Polk County Sports Polk County Itemizer-Observer • November 22, 2017 11A 2017 ITEMIZER-OBSERVER ALL-REGION PREP FOOTBALL TEAM QUARTERBACK Peter Mendazona at receiver. Central The senior quarterback directed the Panthers’ of- fense to success during the 2017 season. Menda- zona threw for 1,341 yards and 16 touchdowns, but was also a threat to scramble, rushing for 218 yards and two touchdowns. Mendazona earned an all-Mid-Willamette Conference honorable mention for his performance. RUNNING BACK/LINEBACKER Cooper Butler Perrydale The senior running back/linebacker was a leader for the Pirates during the 2017 season. Butler gained 956 yards on the ground and had 268 re- ceiving yards with 13 total touchdowns. On de- fense, he had 78 tackles, four forced fumbles and three interceptions and earned second team all- league honors at running back and linebacker. “Cooper was the unsung hero for the team,” coach Steve Mabry said. “He is a tough runner with break- away speed, has great field vision and can make defenders miss repeatedly. He is a selfless player.” DEFENSIVE BACK/RECEIVER Isaiah Abraham OFFENSIVE/DEFENSIVE LINE Caleb Sedlacek Central Sedlacek, a senior, was an anchor on both the of- fensive and defensive lines. He could always be counted on to fire up his teammates on the side- lines and was a leader any time he was on the field. Sedlacek recorded 48 tackles on defense and was tied for second on the team in sacks with three. The senior was named first team all- league on the offensive line and second team all- MWC on defense. TIGHT END/LINEBACKER Treve Earhart The senior was a dual threat for the Dragons. Earhart earned first team all-MWC honors at line- backer and received honorable mention as tight end. The four-year starter was a critical piece on both sides of the field and was a leader through- out his career. “He was a big boost for the defense,” coach Tracy Jackson said. Central Abraham made the most of his senior season. He led the Panthers in receiving with 22 catches for 435 yards and six touchdowns, but Abraham was a star on defense. He was third on the team in tackles with 58 and was tied for first with four interceptions. He also had 10 pass defenses and two fumble recoveries. Abra- ham was named first team all-league at defen- sive back and received an honorable mention RUNNING BACK/ DEFENSIVE BACK RANDELL CANFIELD Central The senior was a key player on both sides of the ball for the Panthers. On offense, Cedillo had 21 catches for 295 yards and two touch- downs. On defense, Cedillo led the team in tackles with 81 and recorded two interceptions and one sack. Cedillo was named second team all-MWC on defensive and earned an honorable mention on offense. RUNNING BACK/ DEFENSIVE BACK Jeremy Labrado The junior running back came on strong during league play. Chase finished the season as the team’s leading rusher with 961 yards and eight touchdowns. During MWC play, Chase aver- aged 8.9 yards per carry. He also rushed for more than 200 yards in each of the Panthers’ final two games. Chase receivedsecond team all-MWC honors. Perrydale The junior transfer had never played football prior to this fall. It didn’t take long for Canfield to catch on. Canfield led the Pirates in rushing with 1,098 yards and 11 rushing touchdowns. He also had 289 receiving yards and four scores. As a de- fensive back, Canfield recorded 57 tackles and three interceptions and earned all-league hon- orable mentions on both offense and defense. Not bad for his first season. DEFENSIVE LINEMAN Justin Ingram Falls City Dallas RUNNING BACK Hunter Chase Central SAFETY/RECEIVER Marcos Cedillo Labrado, a senior, was one of the Mountaineers’ most versatile athletes. Labrado made plays as a running back, receiver, quarterback and defen- sive back. His speed and elusiveness made him tough to bring down and helped Falls City’s of- fense score 58 or more points in all but three of the team’s games. Dallas The senior helped anchor the Dragons’ defensive line. “He’s big, physical, and strong,” Jackson said. Ingram not only put constant pressure on oppos- ing running backs and quarterbacks, he was a de- pendable worker, Jackson said. Ingram earned second team all-league honors for his efforts. RECEIVER/LINEBACKER Jesse Cable COACH Laric Cook Central Falls City Cable made his presence felt no matter where he was on the field during the 2017 season. Cable had 26 catches for 390 yards and six touchdowns as a receiver on offense and 78 tackles and four interceptions on de- fense. The senior earned second team all- league honors at both receiver and linebacker and played a critical role in Cen- tral’s success on both sides of the ball dur- ing the 2017 season. Cook has helped transform Falls City’s football program during his tenure. The Mountaineers lost their first game of the sea- son before reeling off nine wins in a row and ad- vancing to the OSAA 1A state semifinals, despite only having 13 players. — The All-Region football team was selected by the Itemizer-Observer Sports Editor Lukas Eggen along with heavy input from area coaches. Abraham: Senior led Panthers in receiving Continued from Page 10A Abraham led the Panthers in receiving with 22 catches for 495 yards and three touchdowns. On defense, he had 58 tackles, four interceptions and two fumble recoveries. But more than stats, it was his leadership and persever- ance that made Abraham the Itemizer-Observer’s Play- er of the Year. — Entering his junior sea- son, things were looking up for Abraham. As a sopho- more, he became a starter on varsity. He was ready to play an even bigger role as safety on defense and