Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Cottage Grove sentinel. (Cottage Grove, Or.) 1909-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 23, 2016)
B S PORTS Wednesday, November 23, 2016 Section B South Lane County Sports and Recreation Contact Sports, 942-3325 or e-mail sports@cgsentinel.com LIONS ON TO STATE Cottage Grove dismantled the Cascade Cougars in Hillsboro on Saturday, marching to a 48-20 victory. The Lions now have an opportunity for a state title, their second chance in four years BY SAM WRIGHT The Cottage Grove Sentinel The Lions have done it once again this season. After a tough road game against Astoria, Cot- tage Grove traveled to Hillsboro, where they quickly took care of Cascade in a 48-20 victory. The 15th ranked Cougars seemed to be underrated coming into the playoffs. Cascade easily dis- mantled second-ranked Maza- ma 40-21 in the fi rst round of the playoffs and then similarly defeated South Umpqua 34-21 in the quarterfi nals. The Cougars would not be so fortunate in the semifi nal match- up against a determined sixth- ranked Cottage Grove, coming off one of the best fi nishes the team has seen all season. The Lion offense has consis- tently been able to rely on its speed since the team overall is relatively small. On the second play of the game, quarterback Blake Sentman threw a screen pass to receiver Jacob Woods, who turned on the jets and left the Cascade defense in the dust for a 64-yard touchdown. The fast-paced offense is noteworthy, defi nitely, but what really gave the Lions their dom- inating lead and the ability to score a lot of points was the de- fense. Multiple times in the fi rst half, the Lions were backed up in the red zone and made several fourth-down stops, which was crucial for the Lions’ halftime lead. Cascade found themselves down only 13-6 near the end of the fi rst half, but Cougar quar- Photo by Sam Wright Jacob Woods comes away with the ball after being contested for it on a long pass from Blake Sentman to end the fi rst half. terback Quinn Legner threw an interception into the hands of safety Hayden Glenn of Cot- tage Grove. Directly after, Sent- man threw a lateral pass to Kory Parent, who then pulled up and threw a deep ball to Woods, who was wide open and scored for a 20-6 lead. The Cougars managed to drive the ball again near the Lions’ redzone, but Glenn once again made another interception, this time in the endzone, and he ran the ball out to the 42-yard line with an impressive return. Cot- tage Grove wasn’t aching for one more score, but an opportu- nity presented itself. With less than 30 seconds left in the half, Sentman saw Woods line up in single coverage with no help over the top. The quar- terback audibled and sent Woods down the left sideline, where the ball was tipped and eventually taken away by Woods and run into the endzone, despite a de- fensive pass interference call. The game seemed to be in control for Cottage Grove with a 27-6 lead at halftime. But the suffering wasn’t over for the Cascade Cougars. The Lions recovered a Cascade fumble on the opening kickoff, which led to an easy score, and the game was essentially out of reach. The Lions were able to capi- talize off of turnovers and strike quickly all night. “That’s what happens when you have Marty Johnson call- ing the plays,” Roberts said. Johnson, a legend of Eugene’s Sheldon High School, has been a key to the Lions’ success as the offensive coordinator. “He believes in the quick strike,” Roberts added. Cottage Grove totaled 389 yards of total offense. Sent- man completed 16 of 33 passes for 244 yards and fi ve touch- downs—two of which were to Woods, who caught fi ve passes for 160 yards and three touch- downs. Zane Levings won play- er of the game for his defensive play and rushing for 100 yards on 19 carries and one touch- down. Parent had both a touch- down throw and a touchdown reception on the game. “Two years ago we were 3-7, last year we were 4-5. What we have are a bunch of kids who are willing to work for what they want,” Roberts said. Cottage Grove’s 11-0 record proves that they not only have the talent but also the work ethic. “They have big hearts, and they want to bring something to Cottage Grove,” Roberts