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PAGE A12, KEIZERTIMES, MAY 12, 2017 Keizer 3555 River Road N, Keizer (503) 463 - 4853 www.skylineforddirect.com LONGEST GAME OF FOLLOW THE LEADER. EVER. KEIZERTIMES.COM Gilbert to pitch at Pacifi c University LIFE OF W iley Everyone can’t run the 100 Everyone in high school thinks they’re fast. If you don’t believe me, go to a track and fi eld meet and watch the 100-meter run. On Wednesday, May 3, in McNary’s last dual meet of the season, over 100 kids, 70 boys and 34 girls, in heat after heat after heat took their shot at be- ing the fastest athlete on the track at South Salem. The problem with this gi- normous and unnecessary amount of kids running the 100 is track and fi eld meets are al- ready long enough and I write this as someone who loves the sport (see page 14)and believes it doesn’t get near the attention it deserves. Last summer, I paid way too much money to attend the Olympic Trials at Hayward Field in Eugene. But let’s be real. Each 3000 run (speaking of events that don’t get the re- spect they deserve) takes at least 10 minutes. Add the 1500, the relays, the time it takes to put the hurdles on and off the track and all the different fi eld events and even the most well-run dual meet takes 3-4 hours. A district and state meet takes place over multiple days, which is fi ne when the best kids are competing. I understand why coaches allow so many kids to run the 100. Track isn’t as popular as football, basketball or baseball so get every athlete you can in the program, let them start with the 100 and if the kid is slow, hope that they fall in love with another event. I’ve covered several athletes who started in other events be- fore fi nding their true gift, even a former pole vaulter who tried hurdles for the fi rst time his se- nior year, fi nished top eight in the state and then competed in college. I also get why so many kids want to run the 100. Who doesn’t desire to be Usain Bolt? It’s also the shortest and to run it poorly probably takes very little practice. All I’m asking for is a cutoff time. At McNary, Brendan Van Voorhis is the gold standard. He’s going to run at DePaul University next year and his personal record is 10.92 sec- onds. To compare, last week, I watched 11 boys run the 100 in more than 14 seconds. Another 23 couldn’t fi nish in under 13 seconds. I’m sorry but if a high school boy can’t run 100 meters in under 13 seconds, he’s not a sprinter. He’s possibly a long distance runner or a thrower. He may even be a jumper. But he’s not a sprinter. A cutoff of 13 seconds would’ve still allowed nearly 30 runners in the fi eld and Van Voorhis didn’t even run at South Salem. There’s room in other races. Only 17 girls and boys com- bined signed up for the 400 and 26 for the 100 and 110-meter hurdles. So 13 and 14-second 100-meter runners, grab a jav- elin, discus or pole because not everyone in high school is fast and there’s nothing wrong with that. Derek Wiley is the associate editor of the Keizertimes. File Josiah Gilbert, a three-year varsity pitcher for McNary, will con- tinue his baseball career at Pacifi c University in Forest Grove. By DEREK WILEY Of the Keizertimes McNary senior Josiah Gil- bert has wanted to play college baseball for as long as he can remember. But when making the de- cision to go to the next level, Gilbert looked beyond the sport. “Baseball is a dream and you have to realize that some- times the odds aren’t really in your favor,” Gilbert said of playing after college. “I knew that and that’s why I picked a school that was academically exactly what I wanted.” Gilbert signed with Pacifi c University on Thursday, May 4 in the McNary library. “Pacifi c held my attention the whole time,” Gilbert said. “It was my No. 1 from the get go. They are one of the top physical therapy schools in the nation, which is what I want to do. It was pretty much a no brainer for me. I’ve played there before in a tournament. It’s a gorgeous facility, a gor- geous fi eld and I’m just glad to be a part of it.” Pacifi c is a Division-III pro- gram located in Forest Grove, less than 50 miles from Mc- Nary. “It’s close to home and my family,” Gilbert said. “It’s ex- actly what I wanted.” Gilbert, a First Team all- league pitcher last season, will also have the opportunity to play right away. “If I put in the work and I do what they think I can do, I have the opportunity to be an impact freshman, which is big,” Gilbert said. “That doesn’t re- ally happen very often. It felt pretty good to have