Itemizer-Observer • Section C • March 15, 2017 Swing Awayeaglenewspapers.media.clients.ellingtoncms.com/... · Itemizer-Observer • Section C • March 15, 2017 2017 HIGH SCHOOL

Itemizer-Observer • Section C • March 15, 2017

2017 HIGH SCHOOL SPRING SPORTS PREVIEW GUIDE

CENTRAL PANTHERS • DALLAS DRAGONS • FALLS CITY MOUNTAINEERS • PERRYDALE PIRATES

TENNIS • GOLF • BASEBALL SOFTBALL •TRACK AND FIELD

For Jackson Holstad, baseball is a way oflife. Now a senior, he hopes to lead Centralto the top of the Mid-Willamette Conference. Page 8C

For Jackson Holstad, baseball is a way oflife. Now a senior, he hopes to lead Centralto the top of the Mid-Willamette Conference. Page 8C

INSIDE:Five prep athletes

to watch in PolkCounty.Page 9C

INSIDE:Five prep athletes

to watch in PolkCounty.Page 9C

Swing AwaySwing

2C Spring Sports Guide Polk County Itemizer-Observer • March 15, 2017

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ABOUT THE COVER:Baseball helps the Holstad family bond. Jackson Holstad has seen baseball be-

come more than a favorite sport, it’s a part of who he is. See his story on Page 8C.PHOTO BY LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer

• 2017 SPRING PREP SPORTS PREVIEW GUIDE •Published by

the Polk County Itemizer-Observer Newspaper147 SE Court St., P.O. Box 108, Dallas, OR 97338

503-623-2373 • www.polkio.com • On Facebook and TwitterLukas Eggen — sports editor, photography, layout and design

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Page 2C Table of Contents, Section CreditsPage 3C Central Track and Field Page 4C Dallas Softball Page 5C Dallas and Central GolfPage 6C Dallas BaseballPage 7C Central Boys and Girls Tennis Page 8C Cover Story: Swing AwayPage 9C Five Polk County Athletes to Watch This

SpringPage 10C Dallas Boys TennisPage 11C Central Baseball Page 12C Perrydale/Falls City Track and Field Page 13C Dallas Track and Field Page 14C Central SoftballPage 15C Perrydale Softball Page 16C Dallas Girls Tennis/Perrydale Baseball

Polk County Itemizer-Observer • March 15, 2017 Spring Sports Guide 3C

2017 CENTRAL TRACK AND FIELD

Panther boys ready to challenge league’s best THE RUNDOWN ...Coach: Eli Cirino (10th season).2016 finish: BOYS — Third at Mid-Willamette Confer-

ence district championships. GIRLS —Seventh at MWC district championships.

Key returners: BOYS —Peter Mason(sr., sprints/jumps); Isaac Burgett ( jr.,sprints); Zach Meyer (sr., distance); JoshDixon (jr., hurdles); Sterling Hutchinson(jr., sprints); Isaiah Abraham (jr., sprints);Alec Barba (sr., high jump); Aaron Padilla(jr., distance); Jaydon Adelotte (soph.,hurdles); Matt Raines (sr., distance).

GIRLS — Bethanie Altamirano ( jr.,spr ints) ; E l izabeth Chavez (soph. ,sprints); Bailie Hartford (jr., distance).

Newcomers to watch: None noted. Significant stat: Third — The place Altamirano finished

in the 400-meter run at the state track and field champi-onships.

Outlook: Central’s boys track and field team lookspoised to be among the league’s top squads this seasonand may challenge for a district title.

“Our strength is our overall depth and experience,” Ciri-no said. “We have about 70 boys, and although we lostsome key members from last year’s team, we return muchof our strength. We are excited about the possibility ofbeing one of the top three-four teams in the league.”

Mason and Dixon qualified for state last year — as did

Burgett, Abraham, Barba and Hutchinson — and will becontenders to book a return trip. The Panthers boast anumber of athletes who will be looking to join them.

The sprints may be the team’s greatest strength headedinto the season with Mason, Burgett, Hutchinson and Abra-ham.

The team’s biggest question mark will be in the throwingevents. Central’s top two throwers from last season — statequalifiers Samuel Cole and Kyle Miller — graduated. But ifthey can find some breakout athletes in the field events,the Panthers may be ready to compete for a team title atdistricts.

“If we can find some points in thethrowing events, pole vault and distanceevents, we will be pretty strong. Overall,a very positive, experienced and hard-working team,” Cirino said.

The girls don’t boast the same num-bers as the boys, but they are high inquality athletes.

Altamirano qualified for state in the400-meter run in 2016; Hartford qualifiedfor state in cross-country; and Chavezwas part of the girls 4 x 100 relay teamthat made state in 2016.

“There is not as much experience onthe girls side,” Cirino said. “We havearound 35, and they will grow tremen-dously as they gain experience. Ourgreatest strength is a few girls who havecompeted at state meets in track andcross-country.”

Cirino expects girls to try new eventsthroughout the spring to fill in lineups.

“Our ladies team is also hardworkingwith an extremely positive attitude,” Cirino said. “It will befun seeing who earns those varsity spots. We’re trying totake as many girls to districts as possible, as we have strug-gled to field a full lineup with three entries in each event.We need to coach them to challenge themselves and trynew events. I believe we will discover some surprises thisspring.”

CENTRAL TRACK AND FIELD2017 SCHEDULE

March 15 Crescent Valley at Central TBAMarch 22 Central at Woodburn 3:45 p.m.April 5 MWC 4-Way at Silverton TBAApril 8 at Sandy Invitational 10 a.m.April 14 at Viking Relays 4 p.m.April 19 Central at Corvallis 3:30 p.m.April 21 John Oliver Invitational 3:30 p.m.April 26 Dallas at Central TBAMay 6 at Dick Baker Invitational 11:15 a.m.May 12-13 MWC District Championships TBA (at Central) May 19-20 OSAA 5A State Championships TBA at University of Oregon

Mason

Hartford

Meyer


2017 DALLAS SOFTBALL

Dragons retool, ready to take flightTHE RUNDOWN ...Coach: Brandi Jackson (second season). 2016 finish: 19-9 overall, 12-6 Mid-

Willamette Conference, third place; advancedto state quarterfinals.

Key returners: AshleeLichtenberger (sr., in-field/outfield); Olivia Nel-son (sr., infield); Emily May(jr., infield/outfield); Jay-den Wynia (jr., infield/out-field) ; Emma Classen(soph., pitcher/outfield);Kaelynn Simmons (soph.,pitcher/infield).

