Polk County Sports
Polk County Itemizer-Observer • October 12, 2016 13A
Wolves: WOU
faces Wildcats
Continued from Page 12A
Highburger, a linebacker,
has been a top performer for
the Wolves on defense. He
leads the team in tackles (58)
and tackles for loss (10). He
also has two sacks and a
fumble recovery.
H i s m i x o f e n e r g y,
strength and quickness
makes him difficult for op-
posing offenses to keep
track of, and, when he sets
his sights on a ball carrier,
Highburger is ready to
pounce.
“It’s like you’re a rabid dog
and they’re dangling a piece
of meat in your face,” High-
burger said. “You just go for
it.”
What makes him so dan-
gerous is learning to balance
that aggression with intelli-
gence.
“It takes a level of intelli-
gence to play well,” High-
burger said. “You have to
keep your composure and
understand what’s going on
in front of you and next to
you.”
Western Oregon (3-3 over-
all, 2-2 Great Northwest Ath-
letic Conference) has seen
its composure put to the
test. The Wolves have wins
against a Division I oppo-
nent (Sacramento State) and
a nationally ranked team
(Humboldt State), but also
three losses, each by 21
points or more.
Saturday’s win over Simon
Fraser could be the spark the
team needs to turn the cor-
ner this season, and High-
burger is ready to lead the
way.
“Our team has been up
and down this year,” he said.
“I think the key is really just
realizing we are facing ad-
versity and fighting through
it. We can build on this. We
have to keep doing what
we’re doing, making sure
everyone is on the same
page. We can keep the train
rolling.”
All-American
LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer
Central senior Marlon Tuipulotu, center, was honored on Monday morning. Tuipulotu received his jersey for the
U.S. Army All-American Bowl, which will be held Jan. 7 in San Antonio. The annual game invites 90 of the nation’s
best high school football players to compete.
DALLAS ROUNDUP
State: Mountaineers
Football beats South Albany
can clinch state berth
Itemizer-Observer staff report
ALBANY — Dallas’ football
team bounced back from its
first loss of the season by
beating South Albany 35-14
on Friday.
Running back Tanner
Earhart rushed for 201 yards
and two touchdowns.
Running back Tristan
Evans ran for 71 yards and
two touchdowns, and quar-
terback Caedmon Blair
added 45 yards and a touch-
down.
Dallas (5-1 overall, 2-1
Mid-Willamette Conference)
hosts Corvallis Thursday at 7
p.m.
BOYS SOCCER TIES
LEBANON: Dallas’ boys soccer
team tied Lebanon 2-2 on Oct.
4 before falling to Crescent Val-
ley 7-1 on Thursday.
Dallas lost to Corvallis 8-0 on
Monday afternoon.
The Dragons host Silverton
Wednesday (today) at 4 p.m.
before playing at Central
Tuesday at 6 p.m. Dallas en-
tered the week with an 0-2-1
mark in league play, tied with
Silverton and Lebanon for
fifth place with four matches
to play. The top six teams ad-
vance to the postseason.
GIRLS SOCCER DROPS
TWO: Dallas’ girls soccer team
lost a pair of conference match-
es last week. The Dragons fell
to Lebanon 5-2 on Oct. 4 be-
fore losing to Crescent Valley 9-
1 on Thursday. Dallas lost to
Corvallis 8-1 on Monday after-
noon.
The Dragons play at Silver-
ton Wednesday (today) before
hosting Central Tuesday at 4
p.m.
Continued from Page 12A
“When they do what we
tell them to do, teams can’t
move the ball on us,” Cook
said. “When they think they
know better or they take the
easy way out, that’s when
bad things start to happen.”
A loss won’t mean the
end of the season for Falls
City, which closes out the
regular season with a non-
league game at Yoncalla on
Oct. 21, and a state playoff
berth would still be possi-
ble, but a victory would
serve as validation that
ever ything the Moun-
taineers have been building
toward.
“If we’re not getting it
done in year three, maybe
I’m not doing a good
enough job,” Cook said.
“That’s the way I’m looking
at it.”
The Mountaineers will
have another chance to get
back to the state playoffs.
