazing plays. Welker replaced
wide receiver Troy Brown after he
was placed on the Physically Unable
to Perform List.
The Patriots look like they can go
all the way this year. They are unde
feated because they know their strong
points and they play like a team,
which is refreshing in a league full of
egocentrics and individual stars.
Any questions or comments?
Sportsed@clackamas.edu
Brian Freeman, number 24, blocks a shot against a
Chemeketa CC player in the 2006-2007 season.