Newcomers to watch:None noted.

Significant stat: 259 —The number of runs theDragons scored last sea-son — the second most inthe MWC.

Outlook: The Dragonshad a strong season in2016, advancing to thestate quarterfinals beforefalling to eventual statechampion Churchill. Dal-

las will look to make a simarily strong runthis spring.

“We are very excited for this upcomingseason,” Jackson said. “We will have a com-

petitive league again this year and we areexpecting to compete with the best.”

The Dragons will have to replace pitcherYasmine El-Hato, the 2016 MWC Player ofthe Year, but Dallas has talented playersready to step up.

Simmons, who earned first-team all-league honors in 2016, and Classen, a sec-ond-team all-MWC honoree, will both seeheavier workloads in the pitcher’s circle.

What may make or break the Dragons’

season will be how well new players get ac-climated and begin to thrive.

Expect to see Dallas tinkering with differ-ent lineups during the early part of the sea-son as the Dragons discover who is ready tostep up and lead Dallas toward anotherpostseason run.

“We have a good group of newcomersthat I am confident will fill those spots fromlast year’s class,” Jackson said. “We have a lotof new kids this year, so I am looking for-

ward to see what our biggest strengths willbe. I think we will have a whole different de-meanor than last year’s group.”

DALLAS SOFTBALL2017 SCHEDULE

March 16 at Philomath 4:30 p.m.March 17 Marist Catholic 4:30 p.m.March 21 Lebanon * 4:30 p.m.March 22 at Crescent Valley * 4:30 p.m.March 24 at Corvallis * 4:30 p.m.March 27 at Spring Break Inv. 2 p.m.March 27 at Spring Break Inv. 6 p.m.March 28 at Spring Break Inv. 4 p.m.March 28 at Spring Break Inv. 6 p.m.April 4 Silverton * 4:30 p.m.April 5 at Central * 4:30 p.m.April 11 South Albany * 4:30 p.m.April 12 at Lebanon * 4:30 p.m.April 14 Crescent Valley * 4:30 p.m.April 18 Corvallis * 4:30 p.m.April 19 at Silverton * 4:30 p.m.April 21 Central * 4:30 p.m.April 25 Woodburn * 4:30 p.m.April 26 at South Albany * 4:30 p.m.April 28 Lebanon * 4:30 p.m.May 2 at Crescent Valley * 4:30 p.m.May 3 at Corvallis * 4:30 p.m.May 5 Silverton * 4:30 p.m.May 9 at Central * 4:30 p.m.May 12 South Albany * 4:30 p.m.May 19 Class 5A Play-In Round TBA

* — denotes Mid-Willamette Conference game

Dallas excited to see how new players step up as Dragons look to make a postseason run

Simmons

May

Dallas’ softball team advanced to the state quarterfinals in 2016.

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THE RUNDOWN ...Coach: BOYS — Jennie White (first sea-

son). GIRLS — Danielle Landis (first season). Key returners: BOYS — Tristan White

(soph.); Adam Nicholson (soph.). GIRLS —Kailee Curtis (sr.); Natalie Crabtree (jr.); Emma-Mae Johnson (soph.); Missy Davis (jr.).

Newcomers to watch: BOYS — XavierWhite (fr.). GIRLS — Madison Shuck (soph.).

Significant stat: 14th — The place Curtisfinished at the 2016 OSAA Class 5A statechampionships.

Outlook: Dallas’ boys golf team cameclose to qualifying for districts in 2016. Withseven returning and seven new golfers, theDragons hope for a different result.

“We are hoping to make districts this year,”Jennie White said. “We were half a point frommaking it last year, and we want to go on andtry to make it to state.”

Tristan White and Nicholson are returningvarsity golfers, but Jennie White expects oth-ers to step up in a big way.

The girls team will have five golfers, mak-ing a full team for the Dragons as Curtis looksto improve on a stellar 2016.

“Kailee was amazing last year, and I expectfor her to fight for a district title again,” Landissaid. “Last year she placed in the top 15 atstate and I’m sure this year her goal is tobreak the top 10.”

2017 DALLAS BOYS AND GIRLS GOLF

Curtis to pace Dallas’girls golf team

DALLAS BOYS GOLF 2017 SCHEDULE

March 13 at Canby NoonMarch 20 at Trysting Tree (Corvallis) 11 a.m.April 3 Cross Creek (Dallas) 10 a.m.April 10 at Springhill (Albany) 12:45 p.m.April 17 at Tukwila (Woodburn) 10 a.m.April 24 at Mallard Creek (Lebanon) 10 a.m.May 3-4 MWC District Tournament TBA

(at Quail Valley, Banks)May 15 State Championships TBAMay 16 State Championships TBA

DALLAS GIRLS GOLF 2017 SCHEDULE

March 20 at Mallard Creek (Lebanon) NoonApril 3 at Springhill (Albany) 12:45 p.m.April 6 at Canby Invitational NoonApril 10 at Trysting Tree (Corvallis) 11 a.m.April 17 Cross Creek (Dallas) 11 a.m.April 24 at Tukwila (Woodburn) 10 a.m. April 27 at Astoria Invitational Noon May 1 at Emerald Valley Invite 10 a.m. May 8-9 MWC District Tournament TBA

(at Trysting Tree, Corvallis)May 15 State Championships TBAMay 16 State Championships TBA

THE RUNDOWN ...Coach: Jennifer Tress (first season). Key returners: BOYS — Andrew Love (jr.).

GIRLS — Abby Lovrien (soph). Newcomers to watch:

BOYS — Jordan Clark (fr.),Zakari Karr (fr.), JacksonWarren (fr.), Jakobi Mul-grave (sr), Taylor McArthur(sr).

Significant stat: 1 —The number of golfers re-turning for the girls.

Outlook: There’s an airof excitement surround-

ing Central’s boys and girls golf teams. “I think we will have a strong boys team,

for sure,” Tress said. “The guys have a lot of tal-ent from what I’ve seen so far. I think they allhave lots of potential.”

On the girls side, Lovrien is the Panthers’lone returner from 2016.

“She looks pretty good,” Tress said. “Sheworked in the offseason pretty hard.”

Five of the seven girls have never golfedbefore, but Tress said they are improvingquickly.

How quickly each of the golfers’ potentialtranslates into tangible results remains to beseen, but Tress can’t wait to see what happens.

“I think it will be a big year,” Tress said. “We just need to get out there and play.”

