12A Polk County Itemizer-Observer • February 25, 2015 Polk County Sports CLASS 5A STATE WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIPS Dallas ready for title run Dragons hope to bring home state trophies By Lukas Eggen The Itemizer-Observer DALLAS — The Dallas High wrestling team is used to invading the Memorial Coliseum each year for the OSAA state wrestling cham- pionships. This year, the Dragons are hoping to have one of its best showings yet. “Fo r s o m e o f t h e s e wrestlers, a single win is a huge contribution, for oth- ers, we would be bummed with anything short of a place,” Dallas coach Tony Olliff said. Among those with high expectations include sen- iors Nolan Miller and Matt Hofenbredl, both of whom are seeded second in their respective weight class. “I have to wrestle every- body tough,” Miller said. “I have to keep my head on straight and know nothing is going to come easy.” In a l l , 17 Dallas wrestlers will com- pete at the OSAA s t a t e wrestling champi- Miller onships Friday and Saturday in Port- land: Ryan Bibler (106 pounds), Noah Sickles (113), Jordan Williams (120), Miller (120), Sammy Chung (126), Hofenbredl (132), Mathew Dindinger (138), Tanner Earhart (138), Cody Janssen (145), Noel Reyes (145), Clay Cozen (152), Treve Earhart (152), Jeff Dunagan (160), Tyson Janssen (170), Josh Naughton (182), Mathew Thorsted (195) and Kyle Snyder (220). And everyone is ready to show their stuff. “I think I can do a lot of damage and I think our team has a real good shot to win, so I’m excited for t h a t , ” T y s o n Janssen said. T h i s year, the Dragons Hofenbredl are look- ing to compete for a team title as well. “The 5A race will be a fun one,” Olliff said. “Hillsboro, Crater, Redmond and our traditional rival Hermiston all have a shot at a state (team) title. Sandy has a chance as well. It will be a dogfight.” The key to a team trophy relies on more than individ- ual titles, however. “To win a state title, we need to get wins out of our 17,” Olliff said. “We need to get pins when we can. We have to take sixth when we should, fifth when we should, etc. That’s how you win a state title.” While they’re aiming high, Olliff is also looking to make sure his wrestlers enjoy the experience. “We try to get the kids out of Memorial Coliseum when they don’t need to be there,” Olliff said. “Some- times we take them across the river to people watch, or go back to the hotel for a nap. That can win a kid a state title. A mental escape can be worth gold.” It won’t just be the boys competing at state this weekend. Junior Angie Sletten (113 pounds) finished third in the Oregon Girls State Tour- nament qualifier earlier this month. The top four girls in each weight class advanced to the state championships this Friday and Saturday. Sletten will face freshman Sarah Sullenger of Hood River Valley in her opening round. PREP GIRLS BASKETBALL ROUNDUP Dragons close in on third Dallas, Central to host play-in games March 4 Itemizer-Observer staff report DALLAS — Locked in a battle for third place in the Mid-Willamette Conference with Central, the Dallas girls basketball team split a pair of league contests last week. The Dragons opened with a 44-42 loss to league- leading Co r va l l i s on Feb. 18 before de- feating C re s c e n t Valley 53- 34 on Fri- day. Sopho- Zwicker more Sara Zwicker scored 16 points in each contest as Dallas im- proved to 13-8 overall and 8-4 in league play. Senior Sarah Mitchell added 12 points against the Raiders. The Dragons enter the week in third place, one game ahead of Central. Dal- las hosts Lebanon Wednes- day (today) at 7 p.m. before playing at Silverton on Fri- day. The Silver Foxes en- tered the week 7-1 in league play. Dallas cannot finish higher than third or lower than fourth in the MWC standings. The Dragons will face ei- ther the fifth-, or sixth- place team from the Mid- western League. North Eu- gene and Churchill entered the week in the fourth and fifth spots in the Midwest- ern League. “All season long we’ve been resilient,” Dallas coach David Brautigam said. “We want to stay con- sistent these next two games and keep the mo- mentum heading into the playoffs.” CENTR