as a receiver on offense. He was also receiving in- terest from numerous col- leges — including some Di- vision I schools. During the summer, he worked with his dad on training and entered s t r o n g e r, q u i c k e r a n d smarter than ever before. On Sept. 30, the Panthers played rival Dallas when Abraham injured his ankle. “After the injuries, the DI schools kind of dropped away,” he said. “That was tough. Junior year is your biggest year for recruiting, especially for DI schools. That left me devastated.” Abraham attempted to re- turn later in the season, but coaches pulled him out be- cause of the pain, he said. In the immediate weeks after, Abraham could barely move his ankle. Those closest to him – his teammates, family and friends — wouldn’t let him stay down for long. “I had a great support sys- tem,” Abraham said. He began the long road back, working on movement in his ankle, before being able to walk without a boot, then jog and run. It was hard and frustrating at times, but Abraham stayed the course. Slowly, he regained strength and balance in his ankle. When the Panthers took the field this year, he was ready to be one of Central’s leaders. “Isaiah can be a game- changer with his knowledge of football and his physical prowess,” coach Shane Hedrick said. “He has a unique style of being in po- sition to make plays and take advantage of the oppo- nents weaknesses.” Abraham has drawn inter- est from a few Division II and Division I universities, including Portland State and an Ivy League school. He’s not sure where he'll end up. He just knows every snap he plays, every class he takes, and everything he does honors his hero. “Let’s hope I can do some good in the future for him,” Abraham said. LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer file Isaiah Abraham was a leader on offense and defense for the Panthers. WESTERN OREGON ROUNDUP Ribich places 30th at nationals Itemizer-Observer staff report EVANSVILLE, Ind. — Led by a 30th- place finish by senior David Ribich, Western Oregon University’s men’s cross-country team finished 21st at the NCAA Division II Na- tional Cross-country Championships on Saturday. Ribich finished the 10,000-meter course in 31 minutes, 47.1 seconds. Josh Ribich Dempsey finished 88th (32:37.9), followed by Tyler Jones (118th, 33:09.9), Justin Crosswhite (186th, 34:12.4), Dustin Nading (202nd, 34:31.7), Hunter Mosman (240th, 35:30.3) and Parker Marson (285th, 36:08.6). Ribich earned All- American honors for his performance. Kennedy Rufener finished 97th in the women’s race. The Rufener senior completed the 6,000-meter course in 22:27.2. WOMEN’S BASKETBALL IMPROVES TO 3-0: Western Oregon University’s women’s basketball team defeated Notre Dame de Namur 81-62 on Friday. The Wolves are 3-0 for the first time in 19 years. Central High graduate Maddy Pape scored a game-high 18 points. Shelby Snook added 16 points, and Kaylie Boschma recorded eight points and 10 rebounds. The Wolves played Humboldt State Tuesday after press time. VOLLEYBALL ENDS SEASON WITH WIN: Western Oregon University’s volley- ball team finished its season with a 25-19, 23-25, 25-19, 25-18 win over Saint Martin’s on Senior Night on Satur- day. Jenna Compton led the Wolves with 15 kills and four blocks. Alisha Bettinson added 13 kills and four blocks. WOU lost to Seattle Bettinson Pacific 25-22, 18-25, 25- 21,23-25, 15-11 on Thursday. Western Oregon finishes the sea- son with a 7-20 record overall and 3-18 mark in Great Northwest Athletic Confer- ence play. Wolves: Western improves to 4-0 Continued from Page 10A The focus will be on ball security, Omlid said — something Western Oregon struggled with at times against Azusa Pacific. “I think we were a little overwhelmed with their length at times,” Omlid said. “But, aside from that game, I think our ball secu- rity has improved.” WOU plays at Holy Names Friday at 5 p.m. and at Notre Dame de Namur on Saturday at 7 p.m. While winning a confer- ence regular season and tournament title remain high on the Wolves’ list of goals, Omlid said they have a much larger goal in mind — undefeated. “We’re trying to win every game,” Omlid said. “It’s nice to beat teams like Azusa and Dixie State who are usually in the tourna- ment every year. Last year, we needed to win our (con- ference) tournament to ad- vance. This year, we want to step it up so we don’t have to worry about that.” Falls City: Mountaineers finish 9-2 Continued from Page 10A The Mountaineers had a chance to score early in the second half to close the gap, but a dropped pass on fourth down stalled the drive. “That’s a touchdown if he catches it,” Cook said. “That broke our back a little bit.” The Rangers added three more touchdowns to stretch their lead to 52-22 before the Mountaineers scored their final touchdown of the game in the fourth quarter. “I’m prouder than heck of the guys,” Cook said. “They never quit and kept playing hard. We just didn’t execute as well as Dufur.” Falls City finished the sea- son with a 9-2 record. Both of the team's losses came to Dufur. “We're glad to have had LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer Falls City’s Jeremy Labrado, left, escapes a tackle against Dufur on Saturday. this opportunity and hope- fully we can turn this into something that happens every year,” Cook said. Sickles believes the groundwork has already been laid for sustained suc- cess. “I think the younger guys saw that anything is possi- ble, no matter what,” Sickles said. LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer Vince Boumann drives to the hoop for a basket against Azusa Pacific on Friday night.