2017 CENTRAL BOYS AND GIRLS GOLF

Panthers hope to realize potential

CENTRAL BOYS GOLF 2017 SCHEDULE

March 20 at Trysting Tree (Corvallis) 11 a.m.April 3 Cross Creek (Dallas) 10 a.m.April 10 at Springhill (Albany) 12:45 p.m.April 17 at Tukwila (Woodburn) 10 a.m.April 24 at Mallard Creek (Lebanon) 10 a.m.May 3-4 MWC District Tournament TBA

(at Quail Valley, Banks)May 15 State Championships TBAMay 16 State Championships TBA

CENTRAL GIRLS GOLF 2017 SCHEDULE

March 20 at Mallard Creek (Lebanon) NoonApril 3 at Springhill (Albany) 12:45 p.m.April 10 at Trysting Tree (Corvallis) 11 a.m.April 17 Cross Creek (Dallas) 11 a.m.April 24 at Tukwila (Woodburn) 10 a.m. May 8-9 MWC District Tournament TBA

(at Trysting Tree, Corvallis)May 15 State Championships TBAMay 16 State Championships TBA

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2017 DALLAS BASEBALL

New pitchers ready to step into the limelightTHE RUNDOWN ...Coach: Scot McDonald (18th season). 2016 finish: 17-11 overall, 15-6 Mid-

Willamette Conference, third place; advancedto first round of 5A state playoffs.

Key returners: TannerEarhart (sr., outfield); TreveEarhart (jr., catcher); JaretStewart (jr., pitcher); EricKessler (soph., shortstop);Zach Wallace (sr., outfield);Clay Coxen (sr., first base);Morgan Taylor (sr., out-field).

Newcomers to watch:Josh Sherman (sr., pitcher);Logan Graber (jr., infield);Carter Weisensee (soph.,infield).

Significant stat: 115 —The number of total runsDallas allowed in 2016.The total was the second-fewest in the MWC.

Outlook: Dallas willfeature some new talentthis season.

In recent years, theDragons’ pitching staff has been one of themost feared in the MWC, but with many ofthose pitchers graduated, the time is now forsome new arms to emerge.

Stewart will get a chance to shine, bring-ing varsity experience to the bullpen. Sher-man will also be called upon throughout theseason.

“Our defense will be solid and our pitchingwill compete well,” McDonald said. “The keyfor us is to throw strikes and get outs. Oursuccess will be how the new pitchers step upand execute on the mound.”

McDonald will look to his bats to help takethe pressure off.

Tanner Earhart will help lead the charge.The senior batted .389 and had 37 hits in2016.

But Dallas’ lineup boasts a number of tal-ented hitters, including Kessler, who had 22

hits and 13 RBIs. “We have some veteran hitters,” McDonald

said. “We should have some tough outs at the

plate.” Kessler also provides the Dragons with a

versatile player who can play almost any posi-

tion on the diamond. As Dallas prepares to

turn to rely on some newfaces, especially on itspitching staff, McDonaldsaid he believes the piecesare in place for the Drag-ons to compete with theleague’s and the state’sbest teams.

They may not have aworkhorse at first, but will have multipleplayers ready and able to rise to the occasion.

“We will have some kids that will step upand produce,” McDonald said. “Our produc-tion on the offense and defense will be ateam effort, and we don’t have to rely on anyone person.”

DALLAS BASEBALL2017 SCHEDULE

March 14 South Eugene 4:30 p.m.March 17 at Gladstone 7 p.m.March 21 at Woodburn * 4:30 p.m.March 22 Woodburn * 4:30 p.m.March 24 at Woodburn * 4:30 p.m.March 27 at Newport Tournament 9:30 a.m.March 28 at Newport Tournament 9:30 a.m.April 4 Lebanon * 4:30 p.m.April 5 at Lebanon * 4:30 p.m.April 7 Lebanon * 4:30 p.m.April 11 Central * 4:30 p.m.April 12 at Central * 4:30 p.m.April 14 Central * 4:30 p.m.April 18 at South Albany * 4:30 p.m.April 19 South Albany * 4:30 p.m.April 21 at South Albany * 4:30 p.m.April 25 at Silverton * 4:30 p.m.April 26 Silverton * 4:30 p.m.April 28 at Silverton * 4:30 p.m.May 2 Crescent Valley * 4:30 p.m.May 3 at Crescent Valley * 4:30 p.m.May 5 Crescent Valley * 4:30 p.m.May 9 at Corvallis * 4:30 p.m.May 10 Corvallis * 4:30 p.m.May 12 at Corvallis * 4:30 p.m.May 19 State play-in round TBA


Earhart

Coxen

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2017 CENTRAL BOYS TENNIS

Panthers hope for new faces to step upTHE RUNDOWN ...Coach: Patti Youngren (fourth season). Key returners: Hassan Eltelbany (sr.);

Nathaniel Miller (sr.); Chris Polanco (sr.).Newcomers to watch: None noted. Significant stat: 1 — The number of

players who qualified for state last season. Outlook: Central’s boys tennis team is

ready to build on a strong 2016 season.Youngren said there are about 30 boys outfor tennis, 15 of which played on varsity orJV last year.

Eltelbany, who playeddoubles last year, willtransition into sin-gles play. “Hassan will more

than likely be my topplayer with Kevin Cable

graduated,” Youngren said. “Hassan is pas-sionate about tennis and has worked hardto learn to play well in a few short years.”

Polanco will also be among the Panthers’varsity singles players, while Miller will helplead the doubles teams. Central may nothave the depth to compete with theleague’s top teams, but Youngren is excitedto see some of the team’s top players show-case their talents.

“It will be a little bit of waiting and see-

ing how things play out,” Youngren said.“Many of them haven’t played tennis at all,but they’re so athletic that they can get toballs easily and are eager to learn and im-prove.”

CENTRAL BOYS TENNIS 2017 SCHEDULE

March 14 at Lebanon * 4 p.m.March 16 Dallas * 4 p.m.March 21 Woodburn * 4 p.m.March 23 South Albany * 4 p.m.April 4 at Crescent Valley * 4 p.m.April 6 at Corvallis * 4 p.m.April 11 Silverton * 4 p.m.April 13 Lebanon * 4 p.m.April 18 at Dallas * 4 p.m.April 20 at Woodburn * 4 p.m.April 25 at South Albany * 4 p.m.April 27 Crescent Valley * 4 p.m.May 2 Corvallis * 4 p.m.May 4 at Silverton * 4 p.m.May 10 District Tournament TBA at Crescent ValleyMay 11 District Tournament TBAMay 12 District Tournament TBAMay 18 State TBAMay 19 State TBAMay 20 State TBA

* — denotes Mid-Willamette Conference match

2017 CENTRAL GIRLS TENNIS

Trio set to lead Panthers in ’17THE RUNDOWN ...C o a c h : D a v e E b l e

(eighth season). Key returners: Julia

Hamar (sr.); Kylie Smith(sr.); Diana Huerte (jr.).

