Polk County Sports
14A Polk County Itemizer-Observer • December 7, 2016
2016 ITEMIZER-OBSERVER ALL-REGION PREP FOOTBALL TEAM
QUARTERBACK
Peter Mendazona
OFFENSIVE LINEMAN
Cody Janssen
Central
Dallas
The junior quarterback had a breakout season.
Mendazona threw for 2,743 yards and 36 touch-
downs, while also rushing for 155 yards and three
touchdowns. He helped direct a potent offensive
attack that averaged 28 points per game and
earned all-league honorable mention for his ef-
forts this season.
The senior lineman was one of the rocks of the of-
fensive and defensive line. On offense, Janssen
helped pave the way for the Dragons’ rushing at-
tack. On defense, he recorded 14 tackles and 1½
sacks, despite missing five games. Janssen was
named first team all-league on offense for his ef-
forts.
RECEIVER/DEFENSIVE BACK
Peter Mason
TIGHT END/LINEBACKER
Haylen Janesofsky
Central
Perrydale
Mason stood out as Mendazona’s go-to target
throughout the 2016 campaign. He had team-
highs in catches (52), receiving yards (1,208)
and receiving touchdowns (16). Mason was
also a force on defense, recording a team-best
six interceptions and 12 pass deflections.
Mason earned first-team all-league honors on
offense and defense.
DEFENSIVE LINEMAN
Marlon Tuipulotu
LUKAS EGGEN/ Itemizer-Observer file
Central quarterback Peter Mendazona threw for 36 touchdowns during 2016.
leading rusher in the process. Morales was also
a threat on the receiving end, recording 24
catches for 229 yards and three touchdowns.
Morales earned second team all-MWC recogni-
tion.
RUNNING BACK
Tanner Earhart
Central
To put it simply, Tuipulotu, the MWC’s Defensive
Player of the Year, was a force to be reckoned
with. He made offenses account for his presence
at all times and was named the conference’s De-
fensive Player of the Year for the second season
in a row. Tuipulotu led the Panthers in tackles for
loss (14) and fumble recoveries (four) and was
second in total tackles (62), sacks (six) and dis-
rupted many plays. Tuipulotu has committed to
playing for the University of Washington.
Dallas
Earhart was the heart and soul of Dallas’ of-
fense. The senior set school records for single
game rush yards (429) most touchdowns in a
single game (seven), total rush yards (2,068)
and most rushing touchdowns in a season (24).
Earhart, the MWC’s Offensive Player of the Year,
helped propel Dallas to the 5A state semifinals
and one of the team’s best seasons in recent
memory.
RUNNING BACK
AJ Morales
DEFENSIVE LINEMAN
Cade Caudill
Central
Dallas
The senior running back saw an increased
workload after senior Alvin Berroa went down
with an injury. Morales stepped up to the chal-
lenge. He had 160 carries for 811 yards and
three touchdowns, becoming the Panthers’
The senior lineman was a rock for the Drag-
ons on defense. He had 31 tackles, five sacks
and a fumble recovery and was able to dis-
rupt opponents all through the season.
Caudill earned first team all-MWC honors on
defense.
The senior was a force for the Pirates throughout
the 2016 season. He was among Perrydale’s most
potent offensive threats and earned first team all-
Special District 4 honors on defense and second
team all-league on offense.
RUNNING BACK/DEFENSIVE BACK
Austin Burgess
LINEBACKER
Jacob Collins
Falls City
Dallas
The senior linebacker was an all-around threat
on defense. He led the Dragons in tackles with
95, including nine tackles for loss. He also led
the team in interceptions with four and had
eight pass defenses. He even got involved on of-
fense, carrying the ball 19 times for 206 yards
and two touchdowns. Collins received
The sophomore became one of Falls City’s most
potent weapons. He led the Mountaineers with
639 rush yards and added nine touchdowns dur-
ing league games. Along with Jeremy Labrado
(624 yards, 13 touchdowns) and Noah Sickles (403
yards, 11 touchdowns) Burgess helped Falls City
advance to the state playoffs for the first time in
more than three decades.
TIGHT END/LINEBACKER
TJ Dimick
COACH
Tracy Jackson
Dallas
Dallas
The junior asserted himself in a big way for the
Dragons. Dimick was part of an offensive line
that paved the way for a ground game that
gained 4,045 yards during the 2016 season. He
also had seven catches for 144 yards. At line-
backer, he was third on the team in total tack-
les with 78 and had 1½ sacks, one interception
and one fumble recovery. Dimick earned first
team all-league offense recognition and re-
ceived all-league honorable mention on de-
fense.
A season ago, Dallas finished 3-6 overall. The
Dragons roared back to life in 2016, finishing 9-3
overall. Dallas’ rushing attack was among the
most potent in the state. The Dragons advanced
to the state semifinals after wins over No. 9 Eagle
Point and No. 1 and 2015 state champions Sum-
mit.
—
The All-Region football team was selected by
the Itemizer-Observer Sports Editor Lukas Eggen
along with heavy input from area coaches.
Earhart: Football career will continue in college
Continued from Page 13A
In hostile territory against
the defending state champi-
ons, Earhart wasn’t going to
let illness keep him down.
