Polk County Sports
DALLAS BOYS BASKETBALL
Dragons lose two
Itemizer-Observer staff report
MEDFORD — Dallas’
boys basketball team lost its
first game of the Abby Holi-
day Tournament to host
North Medford 67-32 on
Monday.
The Dragons also lost to
Roseburg 49-29 on Dec. 22.
Statistics were not avail-
able as of press time.
Dallas played McKay
Tuesday after press time
and will finish at Abby’s
H o l i d a y To u r n a m e n t
Wednesday (today).
The Dragons (3-4 overall)
will open Mid-Willamette
Conference play on Jan. 8 at
Woodburn.
FALLS CITY GIRLS BASKETBALL
Falls City drops game
Itemizer-Observer staff report
SILETZ — Falls City’s
girls basketball team lost to
Siletz Valley 38-23 on Mon-
day.
statistics were not avail-
able as of press time.
The Mountaineers (5-3
overall) played Alsea Tues-
day after press time.
Falls City will play at Per-
rydale Tuesday at 5:30 p.m.
PERRYDALE ROUNDUP
Pirates defeat Monroe
Itemizer-Observer staff report
ST. PAUL — Perrydale’s
boys basketball squad de-
feated
Monroe
51-25 on
Dec. 22 in
its second
game of
the St.
Paul Holi-
day Tour-
Cruickshank nament.
“This
was the
best our
zone (de-
fense)
looked all
year,” Pi-
r a t e s
c o a c h
M i k e
Barnes
L o w r y
said. “The kids passed the
ball well and took advan-
tage of opportunities. It was
a good
win head-
ing into
t
h
e
break.”
Devin
Cruick-
s h a n k
scored 13
Janesofsky
points to
lead Perrydale. Haylen Jane-
sofsky and Brant Barnes
scored nine points each.
The Pirates (4-4 overall,
3-1 Casco League) played
Ga s t o n Tu e s d a y a f t e r
p re s s t i m e. Pe r r yd a l e
hosts Falls City Tuesday at
7 p.m.
GIRLS BASKETBALL FALLS:
Perrydale’s girls basketball
team lost to Monroe 64-33 on
Dec. 22 at the St. Paul Holiday
Tournament. The Pirates (3-5
overall, 3-1 Casco League)
faced Gaston Tuesday after
press time. Perrydale plays Falls
City Tuesday at 5:30 p.m.
CENTRAL GIRLS BASKETBALL
Central falls to Sunset
Itemizer-Observer staff report
PORTLAND — The Cen-
tral girls basketball team
dropped a nonleague con-
test to Sunset 65-59 on Dec.
22.
Krista Omlid and Eliza-
beth Chavez scored a
game-high 15 points each
to lead the Panthers.
Alex Alvarez and Emma
Girod added 10 points each
in the losing effort.
Central (2-4 overall)
played Wilson Tuesday after
press time. The Panthers
host Mountain View Satur-
day at 1:30 p.m.
Central finishes non-
league play by hosting
Beaverton Tuesday at 7
p.m.
WESTERN OREGON
WOU men, women to
appear on Root Sports
Itemizer-Observer staff report
MONMOUTH — West-
ern Oregon’s men’s and
women’s basketball teams
will appear on Root Sports
Northwest in 2016.
The men’s basketball
squad will be featured on
Jan. 9 when the Wolves host
Saint Martin’s at 9 p.m. The
women’s team will see its
game at Montana State
Billings on Feb. 11 televised.
“WOU Athletics is
pleased to once again par-
ticipate with our sister
GNAC schools and Root
Sports to provide great ex-
posure of our men's and
women's basketball pro-
grams, while providing our
Western Oregon University
alumni and fan base the
opportunity to view their
Wolves on a premier re-
gional network,” WOU Ath-
letics Director Barbara
Dearing said. “Partnering
with Root Sports will in-
crease the university’s visi-
bility to potential students
within the Pacific North-
west as a destination uni-
versity to pursue their high-
er education degree.”
The Great Northwest
A t h l e t i c C o n f e r e n c e’s
championship games will
be shown on the American
Sports Network as part of
the Division II Basketball
National Showcase.
Root Sports is broadcast
in more than 3.4 million
homes in Oregon, Washing-
ton, Idaho, Montana and
Alaska.
For more information:
www.rootsports.com/north
west.
