Cottage Grove Sentinel
Sports & Recreation
SOUTH LANE COUNTY SPORTS AND RECREATION
Warriors
puzzled by
Riddle
•
WEDNESDAY | APRIL 10, 2019
•
B1
CONTACT SPORT EDITOR ZACH SILVA AT
942-3325 OR ZSILVA@CGSENTINEL.COM
Lions leap into league competition
North Douglas
gets one win
against Irish in
three-game series
By Zach Silva
zsilva@cgsentinel.com
In a three-game series
last week, it was the Rid-
dle baseball team secur-
ing a pair of wins against
North Douglas. In a series
that saw the visiting team
win each contest, it was
Riddle (3-7, 2-1 Skyline)
starting things out with
a double-header win on
the road last Wednesday
against the Warriors (5-3,
1-2 Skyline).
“It was kind of an inter-
esting double-header in
the fact that we made a lot
of great plays,” said North
Douglas head coach Jeff
Davis. “Th ere were a cou-
ple routine ones that we
botched that cost us some
runs. And right now we’re
not hitting ball as well as I
think we will.”
In the fi rst game of the
series, the Warriors fell
5-4 in extra-innings. With
two out and two on in the
bottom of the seventh in-
ning, it looked like Tan-
ner Parks’ shot to center
was going to be a walk-off
winner but instead was
caught by the center fi eld-
er for the fi nal out of the
inning.
“I think everybody
thought when it left his
bat that it was either go-
ing to get through to the
fence or get down a little
quicker,” said Davis. “I
don’t know if the air was
heavy or what it was, but
it stayed up a long time.
And you know, you get
into extra innings and al-
most sudden death.”
In the top of the eighth,
Riddle capitalized on mis-
cues – and an intentional
walk – to load the bases
with one out and score
what turned into the
game-winning run. Lead-
ing the way for Riddle
throughout the fi rst game
was pitcher Drake Bor-
schowa who gave up two
hits and struck out 11 bat-
ters. While the Warriors
fi nished with four hits on
the day, the team was able
to manufacture runs by
getting on base and being
smart on the base paths.
Brian Erickson got the
start for North Douglas
and was followed by ap-
pearances on the mound
from Waylon Beckham,
Wyatt Beckham and Col-
ter Anderson. Th e pitch-
ing unit struck out fi ve
batters and gave up four
hits.
In the second game of
the day Riddle won 4-1 as
pitcher Cameron McMi-
chael pitched six innings
and gave up four hits to
the Warriors.
With Riddle’s top pitch-
ers both throwing over
100 pitches on Wednes-
day, it meant they were
unavailable to pitch on
Saturday due to the pitch
count rule. Th is helped
the Warriors score a 13-6
victory and avoid being
swept.
“When you get to your
three, four, fi ve (pitchers)
– and both of us pitched
them – there are more
pitches in the middle of
the plate. Th ere are more
hit batsmen, a few more
walks and more base run-
WARRIORS
see B3
Cottage Grove junior Mitchell Krokus soars in the triple jump on Saturday at Marist High School. Krokus fi nished third in the competition along with a
third place fi nish in long jump. PHOTO BY ZACH SILVA/CG SENTINEL
Cottage Grove is
tested in pair of
meets against Sky-
Em opponents
By Zach Silva
zsilva@cgsentinel.com
With the district meet just
a month away, the Cottage
Grove track and fi eld team
got a fi rst-hand look at the
competition in the Sky-Em
league last week.
“As far as we’re looking, it’s
a work in progress for this
year,” said fi rst year CGHS
track and fi eld coach Gyna
Walton. “We’ve got some
work to do.”
While the Lions have won
both the boys district title
and Sky-Em coed title for the
past three seasons, the team
championship run could be
coming to an end this year.
Aft er the graduation of most
state scorers from a year ago
plus the addition of top track
and fi eld schools in Marist
and Marshfi eld to the league,
it would be a tall task for the
Lions to get back to that suc-
cess this year.
Saturday at a rainy Marist
Track Classic, the Cottage
Grove boys fi nished eighth
out of 10 teams including
half a point behind league-
foe Siuslaw. While 6A pow-
erhouse Jesuit won the meet,
the other notable Sky-Em
fi nishes were Marist in fourth
place and Marshfi eld in fi ft h.
“Score-wise, we kind of
learned that Marist is right
above us so we know that
Marshfi eld and Marist are
going to be the ones we need
to beat, pretty much,” said
Walton.
