Image provided by: Clackamas Community College; Oregon City, OR
About The Clackamas print. (Oregon City, Oregon) 1989-2019 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 14, 2009)
clackamas print sports 7 Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2009 ¡ars daw back competition By Mark Foster -s kick it in to look for title Sports Editor [Mark Foster Sports Editor 2008 season did not L the Cougars wom- Ler team wanted it to. jew they were better. iach knew they were low they just have to fougars finished last with a 12-5-3 record, the NWAACC South kt the end of the sea team was ranked in tour, along with four tons from the South [regions. I competition to say | ing into the playoffs, gars were awarded a ind bye, jolting them to the quarterfinals, ne would turn out to [only win of the post- [defeating Whatcom hity College 3-2 in ng off an unfortunate ttace finish, the team itly leading the South Coach Tracy Nelson of confidence in her he feels her team is ng to work out some re still coming togeth- lam. We have a lot of and are working on ling our talent,” said from leading the gion, the Cougars are ing in third in the |C. bmore Sara Landis but this year’s team, far we have more tal- our team has better y.” iin Dani Lichty added, ive more respect for er.” 10 returning women yen freshman there is balance between the Brad Heineke Clackamas Print Freshman forward Jennifer Almond clears the ball down the line against Everett Community College. The Cougars are currently 4-2-2 in league play. two.- Landis said, “There is a good amount of experience to go with the incoming talent.” A rough first road trip set the team back, but Nelson felt that it was a learning moment and now the team is more focused and determined to go out and get the job done. . Nelson added, “I definitely feel we are headed in the right direction and will be playing our best soccer by the time the playoffs come.” Landis and Lichty both agreed that Chemeketa will be the toughest competition of the year. The way the team has been playing lately, though, they should be able to top Chemeketa and most of the conference. “If we can pull it together we can win it all: We just need to play as a team,” said Landis. Less injuries have also helped the team stay on track and keep headed in the right direction. With six games remaining the Cougars are looking to make a push to win a league title. They play Clark College today at 2 p.m. in Vancouver. ch pushes players to win in the classroom Carlos Calderon Clackamas Print ite the echo of basket- plently colliding with kind and the chatter ptball players as their was winding down, |,could be heard ema- from down the hall. It werful, enthusiastic; ng, spirited and most tai. Ing in on Kathie pre-practice instruc- [one can’t help but ¡the complete and lention the team paid It didn’t matter who I instructions were I towards, everyone [• This was the first I of the week, second p loss to Concordia |ity and another opporr 1° regroup, to refocus, ove. |e age where coach- R around from pro- P program, Woods has jlackamas Community October classic returns College her home. In her 25 years as head coach, Woods has garnered a bevy of awards, such as the prestigious and always . elusive NWAACC “I don’t gQ out and recruit the best volleyball player I can find, I try to so out and recruit the best people I can find that are athletic and love volley ball,..” Kathie Woods Head Volleyball Coach Coach of the Year in 1995, 1996 and 2004. “We started to get at the top consistently in the mid 1990’s because we started to get an understanding of defining roles and having the girls accept their roles,” said Woods. “You can’t execute your roles without accepting them. It’s really important to be very honest and truthful with the girls. When every body has a role and every body knows that there is value in their roles the team has an ability to work better together.” The philosophy by which Woods runs her program is to give 100 percent in school, volleyball and life. Notice school is first. Unlike programs out there that insist school comes first, Woods means it. In four of the past five years, Cougar Volleyball has been awarded American Volleyball Coaches Association Team Academic Award. Even though Woods has amassed over 500 career wins, multiple NWAACC championships and coach of the year awards, she is most proud of the work her teams do in school and" in the com munity. “I don’t go out and recruit the best volleyball player I can find, I try to go out and recruit the best people I can find that are athletic and love volleyball...” said Woods. “We work in the community, visit rest homes, and decorate Christmas trees for the elder ly. That’s what I take pride in and is why I think we are so successful.” Despite a rough start to the season, due in part to the strength of schedule, Cougar volleyball is second in-con ference with a 3-1 record. There are only two more home games remaining. So instead of watching that show on TV, show up and support' your Cougar volleyball team bn Oct 28, 2009 (sponsor night) and/or Nov 10, 2009 (sophomore night). It’s October. It’s here. It’s playoff time. It gives me chills up my spine. The long- wait is finally over and not a minute too soon. It was a season of races, chases, and, unfortu nately, the 2003 steroid list. We’re ready to stop talking about the list, though. Red Sox fans especially, who now realize the ‘04 playoff run they love to talk about was fueled by a little extra juice, not just die Jack Daniels Curt Schilling and Kevin Millar were throwin’ back in the clubhouse before games. Eight teams began, now four remain It was quick and painful for a couple teams, mainly the Twins. Going from an emotional and high inten sity game against the Detroit Tigers to having their playoff hopes and dreams crushed in a mere three games, simply put: heartbreaking. But, that’s what happens when you play a Yankees team littered with perennial All-Stars. All credit is due to the Minnesota Twins. They became the first team in MLB history to win then- division trailing by three games with four games to go in the season. They did what they needed to do to jolt themselves in to the post season; it just wasn’t enough to keep them in it. The Yankees broke out the broom; cleaned their clocks. Not including this year’s playoffs, the Twins are 0-7 against this year and 5-25 in the Bronx since 2002. The Yankees are hun gry. It has been seven years since their last World Series appearance and eight since their last title. They’ve been knocking teams out like Tyson in the 80s. Who is going to dodge the right hook and drop them with a haymaker in the World Series? Could it say it all in the name, the Dodgers? Or is it going to be the Fightin’ Phils making the two hour drive to take their second title in two years? The Yanks and Dodgers both rank in the top five offensively for the entire MLB. Who cares; throw those stats out the window It’s October, it doesn’t matter whether you score one run or five runs; get the job done. The Phillies rank 23rd offensively. They didn’t care about rankings when they put up three, runs in the ninth inning in .Colorado with two outs to win the National League Division Series. They’renotstoppingthere. They are taking the National League Championship Series. It might take seven but they’re getting it done, meeting the Yankees in the World Series. It all comes down to who wants it more. Who is going to battle? This is playoff baseball. This is October. This is what we have waited for.
