Polk County Sports
12A Polk County Itemizer-Observer • May 24, 2017
PREP TRACK AND FIELD
Deming places second in 300 hurdles
By Lukas Eggen
The Itemizer-Observer
EUGENE — It wasn’t the
dream ending he hoped for,
but Dallas senior Jacob
Deming highlighted a strong
showing from Dallas’ track
and field team at the OSAA
Track and Field State Cham-
pionships on Friday and Sat-
urday.
Deming capped off a
strong state meet by taking
second in the 300-meter
hurdles. Deming also
placed fifth in the long
jump and 11th in the triple
jump. Deming’s time of
38.53 seconds in the 300
hurdles was a new person-
al record.
“Overall, I’m happy with
the time and with myself,”
Deming said. “(State) is defi-
nitely different than any-
thing else I’ve done. You
have this sense of awe.”
Deming was one of sever-
al Dragon athletes to place
at state.
Jacob Collins took fourth
in the pole vault (13-6¼);
Aaron White placed eighth
in the triple jump (42-5¾);
Trevor Cross finished 10th
in the 3,000 (9:08.99); and
Jacob Ronco took 11th in
the javelin (144-10).
For the girls, Jenifer Webb
and Stefani Tallon finished
seventh and eighth (16.11
and 16.18) in the 100 hur-
dles. Kayley Sayer placed
seventh in the long jump
(16-3¼); Hailey VanWell
took ninth in the triple jump
(33-11¼); and Amelia
Burgess finished 11th in the
discus (105-11).
“The kids did well and
should be proud,” coach Bill
Masei said. “It was a good
weekend for Dallas track
and field.”
For the athletes compet-
ing, state brought excite-
ment, nerves and a wide
range of emotions.
“It was difficult knowing it
was my last time jumping,”
Sayer, a senior said. “Every-
thing is running through my
head, but it’s an honor to be
here.”
For Aaron, a senior, who
competed at state for the
third time, the moment was
just as magical as the first
time he stepped onto Hay-
ward Field.
“It’s really fun,” Aaron
said. “It’s just this crazy ex-
perience. Track has always
been my sport, the thing I’ve
been best at. Being here
three years in a row and
being around these athletes
is amazing.”
He said sharing the mo-
ment with his father/coach
Jason White made the mo-
ment even more special.
“My favorite memory is
having my dad as my
coach,” Aaron said. “He’s
someone who knows the
sport and it’s a special rela-
tionship.”
Aaron and Deming
weren’t the only pair to
share state together. Webb
and Tallon competed to-
gether one last time in the
100 hurdles.
“It means more to us be-
cause it’s our last year,”
Webb said. “We’ve been
playing sports together
since, like, sixth grade.”
Even the way they fin-
ished was symbolic of the
friendship they’ve shared
through the years.
“How funny that we
ended up going out the way
we came in — nice and
close,” Tallon said.
LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer
LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer
Freshman Hailey VanWell placed ninth in the triple jump.
Dallas senior Jacob Deming leaps over a hurdle during a preliminary heat on Friday. He placed second in the final.
PREP TRACK AND FIELD
Shaw shines in first year of jumping
By Lukas Eggen
The Itemizer-Observer
EUGENE — Falls City
sophomore Jaime Shaw was-
n’t going to do track and
field. Instead, she was plan-
ning on relaxing during the
spring until curiosity got the
better of her.
“I always loved running
and all my friends were
doing it, so I thought I might
as well give it a try,” Shaw
said.
Initially she thought she
would be a runner, but she
soon changed course.
“I like being active, but
I’m not a very good long-dis-
tance runner, and I’m not
fast enough to be a short-
distance runner, so I decid-
ed to try jumps,” Shaw said.
That turned out to be a
good decision.
Shaw finished eighth in
the triple jump at the 1A
Track and Field State Cham-
pionships on Friday in Eu-
gene.
“It’s kind of surreal,” she
said. “I’m happy I made it to
the state finals.”
The Mountaineers placed
in four events during the
state meet. The girls 4 x 100-
meter relay team of Amara
Houghtaling, Natalie Batie,
Brittney Potts and Madelyn
Hendrickson placed sixth
(54.30 seconds), while the
boys 4 x 100 team of Jeremy
Labrado, Nathan Kempfer,
Charlie Gilson and Austin
Burgess took 11th (47.36).
Labrado also took ninth in
the triple jump (11.59 me-
ters).
