PAGE A12, KEIZERTIMES, MAY 5, 2017
Celtics second in GVC
KEIZERTIMES/Derek Wiley
Leilani Salang celebrated with her family and representatives from Blanchet Catholic School and
the Coast Guard.
Salang continues family
tradition at Coast Guard
By DEREK WILEY
Of the Keizertimes
Leilani Salang didn’t know
exactly what she wanted to do
with her life but the Blanchet
Catholic School senior and
Keizer resident did know she
wanted to help people.
The United Sates Coast
Guard will train her to do that.
“I knew that I wanted to
help people and I feel like the
military is one of the best ways
to do that,” Salang said. “You
get a good education at no
cost to you. I feel like it was
the best path for me.”
Salang signed her national
letter of intent and commit-
ment papers on Wednesday,
April 19 in the Blanchet li-
brary. Along with being a stu-
dent, she will compete on the
track and fi eld team.
“I knew when I wanted to
go to college I wanted to do
track and fi eld so it was defi -
nitely one of my deciding fac-
tors,” Salang said. “I knew that
I could participate in track
there at the Division-III level.”
For a four-year free educa-
tion worth $500,000, Salang
is committing to fi ve years of
service in the Coast Guard af-
ter graduation.
“All around I’m suited
for the coast guard academy,”
Salang said. “Everything I
want, helping people, saving
people, getting an education
for as little of a burden on my
family as possible. I gave my
college fund to my little sisters
and they split it in two.”
Coast Guard also runs in
Salang’s genes. Her grandfa-
ther, who passed away last year,
served for more than 25 years
and her father eight.
“We were pretty close,”
Salang said of her grandfather.
“He was in my life since I
was a baby. He told me about
when he was on the ships and
he was a cook and after hours
he would make his Filipino
food. He loved meeting peo-
ple and cooking for people.”
While Salang originally
wanted to be a physical thera-
pist to help recovering veter-
ans, she’s now turned her at-
tention on being a helicopter
pilot and rescuing people out
of the ocean.
At Blanchet, Salang has
impressed on both the track
and fi eld. As a junior, she was
named the top Girls Field
Event Athlete in the PacWest
Conference by winning both
the discus and shot put while
placing second in the javelin.
Salang then fi nished third in
the state in discus and fi fth in
shot put and javelin.
In the second meet of her
senior season, Salang set a new
Blanchet record of 129-05 in
the discus. She also has the
shot put record of 37-11.
Salang runs as well, com-
peting in the 100 and 4x100.
The relay team of Salang and
three underclassmen won the
conference and placed sixth in
the state while setting a school
record last spring.
Salang considered stay-
ing in state at Linfi eld, where
she practices hammer every
Sunday, or Oregon State, and
joining the reserves while in
college.
However, the chance to
continue the Coast Guard tra-
dition was just too big an op-
portunity to pass up.
McNary’s boys golf team
shot 632 over two rounds to
place second to West Salem’s
608 at the Greater Valley Con-
ference district tournament
on May 1-2.
Playing at Quail Valley Golf
Course in Banks, McNary
sophomore Matt Langenwal-
ter carded a 76 on day one and
a 77 on day two.
The total of 153 was good
enough to tie for second with
West Salem junior Dylan
Hadsall.
West Salem senior Andrew
Eyre shot a 146 to earn low
medalist.
McNary senior Teegan
Papke fi nished tied for third
with a 155 and freshman Joel
Dutcher placed fi fth with a
159.
Langenwalter and Papke
qualifi ed for the state tourna-
ment back at Quail Valley on
May 15-16.
Seniors Casey Potmesil and
Davis Kaiser carded a 170 and
171, respectively.
Forest Grove (690), Sprague
(702), West Albany (702), Mc-
Minnville (706) and South
Salem (720) rounded out the
team standings.
KEIZERTIMES/Derek Wiley
McNary sophomore Matt Langenwalter shot 153 over 32 holes
to fi nish tied for second in the district tournament on May 1-2.
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