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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 23, 2019)
SN THESIUSLAWNEWS.COM SATURDAY EDITION | NOVEMBER 23, 2019 | $1.00 T IME O UT By Lloyd Little Retired teacher, coach and game offi cial Sports & Recreation With more than55 years as an athlete, coach, parent and specta- tor, Lloyd Little has gained some insights and perspectives regarding athletics. Each week, he shares what he's learned about sports from his multiple points of view. NCAA Pay to Play Calendar Winter Sports openers: Dec. 4 • SHS boys BB hosts Newport 7:15 p.m. • SHS girls BB hosts Newport 5:45 p.m. • MHS boys BB hosts Lowell 7 p.m. • SHS girls BB hosts Lowell 5:30 p.m. 7 p.m. Dec. 6 • SHS wrestling at Harrisburg Noon Tide Tables Entrance Siuslaw River High Tide Low Tide Nov. 23 9:03am / 8.1 9:45pm / 6.5 2:41am /1.2 3:42pm / 0.4 Nov. 24 9:45m / 8.4 10:43pm /6.7 3:33am / 1.5 4:31pm / -0.4 Nov. 25 10:25am / 8.7 11:37pm / 6.9 4:21am / 1.8 5:17pm / -1.1 Nov. 26 11:05am / 8.9 5:07am / 2.2 6:02pm / -1.3 Nov. 27 12:28am / 7.0 11:46pm/ 8.8 5:52am/ 2.5 6:45pm/ -1.3 Nov. 28 1:17am / 6.9 12:36pm / 8.5 6:37am / 2.9 7:28pm / -1.2 Nov. 29 2:05am / 6.8 1:07pm/ 8.1 7:23am/ 3.2 8:12pm/ -0.9 JARED ANDERSON/SIUSLAW NEWS Siuslaw junior Savannah Morris lines up for a jump shot during practice Thursday. C OLE TAKES HELM OF L ADY V IKS B Y J ARED A NDERSON Siuslaw News “I was always better at softball, but I like basketball more,” said Siuslaw High School’s new basketball coach, Ashlee Cole. A native of Florence, Cole represented the Vikings throughout her high school career in both basketball and softball, though it was the latter where she gained the spotlight; the Viks could always count on her deliver- ing a home run from home plate. “But deep down, for me, basketball was always what I liked better,” she said. “It’s fast-paced and there’s no sec- ond chances. You make a decision, the ball gets stolen, you better run and get it. You can’t get into your head as much as you can with soft- ball. There, you have all this time between innings, think- ing about what you did wrong.” Basketball is instinct, with no time to dwell on mistakes. “Basketball is pure sport — and I’m really good at understanding sports,” Cole said. “I just pick it up. I don’t know what it is about it. I really understand the ins and out of sports. Playing it grow- ing up and coming into high school, it was already a sec- ond nature.” The is the first time Cole is acting as head coach for any sport. A 2014 graduate, she’s New Viking girls basket- ball coach Ashlee Cole was a standout athlete in bas- ketball and softball for Siuslaw between 200X-200X only tried her hand at coach- ing once last spring under the tutelage of longtime Siuslaw softball coach Sean O’Mara. “That got me into the whole coaching thing,” she said. “I was excited to coach.” When the position opened up this year, Cole stated in her interview she had one main goal for the team: “To make it fun again.” Fun is something the Lady Viks basketball team hasn’t been having for the last num- ber of years, especially when it comes to winning games. During the 2019 league sea- son last winter, they suffered eight straight losses, only winning one game. It was the same story in 2018, and in 2017 — it was nine straight losses. “It’s hard losing,” Cole said. “For some of the girls on the team now, losing has been all three years of their high school career. All they know is how to lose. Trying to get them to have a different mindset is going to be a little challenging. But once you get to that point where you can see improvement and see what’s ahead — like making the playoffs — once they see that, it will be a totally differ- ent ballgame.” Changing that mentality will involve getting back to making the game fun again for athletes in the program, and Cole said that losing isn’t the only factor that makes playing a downer. “It’s not the main thing,” Cole said. “It’s not getting along with your teammates. It’s having a coach that gets on you the whole time. Not saying [the previous coaches] did that, because I don’t really know. But for me personally, that’s something that loses that fun. It’s important to have a coach who believe in what you’re doing. That’s the coach I’m trying to be. Someone who really cares about their players. It’s some- thing I strive for.” And to make that happen, Cole is pulling from her own experiences as a player when she was at Siuslaw, where she started on the varsity team when she was a freshman. “It was scary as a fresh- man,” she said. “I was playing with girls that I heard about as a freshman, but I knew I See COLE 3B Sea of Lights returns to aquarium The Oregon Coast Aquarium invites you to illu- minate your holiday SEAson by joining us for our annual Sea