Polk County Sports
Polk County Itemizer-Observer • September 21, 2016 12A
CENTRAL ROUNDUP
Football squad earns first victory
Itemizer-Observer staff report
PORTLAND — The Cen-
tral football team picked up
its first win of the season
after defeating Glencoe 50-
26 on Friday.
Quarter-
back Peter
Menda-
zona threw
for 327
yards and
t h r e e
touch-
downs to
Berroa
lead the
Panthers. Peter Mason had
seven catches for 151 yards
and two touchdowns.
“Pete’s a very good quar-
terback,” coach Shane
Hedrick
said. “He
m a k e s
good deci-
sions and
throws the
ball to get
receivers
open. He’s
Mason
gotten bet-
ter as you want him to do
each week.”
Running back Alvin
Berroa had 11 rushes for 116
yards and three touch-
downs.
Marcos Cedillo and
Mason each had one inter-
ception on defense. AJ
Morales and Sam Crow had
six tackles.
“We made plays where we
should have made in weeks
one and two and played a
more consistent game,”
Hedrick said. “The one glar-
ing difference on offense is
last week we had 45 offen-
sive snaps. We had 75 on Fri-
day. The kids are healthy
and have more confidence.
They have adopted schemes
and things that we have
thrown at them well.”
The Panthers (1-2 overall)
open Mid-Willamette Con-
ference play by hosting
South Albany Friday at 7
p.m.
“It looks like it’s going to
be a very tight ball game,”
Hedrick said. “South Albany
is one of the better teams in
the conference. The desire is
there and the guys will have
a chance to come out and
perform well, prove them-
selves and take a step for-
ward.”
GIRLS SOCCER SPLITS
MATCHES: Central’s girls soc-
cer team defeated North Mari-
on 1-0 on Sept. 13 before
falling to Cascade 4-0 on
Thursday. Kaitlyn Dorn scored
for the Panthers against North
Marion off an assist from Alli-
son Wells. “We were able to
hold our ground and play
tough to prevent getting
scored on,” coach Veronica
Lepe said. “The last 15 minutes
were really intense, and North
Marion had some great shots,
but our goalie Lupita Campos
had some great saves.” Central
plays at Roosevelt Thursday at
7 p.m.
VOLLEYBALL SPLITS
LEAGUE MATCHES: Central’s
volleyball team defeated Cres-
cent Valley on Sept. 13 before
falling to Lebanon on Thurs-
day. The Panthers defeated
the Raiders 25-12, 23-25, 26-
24, 25-23 and lost to Lebanon
25-17, 25-20, 25-14. Central
also took part in the Dallas
Tournament on Saturday. The
Panthers defeated Blanchet
Catholic 25-19, 25-23 and lost
to Silverton 25-18, 17-25, 15-
12. Central played Dallas Tues-
day after press time. The Pan-
thers play at Corvallis on
Thursday before hosting
Woodburn Tuesday at 6 p.m.
CROSS-COUNTRY EXCELS
AT INVITATIONAL: Central’s
girls cross-country team placed
third at the
Silver Falls
Oktoberfest
Invitational
on Sept. 14,
while the
boys took
fourth. Bailie
Hartford led
the girls, tak-
ing fifth
Hartford
overall with
a time of 20 minutes, 23 sec-
onds. Zach Meyer led the boys
took 12th in 17:31.8. The Pan-
thers will compete at the Mid-
Willamette Conference District
Preview Meet Wednesday
(today) at 3 p.m. at Willamette
Mission State Park in Gervais.
Dallas: Brooks steps in to coach Dragons
Continued from Page 11A
“We really pulled togeth-
er after what happened,”
Olivia Dalke said. “I saw a
family out there.”
The result was an inspir-
ing performance against an
undefeated 6A school that
had scored 14 goals in four
matches coming in.
“I’m really proud of how
we played,” Jenifer Webb
said. “We played together
the most, wanted it the
most and it just felt right.
The other games, I don’t
know how to describe it,
but it didn’t feel right like
this. … We know how to
play soccer. Nothing is
going to change that.”
Just as important was the
support shown.
At various points in the
match, players from the
football team, volleyball
team, cheerleading squad
and parents were on the
sidelines cheering Dallas on.
In the days leading up to the
match, the community’s
support helped give players
strength.
“I’ve never felt alone,”
Webb said. “There’s always
been someone there and
often times multiple peo-
ple. It’s really nice to have.”
One pillar of that sup-
port will be Brooks, who
knows he’s stepping in
under difficult circum-
stances, but won’t let that
derail a promising season
for the Dragons.