somebody think that highly of me.” At the signing, McNary head coach Larry Keeker told a story from one of his fi rst encounters with Gilbert as a freshman. “We held pitcher and catcher workouts at 5:45 in the morning and for freshmen that’s sometimes a shocker but Josiah would show up with a big smile on his face and he was ready to go,” Keeker said. Gilbert also didn’t know the level of his talent, asking Keek- er at the end of the two weeks of workouts if he’d made the team, even though Gilbert was the best pitcher in the class. Please see GILBERT, Page 13 Lady Celts take down McMinnville By DEREK WILEY Of the Keizertimes McNary thought it was the better team last time. This time the Lady Celts proved it, throttling McMin- nville 14-4 in fi ve innings on Tuesday, May 9. The Grizzlies were unde- feated in Greater Valley Con- ference play and hadn’t al- lowed more than six runs in a game all season. McNary got that in the fi rst inning. “I think the girls were a little fi red up because we felt like we got up on these guys 3-0 last time and kind of let off a little bit and squandered it,” McNary head coach Kevin Wise said. “They’re a great team so to be a team like this the way we did, it’s a great thing this time of year. We’re heading into playoffs with good momentum.” Nadia Witt reached on an error to start the bottom of the fi rst and advanced to sec- ond on a sacrifi ce bunt by Al- exa Cepeda. Haley Ebner then drove Witt home with a line drive single to right fi eld. After Hannah Carr drew a walk, Emma Kinler then singled to left fi eld to bring home Ebner and give the Lady Celts a quick 2-0 lead. McMinnville decided to make a pitching change, bringing Ashley Rhoads in for starter Payton Hudson. The decision did not pay KEIZERTIMES/Derek Wiley McNary’s softball team celebrates with freshman Haley Bingenheimer after she hit a three-run homer in the bottom of the fi rst inning of a 14-4 win over McMinnville on Tuesday, May 9. off, at least not for the Griz- zlies. With two outs, McNary freshman Haley Bingen- heimer busted the game open, hitting an outside pitch over the left fi eld fence to put the Lady Celts ahead 5-0. “When I was running home I had to keep my head down because I was smiling so much,” Bingenheimer said. “We really wanted to beat these guys. The last game, we shouldn’t have lost that one.” Please see ROUT, Page 13 Celtics win four in a row KEIZERTIMES/Derek Wiley Matthew Ismay slides safely into third after hitting a triple against South Salem on Monday, May 8. By DEREK WILEY Of the Keizertimes The McNary baseball team is heating up. The Celtics cranked out 13 hits to defeat South Salem 10-5 on Monday, May 8 and pick up their fourth league win in a row. “It’s been more of a team effort now,” said senior Bren- dan Frizelle, who was 1-for-4 with a run and two RBIs in the win. “At the beginning of the season we were struggling because I think it was more of an individual thing. Now we came together as a team to play for each other and to play for the team.” Senior Riley Hays agreed. “A lot of it was just us com- ing together and realizing that our chemistry needed to be a little bit better on the fi eld and off the fi eld,” he said. “That’s been really good for us.” After allowing an unearned run in the top of the fi rst, Mc- Nary answered with two runs on three hits in the bottom of the inning. Jonah Geist led off with a single, Hays walked and Tyler Covalt hit an infi eld single to load the bases. With two strikes and two outs, Benson singled to drive in Geist and Hays to give the Celtics a 2-1 lead. McNary busted the game open in the second with fi ve runs. With the bases loaded and no outs, Frizelle singled to score Daniel Johnson and Ja- cob Jackson. Matthew Ismay then drove in Geist with a base hit and Frizelle scored on a throwing error. Hays added a sacrifi ce fl y to center fi eld to bring home Ismay from third and stretch the Celtics’ lead to 7-1. “It’s just a contagious thing, hitting is,” Hays said. “We re- ally got into his (South Salem pitcher Gavin Fredinburg) head early jumping on him with two quick (runs) and af- ter one guy hits, it’s kind of a cycle thing and we all just get really hyped about it and we all hit. We timed him up really well and we put some good swings on him.” The Celtics were also ag- gressive at the plate. “We didn’t have a lot of guys waiting around,” McNary head coach Larry Keeker said. “If the pitcher proves that he’s around the strike zone on a regular basis, we want to be swinging.” Please see STREAK, Page 13