“I saw our athletes rise to
the occasion and post per-
sonal records in all the
events they competed in,”
coach Ronnie Simmons
said. “It was great weather
and just an awesome time to
sit back and watch.”
PREP BASEBALL
Panthers fall to Marist
Catholic in play-in round
By Lukas Eggen
The Itemizer-Observer
INDEPENDENCE — Cen-
tral’s baseball team saw its
season come to an end on
Friday after losing to Marist
Catholic 7-1 in a state play-
in game.
The Panthers finished the
season with a 17-9 record
overall.
“I thought we had a very
good season,” coach Reed
Rainey said. “Obviously, we
wanted to go further in the
playoffs than we did, but
winning 17 games and fin-
ishing third in the confer-
ence has to be considered a
good season.”
Central saw a mixed bag
during the season.
“Our pitching and defense
were very good throughout
the season,” Rainey said. “We
don’t have any power arms,
but we competed very well on
the mound and I was proud
of the way all our pitchers
progressed. Defense was the
key to many of our wins.”
While defense was a
strength, the offense never
found the consistency nec-
essary.
“We had a couple of kids
put up big numbers, but
overall our offense did not
match our pitching and de-
fense,” Rainey said. “A lot of
that has to do with experi-
ence. We started four sopho-
mores and three juniors, and
the lack of varsity experience
and overall baseball experi-
ence was evident through-
out the season. The positive
is they gained valuable expe-
rience that will help us in the
long run.”
Moving forward, the Pan-
thers will have to replace
graduating seniors Jackson
Holstad, Luis Amador and
Humberto Alarcon. That
won’t be easy as the trio
formed the core of the
team’s offensive production,
but Rainey is optimistic for
the future.
“We have a young team,
and if we get stronger over
the summer and continue to
gain experience and knowl-
edge, we will have a compet-
itive team again next sea-
son,” he said.
LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer
Falls City sophomore
Jaime Shaw finished
eighth in the triple jump
at the OSAA Track and
Field State Champi-
onships on Friday. Shaw
participated in track and
field for the first time dur-
ing the 2017 season. The
Mountaineers placed in
four events during state
meet, held in Eugene, on
Thursday and Friday.
Dallas: Dragons have
won 20 games in a row
Continued from Page 11A
Dallas has excelled in all
three areas during Mid-
Willamette Conference
play.
The Dragons led the
MWC in runs scored (257)
and fewest runs allowed
(91), and enters the playoffs
with confidence.
The Dragons boast ar-
guably one of the deepest
and most talented lineups
in 5A, but just as important
as talent is playing up to
their potential every time
they step onto the field.
“Consistency is some-
thing we have focused on
all year,” Jackson said.
“Being consistent on both
sides of the ball is key.”
Consistency is something
the Dragons have had in
spades.
Catcher Lauren Wallace
was named the league’s co-
player of the year, while
Kaelynn Simmons earned
Pitcher of the Year honors.
In addition, Olivia Nelson
earned first team all-league
honors; Jayden Wynia, Zoe
Whitlow and Ashlee Licht-
enberger received second
team all-MWC recognition;
and Emma Classen and
Jordan Dippel earned hon-
orable mentions. Jackson
was named Coach of the
Year.
The key to Dallas’ success
is never being satisfied and
knowing from here on out,
one bad game could mean
the end of the season.
“The girls know that with
success we have had during
league that opposing teams
from here on out are hun-
gry to beat us,” Jackson
said. “We do a great job of
playing our game and play-
ing to win, not playing not
to lose. There is a big differ-
ence.”
The winner advances to
the quarterfinals on Friday
against the winner of No. 9
Lebanon vs. No. 8 Eagle
Point.
The state semifinals will
take place May 30.
PREP GIRLS GOLF
Curtis takes 13th at state
Itemizer-Observer staff report
CRESWELL — Dallas sen-
ior Kailee Curtis placed 13th
at the OSAA 5A Girls Golf
State Championships May
15-16. Curtis shot a 36 over
par over two days.
Curtis shot a 96 in the first
round and a 48 in the sec-
ond round. The second
round was reduced to nine
holes due to weather.
Pendleton’s Haley Greb
and Summit’s Olivia Loberg
tied for first with a 5 over par.
JULI LICHTENBERGER/for the Itemizer-Observer
Dallas’ softball team opens the state playoffs at home Wednesday (today).