AL EYES HOME PLAY-IN GAME: The Central girls basketball team inched closer to clinching a home postseason game. The Pan- thers defeated Lebanon 69-43 Giving It All Continued from Page 10A Collin qualified for state at 138 pounds. “Tanner and Collin have become students of the sport,” Holstad said. “They study it and have learned so much, and it has shown in their performances so far. They constantly push each other. Many times, it is just them doing morning work- outs. They keep each other going.” The Swineharts won’t be the only Central wrestlers competing at state. Oscar Amezcua (160), David Negrete (182), Alberto Meza (195) and Marlon Tu- ipulotu (220) also earned their spots at state. Negrete and Meza also enter the state tournament coming off individual district champi- onships. “I honestly think we will do really well at state,” Tanner Swinehart said. “All of the kids who are going to state deserve to be there. They’re all hard workers on our team. I am confident in our ability and I think we’re all going to do really well.” SPORTS BRIEFS Four Pirates earn all-league honors DALLAS — Four Perrydale boys basketball players re- ceived all-league recogni- tion last week. Senior Chad Price and junior Haylen Janesofsky earned second team all-Tri River Conference honors, while senior Troy Trembly and junior Brant Barnes re- Price Janesofsky ceived honorable mentions. The Pirates finished 10-14 overall and advanced to the second round of the Tri-River Conference playoffs. Regis’ Blake Minten earned Player of the Year honors, while the Owls’ Tony Miller received the Coach of the Year award. Registration open for Mighty Mites MONMOUTH — Registration for the Dallas Mighty Mites pro- gram ends Thursday. The program, which is open to children ages 3 to 5, takes place every Saturday from March 14-April 4 at the Lyle Elementary School gym. The program runs from 9 to 10 a.m. The Mighty Mites program teaches participants basic funda- mentals of youth sports, including soccer, baseball, basketball and volleyball. The cost is $25 per child and includes a T-shirt. Registration forms are available online at www.dallasor.gov. Registration can be turned in at 187 SE Court St. in Dallas. For more information: David Brautigam, 503-831-3559 or david.brautigam@dallasor.gov. Seventh-grade girls headed to state SALEM — The Central seventh-grade girls basketball team won the Oregon Amateur Basketball tournament at the Hoop in Salem on Feb. 14-15. Central defeated North Eugene 49-33 and South Salem 24-12 in pool play before beating Dallas in the semifinals and Crescent Val- ley in the championship game. Scores from the semifinal and final weren’t available. With its title, Central advanced to the Oregon Middle School Basketball Championship March 7-8 in Bend. For more information: www.oregonamateurbasketball.net. Local wins high school hockey title PORTLAND — Central High junior Keighlee Riggan helped Team Neely win the Oregon State Hockey Association’s state champi- onship on Saturday and Sunday. Team Neely defeated Team Deadmarsh 6-1 and Rogue Valley Youth Hockey Association 4-1 and 4-0 to earn the title on Saturday and Sunday. Riggan posted a shutout in the third and final game. She stopped 23 of 24 shots over three games and had a .958 save per- centage. This is the second-straight state championship for Team Neely and its third-straight appearance in the title game. Riggan has been the starting goaltender for all three title games. Team Neely won the Winterhawks Varsity Hockey League to ad- vance to the state championship. LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer Perrydale senior Cheyenne Locke tries to drive past East Linn Christian sophomore Sydney Nichol on Thursday. Locke scored a game-high 17 points, but the Pirates lost to the Eagles 45-37 in the second round of the Tri-River Conference playoffs. East Linn Christian had a 38-23 edge in rebounds. Perrydale finished the 2014-15 season with a 12-11 record overall and 7-7 in league play. Play-in Round What: OSAA Class 5A girls basketball play-in round. When: Wednesday (March 4), TBA. Of note: Dallas and Central are battling for the Mid-Willamette Con- ference’s