Polk County Sports
Polk County Itemizer-Observer • May 24, 2017 13A
PREP BASEBALL
Dragons down Ashland in play-in game
By Lukas Eggen
The Itemizer-Observer
Class 5A State First Round
DALLAS — Dallas’ base-
ball team is off to state.
The Dragons defeated
Ashland 5-4 in the state
play-in round on Friday to
advance to the first round of
the state playoffs.
“Fr i d a y w a s a g re a t
game,” Dallas coach Scot
Mc D o n a l d s a i d . “Ja re t
Stewart pitched really well
and the kids made plays
when they had to. Clutch
hitting from Zach Wallace
made the difference offen-
sively.”
Wallace finished with two
hits and three RBIs. Treve
Earhart and James Van
Everdinghe also had two hits
each. Stewart threw 10
strikeouts over seven in-
What: No. 11 Dallas at No. 6 Hood River Valley.
When: Wednesday, 4:30 p.m.
Where: Hood River Valley High School.
Admission: Adults, $6; students, $4.
What’s at stake: The winner advances to the second round
on Friday against the winner of Marist Catholic vs. Crescent Val-
ley.
nings on the pitcher’s
mound.
Dallas, ranked No. 11, will
play at No. 6 Hood River Val-
ley Wednesday (today) at
4:30 p.m.
Hood River Valley finished
19-7 overall and 10-2 in Co-
lumbia River Conference
play, finishing first.
“Hood River has three
good pitchers that compete,
and their lineup scores
r uns,” McDonald said.
“They are a league champ
with tradition and know
how to win.”
Defeating the Eagles will
be difficult, but McDonald
said the Dragons have the
tools necessary to ad-
vance.
“We will need good de-
fense and timely hitting,”
M c D o n a l d s a i d . “ We
preach to worry about
what you can control and
let the other stuff go. The
guys will handle the tense
situations and hopefully
JULI LICHTENBERGER/for the Itemizer-Observer
Dallas defeated Ashland 5-4 in the state play-in round.
relax and allow themselves
to perform.”
The winner advances to
play the winner of No. 14
Marist Catholic vs. No. 3
Crescent Valley in the state
quarterfinals on Friday. The
state semifinals will take
place on Tuesday.
State: Panthers place in eight events in Eugene
LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer
Issac Burgett takes off at the start of the boys 400-meter
run final on Saturday in Eugene.
Continued from Page 11A
As the starting gun went
off, Altamirano was aggres-
sive, and it became clear it
would come down to her
a n d S u m m i t ’s S a r a h
Reeves.
The two were in a virtual
deadlock headed into the
final 100 meters, but Altami-
rano would not be denied.
“I knew that was going to
happen,” she said. “I imag-
ined myself that I could win,
that I deserved to win for all
the work I’ve put in just for
this.”
Altamirano won the race
in 57.67 seconds. Reeves fin-
ished in 57.77.
“It feels amazing,” Altami-
rano said. “I’m in shock.
That was the hardest race of
my life. It’s freaking me out a
little. It’s crazy to think (that
I’m a state champion).”
Altamirano placed eighth
in the 200.
“I want to thank God for
letting me be here, because I
don’t know if I’m coming
here next year,” she said. “I
like to thank Cirino, too, be-
cause he’s done so much
more for me.”
The Panthers saw athletes
place in eight events during
the state meet.
Sophomore Sophia Henke
set a new personal record in
the high jump, reaching 5
feet, 3 inches, and placed
third.
“It was really calm,”
Henke said. “You’d think
there’d be more anxiety
down on the field than any-
where else, but it’s the
calmest place in the whole
stadium. I was just hoping to
clear the starting height. I
didn’t think I was going to
PR by two inches. That’s
pretty cool. It was a crazy
opportunity. I had an amaz-
ing support system and I
definitely want to do high
jump again.”
On the boys side, junior
Issac Burgett took sixth in
the 400, and sophomore Jay-
don Aydelotte placed sixth
in the 110 hurdles.
“This has been like living
the dream,” Aydelotte said.
“I went into districts not
knowing how I would fare
against others, and I hap-
pened to be a wild card for
state. I’m ecstatic. I’d like to
thank my coaches. They’re
the real drivers of my suc-
cess.”
Senior Peter Mason fin-
ished seventh in the long
jump. The boys 4 x 100 relay
team of Sterling Hutchinson,
Mason, Burgett and Keegan
LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer
Central senior Peter Mason placed seventh in the boys
long jump at the state track and field meet.
Goodrich took 10th.
“I was hoping to do just a
little bit better than I did,
but the atmosphere at Hay-
ward is great,” Mason said.
“We count ourselves lucky
because we get to come and
compete in the greatest fa-
cility in the country. …
Knowing I’m a senior, I’m
counting down the jumps I
had left. Before my last
jump, you understand that
this is the last one in a Cen-
tral uniform. I tried to give it
my all.”
The boys 4 x 400 relay
team scratched after a bump
caused Burgett to step on
the railing and fall.
“In one afternoon, we
experienced about the
highest high and the lowest
low that you can have in
this sport,” Cirino said. “We
always talk about creating
memories and we definite-
ly did that this weekend.
None of us will ever forget
Saturday.”
