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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 31, 2016)
AHS PREVIEWS 10A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 31, 2016 Astoria running in the ‘district of champions’ By GARY HENLEY The Daily Astorian THE RUNNERS It was hard to say how the Astoria cross country team did in 2015, judging just by the results. Yes, the Fishermen boys finished fifth out of six teams in the Cowapa League cham- pionship meet. Then again, the top three teams in the league (Seaside, Tillamook, Valley Catholic) also happened to be the top three teams in the entire state at the 4A level. The Astoria Lady Fisher- men have an equally tough time on the girls’ side. Tough league or not, most of the runners are back for more, as Andrew Fick returns for another season as the Astoria cross coun- try coach, with one meet already under their belt. The Fishermen hosted their annual “Alumni Run” Aug. 25 at Cullaby Lake, complete with post-race potluck. At least they’re having fun. “The Alumni Run was great,” Fick said. “We were a small group, but everyone ran hard and had fun. It was great to have coach (Carl) Dominey Girls McKenzie Burnett, Jr. McKenna Long, Fr. Libbie Nash, Jr. Taylor Palmrose, So. Kathy Perez, Jr. Boys William Berezay, So. Lucas Caruana, Sr. Andrei (Dex) Gregory, So. Parker Ivanoff, So. Calvin Kaul, So. Kevin Kumar, Fr. Anthony Miller, Sr. David Sharp, Jr. Elias Simmons, So. and (John) Goodenberger (who also ran) there, and it was fun as always to have everyone together for the family potluck afterward. “I’m looking forward to having the rest of our AHS run- ners with us as we get closer to the start of school, but we’re already working hard and hav- ing fun.” Not surprisingly, the first- place runner in the Alumni Run also happens to be Asto- ria’s top prospect this season, senior Lucas Caruana. Last school year, Caruana began with a 10th-place fin- ish in the district cross coun- try meet, and closed it out by finishing third in the 800-meter final at the state track meet. Besides Caruana, other returning runners for the Astoria boys include senior Anthony Miller, and sopho- mores Andrei “Dex” Greg- ory, Parker Ivanoff and Calvin Kaul. The top runner for the Astoria girls — junior Kaylee Mitchell — has moved on, as the three-sport athlete has taken her talents to the Salem area. That leaves three returners for the Astoria girls — juniors McKenzie Burnett, Libbie Nash and Kathy Perez. Burnett ran a personal best 20 minutes, 17 seconds in the 5,000-meter Alumni Run, after placing 16th in last year’s dis- trict meet in 22:42. Nash and Perez also ran personal best times in their first official run of the season. Completing the varsity five this year will be sophomore Taylor Palmrose and freshman McKenna Long. Astoria spikers enter new era at the net By GARY HENLEY The Daily Astorian Their best player from last season is now playing at the collegiate level. They’ve got a new coach on the sidelines, and they’re coming off one of their worst league seasons in recent memory. For Jessie Todd, it’s not exactly the ideal way to begin a new coaching regime … but that’s the hand she’s been dealt, as the Astoria volleyball pro- gram enters a new season and a new era. Todd coached at Class 3A Sheridan last season, leading the Spartans to a 10-4 record in the West Valley League. Sheridan went 0-2 in the state tournament, with losses to eventual state run- ner-up Creswell, and a consola- tion loss to Coquille. She takes over for Angee Hunt, who coached Astoria for nine years overall, while daugh- ter Chloee Hunt is competing for Evergreen College, follow- ing her all-league season with the Lady Fishermen. The Daily Astorian/File Photos Astoria’s Aurora Grafton sets the ball at the front of the net for a teammate as Valley Catholic’s Regan Dean looks to defend the shot in a 2014 game. ASTORIA VOLLEYBALL Coach: Jessie Todd, 1st year 2015: 1-9 Cowapa All-League Loss: Chloee Hunt All-League Returners: Aurora Grafton, Sr.; Madi Landwehr, Jr. The Cowapa For yet another year in yet another sport, the Cowapa League is the home of a 2015 defending state champion. Banks won the 4A state title last year, with a three-game sweep over Sisters in the final. Tillamook and Valley Cath- olic were also part of the final eight at the state tournament, and ended up facing each other in the consolation final, the Val- iants winning in three games. Todd is new to the Cowapa, but she knows the league has a reputation. “What I know about the league is that Banks won (state) last year, Valley Catholic was fourth and Tillamook sixth,” she said. “It is a very tough league. We are getting prepared for that.” The Lady Fish Chloee Hunt was Astoria’s strong presence at the net last year, and while she’s gone, all is not lost. The Lady Fishermen still have a pair of all-league return- Astoria’s Madi Landwehr, No. 2, sets the ball during the volleyball game at Sea- side last year. ers in senior Aurora