Newcomers to watch:None noted.

Significant stat: 8 —The number of returningv a r s i t y p l aye r s f ro m2016.

Outlook: If there’s onething that is nearly a cer-tainity for Central’s tennisteam early in the seasonit’s this: Be prepared forsome changes.

With the weather pre-ventingt h eP a n -

thers from practicing out-doors, Eble said he’s notsure which players will beshaping up to earn a spoton varsity, but he saidmost spots on varsity willbe up for grabs.

H a m a r, S m i t h a n d

Huerte are all likely candidates to lead thePanthers.

The trio brings a wealth of tennis experi-ence and could be Central’s best hopes forstate qualifiers.

CENTRAL GIRLS TENNIS 2017 SCHEDULE

March 14 Lebanon * 4 p.m.March 16 at Dallas * 4 p.m.March 21 Woodburn * 4 p.m.March 23 at South Albany * 4 p.m.April 4 Crescent Valley * 4 p.m.April 6 Corvallis * 4 p.m.April 11 at Silverton * 4 p.m.April 13 at Lebanon * 4 p.m.April 18 Dallas * 4 p.m.April 20 at Woodburn * 4 p.m.April 25 South Albany * 4 p.m.April 27 at Crescent Valley * 4 p.m.May 2 at Corvallis * 4 p.m.May 4 Silverton * 4 p.m.May 10 District Tournament TBA at Crescent ValleyMay 11 District Tournament TBAMay 12 District Tournament TBAMay 18 State TBAMay 19 State TBAMay 20 State TBA


Hamar

Smith

Huerte

INDEPENDENCE — Baseball isn’tjust a passing interest in the Hol-stad family.

It’s a sport that bonds family membersacross generations — and Central seniorJackson Holstad is continuing that tradi-tion. Jackson’s father, Van, played in a wood

bat league from 2000 to 2008. Jackson’s uncle and grandfather also

played in the same league, and hisgrandfather was inducted into theWillamette Valley Men’s Baseball LeagueHall of Fame in 2012. There was little question Jackson was

going to at least try baseball when hewas younger. By the time Jackson could pick up a

bat, he was ready to swing. “I started playing when I was like

four,” Jackson said with a smile. “I didn’treally have a choice.”As Jackson got older, watching his fa-

ther play had a big impact on how heviewed the sport. “I grew up watching him play in that

league,” Jackson said. “It was cool be-cause he’s my role model.”It wasn’t long before Jackson yearned

to spend all the time he could playingbaseball with his dad. “As head wrestling coach, I have had

to spend a lot of time away from thefamily during the winters, and in thespring, I made sure to spend time withboth of my kids,” Van said. “With Jack-son, it seemed like he always wanted tospend that time learning how to throw,catch and hit the baseball.” As Jackson began to play in youth

baseball leagues, Van was there to helpcoach and give encouragement. Baseball became a family affair in the

best way possible. “It has been a lot of fun,” Van said. “It

really is something that has drawn us to-gether, especially early on.” Now in his final season with the Pan-

thers, Jackson plans on giving the Hol-stads a new accomplishment to add tothe family record books.

—Each of the past three years, Central’s

baseball team has advanced to the stateplay-in round. Each of those times, the Panthers

failed to advance. Jackson’s hoping for adifferent outcome this spring.“We have quite a few returners from

last year, so I think we have positive ex-pectations,” Jackson said. The senior will play a central role in

the team’s success this season. Jackson had a strong 2016 campaign,

earning second team all-state honorsand first team all-league recognitionafter racking up 29 hits, including fivehome runs, and leading the team in bat-ting average (.414). He was also a steady presence in the

outfield. But Jackson had a burning desire to

improve.“Me, Humberto (Alarcon) and Luis

(Amador) would come and hit as muchas possible,” Jackson said. “When Iwasn’t in the weight roon, I was hitting orplaying catch.” His biggest step forward may not be

physically. “I think I’ve improved on patience and

keeping a level head,” Jackson said. “Ican get frustrated pretty easily, but I’veworked on thinking through situationsand seeing the different outcomes of sit-uations.” As a senior, Jackson has embraced

being a vocal leader for the Panthers.“I tell the younger guys to work hard

and don’t ever quit,” Jackson said. “Iknow when I was a freshman it was morefor fun. Now, there’s an urgency becauseI want to win something big.” To the casual fan, baseball can seem

like a laid-back sport. Not so for Jackson.“There’s more than meets the eye,” he

said. “There are a lot of little things tobaseball that they don’t see.” Winning big won’t be easy in the Mid-

Willamette Conference — always one ofthe toughest leagues in 5A — but with anew coach, Jackson is hopeful for whatlies ahead. “We pretty much have a brand new

coaching staff,” Jackson said. “We aremore aggressive because we’re a littlemore baseball savvy. We know what’sgoing on and we have confidence.”One way or another, this spring will

mark the end of Jackson’s high school ca-reer. He hopes this last chapter will comewith a happy ending. “We’re excited to get the season

going,” Jackson said. “We’ll see where ittakes us.”


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Swing AwaySwing AwayCOVER STORY

By Lukas EggenThe Itemizer-Observer

Central senior Jackson Holstad led the team in batting average in 2016.


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JENIFER WEBBDallas Track and Field The senior had a stellar 2016 campaign, cul-minating in a fifth-place finish in the girls100-meter hurdles at the state track and fieldchampionships. Along with Stefani Tallon,Webb gives the Dragons a potent one-twopunch in the hurdles — the duo finished firstand second in the 100 hurdles at the 2016

Mid-Willamette Conference district championships. Webb hopesto build on her accomplishments this spring as she looks to de-fend her district title and to make a run at a state title.

JACKSON HOLSTADCentral Baseball Holstad, a senior, had a big year for thePanthers in 2016. He led Central in battingaverage (.414), on base percentage (.481)and slugging percentage (.729) and wassecond on the team with hits (29). He alsoadded five home runs. As a center fielder,he gave the Panthers a steady glove in theoutfield and was named first-team all-

MWC and second team all-state. His combination of powerand speed makes him one Central’s most dangerousweapons.