Th e top scorer for the Lions
at the meet was junior Mitch-
ell Krokus who fi nished with
13 individual points of the
team’s 33.5 points. Krokus
was third in both long and
triple jump, took eighth in
the 100 and anchored the
4x100 team of Fernando So-
to-Crus, Drake English and
Rodas Rodas Martin to a fi ft h
place fi nish.
Krokus currently has the
top mark in the Sky-Em in
triple jump, second best in
long jump and third in the
100.
“His drive is just amazing.
Th at kid is always working
hard. He’s one of, I’d say, the
hardest working kids on our
team,” said Walton.
On the track, the Cottage
Grove distance group scored
points with junior Jimmy
Talley fi nishing fourth in the
800. While fourth in the race,
the time of 2:03.82 vaulted
Talley to third in the Sky-Em
at that distance and fourth in
4A. Sophomore Drew Chap-
man fi nished eighth in an es-
pecially competitive 1500.
Th e Lions also picked up
points in high jump where
senior Erick Giff en fi nished
third and Isaac Stere and
Evan Snauer slotted in at
seventh. Luke Johns fi nished
seventh in pole vault.
For the Cottage Grove
girls, the team fi nished in
seventh place with 35 points.
Jesuit claimed fi rst while
Marshfi eld, Marist and Siu-
slaw were third, fourth and
fi ft h respectively.
One of the top fi nishers
of the day for the Lions was
senior Riley Hutchins who
took second in javelin.
“She went in fourth or fi ft h
and came out second. So that
was kind of exciting,” said
Walton. “And she’s my senior
captain so that was kind of
nice. Not a (personal record)
for her but a season record.”
Freshman Gracie Arnold was
seventh in the competition.
Th e other second-place
fi nish was from sophomore
Matty Ladd in the high jump
with a height of four-foot-10.
Arnold was fourth while Av-
ery Hutchins was seventh in
the event. In the pole vault,
Adelle Kent fi nished fourth.
On the track sophomore
Annah Nyburg placed sev-
enth in the 1500 while the
4x100 team of Piper Young-
mayr, Katie Geisler, Payton
Cameron and Ladd claimed
sixth.
Earlier in the week, the
Lions competed at Junction
City. While titled the Sky-Em
League JV Meet, top athletes
from both Cottage Grove and
Junction City were sprinkled
throughout the competition.
Th e Cottage Grove girls
took fi rst at the meet with
115 points. Leading the way
was Ladd who fi nished fi rst
LIONS
see B2
Cottage Grove’s 4x100 team completes the fi rst exchange
at last Saturday’s meet. PHOTO BY ZACH SILVA/CG SENTINEL
Rain leaves mark on Cottage Grove season
Lions have played
just one game since
opening week of
season
By Zach Silva
zsilva@cgsentinel.com
Cottage Grove pitcher Tayah Escobar-Richardson pitches
against Creswell last week before the game was cancelled.
Athlete of
the Week
For the Cottage Grove
soft ball team, the biggest
challenge of the season has
just been getting on the fi eld.
Th e Lions played three
games in the fi rst week of
the season but since their
third game on March 18 have
played just one game. Th e
team has played just four
Th is week’s athlete of the week
is Yoncalla’s Shaunasi Hardy.
Competing in javelin, Hardy took
fi rst at the Frank Good Preamble
Classic with a throw of 113-00.50
feet. To read more about Hardy,
Yoncalla track and all local
sports, turn to B3.
games which, along with
Klamath Union, is the fewest
amount of games played in
all of 4A. Th ree of their last
four schedules games have
been rained out.
Th e Lions now head into
an especially competitive
Sky-Em League. Currently,
Marist, Junction City and
Elmira are all ranked in the
top-10 in 4A.
Last week, on Tuesday
April 2, Cottage Grove host-
ed Creswell at home for three
innings until the rain came
and cancelled the game. Th e
Lions scored a pair of runs
in the fi rst but Creswell an-
swered with eight runs in the
next two innings before the
game was called. Th e game
was scheduled to be played
again on Friday but was, yet
again, cancelled.
Yesterday (Tuesday April
9 aft er Th e Sentinel’s dead-
line), the Lions were sched-
uled to play on the road at
Marshfi eld. In the next week
Cottage Grove hosts a dou-
ble-header against Elmira on
Friday, has Sutherlin at home
on Friday and travels to Siu-
slaw on Tuesday.
Yoncalla
senior Shau-
nasi Hardy
throws jav-
elin during
practice
before the
start of the
season.
PHOTO BY ZACH SILVA/
CG SENTINEL