Cook hopes his team is ready
to embrace the challenge.
“I’m tired of not getting
to the state playoffs,” Cook
said. “It’s right there in front
of them. We’re excited and
it’s that time of the year
where you have to put your
big boy pants on and get
out there.”
PREP VOLLEYBALL
Dragons: Dallas gets
Mountaineers
drop
two
ready to host Central
Continued from Page 12A
Just don’t tell the Dragons
that.
“We need to stay posi-
tive,” Classen said. “We need
to talk more, be louder and
encourage each other. We
know we have nothing to
lose. We have to play as a
team.”
Lavier isn’t ready to give
up on the season either. She
may be scrambling to find
new lineups and rotations to
use, but Thursday gave her
hope that her players can
rise to the challenge.
“We have some really
good players from JV we can
bring up,” Lavier said. “We
have to focus and figure out
what we’re going to do. It’s
something you can’t antici-
pate happening, but we’ll
just have to mix up our line-
up. They now know what
they’re capable of and the
importance of playing with
heart.”
Dallas’ volleyball team is
about to see just how much
heart it has.
“They could have rolled
over and they didn’t,” Lavier
said. “It’s just something you
had to see to believe it.”
PERRYDALE ROUNDUP
Itemizer-Observer staff report
FA L L S C I T Y — Fa l l s
City’s volleyball team
dropped a pair of matches
last week.
The Mountaineers fell to
Perrydale 22-25, 25-16, 25-
14, 25-17 on Thursday be-
fore losing to Alsea 25-15,
25-19, 25-16 on Friday. De-
spite the losses, coach
Roxi Barnhart said the
Mountaineers made sig-
nificant strides.
“They really played up
against Perr ydale at
home,” Barnhart said.
“ E v e n
though
we didn’t
take the
win, we
had
a
couple of
girls who
were real-
Houghtaling l y s i c k
and just recovering, so
they didn’t have the stam-
ina to work that hard for
an entire match.”
Jamie Shaw had seven
kills to lead the Moun-
taineers. Amara Houghtal-
ing and Anna Lammers
had 19 and 15 serves, re-
spectively.
Falls City played
Willamette Valley Chris-
tian Tuesday after press
time. The Mountaineers
close out the regular sea-
son by hosting Cross Hill
Christian Thursday at 5:30
p.m. and playing at Jewell
on Tuesday.
Falls City entered the
week in fourth place in the
league standings.
The Casco League tour-
nament begins Oct. 22.
Volleyball earns pair of wins Oberg: Wants to travel the
world after high school
Itemizer-Observer staff report
PERRYDALE — Perrydale’s
volleyball team defeated Falls
City 22-25, 25-16, 25-14, 25-
17 on Thursday and Damas-
cus Christian 17-25, 25-22,
25-22, 13-25, 18-16 on Satur-
day before falling to North
Douglas 25-18, 25-22, 25-14.
Nathalie Juarez had 11
aces against Damascus
Christian, while Jackie
Juarez added 36 digs.
“(Beating Damascus) was
a big accomplishment for us
to be able to win a five-set
match,” coach Denise Dick-
ey said. “I feel we are im-
proving in all areas. ... I like
having these tough matches
because it helps to develop
them faster, which is what
we need.”
The Pirates close out the
regular season at Jewell
Wednesday (today) and at
C.S. Lewis on Tuesday.
FOOTBALL WINS BIG OVER
IONE: Perrydale’s football team
defeated Ione 40-6 on Friday
night.
The Pirates play at Sherman
on Friday.
Continued from Page 12A
“On defense, he wants to
make the tackle every single
play,” Falls City coach Laric
Cook said. “Sometimes he
gets a little bit too excited
out there and gets a little
out of position, but I want
every one of my players to
have his level of excitement
out on that field.”
Once he graduates,
Oberg plans to travel the
world.
“I want people to realize
that the United States isn’t
the only place in the world,”
Oberg said. “There’s so much
more out there and they
should have big dreams and
travel and see the world.”
