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PAGE LABEL MyEagleNews.com Wednesday, September 11, 2019 A7 WEDNESDAY September 11, 2019 PREVIEWS DAYVILLE/MONUMENT TIGERS Football team gearing up for season Coach’s goal is to stick to basics, notch more wins By Angel Carpenter Blue Mountain Eagle The Dayville/Monument Tigers, led by head coach Kyle Hand, hit the ground running with their first game of the season, a 64-0 loss to the Joseph Eagles on Friday in Dayville. Joseph was undefeated last season. Hand, who is in his sec- ond year as head coach, assisted by Heather Bowlus, said they’re confident about what this year holds. “Our upperclassmen, mainly juniors, are bring- ing a lot of experience,” Hand said. “The boys are up-tempo. It’s a good group of kids.” Several key players are back this season, includ- ing four junior starters, quarterback JT Hand; snap receiver Donovan Schafer, who is the second-string quarterback; tailback Mark Thomas; and tight end Tell Cox. Rounding out the start- ing lineup are senior Wes- ley Adams, a 5-foot-9, 232- pound offensive guard, and junior DJ Powell, a 5-foot- 6, 213-pound center. This year’s roster also includes three freshmen, four sophomores and another junior. The team lost two seniors to graduation, Cade Milton, known for his size, and Gabe Walker-Hop- kins, known for his speed. Both were also known to be tough players. Coach Hand said he’s Eagle photos/Angel Carpenter Dayville/Monument wide receiver Mark Thomas (22) finds a path during the team’s Aug. 29 practice scrimmage in Dayville. seen JT Hand and Thomas stepping into leader- ship roles this season. Wesley “They’re Adams very vocal, helping the next person below them with reading the ball, read- ing defense and where your feet should be,” he said. “They’re my field generals. They stay positive, even on an off day.” Howell is another leader for the team, the coach said. “His work ethic has been tremendous,” he added. “He’s dominate on the offensive and defensive line.” Coach Hand added that Howell also is an example in how he “plays through the aches and pains.” Dayville/Monument head coach Kyle Hand calls his team over after practice Aug. 29 in Dayville. DAYVILLE/MONUMENT FOOTBALL SCHEDULE Sept. 13: @ South Wasco in Maupin, 4 p.m. Oct. 4: vs. Mitchell/Spray/Wheeler in Monument, 1 p.m. (homecoming) Oct. 11: @ Huntington/Harper in Huntington, 1 p.m. Oct. 18: @ Prairie City/Burnt River in Prairie City, 7 p.m. Oct. 25-26: Six-Man Showcase at Sherman High School in Moro, TBD Nov. 1: Six-Man Final Crossovers at Madras High School, TBD JT Hand said he’s opti- mistic this year. “As a team, our goal is to have a winning season,” he said. “I want to become a better leader and lead my brothers to victory.” Thomas said, “I’m see- ing that our team is coming together, and I’m excited to see where we can take that.” Adams said he’ll miss his teammates — “my brothers” — when the sea- son is over. “It’s been a great three years,” he said. “These guys are by far the best.” In the 1A Special Dis- trict 5 (six-man), Dayville/ Monument will face: Prai- rie City/Burnt River, Echo, Huntington/Harper, Joseph, Mitchell/Spray/Wheeler, Sherman/Condon and South Wasco. “These are teams we faced last year,” coach Hand said. He expects Joseph and South Wasco to be tough again this season. Joseph was undefeated last year, beating most of their opponents by several dozen points. This is the second year of a two-year pilot program for six-man football. Hand agrees with other coaches that having play- offs and an unofficial cham- pion crowned this year “gives players an incentive — something to look for- ward to.” He said he’s confident the team will be ready to face South Wasco Friday, Sept. 13, on the road in Maupin. Game time is at 4 p.m. Dayville/Monument’s sole win last season was over cross-county rival Prairie City with a score of 27-12. Prairie City has com- bined with Burnt River this season. The Tigers are sched- uled to face the Panthers at 7 p.m. Oct. 18 in Prai- rie City for Dayville/Monu- ment’s final regular-season game. Coach Hand said his team has a goal to have more wins than losses and improve their overall game. He tells them, “Give 100 percent, even on your off days.” “We learned from last year: Don’t make it compli- cated,” he said. “Sticking to the basics is essential — and we’ve restructured our tack- ling scheme. They’re really positive this year and hungry to win.” Volleyball team starts season confident, committed DAYVILLE/MONUMENT VOLLEYBALL SCHEDULE Coach Treila Osborne leads the team Sept. 13: @ South Wasco County, 5:30 p.m. Sept. 14: vs. Ione / Arlington in Monument, 2 p.m. Sept. 20: vs. Ukiah/Long Creek [JV] in Dayville, 5:30 p.m. By Angel Carpenter Blue Mountain Eagle Sept. 21: @ Central Christian, 4 p.m. Sept. 24: vs. Grant Union JV in Monument, 5 p.m. Tiger seniors are shin- ing on this year’s Dayville/ Monument volleyball team with Treila Osborne in as head coach. “Their intensity brings everyone up,” Osborne said of the four senior starters, Denali Twehues, Aubrey Bowlus, Miranda Cook and Brooklyn Near. “Their school