NOVEMBER 2, 2018, KEIZERTIMES, PAGE B1
KEIZERTIMES.COM
LIFE
OF
W iley
LEAGUE CHAMPIONS
1975
1996
1997
1998
2005
2018
OSAA rankings
out of whack
McNary won its fi rst league champi-
onship since 2005 last Friday.
The Celtics reward?
A road fi rst round playoff game
against one of the best teams in the state.
While the OSAA power rankings
have never been exactly accurate, this
season’s schedule, which featured fi ve
non-league and four league games, has
shown a brighter light on its imperfec-
tions.
McNary fi nished seven spots be-
hind West Salem, a team it beat hand-
ily just two weeks ago. The Titans have
one more win and are benefi ting from
playing games against No. 1 Lake Os-
wego and No. 3 Sheldon. But neither of
those contests was close and overall the
Celtics played the tougher non-league
schedule as two of West Salem’s non-
league wins came against No. 29 Grant
and No. 23 Bend.
Of course, McNary also defeated
Bend, in a league game.
North Medford didn’t do the Celtics
any favors. After blowing out McNary
to open the season, the Black Tornado
lost six of their fi nal seven games to fi n-
ish No. 32 and barely make the post-
season.
But the Celtics other non-league
games came against No. 6 West Linn,
No. 9 Tualatin, No. 13 South Medford
and Tumwater, who fi nished 8-1 in
Washington.
The Bend schools also have to be
scratching their heads as Bend fi nished
one spot ahead of Mountain View even
though the latter just won 24-7 last
Friday. Even more ridiculous, Sprague,
who missed the playoffs after fi nishing
No. 36, trounced No. 23 Mountain
View 34-6 on Oct. 19.
The Olympians, who played an even
tougher schedule than McNary, could
not overcome a one-point loss to South
Salem on Sept. 21.
How did McNary and West Salem’s
non-league schedules prepare them for
the playoffs?
My picks:
Southridge at West Salem
Neither of these teams enter the
playoffs with a lot of momentum. While
the Titans did blow out Sprague last
week, they are just two weeks removed
from falling at home to McNary. The
Skyhawks ended the regular season
with a 30-14 loss at home to Aloha. On
paper, West Salem and Southridge have
similar resumes. Both defeated Moun-
tain View. The Titans lost at Beaverton
by two points while the Skyhawks won
at Beaverton by fi ve. Southridge hasn’t
won a playoff game since 2014 when
it then lost by 42 points to West Salem
in the second round. I’ll take the team
coming off a win and playing at home.
Pick: Titans 38, Skyhawks 28
McNary at Lakeridge
Before Tom Smythe ever won a state
championship at McNary, the legendary
head coach won the title at Lakeridge in
1987. Smythe went a remarkable 157-
32 in his fi rst stint as head coach of the
Pacers. But Lakeridge hasn’t had the
same success as of late, posting a 7-20
record over the previous three years
before fi nishing 6-3 this season. The
Pacers, who last won a playoff game in
2014, were riding a four-game winning
streak this season, before falling to No.
1 Lake Oswego 30-14 last Friday. That
stretch included a 48-38 victory at No.
5 Tigard. Like McNary, Lakeridge also
has wins over Sprague and Bend and
lost at West Linn. This game will defi -
nitely test just how much the Celtics
have improved after 28 and 44-point
losses at West Linn and Tualatin in Sep-
tember. McNary is riding high after go-
ing 4-0 in league play. But the Celtics
still haven’t played their best game.
Pick: Celtics 44, Pacers 40
Derek Wiley is the associate editor of
the Keizertimes.
Last week: 4-0, Overall 30-16
Celtics win MVC
By DEREK WILEY
Of the Keizertimes
McNary has spent the last four years
under head coach Jeff Auvinen focused on
getting better, not just every season or even
every game, but every play.
That work paid off last Friday with the
football program’s fi rst league champion-
ship since 2005.
The Celtics defeated South Salem 40-
33 to clinch the Mountain Valley Confer-
ence title.
McNary made no more progress within
a single season than this one. After starting
0-5, the Celtics won all four of their league
games.
“We stayed the course and got better,”
Auvinen said. “That’s all you can do is play
the next play.”
McNary appeared like it would roll over
the Saxons when the Celtics led 25-6 and
recovered an on-side kick with 5:40 re-
maining in the fi rst half.
But South Salem took advantage of a
McNary fumble and turnover on downs to
Please see CHAMPS, Page B3
KEIZERTIMES/Derek Wiley
McNary senior Noah Bach, left, runs away from a South Salem defender for a 52-yard touchdown on Friday, Oct. 26 in a 40-33 victory over the Saxons.
Junior Walling, right, celebrates after making a play on defense.
McNary soccer players voted all-league
McNary had six players voted to the All-Mountain
Valley Conference boys soccer teams.
Senior Jesus Lopez (defense), Jovanie Bravo (mid-
fi eld) and Sebastian Lopez (goalkeeper) were selected
to the First Team.
Miguel Bravo, a senior midfi elder, was named to the
Second Team.
Luis Lopez (midfi eld) and Francisco Rios (forward)
were honorable mention.
The Celtics fi nished 7-4-4 this season, losing 3-1 at
Beaverton in the fi rst round of the 6A state playoffs.
McNary’s girls soccer team had fi ve players on
All-Mountain Valley Conference teams.
Senior Abbie Hawley (forward) was voted to the
First Team.
Seniors Gina Munguia (midfi eld) and Sydney Snapp
(goalkeeper) were named to the Second Team.
Seniors Isabella Haselip (forward) and Katy Wyatt
(midfi eld/forward) were honorable mentions.
The Lady Celts fi nished 5-8-1 this season.
KEIZERTIMES/Derek Wiley
McNary seniors Jovanie Bravo, left, and Abbie Hawley were selected to the All-Mountain Valley
Conference First Team.
South Salem XC teams qualify for state
Submitted
McNary’s boys cross country team ran in the Mountain Valley Conference Champion-
ships Saturday at Central Oregon Community College in Bend.
McNary senior David Al-
len led the Celtics cross coun-
try team in his fi nal race at the
Mountain Valley Conference
Championships.
Running at Central Or-
egon Community College
in Bend, Allen fi nished 33rd
overall in 19:10.27 on Satur-
day, Oct. 27.
McNary
sophomores
Gavin Gasperini and Andrew
Goemaere placed 39th and
40th in 19:35.39 and 19:42.91.
Freshman Caleb McCoy then
took 42nd in 20:05.97.
Brennan Whalen, another
sophomore, was the fi nal run-
ner to score for the Celtics,
fi nishing 45th in 20:22.89.
With three runners in the
top four, Summit won the
boys race. Bend and South Sa-
lem took second and third to
also qualify for the state meet
on Saturday, Nov. 3 at Lane
Community College in Eu-
gene.
Sophomore Evan Gonza-
lez and senior Jay Grant led
the Saxons, fi nishing sixth
in 17:30.19 and eighth in
17:41.83.
Sprague senior Landon
Sorenson placed 13th in
18:13.99.
Summit, winners of 10
straight state titles and cur-
rently ranked No. 1 in the
Please see RUN, Page B3