CENTRAL ROUNDUP
Girls soccer hopes for quick turnaround
Itemizer-Observer staff report
INDEPENDENCE —
Central’s girls soccer team
has seen its share of diffi-
culties this season. The
Panthers lost to South Al-
bany 2-0 on Thursday and
Crescent Valley 9-0 on
Monday — extending the
team’s losing streak to six
matches.
Starting goalkeeper
Lupita Campos will miss
the rest of the season with
a torn ACL, but players are
hopeful they are close to
turning a corner.
“ I ’m f e e l i n g p r e t t y
good,” coach Veronica
Lepe said. “Everything we
have been working on will
be put to the test, but we
are improving.”
Communication will be
key going forward, Lepe
said.
That communication
means putting aside wor-
ries about upsetting team-
mates.
Central, Woodburn and
Dallas entered the week
without a league win and
tied for sixth place in the
Mid-Willamette Confer-
ence. The top six teams
advance to the postseason.
The Panthers host
L e b a n o n We d n e s d a y
(today) at 4 p.m. before
playing at Lebanon on
Tuesday.
BOYS SOCCER DEFEATS
SOUTH ALBANY: Central’s
boys soccer team snapped a
two-match losing streak last
week. The Panthers tied Sil-
verton 3-3 on Oct. 4 and de-
feated South Albany 3-1 on
Thursday. Central also defeat-
ed Crescent Valley 2-1 on
Monday.
Tony Rincon scored twice
to lead the Panthers against
Silverton,
while Jose
Herrera
added one
goal.
Sebast-
ian Diaz,
Brandon
Lopez and
R i n c o n
Rincon
scored one
goal each
to lead Central against South
Albany.
“Overall I think we played a
good match,” coach Joe Oroz-
co said. “Our passing game
was pretty accurate and our
defense has been playing
well.”
The Panthers play at
Lebanon Wednesday (today)
before hosting McNary Friday
at 7 p.m. and Dallas Tuesday
at 6 p.m. Central entered the
week in third place in the
league standings.
FOOTBALL DOWNS
RAIDERS: Central’s football
team remained unbeaten in
Mid-Willamette Conference
play after
defeating
Crescent
Valley 27-20
on Friday.
Q u a r te r -
back Peter
Mendazona
threw for
two touch-
Mason
downs and
added one
rushing touchdown. Tight
end Jackson Holstad also
added a rushing touchdown.
Receiver Peter Mason had
three catches for 91 yards and
two touchdowns.
Holstad led the Panthers
on defense with 11 tackles,
while David Negrete added
two sacks.
VOLLEYBALL DEFEATS
SOUTH ALBANY: Central’s
volleyball team defeated
South Albany 25-21, 25-22,
25-17 on Oct. 4 before losing
to Crescent Valley 25-8, 26-24,
25-18 on Thursday. The Pan-
thers also lost to Lebanon 25-
18, 25-18, 25-21 on Monday.
Central plays at Dallas
Wednesday at 6 p.m. and at
Philomath Thursday at 5 p.m.
before hosting Corvallis Tues-
day at 6 p.m. The Panthers
close out the regular season
at Woodburn on Oct. 20. Cen-
tral entered the week with a
6-5 mark in league play, tied
for fourth place with Crescent
Valley.
CROSS-COUNTRY COM-
PETES AT INVITATIONAL:
Central’s cross-country team
competed at the Ash Creek
Invitational No. 2 Saturday in
Monmouth. No team scores
were kept. Zachary Meyer fin-
ished 10th in flight three of
the boys, completing the 5-
kilometer course in 17 min-
Hartford
utes, 48.7
seconds to
lead the
boys. Matt
Raines took
11th in
17:48.8,
while Jay-
don Ayde -
lotte fin-
ished 13th
in 17:58.2.
Bailie Hartford finished
eighth in flight three of the
girls with a time of 20:41.3.
Beatriz Trujillo placed 16th in
23:05.8 and Bethanie Altami-
rano took 119th in 24:04.0.
The Panthers will compete
at Cheadle Lake Park in
Lebanon Wednesday (today)
at 4 p.m., the George Fox
Classic in Brooks on Saturday,
and at Willamette Mission
State Park in Brooks on Oct.
19 — the team’s final meet
before the MWC Champi-
onship on Oct. 26.