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About Polk County itemizer observer. (Dallas, Or) 1992-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 17, 2018)
Polk County Sports Polk County Itemizer-Observer • January 17, 2018 10A SCHEDULE THURSDAY, JAN. 18 Boys basketball: Falls City at Oregon School for the Deaf, 7:30 p.m. Living- stone Adventist at Perry- dale, 7:30 p.m. Girls basketball: Falls City at Oregon School for the Deaf, 6 p.m. Livingstone Adventist at Perrydale, 6 p.m. Men’s basketball: Cen- tral Washington at Western Oregon, 7:30 p.m. Women’s basketball: Montana State, Billings at Western Oregon, 5:15 p.m. Wrestling: Central at Sil- verton, TBA. Crescent Valley at Dallas, 6 p.m. FRIDAY, JAN. 19 Boys basketball: Corval- lis at Central, 7 p.m. Dallas at Lebanon, 7 p.m. Falls City at Regis, 7 p.m. Girls basketball: Central at Corvallis, 7 p.m. Lebanon at Dallas, 7 p.m. Falls City at Regis, 5:30 p.m. Swimming: Dallas at Taft, 3:15 p.m. Wrestling: Central at Gary Seaney Duals, 2 p.m. Dallas at Reser’s Tourna- ment of Champions (at Liberty High School), 11 a.m. SATURDAY, JAN. 20 M e n ’s b a s k e t b a l l : Northwest Nazarene at Western Oregon, 4 p.m. Wrestling: Central at Central Duals, noon. Dallas at Reser’s Tournament of Champions (at Liberty High School), TBA. TUESDAY, JAN. 23 Boys basketball: Central at Dallas, 7 p.m. Falls City at C.S. Lewis, 7 p.m. Perrydale at Willamette Valley Chris- tian, 7 p.m. Girls basketball: Falls City at C.S. Lewis, 5:30 p.m. Perrydale at Willamette Val- ley Christian, 6 p.m. Swimming: Central at Silverton, 4 p.m. Dallas at South Albany, 4 p.m. WEDNESDAY, JAN. 24 Girls basketball: Central at Dallas, 7 p.m. — Schedules Subject to Change QUICK HITS Cross Creek to host tournament DALLAS — Registration is open for the 15th Annual Brockway Memorial Tour- nament at Cross Creek Golf Course. The 18-hole tournament will be held on Feb. 10 at 9 a.m. Cost is $45 and includes green fees, hole prizes and tee prizes. A player does not need a handicap in order to compete, and the field is open to men’s, women’s and mixed teams. The tournament is dedi- cated to the memory of Marius “Brock” Brockway, who died in 2013. A portion of the entry fees will be donated to OGA Junior Tournaments held each year at Cross Creek. To sign up or for more information: 503-623-6666. Registration and pay- ment are due by Feb. 7. Youth wrestlers compete in Salem S A L E M — Yo u t h wrestlers competed in the North Salem Vikings tour- nament on Saturday. Easton Herbert, Sawyer Herbert, Lilli Alvarez and Grady Lewis placed first. Roddy Alvarez finished second. Casey Humphreys took third, and Derek Rob- bins, Issac McBride, Tyanna H. and Diego Pena finished fourth. Nicolas Thomas took first at the Pleasant Hill tournament on Saturday. The Talmadge Middle School wrestling team competed against Wood- burn and Silverton. Trevyn Lilly led the Cougars with three wins by pin. Liam Seivers, Cameron Pearson and Jordy Cisneros went 2-1. Joey Pearson missed the tournament due to injury, but will compete at the Oregon Middle School try- outs in February. www.polkio.com LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer Dallas guard Evan Courtney (3) attempts to corral a loose ball against Crescent Valley on Friday night. PREP BOYS BASKETBALL Dragons seek consistency By Lukas Eggen The Itemizer-Observer DALLAS — The first two games in Mid-Willamette Conference play revealed a stark reality for Dallas’ boys basketball team. When things are clicking, the Dragons can compete with anyone in the league. When things go awry, Dal- las must find ways to keep themselves in games. — On Jan. 9, the Dragons de- feated Corvallis 53-49 in overtime. “We played with a lot of hustle,” guard Evan Courtney said. “We wanted to play de- fense. We came ready to play.” With the game tied at 49, Dallas shut out the Spartans in overtime as the Dragons opened league play on a high note. “It was huge,” coach Trent Schwartz said. “To win a close game like that, it was good to see them step up and win.” Any good vibes were short lived. On Friday, Dallas lost to Crescent Valley 62-33. “We fell into some old habits of trying to force the issue when things got tough,” Schwartz said. The Dragons struggled to make shots early and com- mitted 21 turnovers during the loss. Those turnovers led to easy baskets for the Raiders. “When shots aren’t falling, playing good defense, taking care of the basketball and hustling can mitigate some of that poor shooting,” Schwartz said. “We didn’t do that. Our defense went downhill in the second half, particularly our post de- fense.” By