“I just went out there and
did my best,” Earhart said.
The will to fight — a theme
among the Dragons’ players
— helped drive Earhart to a
spectacular season.
The senior was the heart
and soul of Dallas’ offense,
helping the Dragons reach
the semifinals of the 5A state
playoffs — and helping
make him the Itemizer-Ob-
server’s Player of the Year.
—
Earhart was born to run.
“Ever since I had been in
flag football, I loved to run
the ball,” Tanner said. “You
don’t really have to think
very much, you just let your
body react.”
He grew up idolizing Uni-
versity of Oregon running
backs such as Jonathan
Stewart.
“You have to be willing to
take a lot of hits,” Tanner
said. “And you have to run
hard. I love that about run-
ning back.”
The Earhart family has a
long history with Dallas
football. Tanner’s dad, Jeff,
played on Dallas’ 1982 foot-
ball team that won a state
title. Jeff coached Tanner
through his youth football
years.
“Sometimes it’s a little
hard,” Tanner said with a
smile. “It’s different. Your
coach, you have to listen to
him. If he’s your dad, I al-
ways wanted to talk back,
but I tried not to.”
When he entered high
school, Tanner had years of
experience as a running
back and seemed to be a
perfect fit for the Dragons’
run-first offense.
The start of his junior year
tested his resolve.
Dallas experimented with
a new offense — but the
team struggled to execute.
“It seemed like a pretty
good idea,” Tanner said.
“But it was new, and I feel
like not everyone bought
into it. It’s hard to explain, it
just wouldn’t work for us.”
The Dragons switched
back to what they do best,
but finished the season 3-6
overall.
“All of us, we knew what it
felt like to not win very
much,” Tanner said. “We
didn’t want that. We didn’t
want to go out on that note
this year.”
Tanner made sure they
wouldn’t experience a sea-
son like that again.
Dallas opened the year
with wins over Parkrose and
North Eugene — which in-
cluded a 429-yard, seven
touchdown performance
against North Eugene.
“That was a super, super
fun game,” Tanner said. “It’s
funny because everyone
asked me if I was super sore
the next day. I actually
wasn’t. Our offensive line
blocked so well, I didn’t get
tackled too much.”
It was the following week
against Silverton that proved
to be a turning point.
The Dragons defeated Sil-
verton 20-13.
“I knew we were good, but
we hadn’t proven it yet,”
Tanner said. “After we beat
them, everyone realized we
had something good going.”
The senior played a major
role in the team’s success.
He was the focal point on of-
fense.
He gained 100 or more
rushing yards in all but two
of Dallas’ games.
“Tanner is a guy who is
PERRYDALE ROUNDUP
going to fight and compete
and go hard,” Dallas coach
Tracy Jackson said. “When he
played, a lot of his yards came
after he was hit two or three
times and kept moving for-
ward. I think that’s pretty in-
dicative of him as an individ-
ual as a person and a player.”
But a running back is only
as successful as the line in
front of him, Tanner said.
And in his case, he said his
line made life easy.
“They had confidence
and a willingness to fight,”
Tanner said. “That was the
case for our entire team. We
were undersized against
everyone, but (the team)
was willing to fight and be
tough. They were the tough-
est kids around.”
Never the big talker, Tan-
ner was a quiet leader —
though his actions spoke
louder than any word could.
“Well I think one thing is
he’s not a diva, never been
and never will be,” Jackson
said. “If a lineman comes up
to him after a good run and
tells him good job, Tanner
would return the compli-
ment. I used to be a lineman
and, to me, that’s what keeps
them fighting for you.
Whenever I had a running
back telling me nice job, I
was ready to jump off the
stadium for him.”
Tanner’s football journey
isn’t over. The senior said he
is considering playing foot-
ball at Western Oregon or
Linfield.
But his time as a Dragon
will be one that he’ll never
forget.
“I’ve played with a lot of
these guys since I started
playing as a kid,” Tanner
said. “I’ve made a lot of
memories that will last for-
ever, and that’s something
we won’t have ever again.”
DALLAS ROUNDUP
Pirates open with wins Dragons fall to Glencoe
Itemizer-Observer staff report
PERRYDALE — Perry-
dale’s girls basketball team
opened the 2016 season
with a pair of victories. The
Pirates defeated Alsea 45-24
on Friday before downing
Dufur 41-31 on Saturday.
“I’m happy with the fact
that we won,” coach Terry
Newton said. “We got to
Alsea with our press, but we
are extremely young and
had some turnovers on our
part. I am happy with the
team returning to the floor
on Saturday less than 24
hours later and competing
well. I was really happy with
our leadership.”
The Pirates played Living-
stone Adventist Tuesday
after press time. Perrydale
plays at Willamette Valley
Christian on Thursday be-
fore hosting Crosshill Chris-
tian Dec. 14 at 5:30 p.m.
“We keep reinforcing the
fact that we are going to
make mistakes, and we have
to understand why and
learn from them,” Newton
said. “It just takes patience
and going through the
process so in a month and a
half, they will still be young,
but will be playing the game
a lot better.”