SPORTS BRIEFS
Free first day hike on New Year’s Day
SILVER FALLS — For the ifth year in a row, the Oregon Parks
and Recreation Department (OPRD) is partnering with America's
State Parks to ofer free guided First Day Hikes in state parks
across Oregon on New Year's Day.
The $5 day-use parking fee will be waived on Jan. 1 only. Sil-
ver Falls State Park will host a special hike at 10 a.m. State
parks across Oregon will also host special hikes throughout
the day. For more information: www.flashalert.net/id/OPRD.
Dallas mat club to recycle trees Sunday
DALLAS — The Dallas Mat Club will hold its annual Christmas
tree recycling day on Sunday.
Trees can be brought to LaCreole Middle School, located at
701 SE LaCreole Drive, between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.
Polk County Itemizer-Observer • December 30, 2015 13A
Energy: Central to host Mountain View
Continued from Page 12A
Once he learned to con-
trol his body, Stepp has
carved out his role as one of
the Panthers’ hardest work-
ing players.
As Kreta works to finalize
his rotation, Stepp and his
teammates are becoming
more comfortable with each
other by the day.
“We’re still learning how
to play with each other,”
Stepp said. “I think people
are starting to understand
what their roles are.”
The Panthers, which lost
to Roosevelt 66-51 on Mon-
day, hosts Mountain View
Saturday at 2 p.m. They are
close to rounding into
shape, Stepp said.
As Central hopes to find
its stride before the start of
Mid-Willamette Conference
play, it will be Stepp helping
give his teammates an ener-
gy boost whenever they
need it. Now, Kreta hopes his
teammates follow suit.
“The kids understand the
importance of not only play-
ing with each other, but for
each other,” Kreta said.
“Madison has been the guy
for us, that solid foundation.
The rest of the guys are start-
ing to click in practice. Now
we just need to transfer that
to games.
LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer
Madison Stepp battles for a ball against Roosevelt.
Nelson: Dragons compete at shootout
Continued from Page 12A
This season, Brautigam
is on a mission to improve
the one area Nelson has
struggled with the most —
becoming a vocal leader.
“I’m not very vocal on the
court,” she said. “I like to
keep things to myself.”
Nelson has worked on
staying loud, even when
Dallas has trailed.
“Against Jesuit, I felt like I
talked a lot more and was
more of that vocal leader,”
Nelson said.
Dallas, which competed
at the Nike Interstate
Sh o o t o u t ( w h i c h e n d s
today), relied on Nelson to
make its offense go.
“We’ve challenged her to
get better at running the
show,” Brautigam said. “We
want her to recognize mis-
matches, get players where
they need to be and set the
tempo of the game.”
Nelson doesn’t shy away
from that pressure. Instead,
it’s what keeps her driven.
That leadership showed
up in a big way during
Dallas’ 37-34 overtime win
over Beaverton on Dec.
22.
“I love how hard (basket-
ball) is,” Nelson said. “I
love how much you have to
be willing to rely on your
team and know that people
are relying on you. When
you step onto that court
right before the game
starts, you just have to be
ready.”
The Dragons, which had
two of their first four
games canceled because of
w e a t h e r, e n t e r e d t h e
shootout with less game
experience than they
hoped. With multiple in-
juries, Dallas has also yet to
play at full strength, but
Nelson said these early sea-
son setbacks will only serve
to make this team stronger
in the end.
“It’s going to be a good
season once everyone heals
up,” Nelson said. “We just
know everyone has to step
up and do their job.”
2016: New year brings ambitious goals
Continued from Page 12A
Feel free to come watch
me this Fourth of July week-
end. Just be warned —
you’re watching at your own
peril.
Enter (and finish) a
full/half triathlon — The In-
dependence Sprint Triathlon
was my athletic triumph for
2015. I imagined myself fin-
ishing the sprint triathlon in
a blaze of glory. Instead, it
was more of a flicker than a
bang. I have also never
wanted to smell, see or taste
pizza less in my entire 25
years of life on this earth
than I did after that race
(sorry Brian). During the
training process, I also ques-
tioned my sanity, completely
disregarded my pre-race
strategy and promptly re-
turned home afterward
wishing I had an escalator
installed in my apartment
instead of stairs — but there
was something strangely ad-
dicting to it. The smart move
would be to do another
sprint triathlon. I say, go big
or go home. Forget Chariots
of Fire music playing in the
background. I’m ready to go
all Leonidas on this (aside
from the dying, hopefully). If
only I could convince my
coworkers to join me (Emily
Mentzer).
