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Polk County Itemizer-Observer • May 13, 2015 13A Polk County Sports CLASS 5A PREP TENNIS Sanna, Cable join forces for districts New doubles pair hopes partnership leads to a state tournament berth By Lukas Eggen The Itemizer-Observer INDEPENDENCE — From the beginning of the season, Kevin Cable and Edoardo Sanna had one thing on their mind: state. As Central’s boys tennis team’s top two singles play- ers worked toward their goal, Panthers coach Patti Youngren said they both had the look of a potential state qualifier at the Mid- Willamette Conference dis- trict tournament Wednesday (today), Thursday and Fri- day at Timberhill Tennis Club in Corvallis. But there was one issue. “There was probably only room (for one to qualify for state),” Youngren said. She approached Cable about joining forces with Sanna in doubles. The pair agreed and have resumed their state chase together. Since making the switch in mid-April, the results have been encouraging, Cable said. “It’s been going pretty well,” Cable said. “We’ve only lost one match to Cor- vallis, so we’re feeling pretty good. We just work well to- gether. We both have a pretty good serve and both are pretty good at the net.” Coming together has also allowed Sanna to play within his comfort zone. “I like (doubles) more than singles,” Sanna said. “I was dreaming to have a dou- bles team this year, but it was up to my coach.” There have been growing pains as they learn to com- municate with each other and how to best comple- ment each other on the court. But the transition has been relatively smooth. “I think it helps that we are both on the same level,” Sanna said. “We need to re- member how we did against other teams and go from there.” The pair likely represents the Panthers’ best shot at qualifying for the state tour- nament, though Youngren hopes her team has a few surprises up its sleeve. But there’s little doubt that for Central, all eyes will be on Cable and Sanna. The big question is whether the decision to join forces pays off with a state berth. “Last year the boys im- proved over the two days of play,” Youngren said. “I’m ex- cited to be going. … I think all the players have adjusted well. My hope is that Kevin and Edoardo are able to se- cure a spot at state to fulfill their dream.” Girls tennis The 2015 season has been something of a building year for Central coach Dave Eble. But the district tournament can bring about some sur- prises, Eble said. “The situation challenges players and sometimes they respond with an ex- treme ef- fort,” Eble said. Renee Bruning and Da- nielle Ch- ance, for- Bruning merly the team’s top two singles play- ers, have come together to form a doubles pair with the hopes of competing for a state berth at districts. Most of all, Eble hopes his players learn from this experience to help turn the program into one of the league’s contenders going forward. “I hope to see some of the players win some matches this year,” Eble said. “If they get into con- solation, then it would be good if they could win sev- eral matches.” LUKAS EGGEN/ Itemizer-Observer Edoardo Sanna (left) and Kevin Cable prepare for a new game on Thursday at Dallas. PREP SOFTBALL ROUNDUP Dallas extends win streak to four Itemizer-Observer staff report DALLAS — A trio of wins has Dallas’ softball team knocking on the door of the Mid-Willamette Confer- ence’s top two teams. The Dragons defeated Central 7-1 on May 5, South Albany 7-0 on May 6 and Corvallis 13-1 on Friday. Dallas opened its week by going long twice against the Panthers. Makena Linn hit a pair of home runs, while Yasmine El-Hato also went deep. Against South Albany, Dragons Pitcher Keisha Sickles struck out 10 batters. Sarah Mitchell hit a two-run home run and Linn had a three-run home run against the Spartans. Kassidy Totten went 3-for-3 at the plate to help Dallas extend its win streak to four. The Dragons entered Tuesday’s matchup at Cres- LUKAS EGGEN/ Itemizer-Observer Dallas shortstop Kassidy Totten tags Corvallis’ Danielle Korthuis during the Dragons’ 13-1 victory on Friday. cent Valley 13-5 in league play, one game behind Lebanon and two games behind league-leading Sil- verton. Dallas closes out its regular season Wednesday (today) vs. Lebanon and Fri- day against Silverton. First pitch is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. for both games. CENTRAL DROPS TWO OF THREE: Central’s softball team fell to fourth place in the Mid- Willamette Conference after dropping two of three league games. The Panthers lost to Dallas 7-1 on May 5 before de- feating Crescent Valley 10-1 on May 6 and losing to Lebanon 6-3 on Friday. No details were provided. Central entered Tuesday’s matchup at Silver- ton at 12-5 in league play. The Panthers close out the regular season at Corvallis Wednesday (today) and at Woodburn on Friday. Central has clinched at least the fourth seed in the MWC. PERRYDALE DOWNS REGIS TWICE: Perrydale’s soft- ball team defeated Regis twice in less than a week, winning 14-8 on May 6 and 10-4 on Monday. The Pirates improved to 5-5 in league play. No de- tails were provided. Perrydale hosts Dayton’s JV