said. The Lions now face top- ranked North Bend on Saturday. Cottage Grove will head back to Hillsboro stadium to compete for a state title, the second op- portunity in four years. Like the Lions, North Bend is undefeated (10-0). The Bull- dogs’ closest game was their season opener where they won 31-21 against Astoria, every- thing else has been a blowout. “They’re defi nitely going to be the best team we’ve played all year, but I think we’re going MVP Raade, CG athletes honored on All-League Sky-Em rosters Athlete of the Week Tori Raade was the Southern League's Most Valuable Player, headlining the All-League rosters which featured dozens of CGHS athletes BY SAM WRIGHT The Cottage Grove Sentinel Though they didn’t make it all the way to the fi nals, the Cottage Grove girls’ water polo team went out with a bang with one of the best seasons they have had in a long time. Due to the lack of water polo teams in the area, the Aqua Lions aren’t in the Sky-Em League like the rest of the Cottage Grove teams. The team plays in the Southern League,” which is a mix of 4A and 5A schools such as Ash- land, South Albany and even North Eugene. The league recently released its All-League roster, which gave Cottage Grove a fi nal ex- clamation mark on their season. Tori Raade was the league’s Most Valuable Player on the girl’s side, and Clover Rudicel joined her on the fi rst-team ros- ter. Head Coach Tyson Pilling won Coach of the Year for the girls’ team, which dominated many of its games throughout league play. Seth Chambers and Jeremiah West both received second-team spots on the All-League roster, too. Around the Sky-Em The Sky-Em League also re- leased its rosters for all sports. Cottage Grove volleyball was pleasantly surprised, with Head Coach Jason Corwin winning Coach of the Year. Usually, the head coach of the team that wins the Sky-Em League will win Coach of the Year, and the Lions only took second place to the undefeated Outlaws (26- 3 overall). But the huge im- provement from Corwin’s fi rst year to his second year made him slightly more outstanding. Sophomore Cassidy Herbert and freshman Reilly Kelty both received fi rst-team All-League spots, and senior Carly Sand received a second-team spot. Senior Ellie Brown received an honorable mention. Girls’ soccer struggled this year, but it’s no surprise that se- nior Kia Hemenway was put on the fi rst team of the All-League roster. Hemenway, the star for- ward of the team, was the league MVP last year after Cottage Grove won the League Title. Hudson Weybright received a second-team spot on the roster, and Halle Peterson and Bailey May received honorable men- tions. On the boys’ soccer team, Kyle Browning, a junior, was picked for the fi rst team ros- ter. Teammates Kyle Conley, Lathon Van Wagner and Zacha- riah Stewart were on the second team and Jasper Nichols-Fergu- son received an honorable men- tion. The undefeated football team was all over the Sky-Em All- League rosters. Blake Sentman won Offensive Player of the Year and Gary Roberts won Coach of the Year. On the offensive line, junior Cooper Ladd was the fi rst-team center, Seth Mor- Please see ALL-LEAGUE, Page 3B to be the best team they have played all year,” Roberts said. North Bend’s aggressive style of play is keeping Roberts and the rest of his coaching staff busy. “I think the question is what aren’t I concerned about,” he said laughing. Roberts believes that North Bend’s Trey Woods (RB/DB) and Brody Lucero (QB/DB) are the two best players in the state at the 4A level. “They play really aggressive defense, and they’re very fast,” he added, “but I’m confi dent in our players to play a really good game.” But the Lions are fast too. The two teams are scheduled to kick off at 2:30 p.m. at Hillsboro Sta- dium on Nov. 26. Hayden Glenn shows up on defense Photo courtesy of Stafford D. Photography Tori Raade of the CG girls' water polo team won MVP in the class 5A/4A Southern League. Cottage Grove Sentinel Junior Hayden Glenn received a fi rst-team spot on the Sky-Em All-League roster. The defensive back and receiver had two interceptions and two touchdown grabs against Cascade on Saturday. Glenn can be seen lined up on the right side or deep in the secondary.