Take part in one of Dallas’
adult rec leagues — What
better way to satisfy my
competitive fire than to join
a rec league? Basketball is
JOLENE GUZMAN/Itemizer-Observer file
After completing a sprint triathlon, the time has come for a full or half triathlon.
the most likely one I’ll do.
Perhaps it can rekindle the
memory of the high point of
my basketball career — a
two-game stretch where I
made the game-winning
shot in each. We’re not going
to talk about the fact it was
on a team where I was the
only player with any organ-
ized basketball experience
or that this triumphant
stretch came in the sixth
grade.
Shoot a 45 or lower (for 9
holes) in golf — It’s been a
year and a half since my —
ahem — wonderful golfing
excursions in Polk County. I
love golf. I really do. There’s
nothing like an afternoon on
the course during a beauti-
ful day. Of course, depend-
ing on how my round is
going, all the weather in the
world won’t stop me from
getting frustrated, using col-
orful language and/or ques-
tioning why I like torturing
myself like this. I don’t care
what kind of course I shoot
this on, but I WILL get this
mark at least once — even if
it’s on a mini golf course
(just kidding … but serious-
ly).
There you have it — my
four athletic New Year’s res-
olutions for 2016. As I write
this, I question whether
this is actually a good idea,
or if I’ve finally crossed that
line from sane to crazy. I’m
probably being a tad bit
overconfident in my athlet-
ic ability in a lot of areas.
I’m not exactly the shining
example of peak physical
shape, but one thing is cer-
tain — I’ll be gloating to
friends about my athletic
triumphs or wondering
what the heck I got myself
into.
SCOREBOARD
BOYS
BASKETBALL
MID-WILLAMETTE
Team
League
Corvallis
0-0
Crescent Valley
0-0
South Albany
0-0
Silverton
0-0
Central
0-0
Lebanon
0-0
Dallas
0-0
Woodburn
0-0
Tuesday, Dec. 22 Result
Stayton 49, Central 39
All
6-2
5-3
4-3
4-3
4-4
3-1
3-4
2-4
STAYTON 49, CENTRAL 39
Dec. 22 Box Score
CENTRAL (39) — K. Cable 13, Mason
8, Abraham 5, Stepp 4, Mendazona 3,
Barba 2, W. Cable 2, Barry 2, Avila, Bal.
Totals 13 13-20 39.
STAYTON (49) — Schwann 18, Lin-
dermann 15, Diehl 11, Nau 3, Classen 2,
St. Clair, Weeks, Daniels. Totals 15 13-23
49.
Central
8 16 5 10—39
Stayton
13 12 8 16—49
3-point goals — Central 0; Stayton 6
(Schwann 3, Lindermann 3).
Monday, Dec. 28 Results
Roosevelt 66, Central 51
North Medford 67, Dallas 32
Tuesday, Dec. 29 Game
Dallas at Abby’s Holiday Tournament
Wednesday, Dec. 30 Game
Dallas at Abby’s Holiday Tournament
Saturday, Jan. 2 Game
Mountain View at Central
—
CASCO LEAGUE
Team
League
Crosshill Christian
3-0
Perrydale
3-1
Country Christian
3-1
Willamette Valley Christian 3-2
C.S. Lewis
2-1
Livingstone Adventist
1-3
St. John Bosco
1-4
Jewell
0-1
All
7-1
4-4
4-4
3-4
4-4
1-3
3-5
3-2
Falls City
0-3
Tuesday, Dec. 22 Result
Perrydale 51, Monroe 27
1-6
PERRYDALE 51, MONROE 27
Dec. 22 Box Score
PERRYDALE (51) — Cruickshank 13,
Janesofsky 9, Barnes 9, McGill 5, Leppin
4, Bailey 3, Bibler 3, Sagemon 3, Pope 2,
Willis, Rosenbaum. Totals 20 9-18 51.
MONROE (27) — Nasu 9, Warden 4,
Rodriguez 4, Sanchez 4, Lynn 2, Z.
Gwillim 2, Crowson 2, Homing, Sutton,
Koch, Baker, Teran, B. Gwillim. Totals 11
5-13 27.
Perrydale
19 11 13
8—51
Monroe
2
2
6 17—27
3-point goals — Perrydale 2 (Cruick-
shank 1, Barnes 1); Monroe 0.