the time the second half began, the game had long been decided. “The air kind of came out of us,” Courtney said. Finding ways to stay in games — and not letting frustration get the best of them — has been an ongoing battle. “We’ve got to ride out the storm when shots aren’t going in,” Schwartz said. “That’s our biggest issue. Emotionally, we start to get down, and that brings other parts of our game down that don’t have to be linked to that. That’s the consistency I’d like to see, the maturity to say, we didn’t score but let’s get a stop here on defense and get a better shot.” Courtney will play a major role in the Dragons’ ability to find consistency — especially on defense. “I have a goal to be a l o c k d ow n d e f e n d e r,” Courtney said. That requires more than being ready for the physical challenges. It’s about know- ing the tendencies of his op- ponents. “I think it’s a mental thing,” Courtney said. “You tell yourself to be aggressive and not lay back. Don’t let your guy get easy shots, and know where he is at all times. I study up on him, what he does well and take that away from him.” Courtney has also showed his potential on offense, in- cluding scoring 21 points against Pendleton on Jan. 2. See DRAGONS, Page 11A PREP GIRLS BASKETBALL Chavez, Panthers off to strong start By Lukas Eggen The Itemizer-Observer INDEPENDENCE — The 2016-17 season was an up- and-down ride for Central’s girls basketball team. “We struggled a lot last year,” junior guard Elizabeth Chavez said. “We had a lot of close games that we weren’t able to pull out.” Seven of the team’s losses came by fewer than 10 points. The Panthers entered the 2017-18 season more fo- cused, experienced and ready to close games strong- ly. It’s paid off so far. Central finished non- league play 9-1 and defeated Lebanon and Woodburn to open Mid-Willamette Con- ference play. All of the team’s wins, ex- cept for one, have been by 11 or more points. Chavez has been a big reason for the Panthers’ suc- cess. “Elizabeth has been lead- ing our team so far,” coach Julie McDonald said. “… She is not only a fierce competi- tor; her work ethic is amaz- ing.” Chavez is shooting above 55 percent from the field and 40 percent from beyond the arc, and averages four assists and three steals per game. “She is the spark that can go coast-to-coast, lay it in and be the first one back on defense and steal the ball for another bucket,” McDonald said. Chavez’s performance has been a stark contrast to the 2016-17 season. Though she was produc- tive, she lacked the confi- dence to take over a game. “Last year was kind of rough for me,” Chavez said. “I wasn’t confident in myself like how my teammates and coaches were in me. This year, they’ve helped me step up. It’s go time.” This year, she’s part of what makes Central go. “Energy and intensity are both contagious, and Eliza- beth knows how to get the team going,” McDonald said. From Chavez to guard Megan Mendazona to for- ward Annika Riddell, the Panthers have no shortage of weapons, and they are ready for whatever situation comes their way. See PANTHERS, Page 11A COURTESY OF THE WOODBURN INDEPENDENT Central guard Elizabeth Chavez battles for position against Woodburn on Friday night. PREP SWIMMING Garrison revels in chance to return to the water By Lukas Eggen The Itemizer-Observer LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer Hans Garrison practices the freestyle on Thursday. DALLAS — When fresh- man Hans Garrison joined Dallas’ swim team, it was a moment he had waited years for. “I haven’t gotten to swim since fourth grade when I was in Maryland until this year,” he said. “When we moved here, we couldn’t join the aquatic center. I missed swimming, the enjoyment of it.” The swim team provided Harrison an avenue to get back to what he loved. Almost immediately, he was reminded why he loves the water. “It’s like you’re in absolute zero gravity,” Harrison said. “It has this airy feeling to it, like you’re floating.” Garrison has seen steady improvement in the 50- and 100-yard freestyle races. Most recently, Garrison finished the 100 freestyle in 1 minute, 14.77 seconds at www.facebook.com/pages/Polk-County-Itemizer-Observer/205062686252209 Philomath on Jan. 5. It was a step in the right direction as Garrison looks to recapture his old speeds. “I really want to get back to the speed I was at,” Garri- son said. “I want to get under half a minute for the 50 freestyle and under a minute in the freestyle.” Competitive swimming has challenged Garrison in new ways. Before, he swam mostly for fun and relax- ation. See DALLAS, Page 11A www.twitter.com/PolkIOSports