JEREMY LABRADOFalls City Track and FieldThe junior earned his first trip to state in2016, qualifying in the triple jump. He’llhave a chance to perform well in the triplejump, long jump and high jump thisspring, and will be a part of the boys 4 x100-meter relay team. Expectations arehigh at Falls City to win a boys team titleat districts, and Labrado will be a major

piece of the puzzle.

JORI KERRCentral SoftballThe senior switched from the infield to theoutfield in 2016 — a difficult transitionbut one she thrived in. In addition, Kerrhad a team-best 37 hits, including seventriples and two home runs during leagueplay. Ker also had 38 RBIs and was a first-team all-league selection. Kerr will be oneof the Panthers’ go-to bats and looked to

as one of the team’s senior leaders throughout the spring.

KAILEE CURTISDallas Girls Golf Curtis made school history last season,becoming the first girl from Dallas toqualify for state in golf. Curtis, who fin-ished tied for third at the district tourna-ment and 14th at state, wants to have aneven bigger season this spring. She is atop contender to win a district title and, ifshe qualifies, will be looking for a top-10

finish at the state championships.

5 POLK COUNTY spring sportsathletes to watch in 2017

Webb

Holstad

Labrado

Dallas senior Kailee Curtis finished tied for third at the district championships in 2016.

CurtisKerr


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2017 DALLAS BOYS TENNIS

Dragons locked in on competing for top spot in the MWCTHE RUNDOWN ...Coach: Caleb Gillette (third season).

Key returners: JoshDudley (sr.); Caedmon Blair(sr.); Ryan Bibler (jr.).

Newcomers to watch:Trenton Ensz, fr.; JacobGillette, fr.; Zac Price, fr.

Significant stat: 3 —The number of players Dal-las sent to state last sea-son.

Outlook: Dallas’ boystennis team is out to proveit belongs in the conversa-tion to be one of the Mid-Willamette Conference’sbest squads.

“I’m looking for everyguy to improve, that’s whatwe need to succeed,” CalebGillette said. “We musthave solid depth. I expectto compete for the top

spot in the conference. There’s no reason wecan’t, but it depends on where our mentalityis. It’s a long season, and ultimately if every-one’s improved by districts, then we’re doingwell.”

The Dragons are welcoming a high numberof newcomers, Gillette said. Finding whichones get acclimated the quickest will be key,but Ensz, Jacob Gillette and Price all show earlypromise as Dallas hopes to build a solid varsitylineup.

Dallas has a big hole to fill — finding a re-placement for Thomas Gniadecki, who tookthird at state last season won’t be easy, but afew returners, including Blair and Dudley,

give the Dragons a strong core to buildaround.

The Dragons lack the ability to play year-round like athletes on other schools have, butDallas has a secret weapon — one that CalebGillette said will define the Dragons thisspring.

“We aren’t the most talented, but we willwork harder than any other team, I can prom-ise that,” Caleb Gillette said. “We won’t quit,

and that’s what wins matches. Our guys playfor the right reasons — playing because youlove the game and not focusing on winning,and the rest will come with time.”

DALLAS BOYS TENNIS 2017 SCHEDULE

March 14 Woodburn * 4 p.m.March 16 at Central * 4 p.m.March 17 at Cascade 4 p.m.March 21 at Crescent Valley * 4 p.m.March 23 Corvallis * 4 p.m.March 24 Sandy 4 p.m.April 4 at Silverton * 4 p.m.April 6 South Albany * 4 p.m.April 11 Lebanon * 4 p.m.April 13 at Woodburn * 4 p.m.April 18 Central * 4 p.m.April 20 Crescent Valley * 4 p.m.April 25 at Corvallis * 4 p.m.April 27 Silverton * 4 p.m.May 2 at South Albany * 4 p.m.May 4 at Lebanon * 4 p.m.May 10 District Tournament TBAMay 11 District Tournament TBAMay 12 District Tournament TBAMay 18 State TBAMay 19 State TBAMay 20 State TBA


Blair

Bibler

Josh Dudley, right, returns as one of Dallas’ most experienced players.


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2017 CENTRAL BASEBALL

Panthers on the verge of breakout seasonTHE RUNDOWN ...Coach: Reed Rainey (first season).2016 finish: 12-14 overall, 10-11 Mid-

Willamette Conference, fourth place; ad-vanced to 5A state play-in round.

Key returners: JacksonHolstad (sr., outfield); LuisAmador (sr., pitcher/firstbase); Humberto Alarcon(sr., pitcher/second base);Peter Mendazona ( jr. ,pitcher/shortstop).

Newcomers to watch:Ruben Cedillo (soph., thirdbase); Emiliano Alarcon(soph., catcher); JesseCable (soph., outfield).

Significant stat: 122 — The number ofruns Central scored during the 2016 season.

Outlook: The Panthers are a team on theverge of a breakout.

“Central is a very young team, but talent-ed,” Rainey said. “The core of the team isgood.”

That core features Holstad, a secondteam all-state selection in 2016, Amador,who received honorable mention all-state,Alarcon and Mendazona.

Holstad led Central in batting average

(.481) and was second inhits with 29. He also haspower, hitting five homeruns in 2016.

Amador broke out atthe plate last season,recording a team-high 30hits and 27 RBIs andstruck out only fourtimes.

H u m b e r to Al a rco n ,Mendazona and Amador also give the Pan-thers great versatility. All three are produc-tive at the plate, and all three can pitch andplay in the infield.

With a strong core in place, less experi-enced players will get a chance to shine —and make the difference between a goodand a great season.

Cedillo, Cable and Emiliano Alarcon willall have chances to play significant roles atthe plate and on defense. How quickly theycan get acclimated will be the key to how farCentral can go.

“How competitive we become will de-pend on how fast the young players matureand develop,” Rainey said. “The pitchingstaff is solid, and the overall team speed isoutstanding. It should be a very excitingseason.”