Tuesday, Dec. 29 Games
Falls City at Alsea
Perrydale at Gaston
Tuesday, Jan. 5 Game
Falls City at Perrydale
Sunday, Dec. 27 Result
North Medford 53, Dallas 43
Monday, Dec. 28 Result
Tualatin 62, Dallas 36
Tuesday, Dec. 29 Games
Wilson at Central
Dallas at Nike Interstate Shootout
Wednesday, Dec. 30 Game
Dallas at Nike Interstate Shootout
Saturday, Jan. 2 Game
Mountain View at Central
Tuesday, Jan. 5 Games
Beaverton at Central
Sunset at Dallas
—
MID-WILLAMETTE
All
7-0
6-2
4-2
3-4
3-4
3-6
2-3
2-4
STAYTON 65, CENTRAL 59
Dec. 22 Box Score
CENTRAL (59) — Omlid 15, Chavez
15, Alvarez 10, Girod 10, Nash 7, Broadus
2, Berry. Totals 19 15-28 59.
STAYTON (65) — A. Lindemann 12,
Bender 11, Hollenbeck 11, Doran 9, Hen-
dricks 8, Shelton 7, Anderson 5, Ikea-
Team
League
Country Christian
4-0
Perrydale
3-1
Crosshill Christian
2-1
Willamette Valley Christian 2-2
Falls City
1-2
C.S. Lewis
1-2
St. John Bosco
1-3
Livingstone Adventist
1-3
Jewell
0-1
Monday, Dec. 28 Result
Siletz Valley 38, Falls City 23
Tuesday, Dec. 29 Games
Falls City at Alsea
Perrydale at Gaston
Tuesday, Jan. 5 Game
Falls City at Perrydale
Alaska Fairbanks
2-0
8-2
Alaska Anchorage
2-0
9-4
Western Washington
2-1
8-4
Saint Martin’s
1-1
7-3
Montana State Billings
1-1
4-6
Central Washington
0-2
5-2
Northwest Nazarene
0-2
4-4
Concordia
0-2
2-7
Simon Fraser
0-3
1-8
Tuesday, Dec. 29 Game
Western Oregon at Oregon
Thursday, Dec. 31 Game
Western Oregon at Central Washington
Saturday, Jan. 2 Game
Western Oregon at Northwest Nazarene
—
GNAC WOMEN
CASCO LEAGUE
GIRLS
BASKETBALL
Team
League
Silverton
0-0
Corvallis
0-0
Lebanon
0-0
South Albany
0-0
Crescent Valley
0-0
Woodburn
0-0
Dallas
0-0
Central
0-0
Tuesday, Dec. 22 Results
Stayton 65, Central 59 (OT)
Dallas 34, Beaverton 31 (OT)
Mario, E. Lindemann. Totals 18 19-30
65.
Central 15 9 14 16
5 —59
Stayton 10 9 22 13
11 —65
3-point goals — Central 3 (Omlid 2,
Chavez); Stayton 6 (Hollenbeck 2, A. Lin-
demann 1, Hendricks 1, Doran 1, Shelton
1).
All
7-0
3-5
2-4
4-2
5-3
1-7
2-5
1-3
2-3
COLLEGE
BASKETBALL
Team
League
All
Western Washington
2-0
6-4
Montana State Billings
2-0
6-4
Seattle Pacific
2-0
5-4
Alaska Anchorage
2-1
15-1
Central Washington
1-1
8-2
Simon Fraser
1-1
3-4
Concordia
1-1
3-7
Saint Martin’s
1-1
2-6
Northwest Nazarene
0-2
2-6
Western Oregon
0-2
1-9
Alaska Fairbanks
0-3
5-8
Thursday, Dec. 31 Game
Simon Fraser at Western Oregon
Saturday, Jan. 2 Game
Western Washington at Western Oregon
WRESTLING
Tuesday, Dec. 29 Match
Central, Dallas at NW Duals
Wednesday, Dec. 30 Match
Central, Dallas at NW Duals
Wednesday, Jan. 6 Match
Central, Dallas at Lebanon
PREP
SWIMMING
GNAC MEN
Team
Western Oregon
Seattle Pacific
League
2-0
2-0
All
9-0
9-1
Tuesday, Jan. 5 Meet
Corvallis at Dallas