Polk County
Sports
Polk County Itemizer-Observer • November 29, 2017 11A
SCHEDULE
WEDNESDAY, NOV. 29
Boys basketball: North
Eugene at Central, 7 p.m.
Century at Dallas, 7 p.m.
McKenzie at Falls City, 7
p.m.
Girls basketball: Central
at North Eugene, 7 p.m. Dal-
las at North Salem, 6:45
p.m. McKenzie at Falls City,
5:30 p.m.
THURSDAY, NOV. 30
Men’s basketball: West-
ern Oregon at Simon Fraser,
7 p.m.
Women’s basketball:
Saint Martin’s at Western
Oregon, 7 p.m.
FRIDAY, DEC. 1
Boys basketball: Central
at Stayton, 7 p.m. Dallas at
Wilsonville, 8:30 p.m. Falls
City at Southwest Christian,
7:30 p.m. Perrydale vs.
Gilchrist (at Lowell Tourna-
ment), 4:30 p.m.
Girls basketball: Cas-
cade at Central, 7 p.m.
Reynolds at Dallas, 7 p.m.
Falls City at Southwest
Christian, 6 p.m. Perrydale
vs. Gilchrist (at Lowell Tour-
nament), 3 p.m.
Wrestling: Central at
Tillamook Invite, TBA. Dallas
at McNary Tournament, 4
p.m.
SATURDAY, DEC. 2
Boys basketball: Perry-
dale vs. TBA (at Lowell Tour-
nament), TBA.
Girls basketball: Perry-
dale vs. TBA (at Lowell Tour-
nament), TBA.
Men’s basketball: West-
ern Oregon at Western
Washington, 7 p.m.
Women’s basketball:
Seattle Pacific at Western
Oregon, 2 p.m.
Wrestling: Dallas at
Perry Burlison Classic, 9 a.m.
TUESDAY, DEC. 5
Boys basketball: Put-
nam at Central, 7 p.m. Dal-
las at Hood River Valley, 7
p.m. Falls City at McKenzie,
7 p.m. Perrydale at Delphi-
an, 7 p.m.
Girls basketball: St. He-
lens at Dallas, 7 p.m. Falls
City at McKenzie, 5:30 p.m.
Swimming: Central at
Crescent Valley, 4 p.m.
WEDNESDAY, DEC. 6
Boys basketball: Yon-
calla at Perrydale, 7 p.m.
Girls basketball: Falls
City at Triangle Lake, 5:30
p.m. Yoncalla at Perrydale, 6
p.m.
—
Schedules Subject to Change
QUICK HITS
WOU basketball
adds two to 2018
recruiting class
MONMOUTH — Western
Oregon’s women’s basket-
ball team added two play-
ers to its 2018 recruiting
class.
Tresai McCarver, of Ren-
ton, Wash., and Rachel
Rogers, of Los Molinos,
Calif., are expected to join
the Wolves next fall.
McCarter is a 5-foot-5
guard from Kentridge High
School and helped lead her
school to a 4A state title.
Rogers, a 5-foot-10
combo guard, averaged
26.4 points, 7.8 rebounds
4.9 steals and 3.1 assists
per game last season and
was selected as the Most
Valuable Player of the Star
League as a junior. She was
named the league’s Co-
MVP during her sopho-
more year.
STAT SHEET
1986
The last year that
Western Oregon
University’s
women’s basket-
ball team started
a season 4-0. The
Wolves defeated
Humboldt State 64-62 on
Nov. 21 to improve to 4-0.
WOU hosts Saint Martin’s
Thursday at 7 p.m. and
Seattle Pacific Saturday at
2 p.m.
0
The total number of
combined losses for
Western Oregon’s
men’s and women’s
basketball teams. The
men’s team enters league
play with a 6-0 record. The
women are 4-0.
www.polkio.com
LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer
Taisha Thomas (44) looks to pass against Humboldt State on Nov. 21. Western Oregon’s women’s basketball team won 64-62 to improve to 4-0.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Wolves off to best start in three decades
WOU hopes the process pays off
By Lukas Eggen
The Itemizer-Observer
MONMOUTH — During
Holli Howard-Carpenter’s
tenure as head coach of
Western Oregon University’s
women’s basketball team,
the Wolves have struggled to
find success in the win col-
umn.
WOU posted eight or
fewer wins in each of her
first four seasons.
But the winds of change
may be blowing in Mon-
mouth.
The Wolves defeated
Humboldt State 64-62 on
Nov. 17, thanks to a game-
winner by Savannah Heugly,
to improve to 4-0 for the first
time in 30 years.
“A lot of us haven’t been in
t h i s s i t u a t i o n b e f o re,”
Howard-Carpenter said. “We
have a lot of transfers who
came from winning pro-
grams, but as a team, the ex-
Snook
citement
and the
confidence
is growing.
The girls
have trust
in each
other and
want to do
this for
each other.”
Getting to this point has
been a process — one that
has taken time.
When Howard-Carpenter
arrived at Western Oregon, it
had been 11 years since the
women’s basketball team
posted a winning record.
“Our first couple years, it
was about changing the cul-
ture,” Howard-Carpenter
said. “After that, it was about
getting in the personnel to
be competitive. Now, this
year, to me, is finally laying
the foundation for future
success.”
See WOLVES, Page 12A
LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer
Jasmine Miller scored five points against Humboldt State on Nov. 21.
Panther Auction returns
Left: Mike Ainsworth
served as the emcee for
the Panther Auction on
Nov. 18. The auction re-
turned after a two-year
absence. The event serves
as a fundraiser for the
Panther Club, which dis-
tributes money raised to
Central High athletics.
Bottom: Attendees take
part in a live auction on
Nov. 18. Panther Club
member Tanna Cable said
they did not have final tal-
lies available as of press
time, but that the club
was pleased with the
turnout.
TANNA CABLE/for the
Itemizer-Observer
PREP BASKETBALL
Ehlers ready
to lead Dallas
By Lukas Eggen
The Itemizer-Observer
DALLAS — When Dallas
High School began its
search for a new girls bas-
ketball coach, Tim Ehlers
was ready to take his shot.
He was an assistant
coach for the junior varsity
and varsity girls basketball
teams at West Salem for the
last two years and coached
an AAU team.
“I was looking for a head
coach position,” he said.
“When this one opened up,
I talked with my family and
decided it could never hurt
to try. I felt like I was ready
for a head coach position,
maybe not at the 6A level,
but at 4A or 5A.”
Dallas fit the bill — with
an added bonus.
“It has that sense of
community,” Ehlers said.
“It’s close to Salem, but you
still get that small, close-
knit community.”
Coaching was always
something Ehlers saw him-
self gravitating toward.
“My senior year of high
school back in Nebraska,
we won a state champi-
onship,” Ehlers said. “I had
a wonderful high school
coach who really instilled
good things in us. It wasn't
always just about basket-
ball, it was about doing
good things with your life.
Coaching basketball pro-
vides a chance to work with
a group of kids that you can
influence in a positive
way.”
“Tim is a great fit,” Dallas
athletic director Tim Lar-
son said. “He cares about
the total student-athletes.
He pushes them to be bet-
ter every day, and basic
fundamentals are a focus
every practice.”
See DALLAS, Page 12A
Tip off
• Dallas’ girls basketball team opens the 2017-18 season
Wednesday (today) at North Salem at 6:45 p.m.
• The Dragons’ first home game is Friday at 7 p.m. against
Reynolds.
• Dallas finished the 2016-17 season with a 14-11 record
overall and an 8-6 mark in Mid-Willamette Conference play.
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