leadership and good camaraderie amongst the girls gives the whole gym that vibe of ‘we’re here to improve and work hard and be committed.’” Osborne said Near, an outside hitter, is “one of our best servers” and Cook is a “big middle” — front row hitter and middle blocker. Twehues is key for the team as setter. “She’s a great all-around player,” the coach said. Bowlus is also “a force to be reckoned with” as an out- side hitter and “is all business on the court,” Osborne said. “She is so strong and powerful,” the coach con- tinued. “She brings intensity and fierceness to our team. She along with Denali get our team fired up. I know our seniors want us to place well in our league for the district tourney.” Both Twehues and Bowlus received All-League honorable mention volley- ball awards last season for their positions. While the seniors are the “core of the team,” the soph- omores have really improved Sept. 27: @ Ukiah / Long Creek [JV] in Ukiah, 5 p.m. Sept. 28: @ Crane, 5 p.m. Oct. 4: vs. Harper Charter in Monument, 2 p.m. Eagle photos/Angel Carpenter Dayville/Monument volleyball head coach Treila Osborne shares some pointers with her team during their Aug. 29 practice at the Dayville gym. Oct. 5: vs. Adrian in Dayville, 1:30 p.m. Oct. 11: @ Huntington, 4 p.m. Oct. 12: @ Jordan Valley, 1 p.m. (MT) Oct. 18: @ Burnt River in Prairie City, 3 p.m. Oct. 18: @ Prairie City, 5 p.m. Oct. 26: High Desert League Tournament at Grant Union in John Day, TBD Aubrey Bowlus Brooklyn Near in their strength and tech- niques, coach Osborne said. The two sophomore start- ers are Aubreianna Osborne, a middle hitter and blocker, and Katelyn Barker, a middle and setter. The team of 13 also includes three freshmen, another sophomore and three juniors. Dayville/Monument lost two strong starters to grad- uation last year, Kyla Emer- son, an All-League honor- able mention awardee, and Faythe Schafer, All-League Setter of the Year. Coach Osborne, taking over where Kristi Emerson left off as coach last season, previously coached the var- sity team from 2002 to 2004. Osborne practiced with the Eastern Oregon University volleyball team in her college days, and she’s coached the Dayville/Monument junior varsity team for the past 15 Miranda Cook Denali Twehues years, and continues as their coach. She teaches at Monu- ment School. Assistant coach this year is Steven Schmidt, a new teacher at Dayville School. He’s played volleyball since 1998, which included college volleyball, and this is his first time coaching. Dayville/Monument will face eight opponents in the High Desert League, includ- ing: Jordan Valley, Adrian, Crane, Prairie City, Long Creek/Ukiah, Harper, Hun- tington and Burnt River. Jordan Valley, Adrian and Crane advanced to the state tournament last year where St. Paul defeated North Pow- der for the title. Osborne said she expects Jordan Valley to again be one of the toughest teams in the league. “Our goal is to improve when we play them and not be intimidated by them,” she Dayville/Monument Tiger Katie Barker is quick to the ball in practice. said. “We’re going to bring our own game to the gym and our own aura. I think we’ll surprise a lot of teams this year.” The team plans to take the season one week at a time, she said, and try to play smarter with good game strategy. The 1A Tigers had a good start to the season, beating 2A Enterprise 2-1 to a match at the Aug. 31 Grant Union Tournament, also losing 2-0 to 2A Grant Union. Dayville/Monument lost a home match in Monument Thursday 3-2 to 1A Condon and competed at the Prairie City Tournament on Satur- day, beating 1A North Lake 2-0 and losing to 5A Red- mond in two. Osborne said she enjoys the extra playing time tour- naments give her team members. “We learn from each game and each rally and adjust and continue doing what we’re successful at and keep our momentum,” she said. She said overall the Tigers are a strong, coach- able team with positive atti- tudes, which inspires her as their coach. Good mental health leads to good physical health, the coach said, adding, “We stress loyalty and teamwork and positivity.” “Maybe we’ll miss a cou- ple passes, but we’ll rally and regroup — and con- fidence, that’s what we’re really working on,” she said. Bowlus and Twehues have been teammates for several years and classmates since kindergarten. “I hope to improve from last year,” Bowlus said. “I’m excited to play with the peo- ple I’ve grown up with.” Both girls said they’re glad to have new players on the team and a coach with a lot of experience. Twehues said everyone is improving. “I think my strong points are hitting, and we’ve got- ten our passing down — it’s definitely one of our strong suits,” she said. Near and Cook said they both love volleyball and their team. “I think one of the best things about our team is that every single one of us gives 100 percent effort in every- thing we do,” Near said. Dayville/Monument faced Grant Union junior varsity at Humbolt Ele- mentary in Canyon City on Tuesday, past press time. The Tigers travel for a match against South Wasco County at 5:30 p.m. Friday in Maupin.