Pirates: Deters sets school record in high jump
Continued from Page 11A
Pope was one of three
Pirate athletes to place at
state. Amity Deters fin-
ished fourth in the girls
high jump (5-0) and
eighth in the long jump
(14-10). Abigail Bibler took
10th in the shot put (29-
8¾).
“Abigail was very nerv-
ous, and I think that affect-
ed her throwing the shot,
but she still had her sec-
ond-best throw of the sea-
son,” coach Brian Evans
said. “Six of the people who
placed in front of her were
seniors, so next year could
be big for her. Amity Deters
was outstanding as a fresh-
PREP SOFTBALL
Central loses play-in
game to Churchill
Itemizer-Observer staff report
INDEPENDENCE — Cen-
tral’s softball team lost to
Churchill 4-2 Friday in a
state play-in game.
“We didn’t make adjust-
ments at the plate like we
needed to and that prevent-
ed us from scoring,” coach
Kendra George said.
Allison Wells had two hits,
while Sydney Nash had a
double and an RBI.
The Panthers finished the
season with a 15-11 record
overall.
“It was a fun group of
girls to coach and I was
bummed our season ended
so soon,” George said. “I
saw some great improve-
ment this season as indi-
viduals and as a team,
which is always great. Un-
fortunately, we didn’t win
some of the close games
this year like we would have
liked.”
With the majority of the
roster set to return next sea-
son, George is excited to see
the Panthers grow in the
years to come.
“All in all, I’m happy with
our girls, their work ethic,
and I am looking forward to
them growing together as a
team and program in the
years to come,” George said.
PREP BASEBALL
Pirates fall to Santiam
Itemizer-Observer staff report
PERRYDALE — Perry-
dale’s baseball team closed
out its season with a 15-1
loss to Santiam on Thursday
and a 12-2 loss to Santiam
on Friday. The Pirates fin-
ished the year with a 3-12
record overall.
“It was a promising start
to the year, but the weather
and a lack of consistency
and depth made some close
games end
up out of
reach,”
c o a c h
S t e v e
M a b r y
s a i d .
“Overall, I
saw vast
Janesofsky
improve-
ment in some of the
younger players that should
help in the coming years.”
Haylen Janesofsky led the
team in batting, hitting .429,
followed by Daniel Domes
(.396), Alex Hawes (.351) and
Dustin Silver (.345).
Noah Amador led the
team’s pitchers in starts and
strikeouts.
“Overall there is work to be
done in building the depth to
compete game in and game
out, but there was no lack of
effort,” Mabry said.
man. In spite of fighting off
shin splints, she set a new
school record in the high
jump. I couldn’t be happier
for this young lady. She is
so coachable and she
works hard in the weight
room and practice.”
Evans was also pleased
with Pope’s performance in
Eugene.
“He was throwing into
the wind and still had his
second-best throw all time
f o r h i m ,” Ev a n s s a i d .
“Eighth place and a medal
was very rewarding for us
all. His season ended on a
positive note, and I was a
lucky coach to have him for
four years.”
Polk Pedalers to meet
Itemizer-Observer staff report
DALLAS — The Polk Ped-
alers Bicycle Club will meet
for an overnight camp out
on Monday.
The club will meet at
Courtyard Coffee House,
156 SE Mill St., Dallas at 8
a.m. Monday. The group
will go on an 80 mile trip
(rated moderately difficult)
and camp out on Monday
night before returning on
Tuesday. All ages are wel-
come, but children must
have an adult.
Helmets and camping
gear are required. There is
no cost to attend.
For more information:
503-623-6533.
PREP SOFTBALL
Pirates excited for future
Itemizer-Observer staff report
PERRYDALE — Perry-
dale’s softball team closed
out its 2017 season against
Santiam on Thursday.
Though the team played
an independent JV sched-
ule, coach Chris Gubrud
said he saw the groundwork
laid for future success.
“This team really im-
proved as the season pro-
gressed,” he said. “Sydney
Perkins and Natalie Juarez
became dependable pitch-
ers and the defense made a
lot of plays in the last seven
to eight games. Hitting
wise, we were really good all
the way through the lineup.
We seemed to hit the ball
the best with runners in
scoring positions, which is
always nice. Jackie Juarez,
Keiley Griffin and Kenzi and
Sydney Lawrence all fin-
ished the season with hot
bats.”
Gubrud was also pleased
with Kyndle Moore and
Shylar Halverson.
“Shylar became a very
solid first baseman, turning
many bad throws into outs
in the last quarter of the
season,” he said.
With the roster nearly
fully intact for next season,
Gubrud expects to see the
Pirates return to a full varsi-
ty schedule.
“We only lost two seniors
and with the addition of a
couple of talented fresh-
men, we should be able to
put together a solid varsity
s q u a d n e x t s e a s o n ,”
Gubrud said.
Nine Panthers earn all-league honors
Itemizer-Observer staff report
INDEPENDENCE —
Nine Central softball play-
ers earned all-league hon-
ors. Erin Cole, Jori Kerr, Syd-
ney Nash and Kassidy Noon
were named first team all-
Mid-Willamette Confer-
ence.
Aunika Farley, Mollee
Carter, Kyra Noon, Allison
Wells and Peyton Shimanek
earned honorable men-
tions.
The Panthers advanced
to the OSAA state play-in
round before falling to
Churchill.