SIUSLAW NEWS ❚ YEAR IN REVIEW ❚
2016
SATURDAY, JANUARY 7, 2017
5
SNAPSHOTS
PHOTOS BY NED HICKSON/SIUSLAW NEWS
Review (cont)
from 6
JUNE (cont.)
J OHNSON
NEW
duty for students, parents and
coaches.”
AUGUST
SHS
ATHLETIC DIRECTOR
In September, longtime
Siuslaw coach Chris Johnson
laced up his running shoes for
more than the Vikings’ highly
successful cross country and
track programs.
That’s because he’s doing a
different kind of running
around as the school’s new ath-
letic director.
The announcement was
made Wednesday by Siuslaw
High School principal Kerri
Tatum, who explained that
Johnson will work together
with vice principal Corky
Franklin to oversee the school’s
athletics programs
Franklin, who was appointed
as athletic director in June, will
be the administrative compo-
nent, with Johnson being the
hands-on and day-to-day coor-
dinator for Siuslaw’s athletics
programs.
“Essentially, they will work
together to handle all things
athletic at the high school,”
Tatum explained. “The athletic
director will report directly to
the vice principal to create a
clean line of responsibility and
H ORNUNG HEAD COACH
OF V IK VOLLEYBALL
New head volleyball coach
Jon Hornung tends to smile a
lot. Not just because he loves
the sport. Or because he’s
excited about taking over a pro-
gram he knows has all the
ingredients to reach the next
level.
“It’s just a great group I’m
really enjoying coaching,”
Hornung says. “I’ve got players
who want to stay after practice
to work on ways to improve
their serves or kill shots. Not
for themselves but for the team.
“You have to love that as a
coach.”
His players are sharing the
love.
“It’s a good fit and we’re all
on the same page,” says Jordan
Long, a sophomore who will
once again be seeing some
solid varsity minutes this sea-
son. “He makes it fun, and
we’re getting in lots of condi-
tioning while we’re doing it.”
S AILORS
BLAZE
NEW TRAIL
It’s been nearly 30 years
since the trails winding through
the woods in and around
Mapleton High School carried
the footfalls of cross country
runners.
But this year, Mapleton jun-
ior Cole Spencer and freshman
Richie Gastelun were climbing
the trail woven between old
logging roads before eventually
emerging onto the main cam-
pus and looping back up the
steep hill leading to the mesa of
Bill Bowerman Field.
Until he went in to register as
a freshman, Gastelun didn’t
even know there was a cross
country program at the high
school.
“That’s mostly because we
haven’t had one since as far
back as 1987,” says Aaron
Longo, the school’s athletic
director as well as its track and
field coach and, now, cross
country coach. “Cole and I
talked about it at the end of last
football season, and he was
committed to doing it if it was a
possibility.
“So we made it happen.
OCTOBER
S IUSLAW
NABS LEAGUE ’ S
TOP SEED
After splitting the season
with Douglas, the Viking vol-
leyball team left little question
as to who deserved to emerge
with the Far West League’s No.
1 seed to state.
And that was the plan,
according to senior spiker
Elyssa Rose.
“We finished second ever
since I started as a freshman,”
Rose said. “We came in
focused to be No. 1 this time
and
leave
no
doubt.
Accomplishing that feels amaz-
ing.”
The Vikings took the Trojans
in four sets, 25-21, 25-23, 22-
25, 25-14, breaking an 8-2
league tie with Douglas. Rose,
along
with
sophomore
Makenzie York, led Siuslaw
offensively, with Rose ham-
mering Douglas with 13 kills,
13 blocks and 3 aces, and York
scoring 16 kills and 11 blocks.
NOVEMBER
M ANS
KEESP STATE
CROWN
Siuslaw senior Celie Mans
wasn’t only the first to cross the
finish line at Lane Community
College in Eugene for the girls
4A state cross country title, she
was also the first in Viking his-
tory to do it twice.
Her back-to-back state titles
apex a career that included third
place as a freshmen in 2013 and
fourth place as a sophomore in
2014.
Last year, she became only the
third Lady Viking in school histo-
ry to win the state title — begin-
ning with Raelyn Robinson in
2009, then Katy Potter in 2012.
N EW COACH HAS
V IKING ROOTS
In addition to having his own
ties to Siuslaw basketball as a
player, Dylan Perry has another
shared experience with this
year’s team.
He’s coached most of the
players before as a JV coach
two years ago.
“I know the potential this
team has,” said Perry. “It’s a
very competitive group that is
willing to work hard to be suc-
cesful.”
After taking a year off from
coaching, Perry saw the listing
for head basketball coach of
Siuslaw’s program and decided
it was time to come back.
“I thought about it for all of
about 30 seconds,” said Perry. “I
realized how much I missed
coaching. And having the chance
to coach this group again was
something I couldn’t pass up.
“They want to prove how good
they can be, and I want to help
them do it.”
L ADY S AILORS
NAME
NEW BASKETBALL COACH
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As the new head coach of the
Lady Sailors’ basketball pro-
gram, Mike Murray has been
making the 45-minute drive
from Cheshire to Mapleton
each afternoon for two simple
reasons.
First, because he is admitted-
ly obsessed with the game of
basketball.
And secondly, “I am thor-
oughly impressed with the kids
and teachers at Mapleton,” says
Murray. “They all have big
hearts. I love being here.”
With nearly 30 years coach-
ing experience, including four
consecutive trips to state and
two state titles as head coach of
Lowell’s varsity girls from
2004-07, Murray has seen all
sides of the game — as a play-
er, coach and even game offi-
cial for 15 years.
“I think about the game all
the time,” laughs Murray. “I
wake up at 5:30 a.m. thinking
about how to improve what
we’re doing.”
DECEMBER
OSAA
PLAN MAY MEAN
MORE MILES FOR
V IKS
As the Oregon School
Activities Association (OSAA)
redistricting conversation con-
tinues, during it’s latest meet-
ing in early December, the
board offered new six-classifi-
cation, five-classification and
“football-only” proposals.
Under the latest six-classifi-
cation system, Siuslaw would
be part of a Class 4A Far West
League that includes: Cottage
Grove, Creswell, Douglas,
Elmira, South Umpqua and
Sutherlin.
However, should the OSAA
decide to go with its most
recent
five-classification
model, Siuslaw would become
part of a Class 3A Southern
Cascade League that includes
Medford area schools St.
Mary’s and Cascade Christian,
as well as Grants Pass area
schools Hidden Valley and
North Valley.
In short, the Vikings’ new
league map would nearly dou-
ble the miles the school already
travels during a typical league
season.
It’s a proposal that Siuslaw
High School athletic director
Chris Johnson intends to
oppose.
Now... On to 2017