A coaching change is
never easy during calm
times, but there’s reason to
believe Brooks can provide
stability.
Brooks has a long history
of coaching youth soccer at
various levels, including at
Santiam Christian High
School. He also coaches for
Dallas United and has
coached several of Dallas’
players in youth leagues.
“My immediate step is to
support these girls,” Brooks
said. “Some of them have
had four coaches. The tran-
sition from coach to coach
has discouraged some of the
girls. Knowing some of them
over the years, it’s discourag-
ing to me to see that. It’s
been difficult on them. I
want to support them and
get them through this time.
Whatever has happened,
that’s behind them. We’re
moving forward. It didn’t just
impact the girls. The high
school has been impacted.
The community has been
impacted. We need to pull
together as a community
and say, ‘what’s the best
thing for all of us.’”
On the field, he believes
the Dragons have the talent
and depth necessary to
make a run to the state
playoffs.
“I expect us to do very
well in league,” Brooks
said. “They’ve got the foot
skills. We have players who
can put the ball in the back
of the net. We have some
things to correct, and we’ll
work on some things, and I
am working to understand
where they are comfortable
on the field.”
But all that is for the fu-
ture.
On Thursday, it was all
about family and taking the
first step in moving for-
ward.
“I saw that no matter
what happens to us, we’ll
always come back stronger
together, and it really
showed (on Thursday),”
goalkeeper Ashlee Lichten-
berger said.
After the match, players
— with hands locked —
thanked every fan for sup-
porting them.
It was a sign of a strength
— one that showed the
Dragons are stronger than
any one individual.
WESTERN OREGON ROUNDUP
Volleyball defeats
Central Washington
Itemizer-Observer staff report
MONMOUTH — Western Oregon’s volley-
ball team defeated Central Washington 25-
19, 22-25, 25-22, 23-25, 15-13 on Saturday to
earn its first home win of the season.
Alisha Bettinson matched a career high
with 22 kills to lead the Wolves. She also had
13 digs. Maddie Mehciz recorded 58 assists.
Amanda Short posted a career-high of 18
kills.
WOU lost to Northwest Nazarene 25-20,
25-19, 25-21 on Thursday.
Western Oregon plays at Seattle Pacific on
Thursday and at Saint Martin’s on Saturday.
FOOTBALL FALLS TO MONTANA STATE:
Western Oregon’s football team lost to Montana
State 55-0 on Saturday. WOU (1-2 overall) held
the Bobcats scoreless for much of the first quar-
ter, but five turnovers led to an easy win for Mon-
tana State. MSU held WOU to 92 total passing
yards. Running back Steven Long had 49 yards
on the ground. Western Oregon resumes Great
Northwest Athletic Conference play at Humboldt
State Saturday at 6 p.m.
RIBICH TAKES SECOND: Western Oregon
men’s cross-country runner David Ribich placed
second at the Sundodger Invitational Saturday in
Seattle. Ribich finished the 8-kilometer run in 24
minutes, 4.9 seconds. He was the top Division II
finisher.
The men placed seventh in the team stand-
ings. Dustin Nading took 12th in 24:48.20, and
Justin Cross White took 48th in 25:40.9 to lead
the men’s team.
The women placed 14th. Kennedy Rufener fin-
ished 37th, recording a time of 22:25.9 in the 6-
kilometer race. Suzanne Van De Grift placed 47th
in 22:39.2.
WOU will return to action on Oct. 1 at the
Charles Bowles Invitational in Salem.
SOCCER SPLITS: Western Oregon’s women’s
soccer squad defeated Oregon Tech 3-1 on Sept.
14 before falling to Western Washington 2-0 on
Saturday.
The Wolves closed out its nonconference sea-
son with a win over Oregon Tech. Taylor Higa
scored the team’s first goal in the ninth minute.
After Oregon Tech tied the match, Mariah Konyn
scored the game-winner in the 40th minute on
an assist from Sydney Thomas. WOU added an
insurance goal in the second half as Meli Cortez
scored in the 88th minute off an assist from Higa.
The Wolves (3-5 overall, 0-1 GNAC) play at Mon-
tana State Billings on Thursday before hosting
Northwest Nazarene Saturday at 1 p.m.
MEN’S BASKETBALL ADDS ASSISTANTS:
Western Oregon men’s basketball coach Jim
Shaw announced a pair of additions to his
coaching staff on Sept. 14.
Gage Aker and Zach Payne will serve on
Shaw’s staff as assistant coaches.