CENTRAL BASEBALL2017 SCHEDULE

March 13 at Stayton 4 p.m.March 15 at Yamhill-Carlton 4 p.m.March 17 at Elmira 4:30 p.m.March 21 Corvallis * 10 a.m.March 22 at Corvallis * 10 a.m.March 24 Corvallis * 4:30 p.m.March 31 The Dalles (DH) 4:30 p.m.April 4 at Silverton * 4:30 p.m.April 5 Silverton * 4:30 p.m.April 7 at Silverton * 4:30 p.m.April 11 at Dallas * 4:30 p.m.April 12 Dallas * 4:30 p.m.April 14 at Dallas * 4:30 p.m.April 18 Crescent Valley * 4:30 p.m.April 19 at Crescent Valley * 4:30 p.m.April 21 Crescent Valley * 4:30 p.m.April 25 Woodburn * 4:30 p.m.April 26 at Woodburn * 4:30 p.m.April 28 at Woodburn * 4:30 p.m.May 2 South Albany * 4:30 p.m.May 3 at South Albany * 4:30 p.m.May 5 South Albany * 4:30 p.m.May 9 at Lebanon * 4:30 p.m.May 10 at Lebanon * 4:30 p.m.May 12 Lebanon * 4:30 p.m.May 29 Class 5A Play-In Round TBA


Mendazona

Jackson Holstad will help lead Central.

Amador


2017 FALLS CITY TRACK AND FIELD

Mountaineers eye district titlesTHE RUNDOWN ...Coach: Ronnie Simmons

(second season). 2016 finish: BOYS — Fourth

place at Class 1A Special District1 championships. GIRLS —Sixth place at Class 1A SpecialDistrict 1 championships.

Key returners: BOYS — Je-r e m y L a b r a d o ( j r .jumps/sprints); Austin Burgess(soph. sprints/long jump).GIRLS — Maddie Hendrickson(jr., sprints/long jump).

Newcomers to watch: Brit-tney Potts (fr.); Grace Castle (fr.,shot/discus); Zac Varney (fr.(shot put/discus); Isaac Linford(fr., distance).

Significant stat: 1 — Thenumber of state qualifiers FallsCity returns.

Outlook: With nearly 30 kidsout for track, Falls City has onegoal in mind.

“My expectations are noth-ing less than to win district forboth the boys and girls,” Sim-

mons said.“Our great-est strengthis that weare real lycoming intoour own ass t u d e n t -a t h l e t e s .They havebeen put-t i n g t h etime and ef-f o r t i n t ow o r k i n gout, thanksto (Micke)Kidd.”

Labradoqualified fors t a t e i n2 0 1 6 a n d

he, along with several others,have a very real shot at makingstate this spring.

“I expect all the kids to dowell, but there are a couple thathave an amazing opportunity,”Simmons said. “Those would be

Jeremy, Austin, Dylan Youngand Maddie.”

But they aren’t the only onesfor whom Simmons has highhopes.

“I do feel we have a coupledark horses in Grace Castle andespecially Isaac Linford,” Sim-mons said. “Isaac being only aninth-grader is an amazing run-ner, and it will be exciting notjust to watch him this year, but

for years to come. I also can’tcount out my seniors, Nick andNate Kempfer. They are greatkids and I expect great thingsfrom them.”

Simmons is eager to see justwhat his team can accomplish.

“They are a great group ofkids and I am honored just tobe a part of this, because I reallyfeel this is going to be a specialyear.”

2017 PERRYDALE TRACK AND FIELD

Pirates excited to see young team develop THE RUNDOWN ...Coach: Brian Evans (fourth

season). 2016 finish: BOYS — 12th at

Class 1A Special District 1 cham-pionships. GIRLS — Second atClass 1A Special District 1 cham-pionships.

Key returners: BOYS —Jacob Pope (sr., throws). GIRLS— Alyssa Lux (soph., jumps);Kieley Griffin (jr., sprints).

Newcomers to watch: AmityDeters (fr.); Josh Crawford (fr.);Evan Lambert (fr.).

Significant stat: 20 — Thenumber of athletes on Perry-dale’s track and field teams —the biggest turnout Evans hasseen during his tenure.

Outlook: Perrydale’s trackand field team boasts itsstrongest numbers since Evansbecame head coach. With ayoung, talented squad this sea-son, Evans is excited to seewho emerges as state con-tenders.

“We lost two excellent ath-letes and state placers, Sarah

Clark andTaylor Price,to gradua-tion,” Evanss a i d . “ Wehave an ex-c e l l e n tf r e s h m e nclass, anda l t h o u g hit’s too early

to know for sure, I’m confidentseveral of them will do well atdistricts and, hopefully, on tostate.”

The Pirates should see severalathletes be in the mix for a stateberth come district champi-onship time, Evans said.

“Jacob should do well in allthe throws, especially javelin,”Evans said. “Alyssa Lux placedthird at districts in the high jumpand fifth in the long jump as afreshman. A sophomore whocould surprise people in thethrows is Abigail Bibler.”

Evans also hopes that Griffin,a softball player, will be able tocompete in track as well. Griffin

qualified for state in the girls100-meter run and as part of the4 x 100 relay team in 2016.

“Every athlete on our team istalented and has the potential toscore points in every meet,”Evans said.

With a young team, Evanssaid there is a boatload of poten-tial, and Evans is eager to see

who steps up this spring. “We define success as work-

ing hard and improving uponpersonal records,” Evans said.“There is no bench time in track.Everyone competes. It’s eachathlete against the clock, the baror the tape measure. The kidsrecognize that and that’s whythey compete.”

PERRYDALE TRACK AND FIELD2017 SCHEDULE

March 18 at Estacada Small School Invite 10 a.m.March 23 at Grizzly Bear Open 2 p.m.March 29 at Canby NoonApril 6 at WVL-Amity TBAApril 13 at North Marion JV Invite 3:30 p.m.April 15 at Rob Frank Invitational (Banks) 10 a.m.April 20 at WVL-Willamina 3:30 p.m. April 29 at Portland Christian Invitational 11 a.m.May 4 at WVL 3: 45 p.m.May 12 Special District 1 TBA championships at Portland Christian May 13 Special District 1 TBA championships at Portland Christian May 18 Class 1A State Championships TBA at University of OregonMay 19 Class 1A State Championships TBA at University of Oregon

Pope

FALLS CITY TRACK AND FIELD2017 SCHEDULE

March 29 at Canby NoonApril 6 at WVL-Amity TBAApril 13 at North Marion JV Invite 3:30 p.m.April 20 at WVL-Willamina 3:30 p.m. April 28 at Stayton Twilight 11 a.m.May 4 at WVL 3: 45 p.m.May 12 Special District 1 TBA championships at Portland Christian May 13 Special District 1 TBA championships at Portland Christian May 18 Class 1A State Championships TBA at University of OregonMay 19 Class 1A State Championships TBA at University of Oregon

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2017 DALLAS TRACK AND FIELD

Dragons short on depth, big on talentSix state qualifiers return to lead Dallas

THE RUNDOWN ...Coach: Bill Masei (seventh

season). 2 0 1 6 fi n i s h : B OYS —

F o u r t h p l a c e a t M i d -Willamette Conference districtchampionships. GIRLS — Fifthplace at MWC district champi-onships.