third and fourth seeds. The Panthers and Dragons will host their play-in round matchup. on Feb. 18 before falling to Sil- verton 52-39 on Friday. Junior Kylie Nash scored a game-high 24 points, while sen- iors Ryanne H u ff m a n and Sai Ta p a s a added 10 points each against the Warriors. Nash Central (7-5 Mid-Willamette Conference) hosts Corvallis Wednesday (today) and Woodburn on Fri- day at 7 p.m. to close out the regular season. The Panthers can finish no lower than fourth place and are one game be- hind Dallas for the league’s third seed. Central will host its play-in round against the fifth- or sixth-place team from the Midwestern League. P E R R Y D A L E FA L L S I N LEAGUE PLAYOFFS: The third time wasn’t a charm for the Perrydale girls basketball team on Thursday. The Pirates saw their season come to an end after falling to East Linn Chris- tian 45-37 in the second round of the Tri-River Conference playoffs. Fourth-seeded Perry- dale swept the Eagles during the regular season. Senior Cheyenne Locke led the Pi- rates with a game-high 17 points, but the Eagles con- trolled the boards, outre- bounding Perrydale 38-23. State: Ford happy with season Continued from Page 10A “We were a little disap- pointed she didn’t swim in the finals of the 200 freestyle, but in the overall picture, that helped her to swim her fastest time ever in the 500 freestyle,” Dallas coach Jeff Bemrose said. Ford may not have ac- complished all she was hoping for at state, but her performance in the 500 freestyle helped prove to her that all the work she put in was worth it. “This season started out kind of rocky,” Ford said. Finish: Senior ready to shine “My times throughout the season weren’t the best, but because of all the work I put into it, everything came to- gether at the end of the sea- son.” Glade hoped to make the most of his final trip to state. It was mission accom- plished as Glade finished the 100 breaststroke final in 1:02.56. “Last year, I didn’t make it to the finals,” Glade said. “This year, I had a lot of support and I was almost kind of expecting to make the finals this year. I was prepared to go and give it all I had, and that’s what I did.” Glade was also part of the Central 200 medley relay team with Daniel Glade, Ryan Rosas and Orion Waight that finished ninth in the preliminary heat in 1:51.87. Although it didn’t ad- vance to the finals, the chance to compete at state gave the relay team a mem- orable moment. “Going to state was a big accomplishment,” Waight said. “It was something that I didn’t expect to be able to do this season. It was a rush.” State provided an ending highlight for seniors Nathan Glade and Ryan Rosas. But for Waight, a junior, and Daniel Glade, a freshman, state provided valuable ex- perience for two of the pro- gram’s key swimmers for the future. “We were looking at how everyone did their strokes and learned how to improve our swimming,” Daniel Glade said. “I’m glad we had a chance to go through this experience.” Itemizer-Observer Athlete of the Week Jolie-Rae Ford Dallas High Ford, a sophomore, ended her 2014- 15 swim season on a positive note at the OSAA state swimming championships. Ford finished fourth in the 500-yard freestyle finals in 5 minutes, 17.33 sec- onds. Ford set a new personal record in the process. She also finished seventh in the preliminary heat of the 200- freestyle, just missing out on qualifying for the finals in that event. Ford was Dallas’ lone state qualifier. Julian Nichols Western Oregon Nichols, a junior, had an offensive ex- plosion for the Western Oregon men’s basketball team on Saturday. After scor- ing 10 points in the first half, Nichols caught fire, scoring 24 second half points against Simon Fraser. Nichols finished the game with 34 points, nine assists, six rebounds and five steals as the Wolves defeated the Clan 93-91 to clinch the Great North- west Athletic Conference regular season title. To submit nominations for the Itemizer-Observer Athlete of the Week, contact Sports Editor Lukas Eggen at 503-623-2373 or leggen@polkio.com by 9 a.m. on Monday. Visit our website, www.polkio.com ...for local news, sports and community events. Follow us on