of Lights celebration. Sea of Lights is the largest holiday light display on the central Oregon coast. Explore the aquarium after dark surrounded by the illu- minated shapes of your favor- ite sea creatures and thou- sands of colorful holiday lights. Santa will be busy granting holiday wishes and posing for photos with guests. This family-friendly event kicks off with a special cele- bration Dec. 6 and 7, from 6 to 9 p.m. Admission to this first Friday and Saturday of Sea of Lights is $2 plus two items of nonperishable food for peo- ple or pets for the Food Share of Lincoln County and the Lincoln County Animal Shelter. Entry is $10 per person without a donation and free for aquarium members, but they are encouraged to bring an item to donate. Sea of Lights will continue to illuminate the aquarium every Friday and Saturday night of December from 5 to 8 p.m. Admission is $10 or free with same day paid admis- sion. The aquarium is open every day this winter, except Dec. 25, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. For tickets or more infor- mation, visit www.aquarium. org or call 541-867-3474. When California Gover- nor Gavin Newsome recently signed the “Fair Pay to Play Act,” the NCAA’s rules for am- ateurism were challenged. In response to this legislation, the governing board of the NCAA unanimously voted to allow college athletes to be compen- sated. Each of the three divisions of the NCAA has until January 2021 to create new rules for the implementation of compensa- tion to their college athletes. Th ey recognized it was time to accept change in prohibiting college athletes from getting paid. In 1970, I was selected to play in the East-West Shrine all-star football game. Th e NCAA rules were so stingy that players wanting a jacket had to buy it with their own money or risk losing “amateur” status. Th e jacket cost $29; I guess $29 exceeded the NCAA threshold for compensation. Heaven forbid the players in the game might be considered professional for receiving a $29 jacket. As soon as this decision was announced, Sen. Richard Burr of North Carolina will See LITTLE 2B ODFW R EGIONAL F ISHING R EPORT www.dfw.state.or.us/RR MID COAST LAKES: Stocking of the mid-coast lakes ended in June. Check the stocking schedule online for dates and locations of stockings. Some of the bigger lakes have “hold-over” trout and the fishing typically picks up in the fall when these trout are feeding to prepare for the winter months ahead. In the mid-coast these lakes include: Olalla, Big Creek reservoirs, Cleawox, Mercer, Munsel and Siltcoos. Warmwater fisheries are slowing down for the year as water temperatures cool down. SIUSLAW RIVER: Fall Chinook Fall Chinook fishing con- tinues to be fair on the Siuslaw River. The river is low and clear and there are still some fish in the estuary, but it has been slow. Fish are still holding in the upper tidewa- ter areas waiting for the next big rain event. Expect more of the same until we get some more rain. Reminder: Lake Creek (a tributary of the Siuslaw River) is closed for the fall salmon season to protect the forecast- ed low number of returning See FISHING 2B Free fishing, crabbing, clamming throughout Oregon Nov. 29, 30 The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife hosts its annual Free Fishing Days the two days after Thanksgiving. That means on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 29 and 30, no fish- ing licenses or tags (including a Combined Angling Tag or Columbia River Basin Endorsement or Two-Rod Validation) are required to fish, crab or clam anywhere in Oregon. Even relatives or friends visit- ing Oregon from out of state can come along because non-resi- dents are also free on these two Free Fishing days. Although no licenses or tags are required, all other fishing reg- ulations apply including closures, bag limits and size restrictions. If you’re planning to fish for salmon, steelhead or marine fish, make sure to check the zone where you are fishing on the ODFW’s Recreation Report for the latest on season and bag lim- its because regulations for these species change in-season. The Recreation Report comes out weekly and also features the latest on fishing conditions and opportunities, so check it out before you make your Free Fishing Days plans. Beginning anglers can try fish- ing for holdover trout available where lakes and ponds have been stocked earlier in the year; trout are actively feeding in prepara- tion for winter. Crabbing can be also be good during the winter months. For anyone crabbing or clam- ming, remember to call the Shellfish Safety Hotline at 1-800- 448-2474 or check ODA’s Recreational Shellfish page to make sure an area is open before heading out. For tips on how to fish, crab or clam and where to go, visit www. MyODFW.com.