Key returners: BOYS —Cody Webb (sr., sprints/hur-dles); Aaron White (sr., jumps);

J a c o bD e m i n g(sr., sprints/pole vault);J o s hWilden (sr.,t h r o w s ) ;T r e v o rC r o s s(soph., dis-t a n c e ) .G I R L S —J e n i f e rWebb (sr.,sprints/hur-dles); Ste-fani Tallon( s r . ,sprints/hur-dles); Kay-l e y S aye r(sr., jumps);R e g a n n

Gavin (sr., sprints); AmeliaBurgess (sr., throws).

Newcomers to watch:None given.

Significant stat: 6 — Thenumber of athletes returningwho competed at the 2016state track and field champi-onships.

Outlook: Dallas’ track andfield teams likely won’t be atthe top of the team standingsat larger meets, but the Drag-ons’ presence will be felt in abig way.

“We have the majority oflast year’s district and stateplacers back this year,” Maseisaid. “We will be more of an in-vitational team as we havegood talent, but lack depth insome events.”

Cody Webb, White, Demingand Cross on the boys side andJenifer Webb and Tallon for thegirls all qualified for state in2016.

All should be strong con-tenders to return to Eugene.

“Trevor had a great cross-countr y season and hasworked hard all winter,” Maseisaid. “Jenifer and Cody Webbboth looked solid in preseasonpractice and are in good earlyseason shape. Aaron Whiteand Stefani Tallon both hadstrong junior seasons (in2016).”

With Tallon, Jenifer Webband Gavin leading the charge,the hurdles and sprints couldbe the girls team’s greateststrength, but there’s one ath-lete who could make somenoise in the jumps.

S aye r b at t l e d i n j u r i e sthroughout much of the 2016season. She could be a primecandidate to have a big year in2017.

“Kayley Sayer, if she remains

healthy, should be a force inthe jumps,” Masei said.

The boys hope to seestrong performances frommany of its sprinters andjumpers.

The key will be keeping ath-letes healthy and getting the

primed to be at their best forthe biggest meets.

“Staying healthy (will bekey),” Masei said. “We will limitthe training time on the trackand won’t compete in as manymeets to avoid doubling upkids during the same week.”

DALLAS TRACK AND FIELD2017 SCHEDULE

March 15 South Albany 3:30 p.m.March 22 at Silverton 3:30 p.m.April 5 MWC 4-Way at Crescent Valley 3:45 p.m.April 14 at Viking Relays 3 p.mApril 19 at Lebanon 3:45 p.m.April 21 at Central Coast Invite 4 p.m. April 26 at Central 4 p.mApril 28 at Rob Allen Twilight 4 p.mMay 8-9 MWC District Championships TBA May 19-21 5A State Championships TBA

at University of Oregon

Webb

Cross

Aaron White competed at the 2016 state track and field championships in Eugene.

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2017 CENTRAL SOFTBALL

Experienced roster to help Central take a big step forward this spring

Panthers look to claw their way to the postseasonTHE RUNDOWN ...Coach: Kendra Hamlin (fourth season). 2016 finish: 11-13 overall, 9-9 Mid-

Willamette Conference, fifth place; advancedto state play-in round.

Key returners: JoriKerr (sr., utility); KyraNoon (sr., third base);Erin Cole ( jr., pitcher);Peyton Shimanek ( jr. ,pitcher); Aunika Farley( j r. , catcher) ; Al l i sonWells (soph., outfield);Kassidy Noon (soph. ,outfield).

Newcomers to watch:M argaret L ippsmeyer(soph.); Macey Nelson(soph.); Sydney Nash (fr.);Bailey Padilla (fr.).

Significant stat: Six —The number of times Cen-tral’s softball team scored17 or more runs duringthe 2016 season.

Outlook: Central ap-pears set for a breakoutseason this spring.

With eight returning varsity players, thePanthers won’t be short on experience.Among them include Kerr and Kyra Noon,both of whom earned first team all-MWChonors last year.

Kyra Noon hit .508 during league playand drove in 21 runs. Kerr switched fromthe infield to outfield in 2016, and also hada team-high 37 hits and recorded 38 RBIsduring league play.

But Central hopes to see big contribu-

tions from up and downthe lineup.

“I expect all players toh a v e b i g i m p a c t swhether it be with theirb a t s , g l o v e s , h u s t l eand/or attitude,” Hamlinsaid. “One of the beauti-ful things about thissport is every pitch, everyplay, someone has an op-portunity to make something great happenfor the team.”

On defense, Cole and Shimanek give thePanthers a pair of dangerous pitchers tokeep opponents off balance. Despite thehigh number of returning varsity players,Hamlin hopes to see some new facesemerge and make their presence felt.

The MWC is always a difficult league tocompete in, but Central appears ready tocontend for a league title.

What could be the X-factor may be eachplayer’s willingness to give everything shehas.

If they are willing to fight for one anoth-er, Hamlin said the Panthers will be a forceto be reckoned with.

“The ability to play solid defense andconsistently get runners on base (and score)wins games, but team chemistry greatly af-fects team success,” Hamlin said. “Havingplayers who are sold out to play for one an-other, maintaining consistent energy

throughout the season, and having playersthat make quick adjustments from game togame will determine our team’s success thisyear.”

CENTRAL SOFTBALL2017 SCHEDULE

March 15 North Marion 4:30 p.m.March 21 at Silverton * 4:30 p.m.March 22 South Albany * 4:30 p.m.March 24 Crescent Valley * 4:30 p.m.March 27 at Newport 9 a.m.March 27 vs. Banks (at Newport) 1 p.m.March 28 vs. Pleasant Hill 1 p.m.

(at Newport)April 4 at Lebanon* 4:30 p.m.April 5 Dallas * 4:30 p.m.April 7 at Corvallis * 4:30 p.m.April 11 Woodburn * 4:30 p.m.April 12 Silverton * 4:30 p.m.April 14 at South Albany * 4:30 p.m.April 18 at Crescent Valley * 4:30 p.m.April 19 Lebanon * 4:30 p.m.April 21 at Dallas * 4:30 p.m.April 25 Corvallis * 4:30 p.m.April 28 at Silverton * 4:30 p.m.May 2 South Albany * 4:30 p.m.May 3 Crescent Valley * 4:30 p.m.May 5 at Lebanon * 4:30 p.m.May 9 Dallas * 4:30 p.m.May 10 at Corvallis* 4:30 p.m.May 19 5A play-in game TBA


Kerr

Ky. Noon

Junior Erin Cole will return to help an-chor Central’s pitching staff.