BOYS BASKETBALL WINS
BIG: Perrydale’s boys basket-
ball team defeated Alsea 69-11
on Friday and Dufur 53-43 on
Saturday.
“It was good to see the kids
out on the floor,” coach Brian
Domes said. “We saw a lot of lit-
tle things that can be fixed, but
they played with a lot of good
energy and worked hard.”
Though the Pirates opened
with a pair of victories, Domes
said he’s looking for better bal-
ance on offense and an in-
creased focus on defense.
“It can be difficult because
everyone wants to score the
basketball, but I’m adamant on
the defensive end,” Domes said.
“It’s fun to watch the kids play.”
FALLS CITY ROUNDUP
Boys defeat McKenzie
Itemizer-Observer staff report
FALLS CIT Y — Falls
City’s boys basketball team
defeated McKenzie 39-34
on Nov. 30 before falling to
Eddyville Charter 48-45 on
Friday.
“The guys work hard,”
coach Micke Kidd said.
“Every single one of them
has a tremendous work
ethic. The hardest part has
been slowing them down
and teaching them that
sometimes you have to rec-
ognize situations and slow
the game down.”
Austin Burgess led the
Mountaineers scoring 14
points against McKenzie and
Eddyville Charter.
Jeremy Labrado added 12
points against Eddyville.
Falls City played Crosshill
Christian Tuesday after press
time. The Mountaineers play
at Eddyville on Thursday be-
fore hosting Mapleton Fri-
day at 7 p.m.
GIRLS DROP TWO: Falls
City’s girls basketball team lost
to McKenzie 44-31 on Nov. 30
before losing to Gaston 38-29
on Friday.
Amara Houghtaling scored
14 points against McKenzie
and 19 points against Gaston
to lead the Mountaineers.
Emma Burgess added six and
eight points.
The Mountaineers played
Crosshill Christian Tuesday
after press time. Falls City hosts
Mapleton Friday at 5:30 p.m.
“We want the kids to go
through as much in-game ad-
versity as we can get,” coach
Micke Kidd said. “It does us a
lot of good to play in games
where we have to compete
the whole game.”
Itemizer-Observer staff report
HILLSBORO — Dallas’
boys basketball team lost to
Glencoe 37-32 on Friday in
the team’s season-opener.
The Dragons led 21-15 at
the half.
“I thought we played well
enough defensively to win,”
coach Trent Schwartz said.
“The kids executed the
game plan well, limiting a
6-foot-6 post to 12 points.
We had some flashes offen-
sively, particularly in the
second quarter. We need to
do a better job playing with
a lead and extending the
lead.”
Jason Richey scored 10
points to lead Dallas, while
Jacob Collins added eight
points. The Dragons saw a
host of players contribute
on defense.
“I thought Jake Ronco, TJ
Dimick, Johnathan Bennett
and Zach Wallace all did a
great job battling to deny
their big guy good looks all
night, and our help defense
was tremendous,” Schwartz
said.
Dallas plays at Churchill
on Friday before hosting
Hillsboro Tuesday at 7 p.m.
GIRLS BASKETBALL FALLS
TO MARIST: Dallas’ girls bas-
ketball team lost to Marist
Catholic 61-38 on Friday.
The Dragons played The
Dalles Tuesday after press
time. Dallas hosts Churchill
Friday at 7 p.m. before play-
ing at South Eugene on Tues-
day.
W R E S T L I N G TA K E S
FOURTH: Dallas’ wrestling
team finished fourth at the
Perry Burli-
s
o
n
Wre s t l i n g
Classic on
Saturday.
T h e
Dragons
finished
behind
Marshfield,
Bibler
S w e e t
Home and North Marion.
Ryan Bibler (113 pounds)
and Clay Coxen (182) finished
second to lead the Dragons.
Jacob Jones (126) finished
third, while Dawson Barcroft
(120) and Nicholas Nelson
(160) finished fourth.
The Dragons also finished
second at the McNary Duals
on Friday, falling to Roseburg
in the first-place match.
Dallas will compete at the
Rose City Championship on
Friday and Saturday.
Central: Wrestling takes
third place at Tillamook
Continued from Page 13A
BOYS BASKETBALL DE-
FEATS NORTH EUGENE: Cen-
tral’s boys basketball team
opened the 2016-17 season
with a 61-27 win over North
Eugene on Nov. 30.
“The kids came out with a
lot of energy and caused some
early turnovers, which allowed
us to pick up a few quick
points,” coach Tim Kreta said.
Alec Barba scored 12 points
to lead the Panthers. Jesse
Cable added 11 points.
Central played Liberty Tues-
day after press time. The Pan-
thers host Philomath Friday at
7 p.m.
WRESTLING TAKES THIRD:
Central’s wrestling team fin-
ished third at the Tillamook
Country Smoker on Friday. The
Panthers scored 121 points,
behind Tillamook (161) and
Willamina (159½).
Noah Worthington (106
pounds), Sam Crow (195) and
David Negrete (220) placed
first to lead Central.
Chris Polanco (170) finished
second, and Manuel Martinez
(120) took third.