Aker spent the previous two years as an assis-
tant coach at Montana State-Northern, where his
responsibilities included scouting, recruiting,
player development and operational aspects.
Payne spent the previous three years as an as-
sistant coach at Whitworth University.
LUKAS EGGEN/ Itemizer-Observer
Jenifer Webb looks to advance the ball upfield against McNary on Thursday.
Pirates: Perrydale to
face crucial stretch
Continued from Page 11A
“The toughest part has
been learning how to give
e n c o u r a g i n g w o rd s ,”
Desnoyers said. “It did take
a week or two to find words
that didn’t come off as kind
of mean.”
But as Desnoyers has
grown into her role as a
team leader, the Pirates
have grown on the court.
Perrydale defeated Falls
City 25-13, 25-13, 25-20 on
Sept. 13 after defeating
Lowell on Sept. 9.
“They showed more trust
i n e a c h o t h e r,” c o a c h
Denise Dickey said. “There
was more communication
and they’re starting to feel
more comfortable in their
roles. They’re focused on
not hitting as hard as you
can, but focusing on ball
placement.”
Part of that comfort came
from leaders lending a
helping hand and advice
during practices and
matches.
“The younger girls,
they’re improving every sin-
gle day,” Desnoyers said.
“We’ve worked hard to
make everyone feel com-
fortable and happy on the
court.”
The Pirates host C.S.
Lewis Thursday before
p l a y i n g He p p n e r a n d
D u f u r o n Fr i d a y a n d
Willamette Valley Chris-
tian on Monday.
The Pirates, which en-
tered the week with a 3-5
mark overall and 1-2 in
Casco League play, knows
each match becomes more
crucial if they want a
chance to get to the post-
season.
“We want to secure a
spot in the league playoffs,”
Dickey said. “That’s what
I’m focused on. I’m tweak-
ing the lineup still. I’m try-
ing to get my best offensive
players in a position that
they can score more consis-
tently.”
The key will be players
fully embracing their roles
and adjusting to changes
on the fly.
“They need to be more
aggressive,” Dickey said.
“The younger girls are used
to middle school ball where
they served 10 points in a
Perrydale
• Perrydale’s volleyball
team defeated Falls City on
Sept. 13.
• The Pirates played Jew-
ell Tuesday after press time.
• Perrydale entered the
week in fourth place in the
Casco League standings
behind Crosshill Christian,
Willamette Valley Christian
and Falls City.
• The Pirates host C.S.
Lewis Thursday at 5:30 p.m.
before playing Heppner
and Dufur at Dufur on Fri-
day.
row. They’re learning to play
the point through the end.
Instead of being OK with
the ball hitting the floor and
saying we’ll get the next
one, they need to return
those.”
Desnoyers is confident
Perrydale has what it takes
to make a run.
“We’re playing to win,”
she said. “There’s been a lot
of change, but I think we
can do it. I believe in my
team and I think that we’re
going to have a good sea-
Goals: Central has scored 21 goals in 2016
Continued from Page 11A
The Panthers have scored
21 total goals four less than
the team managed all of last
season.
“Tony has been leading
the attack and has done it
well,” Orozco said. “He and
senior Jose Herrera have
been contributing to the
team immensely by being
good leaders, and their ex-
perience has helped the
team on all aspects of the
sport.”
The team has also been
dominant on defense. The
two goals the Panthers al-
lowed against North Marion
were the first surrendered all
season long.
“Our defensive game has
been great,” Orozco said.
“I’m very pleased with how
the boys are playing.”
The 2015 squad advanced
to the first round of the state
playoffs. That’s the bare
minimum they hope to
achieve this fall.
“We’re hungry for more,”
Rincon said. “I’m a senior,
but to see the other players
have that hunger, I like it.”
The desire for success is
one thing. Translating that
desire to results is another.
The chemistry that comes
with experience playing
with each other has helped.
More importantly, the team
found its perfect mix of seri-
ousness and fun.
“Last year, we’d get down
on each other sometimes,”
Rincon said. “Not anymore.
We got out of that phase.
We have more positive
vibes. We go out there and
get it.”
Central hosts La Salle
Thursday at 4 p.m. before
closing out nonleague play
at Newberg on Tuesday.
Then comes league play —
the next step on Central’s
march toward what it hopes
is another postseason berth.
“We talk about having to
climb the mountain,” Rin-
con said. “To get to the top,
you have to be willing to
take things to another
level. We are, and we want
to climb higher and high-
er.”