Cottage Grove sentinel., March 28, 2018, Image 13

B
S PORTS
Section B
Elkton/
Yoncalla
10-run
ruled
Wednesday, March 28, 2018
South Lane County Sports and Recreation
Contact Sports, 942-3325 or e-mail zsilva@cgsentinel.com
Lions get pair of team wins in Icebreaker
By Zach Silva
It was a day of learning
experiences for the Elkton/
Yoncalla baseball team.
On a rare sunny spring
afternoon, last Tuesday, the
Elks travelled to face 3A
Creswell where they were
10-run ruled - by a score of
16-6 - in the fi fth inning by
the Bulldogs who had their
way with the bats.
“If we’re going to play
with Oakland or Monroe,
you know even North Doug-
las, we’ve got to fi gure out
how to stay in games like
this. So character builder,
right?,” said Elkton/Yoncalla
head coach Bill Shaw.
As not all 10-run rule
games are created equally,
the Elks were able to get on
the board early, create runs
and, ultimately, hang around
in the game. After trailing
by three runs early on, Elk-
ton/Yoncalla squared things
away in top of the third in-
ning at 4-4 with hits from
Cody Gustafson, Austin Lu-
zier and Jarret Williams.
Disaster struck for the Elks
in the form of a Creswell six-
run inning in the bottom of
the third. A steady diet of
the Bulldogs putting the ball
in play and Elkton/Yoncalla
fi elding errors, started the
scoring. Pitcher Jarrett Wil-
liams, the second pitcher of
the day, was then replaced
with Jeff Tibbetts who got
out of the inning but not be-
fore two more runs crossed
the plate.
“Honestly, the pitching
wasn’t terrible. They hit the
ball pretty good but really it
was the little plays. We gave
up a couple of infi eld ground
balls that should have been
outs. We had a couple of
things drop in the outfi eld
that shouldn’t have been
dropped. You know those lit-
tle things,” said Shaw.
In the top of the fourth the
Elks were able to get two
runs back off of wild pitches
that saw, in separate instanc-
es, Cody Gustafson and Coo-
per Peters both steal home.
But a two-run fourth inning
followed by a four-run fi fth
inning for Creswell did the
Elks in.
Throughout the game,
Shaw was tinkering with
when to put pitchers in both
situationally and in compli-
ance with last year’s pitch
count rule that requires a set
amount of rest based on the
amount of pitches thrown
over 25. With a full week of
games ahead, Brad Doud-
na started and fi nished the
game for the Elks, with stints
at fi rst base and short stop
in between. The team was
looking to fi nd the right bal-
ance without throwing their
second pitcher Luzier in the
rotation, in order to have
him throw in games later in
the week. Tibbets threw 44
pitches to avoid having to
rest for two days which is
mandated at 46 pitches.
In addition to fi nding the
pitching rotation that will
guide the team throughout
the season, Shaw is also
fi nding a place on the team
for a group of freshman and
looking to see how they can
contribute.
“I played four freshman
today. Started and played
the whole game basically,”
he said. “So when you’re
14-years-old, just short of
15 and you’re out there in
a varsity game against a 3A
school, that’s having to step
up a little bit.”
PHOTO BY ZACH SILVA/CG SENTINEL
Cottage Grove's Jacob Woods sprints through the rain to claim a victory in the 200 last week at the Cottage Grove Icebreaker.
Cottage Grove dominates
across the board to earn
opening meet victories
By Zach Silva
zsilva@cgsentinel.com
In a wet, windy and at one point clear
day – that fortunately featured no actual
ice – the Lions track and fi eld team host-
ed the Cottage Grove Icebreaker meet
last Wednesday.
Competing against North Valley,
Pleasant Hill and Thurston at Wally Cio-
chetti track in the fi rst meet of the season
the Cottage Grove boys’ and girls’ teams
both took fi rst place.
“It’s just kind of a barometer for the
rest of the season. It tells us where we’re
starting, really. I mean the squad meet
gave us a little bit of an indication but I
guess I don’t have huge expectations for
that fi rst meet. I just want to see where
we’re at and then what we need to work
on,” said Cottage Grove head coach
Ricky Knutson.
“But yeah we saw some great perfor-
mances considering the conditions once
it started raining.”
A couple events in the overcast day
turned into an unrelenting rain that stuck
around until the end of the meet. But
regardless of the weather, the Cottage
Grove boys were dominant across the
board.
On the track, a Cottage Grove boy won
every individual race except for the 400
(Jacob Woods 100 and 200, James Talley
800, Paesen Timm 1500, Drew Chapman
3000, Juice Clafl in 110 hurdles, Colton
Benner 300 hurdles). Their success car-
ried over to the fi eld events as Clafi n won
the shot put and Erick Giffen took fi rst in
high jump.
