Polk County
Sports
Polk County Itemizer-Observer • June 7, 2017 13A
QUICK HITS
Williams to hold
free football camp
MONMOUTH — West-
ern Oregon football alum
and wide receiver for the
Los Angeles Chargers
Tyrell Williams will hold a
free offensive skills camp
June 29 from 10 a.m. to 2
p.m.
The camp will take
place at WOU and is open
to quarterbacks, running
backs, wide receivers and
tight ends in grades seven
through 12.
Williams will present
along with Western Ore-
gon football players.
The camp is limited to
the first 150 students.
To register: GameOn-
TY16@gmail.com.
Cross Creek
men’s club results
DALLAS — Cross
Creek’s men’s club results
for May 30:
Low gross/net
Gross: 1, Mike Largent,
30; 2 (tie), Ted Bennett, Bill
Karjala, Ken Dankenbring,
J i m S c h r o e d e r, L e e
Gamaney and Terry Reed,
32.
Net: 1, Jason Fahlman,
21; 2 (tie), Al Fahlman and
John Mangini; 4, David
White, 26; 5, Lynn Hurt, 27;
6 (tie), Glen White, Dave
Voves, Vern Smith, Bob
Bennett, Brian Reed, Ken
Ross and Derrill Weever,
28.
LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer
Dallas’ softball team celebrates after placing second at state. The Dragons advanced to the 5A state championship game on Saturday.
PREP SOFTBALL
Dragons place second
Dallas dispatches Silverton in semifinals before falling to Marist Catholic
By Lukas Eggen
The Itemizer-Observer
Booster Club to offer
sports physicals
DALLAS — Dallas
Booster Club will hold
sports physicals on June
19 from 6 to 8:30 p.m. at
Oregon Family Health, 607
SE Jefferson St., Dallas.
Cost is $25 (cash or
check only) and proceeds
will support Dallas High
School athletics.
Please arrive by 7:45
p.m. so physicals can be
completed by 8:30 p.m.
Student-athletes need a
sports physical once every
two years. Pop Warner re-
quires yearly physicals.
Forms will be available
on site.
WOU softball camp
registration open
MONMOUTH — West-
ern Oregon softball will
host its annual Elite Soft-
ball Camp June 19-21 at
the WOU softball field. The
camp will run from 1 to 4
p.m. on June 19 and 9 a.m.
to 3 p.m. on June 20-21.
An optional session from 9
a.m. to noon on Monday
will also be available.
The camp is aimed at
working with softball play-
ers entering ninth through
12th grades.
Camp instructors will
work with individuals on
all aspects of the game
with a emphasis on
preparing athletes for ad-
vanced-level competition
with the chance to show-
case skills to WOU coaches
and possibly other col-
leges.
Cost is $225 per person
and includes a camp T-
shirt and shorts.
Registration is available
o n l i n e a t w w w. w o u -
wolves.com/documents/2
017/5/9//SB_elite_camp_fl
ier_updated_2_1_.pdf?id=
2168
For more information:
Mo Jimenez, 360-910-
1939.
STAT SHEET
2
The number of Dal-
las teams that ad-
vanced to the state
semifinals or cham-
pionship game during the
2016-17 school year. Foot-
ball went to the semifinals,
while softball made it to
the 5A state championship
game on Saturday.
44
The number of
games Dallas’
softball team
has won over
the past two season. Dallas
went 25-5 this spring.
www.polkio.com
CORVALLIS — In the mo-
ments after Dallas’ 12-7 loss
to Marist Catholic in the 5A
state softball championship
on Saturday, coach Brandi
Jackson addressed her team.
The loss stung — but Jack-
son wasn’t about to let dis-
appointment ruin the mo-
ment.
“You have nothing to hang
your heads about,” she told
her players.
Emma Classen gave the
Dragons a
2-0 lead in
the bottom
of the first
a f t e r
recording a
two-RBI
single. But
M a r i s t
Catholic
Simmons
scored six
runs in the
third to
take the
lead for
good.
T h e
Dragons
kept the
pressure
Classen
on Marist,
scoring in
all but two innings, but
Marist Catholic seemed to
have the answer at every
turn. Marist ended the game
with 21 hits.
“I never like to put it in the
umpire’s hand, but there
were a lot of questionable
calls, when you’re not get-
LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer
Ashlee Lichtenberger slides into home plate during Dallas’ 12-7 loss to Marist Catholic on Saturday afternoon.
ting the corners (of the plate
called strikes) and you have
to bring the ball against an
amazing hitting team … I
don’t have words for that,”
Jackson said. “But no matter
what, the umpire is part of
the game, and we have to
push through and try to
work with it.”
See DRAGONS, Page 14A
By The Numbers
23
0
2
The number of
games Dallas’ soft-
ball team won in a
row during the
2017 regular sea-
son and playoffs.
The number of
times Dallas’ soft-
ball team had been
to a state champi-
onship game be-
fore this year.
The number of
seniors Dallas will
lose to gradua-
tion: Olivia Nelson
and Ashlee Licht-
enberger.
LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer
Jayden Wynia attempts to bunt against Marist Catholic on Saturday afternoon.
Hess honored as assistant coach of the year
By Lukas Eggen
The Itemizer-Observer
DALLAS — Mark Hess’
coaching career began with
a bang.
“Greg Smith, who was a
longtime PE teacher in Dal-
las, I played legion baseball
for him,” Hess said. “The
next year, I was too old for
Legion and Greg asked my-
self and another player to
coach the state legion team
for the summer.”
The team won state.
“That was kind of fun,”
Hess said. “Actually, it was a
lot of fun.”
That started a coaching
career that has spanned
nearly four decades.
He’s coached at Dallas
High School, McKay High
School, Taft middle and high
schools, and LaCreole Mid-
dle School. Sports include
baseball, football, boys and
girls basketball, and softball.
Since 2005, he has helped
coach LaCreole football and
served as an assistant at Dal-
las High in baseball, football
and softball at various
points.
Partly under his guidance,
athletic teams have racked
up the accomplishments. He
can add one of his own now.
Hess was honored as the
Oregon Athletic Coaches As-
sociation’s Assistant Coach of
the Year for Oregon in May.
“I’ve worked for a lot of
great guys,” Hess said.
“Tracy Jackson is one of
them. Bill (Masei) is one of
them. Scot (McDonald) all
those guys, they do great
stuff and put in a lot of time
and effort. I just surround
myself with great people.”
—
Hess knew something was
up when Masei had a myste-
rious request.
“He told me to make sure
(May) 20th is clear for you,”
Hess said. “I knew some-
thing was going on. I found
out I was nominated and my
first thought was there are a
lot of great coaches in our
school district who are a lot
www.facebook.com/pages/Polk-County-Itemizer-Observer/205062686252209
more deserving than I was.”
Those who have worked
with him beg to differ.
“It was a great honor for
me to present this award to
a friend and colleague of
mine,” Masei said. “He’s not
only an outstanding coach,
but an outstanding educator
as a PE teacher at LaCreole
Middle School.”
When Hess started his
coaching career, he had
dreams of becoming a head
baseball coach.
See HESS, Page 14A
www.twitter.com/PolkIOSports