PAGE A14, KEIZERTIMES, NOVEMBER 1, 2019
KEIZERTIMES.COM
McNary clinches berth in postseason
By MATT RAWLINGS
Of the Keizertimes
McNary’s volleyball team
has gone through their ups
and downs throughout the
year, but it appears that they
have found their groove at
just the right time.
The Celtics ended the reg-
ular season by winning three
of their last four matches, in-
cluding a straight-set victory
at McKay on Thursday, Oct.
24 to clinch a berth in the
state playoffs.
“Energy really carried our
team towards the end of the
season and I think that is re-
ally what helped us win the
last few games,” McNary
middle blocker Chloe Diede
said.
McNary started off slow in
the fi rst set as McKay got out
to a quick 8-4 lead. But the
Celtics rallied to score nine
of the next 10 points, thanks
to kills by Zoie Warner and
Taylor Ebbs, as well as a key
ace from Alexis Eldridge.
The Royal Scots got the
score within one moments
later, but Diede had a kill,
plus a stuff-block as the
Celtics put away six straight
points to go up 20-13.
“Momentum is the name
of the game. Once we got
a string of points, we start-
ed playing with a lot more
confi dence,” McNary head
coach Crystal DeMello said.
Marisa Ortiz ended the
game with back-to-back aces
to give McNary the game
one win, 25-14.
The Celtics great serving
carried into the second set as
Ebbs connected on a pair of
aces to put McNary on top
with a 6-3 lead. McKay came
back to tie the score, but El-
lie Dean also found holes in
the Royal Scots defense with
a couple aces of her own to
give her team the lead back.
“It’s been something that
the girls really have been
focusing on,” DeMello said
about her team’s serving.
“They are tough servers, and
when they are on their game,
I feel like a lot of our other
skills follow suit.”
Warner, along with Alyssa
Garvey and Jazmin Zepeda,
hits aces later in the set as the
Celtics took a commanding
2-0 lead in the match after
winning the second game
25-17.
Despite McKay’s peski-
ness, McNary was able to as-
sert their dominance over the
Royal Scots in the fi nal set.
With the game tied at
7-7, the Celtics went on a
10-2 run to take the lead at
17-9. Ebbs and Warner each
had aggressive kills to put the
game away as McNary took
the fi nal set 25-15.
“This season is a climb, but
these girls have progressed
every single day, which was
our goal at the start of the
season,” DeMello said. “They
rely on each other and they
trust each other to get the
job done.”
KEIZERTIMES/Matt Rawlings
McNary middle blocker Chloe Diede (9) taps the ball past a McKay player at the net. The Celtics won the match in straight sets.
Celts score six
on senior night
By MATT RAWLINGS
Of the Keizertimes
It may have been senior
night, but it was a junior that
stole the show for the Mc-
Nary boys soccer team in
their regular season fi nale.
McNary forward Eli Pe-
tilo scored three goals and
added an assist as the Celtics
demolished Mountain View
on Friday, Oct. 25, winning
by a score of 6-2.
“We played with a lot
of confi dence,” Petilo said.
“The midfi elders sent us
great balls to go and fi nish.
Speed kills, and we have a lot
of speed on this team.”
It was the fi rst time that
McNary has scored six goals
or more in a league contest
since 2017.
“We needed this kind
of performance before the
playoffs. This was a great way
to end the regular season for
our seniors,” McNary head
coach Miguel Camarena
said.
Once the game kicked
off, the Celtics wasted no
time getting on the board.
In the third minute, Jack
Baez sent a deep ball down
to Eddie Martinez from
midfi eld. Martinez’s shot at-
tempt glanced off the hands
of Mountain View goalkeep-
er Ethan Mawdsley, but Luis
Lopez was there to put a
header into the net on the
rebound.
The Celtics showed off
their creativity on their next
scoring opportunity in the
14th minute when Martinez
shot a long pass over to Pe-
tilo on the right wing. Peti-
lo played the ball to his feet,
then sent a line drive pass
into the middle to Edgar
Salazar. Before the ball hit
the ground, Salazar struck a
laser off his right foot that
went between the keeper’s
legs into the goal, to put Mc-
Nary up 2-0.
Please see CELTS, Page A10
KEIZERTIMES/Matt Rawlings
McNary senior Noah Schnell sends a corner kick into the box in the Celtcs 6-2 win over Mountain
View.
KEIZERTIMES/Matt Rawlings
Clagget Creek receiver Davien Cabrera looks for more yardage after making a fi rst down grab.
Claggett Creek victorious
in crosstown showdown
By MATT RAWLINGS
Of the Keizertimes
The Whiteaker varsity
football squad put together
an impressive effort in the
second half to get back into
the game, but in the end, the
Wolverines were no match
for the explosive offense of
Claggett Creek in this cross-
town rivalry game.
Claggett Creek quarter-
back Jacob Allen threw for
two touchdowns and ran
for another as the Panthers
defeated Whiteaker 22-16
under the lights at McNary
High School on Wednesday,
Oct. 23.
“We played tough all
game and never gave up.
These guys have been get-
ting better every week,”
Claggett Creek head coach
Aaron Carr said.
The game couldn’t have
begun much better for the
Panthers as they recovered
an onside kick on the open-
ing kickoff. From there, the
Claggett Creek offense kept
the Wolverines off-balance
with their lethal mix of run
and pass plays.
After a pair of fi rst downs,
Allen found Izeyah Con-
treras on an out rout for a
18-yard gain to make it fi rst-
and-goal. The following play,
Allen called his own num-
ber, fi nding the end zone on
a nine-yard scramble. The
two-point conversion put
the Panthers up 8-0.
“You can’t replace a kid
like (Allen). He’s just a phe-
nomenal athlete. He doesn’t
take a play off and he’s the
kind of kid that you can
count on,” Carr said.
Whiteaker, however, was
able to respond on their fi rst
possession of the game.
With their powerful,
downhill rushing attack, the
Wolverines went 65 yards
in 10 plays. Running back
Marquis Jackson punctuat-
ed the drive with a six-yard
touchdown run, then scored
on the conversion attempt to
tie the game at 8-8.
Jackson fi nished the con-
test with 121 rushing yards
and two touchdowns.
“We had some really good
blocks and I just got the ball
and was running hard. You
always got to fall forward,
even after contact,” Jackson
said.
But before the end of
the fi rst quarter, Contreras
Please see CREEK, Page A11