“I mean, it was nice being out at the
fi rst meet. I didn’t get where I really
wanted to today. Had some pretty bad
events but I mean, it was a good kick-
off to the season and I’m excited to see
where it goes,” said Woods.
Through it all, the group that most im-
pressed Knutson was the distance run-
ners.
“Those guys really stood out today. I
was really excited to see where we were.
We’re way ahead of where we were last
year with those guys. So that’s pretty en-
couraging, they’ve been working pretty
hard,” he said.
In the 800, 1500 and 3000, it was Cot-
tage Grove runners easing into the race
and making a move in the fi nal lap to
take command. In the 800, it was Talley,
racing at this distance for the fi rst time in
high school, pulling away with 300 me-
ters to go.
“Yeah basically Knutson told us to just
run the fi rst lap and try to stay with the
pack and in the last 300 just try to kick in
front of them,” said Talley. “I was kind
of scared because I was like I think I
kicked too early.”
It worked for Talley and teammate
Konrad Raum who pushed past a Pleas-
ant Hill runner at the line to take second.
In the 1500 it was Timm who was wait-
ing in second place until there was 500
meters left in the race.
“[Timm] has no kick. And so I asked
him before the race, do you want this to
come down to the last 100 meters? And
he said, ‘no way.’ So he’s been putting in
the miles so that’s the type of race that
he’s going to have to run in order to be
successful at districts,” said Knutson.
“I came around that turn and I was
like alright I’m going to do it right now
and I just passed him and I was gone. I
wasn’t going to let him catch me,” said
Timm who was just two seconds off his
personal best time. Teammate Jesse El-
lingworth placed second.
CG Track continued on B2
Faryn Dahlen glides over a hurdle on her way to a victory.
PHOTO BY ZACH SILVA/CG SENTINEL
Successful Sayles pitch, Cottage Grove downs Douglas
A complete game from pitcher
Wyatt Sayles guides the Lions to
a victory
By Zach Silva
zsilva@cgsentinel.com
PHOTO BY ZACH SILVA/CG SENTINEL
Cottage Grove's Wyatt Sayles delivers a pitch at home last week.
Athletes of
the Week
The puzzle pieces of the Cottage Grove
baseball season are beginning to fi t together.
“I feel like we’re on the verge of being a
good team. I think right now we’re not a bad
team by any means but I just think we’re on
the verge and we’re getting some pieces put
into place,” said head coach Dan Geiszler.
“Last week at this time there was like two
pieces in place and now we have like fi ve or
six. So it feels a little better to coach.”
Bookended between days of downpour and
snow, it was a, mostly, sunny afternoon last
Thursday that saw Cottage Grove (2-2) handle
Douglas (4-1) on the diamond as they scored
a 4-2 victory. Soaking up the sun for the Lions
was pitcher Wyatt Sayles who pitched a com-
plete game, gave up just fi ve hits and threw
nine strikeouts.
“Well I was able to get two pitches going for
the fi rst time this year. Prior games I had pretty
much just my fastball going and location. This
time I was able to get location, fastball, curve-
ball,” he said.
“They weren’t able to adjust to two pitches.
They would either be behind my curveball or
behind my fastball so I would stay with my
fastball and I could just get them on that and
if they got ahead I would just throw my curve-
ball and they would whiff on that. It was good.
Felt like midseason again.”
In the fi rst inning Douglas, undefeated com-
ing into the game, briefl y got the bats going as
they saw two hits and scored the opening run
of the game. From then on, the Trojans strug-
gled to get their offense in action.
“First off, Wyatt was really unreal. He
pitched really well and if he can do that, we’re
going to be pretty tough when he’s on the
mound,” said Geiszler.
The bats came alive for the Lions in the
third inning with two outs as Payton Frieze
and Hunter Sharkey hit singles and Sayles was
walked. A Jaace Cross shot to right brought in
a run to give the team a 2-1 advantage. Cross
fi nished the game two-for-three with two
RBIs.
CG Baseball continued on B3
This week’s athletes of the week are the freshman
girls of the Cottage Grove track and fi eld team. Six
girls placed in the top four of eight different events
for the Lions. This included Matty Ladd who won the
high jump and took third in the 100; Raina Herzog
who was second in shot put and third in discus;
Adelle Kent who was second in pole vault and fourth
in shot put; Mariah Ludkier who was fourth in the
200, Owen Dragt who fi nished second in the 100
hurdles and Rhea Florez who was fourth in the 800.
OWEN DRAGT IN THE 100 HURDLES
CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK
zsilva@cgsentinel.com