Grafton and junior Madi Landwehr, while Astoria will have two 5-foot-10 players at the net — senior Jac- queline Jarrett and sophomore Kes Sandstrom, a transfer from Scappoose. And the Fishermen have two more athletes who play bigger than their listed height, 5-7 junior middle blocker Dar- ian Hageman (the state high jump champion) and 5-5 soph- omore outside hitter Samantha Hemsley. Rounding out the varsity roster will be juniors Chelsea Christensen and Kira Worwood; sophomore defensive special- ist Aly Cotte; and freshmen set- ter Julia Norris and libero Hai- ley O’Brien. Despite the coaching change, Todd said, “the girls have been real receptive, and it’s been a very positive experience so far. “We’ve got some size, which is great, and we’re improving defensively. It’s still early. We have a couple weeks before we start league play, so I can kind of play around with things, see what’s going to work, and go from there. We’re relatively young,” with only two seniors. Todd adds, “I am going to run a 6-2, with Aurora and Madi. They’re both talented setters, and they’ve been really good leaders for the team. “Darian can jump — her and Jacqueline will both be great middles. We’ve been working a lot on them connecting with the setters and quicker hits, and they’ve done a real good job of picking up on it.” Daily Astorian/File Photo Astoria’s Lucas Caruana is one of the top returning cross country runners in the Cowapa League in 2016. Astoria girls soccer hopes for quick turnaround By GARY HENLEY The Daily Astorian Luck just hasn’t been with the Astoria girls soccer pro- gram in recent years. Despite improvements on the field, the numbers — just two wins in each of the last two seasons — remain the same. In fact, if it wasn’t for Tillamook, the Lady Fishermen wouldn’t have any wins at all. Astoria’s two wins last year came over the 0-14 Cheesemakers, and the two victories in 2014 also came over Tillamook. With a new coach and four all-league players returning, the Astoria girls are hoping to break through some barri- ers in 2016. Tim Fastabend is the new coach, replacing Sarah von Colditz, who stepped down after two seasons. And the new coach likes what he sees. “We’ve got a large senior group and a fairly large junior group,” Fastabend said. “They’re optimistic, enthu- siastic, and there’s a lot of returning lettermen who have played varsity their entire careers. I’m positive.” The Cowapa It remains to be seen if Scappoose and Valley Catho- lic can overcome big hits in the graduation department. Given their history, the answer is yes. The defending state cham- pion Indians lost 10 players, including five all-league play- ers and Cowapa Player of the Year Lucy Davidson. “Scappoose and Val- ley Catholic are there, and Banks looked real athletic at the (preseason) tournament,” Fastabend said. “They’ll be a lot stronger than people think. And whenever Astoria plays Seaside, it’s like a state play- off game. “After those first two spots, it will be a pretty good fight for position.” The Lady Fish “have been working really hard in prac- tice, so if we can continue that and go into October play- ing well, there’s a chance to finish strong.” D E L ’S O .K . on ly $ 40 ! 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Nine seniors will provide a solid foundation. “Numbers-wise, we had to keep a couple juniors with the JVs,” Fastabend said. “There’s just not a lot of room on the var- sity with that many seniors.” The long list of experience includes seniors Ashlee Dal- ton, Sariah Dieffenbach, Dan- iela Garcia, Anna Gimre, Vic- toria Holcom, Jenna Rudolph, Shrida Sharma, Rachel Sim- mons and Kristen Travers. “We have pretty strong leadership from the seniors,” Fastabend said. “Shrida, Jenna, Anna and Daniela are captains this year. “It’s going to be about dis- cipline on the field and how we’re going to attack, and hopefully we can put together a good season,” he said. “It will take s a little while to gel as a group. We have one of the stronger goalkeepers in the league, that’s for sure.” That would be junior Lexis Law, one of four all- league returners, along with Garcia, Rudolph and junior Claire Albright. Also back for their junior seasons are Sarah Lertora, Jasmin Mabry, Hailey Ranta and Megan Schacher. Adding depth to the lineup will be sophomores Andrea Harris and Samantha Mess- ing — and Astoria may need some of that depth, with Hol- com and Law both suffering preseason injuries. ... is one of the most unique Cafes in the world. Located on the Columbia River in the West’s oldest cannery building historic Hanthorn Cannery at the end of Pier 39 Friendly services, high quality espresso, sumptuous fresh pastries, unique breakfasts and lunches. L IFE HAPPEN S... Tha t’s w hy w e’re here! Com e vis it us for your S ports P hys ica ls Gary Henley/The Daily Astorian Daniela Garcia moves the ball upfield during a recent scrimmage for the Astoria girls soccer team. 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