squad Wednesday (today) at 4:30 p.m. before playing at Kennedy on Tuesday. Dallas: Coach is optimistic LUKAS EGGEN/ Itemizer-Observer Cameron Gumpinger (left) and Joe Gillette await a serve during a match on Thursday afternoon at Dallas. Continued from Page 10A How far they can go re- mains the biggest question, but expectations are for multiple girls to be playing into the second and third rounds, or beyond. “I’m hoping to get into the third round,” Brewen said. “Win or lose, that’s my goal this year.” She’s not the only one Sollman expects to perform well. “Our top doubles team (Abigail Garber and Amelia Poston) swept the lower schools,” Sollman said. “They won the second time against Lebanon and com- peted really well against Sil- verton. Dana Taylor and Adelaine Gillette swept every school except for the Corvallis schools.” On the singles side, Brewen, Savanna Poston and Lynn Gumpinger have good chances to advance past the first round, Soll- man said. “I think we are all going to do pretty well,” Taylor said. “We’re pumped. We’re playing better than we have in my years playing tennis here.” Sollman started the year by telling his players to for- get the past. As Dallas makes its final preparations, the Dragons followed that advice and are excited for their future. “Districts can change things,” Sollman said. “You never know what could happen. We have several girls who have the capabili- ty to surprise people.” Boys tennis The Dallas boys tennis squad knows its entering the district tournament as underdogs. But the Drag- ons hope a few players turn heads, Dallas coach Caleb Gillette said. The team’s top two doubles pairs of Cameron Gumpinger and Joe Gillette, and Nathaniel Miller and Josh Dudley, may represent the team’s best chance at making a run at districts, while top singles player Jacob Harus- tak will also have a shot to advance. “It’s going to be a new ex- perience for two-thirds of the team, so I just want them to go into it with a positive attitude and have fun while maintaining a de- sire to fight,” Gillette said. “If they leave it on the court then that's all a coach can ask for.” This season has been as much about planting seeds for the future as it has been for competing in the pres- ent. As the Dragons enter the district tournament, Dallas knows it faces stiff competition. But the hope is the Dragons can throw a few wrenches into their op- ponents’ plans. SPORTS BRIEFS Mason to compete for Oregon State CORVALLIS — Kaitlyn Mason will compete at the Pac-12 track and field championships at University of California-Los Angeles for Ore- gon State University Saturday and Sunday. Mason, a 2011 Central High graduate, will participate in the long jump, where her personal record is 18 feet, 8 inches. She has also competed in the triple jump, 100-meter run and 4 x 100 relay for the Beavers. Mason will graduate this year with a Bachelors of Science in exer- cise and sports science. DHS fundraiser coming Saturday DALLAS — The Dallas High boys basketball team will host its an- nual scrap metal drive on Saturday. The team will pick up metal, in- cluding home appliances, at your home from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Visit www.cherrycitymetals.com/recycling for a list of acceptable materi- als. Proceeds go to the boys basketball team. For more information: Tr e n t S c h w a r t z , 5 0 3 - 6 2 3 - 8 3 3 6 e x t . 3 1 0 5 o r e m a i l : trent.schwartz@dsd2.org. Six Wolves earn all-region honors NEW ORLEANS — Six members of the Western Oregon track and field team were named to the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches As- sociation All-region team on Monday. Junior Badane Sultessa and freshman Kaleb Dob- Collier Sultessa son were named to the West Region team in the 800-meter run and 400 hurdles, respec- tively. On the women’s side, senior Rebecca Laible (triple jump), junior Emmi Collier (shot put), freshman Amanda Short (javelin) and freshman Sheila Limas De La Cruz (javelin) also earned West All-Re- gion honors. The 2015 season will conclude May 21-23 at the NCAA Division II Outdoor Championships in Allendale, Mich. National qualifiers were scheduled to be released Tuesday after press time. Itemizer-Observer Athlete of the Week Garret Harpole Western Oregon Harpole, a senior, came through for the Western Oregon baseball team when it needed him the most. Playing in a win- ner-take-all game against Northwest Nazarene, Harpole hit a two-run home run, giving WOU a 4-0 lead. Harpole’s home run proved to be the difference as the Wolves held on for a 4-3 victory to win the Great Northwest Athletic Conference tournament championship. Makena Linn Dallas High Linn, a junior, played a big role at the plate for Dallas’ softball team. Linn start- ed things off by hitting a pair of home runs during a 7-1 win over Central on May 5. Just days later against Corvallis, Linn hit her third home run of the week, this one a three-run shot during the Dragons’ 13-1 triumph over the Spartans. Linn’s home runs were part of an offensive explosion. Dallas hit five total home runs during the week’s three games. 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.