Cottage Grove Sentinel
Sports & Recreation
B1
THURSDAY | AUGUST 19, 2021
Experience is key for CG volleyball in 2021
By Kendrick Murphy
kmurphy@cgsentinel.com
I
ODFW R ECREATION AND F ISHING
R EPORT
myodfw.com/recreation-report
Updated August 19, 2021
Ocean salmon seasons continue
It’s shoulder season on the coast,
where spring and summer rivers runs
are done and fall runs haven’t quite
picked up. In the interim, many anglers
have been enjoying some great ocean
salmon fishing. Learn more about fish-
ing by visiting myodfw.com/articles/
ocean-salmon-fishing.
As hot temps persist, so does hot
water fishing guidance
Here’s what you should know about
fishing in the hot, dry conditions we’re
experiencing:
ODFW has adopted emergency regu-
lations for some waterbodies. These in-
clude closing fishing during the hottest
part of the day, and lifting bag limits for
lakes and ponds that are likely to go dry.
See the Regulation updates at the top of
each zone in the Rec Report for the lat-
est.
Conditions are right for blue-green
algae outbreaks in ponds, lakes and res-
ervoirs. You can find the latest alerts on
the Oregon Health Authority website.
However, OHA does not monitor all
waterbodies, so be leery of any algae
blooms you see, and follow these pre-
cautions to fish safely.
Hot water can stress fish out. Anglers
can give fish a break by looking at these
tips at myodfw.com/articles/5-tips-fish-
ing-hot-water when fishing in warm
summer water.
Access may be limited by wildfires.
To check for access, road closures
and other wildfire restrictions, visit
this page myodfw.com/articles/hunt-
ing-and-fire-danger-oregon. Also check
the zone reports for updates on specific
waterbodies.
Mourning dove season opens Sept. 1
Dove hunting offers one of the first
opportunities to go afield each year. The
action can be fast, offering lots of op-
portunities to shoot and the chance to
sharpen your skills for the opening of
other bird seasons later in the fall. Learn
more about hunting mourning dove
by visiting myodfw.com/articles/how-
hunt-mourning-dove.
Apply for a sage-grouse permit
Hunting greater sage-grouse offers
the wingshooter a unique once-in-a-
lifetime hunting experience. This is a
small, well-regulated hunt by permit
only. Applications are due by Aug. 14,
but before you apply, make sure you
have the will and/or ability to travel to
wild, remote places. Read more about
hunting for sage-grouse at myodfw.com/
articles/sage-grouse-hunting-oregon-0.
Hunting and fire danger
Early season hunts often take place
during the peak of the wildfire season.
Experienced hunters know to check for
fire closures before their hunt. Make
sure to carry water or fire extinguish-
er, as well as a shovel and axe/poleaski
while traveling in this remote desert
country. Visit this page myodfw.com/
articles/hunting-and-fire-danger-ore-
gon it has links to the most current fire
closures and restrictions.
Athlete of
the Week
n 2020, the Cottage Grove vol-
leyball program saw a familiar
face step into the role of head
coach.
Abby Ladd, a former Lion herself,
played for the program from 2013-
2016 and coached at Cottage Grove
for four years before being promot-
ed to head coach.
Stepping into the lead for the first
time is a challenge in itself — much
less in the midst of a pandemic —
but Coach Ladd didn’t let the team
get distracted.
“Last year our goal for the pro-
gram was having a positive mind-
set and it was tough dealing with
COVID-19 when some girls hadn’t
touched a ball or been around peo-
ple and school life had been crazy,”
said Ladd. “So our goal was just fo-
cused around being positive around
KENDRICK MURPHY/COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL
CG volleyball players work on striking techniques during their second practice this
see VOLLEYBALL on B2 season.
Sights set high for North Douglas volleyball
By Kendrick Murphy
kmurphy@cgsentinel.com
Building off a successful 2020-21 cam-
paign, the Lady Warriors volleyball team is
ready to “bring it” to the fall season.
The North Douglas ladies finished last
season with a 13-2 record overall, complete-
ly steamrolling their competition at times.
They were only pushed to five sets once
in the season as they swept their opponents
nine times in 15 games. Of the teams that
played 10 or more games, North Douglas’
defense was one of the best. They lost a
mere 11 sets over the course of the entire
season.
Head Coach Emily Reed saw strong signs
from the team last year and is excited about
this group maturing more together this up-
coming season.
“They were really unsure of themselves
last year thinking maybe they didn’t belong
with the elite teams and at the end of the
year. We were in a tournament with a lot of
teams who had been in the state tournament
in 2019,” she said. “I think it helped these
girls realize we can compete with those top
teams and we belong in that group. I have
already seen a shift in attitude from last
year. If I asked these girls if they wanted to
play against bigger schools, they would be
nervous, but this year they say, ‘Bring it on!’
KENDRICK MURPHY/COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL
The Lady Warriors began practice instilled with confidence after a successful pre-
vious season.
It really shows the huge amount of growth
this group has had.”
Coach Reed enters her third year as the
leader of the program and in her first two
seasons, the Warriors have won 74 percent
of their games to this point. They only lost
one senior from a season ago and will be
returning a total of eight players who were
sophomores or freshmen.
“I’m most excited about the fact that this
is basically the same team from last year.
This isn’t a typical first day of practice, we’re
coming in with this short turnaround from
last season,” Reed said. “I just saw them
in April and so really just fine-tuning our
weaknesses from a few months ago. Be-
ing able to test our skills against some top
teams in our first jamboree next week will
gauge what’s going well and what we might
need to work on for the rest of the year.”
To start off the 2020 season, North Doug-
las had a 10-game winning streak that car-
ried them to their only league loss against
Days Creek.
The Warriors will try to come out of the
gates strong again in the 2021 season and
look for more success this year as they set
their sights on the top of the league.
CG football optimistic about change ahead of new season
By Daniel Friis/for The Sentinel
DANIEL FRIIS/COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL
The Lions are working to install some new offense in their first week of practice.
This week’s athletes
of the week are
the winning team
from South Valley
Athletics adult
summer soccer
league, SCORES FC
Chapin.
FC Chapin
proved to
be the most
dominant
team in the
SCORES
league this
summer.
PHOTO COURTESY
OF SOUTH VALLEY
ATHLETICS
The Cottage Grove Lions football team
has seen its fair share of successes on the
gridiron.
From 2013-2019, the Lions went 36-20
while taking home three 4A Sky-Em titles.
Under head coach Gary Roberts, Cottage
Grove had become a juggernaut in high
school football.
Since then, however, the Lions haven’t
won a game.
In 2019 while still under Roberts, the Li-
ons went 0-8. The closest game they had all
season was a 14-point loss to Junction City.
“This season already feels better,” Ayden
Freeman, a senior linebacker said. “It feels
coordinated.”
After a lackluster 2019, Cottage Grove
hired a new coach ahead of the new season:
Joe Polamalu.
Polamalu comes from a big football back-
ground, and was the perfect candidate for
the job.
He played linebacker for the Oregon State
Beavers in the ‘80s, and his cousin, Troy Pol-
amalu, is an NFL hall of famer.
Not only does he have the name for foot-
ball, but Polamalu has the experience as well.
He spent six seasons coaching at Sandy High
School and five seasons coaching at Douglas
High School in Winston combining for a re-
cord of 69-49.
“Joe knows what he’s doing,” Freeman
said. “He’s confident in what he’s doing. He’s
got plans, he just knows. He’s not winging it
like everyone else.”
Unfortunately for Joe, his first season as
the Lion head coach was canceled due to
COVID-19. He coached the team during
their brief spring schedule when sports were
see FOOTBALL on B2