Wells

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THE RUNDOWN ...Coach: Chris Gubrud (third season). 2016 finish: 9-8 overall, 4-6 Special District

2, fourth place. Key returners: Jackie

Juarez (jr., second base);Kieley Griffin ( jr., thirdbase); Shylar Halverson(soph., infield/outfield);Sydney Perkins (soph.,pitcher/outfield).

Newcomers to watch:Kenzi Lawrence (fr., short-stop); Sydney Lawrence(fr. , catcher) ; Natal ieJuarez (fr., pitcher); Kyn-dle Moore (soph., out-field); Avery Alumbaugh(sr., outfield).

Significant stat: 155 —The total number of runsPerrydale scored in 2016.

Outlook: This will be avery different Perrydalesoftball team.

“We are young andthin,” Gubrud said. “We are playing an inde-pendent schedule consisting of small-school

varsity teams and big school JV teams.” The Pirates will expect much from new

faces in almost every facet of the game frompitching, where Perkins and Juarez may seesignificant innings, to the plate.

Expect to see Perrydale look to Juarez, Grif-fin, Halverson and Perkins to help lead thesquad and teach the less experienced players.

This season will be focused on growth asGubrud hopes to lay the groundwork for fu-ture success for Perrydale.

“We have one senior, two juniors and therest are freshmen and sophomores,” Gubrudsaid. “We are more athletic than in the past,but we need to gain experience.”

2017 PERRYDALE SOFTBALL

Pirates prepare for independent schedulePERRYDALE SOFTBALL

2017 SCHEDULEPerrydale’s independent schedule was not fi-nalized as of press time. Perrydale athletic di-rector Dan Dugan said the schedule will be setby early next week. Head to www.osaa.org forthe Pirates’ full independent schedule. Theschedule will also be posted online atwww.polkio.com when it becomes available.

Halverson

Griffin

Junior Kieley Griffin played third base for the Pirates last season.

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2017 PERRYDALE BASEBALL

Pirates ready for next stepTHE RUNDOWN ...Coach: Steve Mabry (seventh season).2016 finish: 2-17 overall, 2-14 Special Dis-

trict 2, ninth place. Key returners: Zack Laster (sr., pitcher/in-

field); Dustin Silver (soph., pitcher/infield);Mike McGill (jr., catcher/outfield); ColtonMoore (sr., infield); Haylen Janesofsky (sr.,pitcher/outfield).

Newcomers to watch:Daniel Domes (sr., catch-e r ) ; J . J . A v i l a ( j r . ,pitcher/outfield).

Significant stat: 7 —The number of playerswho played high schoolbaseball for the first timein 2016.

Outlook: The 2016season was all aboutbuilding for the future.This spring will be aboutrealizing potential.

“Last year, we told theguys it was about build-ing to be better,” Mabrysaid. “Maybe not for thisgame or the next game,but for another season. Itwas tough for the guysbecause they are used towinning. When you don’twin, you can pull the

chute and get out or you can battle. Theystayed and battled.”

That season is now.The Pirates had seven players last year

playing high school baseball for the firsttime. With a season under their belts,Mabry is seeing them taking a big stepforward.

“All these guys are bigger and strongerand faster,” Mabry said. “I think they under-stand how to hit the ball a lot better. Ithink we’re hitting better in winter thanwe were at the end of the 2016 season.Last year, we had four or five guys playingout of their normal positions. That won’t

happen this year.” Janesofsky returns to

baseball after competingin track and field in 2016,and provides the Pirateswith exper ience andleadership.

Perrydale will have fivepitchers with game expe-r ience — mak ing itspitching staff one of them o r e d a n g e r o u s i nleague.

“ We have expecta-tions this year,” Mabrysaid. “We’re going to bein every game and inthe hunt for a playoffspot. We have to be inthe top three and wefeel we can with theplayers we have thisyear. We talked all win-

ter long about what’s our expectations.They said we should win the league title.That’s a great expectation to have and ithelps to drive them forward, knowingthat they have to work harder to achievethat.”

PERRYDALE BASEBALL2017 SCHEDULE

March 13 Siletz Valley 4:30 p.m.March 20 at Kennedy * 4:30 p.m.April 4 Country Christian * 4:30 p.m.April 7 at East Linn Christian * 4:30 p.m.April 10 Western Mennonite * 4:30 p.m.April 13 at St. Paul * 4:30 p.m.April 25 at Regis * 4:30 p.m.April 28 Kennedy * 4:30 p.m.May 2 at Country Christian * 4:30 p.m.May 4 East Linn Christian * 4:30 p.m.May 5 at Western Mennonite * 4:30 p.m.May 9 St. Paul * 4:30 p.m.May 16 Regis * 4:30 p.m.

* — denotes Special District 2 game

2017 DALLAS GIRLS TENNIS

Dragons mixing up lineups THE RUNDOWN ...Coach: Julie Hertel (first season). Key returners: Addie Gillette (jr.); Lynn

Gumpinger (jr.); Megan Ronco (sr.); Molly Pef-fley (sr.); Amanda Shafer (soph.).

Newcomers to watch: Julia DelOlmoParra-do (sr.).

Significant stat: 3 — The number of for-eign exchange studentson Dallas’ roster.

Outlook: Dallas’ coach-es had one request ofplayers prior to the start ofthe season — be flexible.

“We asked the playersto be open to playingboth singles and doublesthis season,” Hertel said.“The reason is we havesome very strong playerson our varsity, and theirflexibility with the lineupgives us the best shot for asuccessful season andgives us some choices forthe district tournament.”

The result of that re-quest can already be seen.Gillette and Gumpingerspent the 2016 seasonplaying doubles. Both will

start the spring playing singles. Peffley and Kinzi Boer will team up for a

doubles pair. Boer played both singles anddoubles, while Peffley played primarily sin-gles last year.

Laizure and Totten played together lastyear, but Totten will play alongside EmmaCromwell this year and Laizure will competein singles. Shafer and Ronco will remain adoubles pair.

Don’t expect these lineups to remain thesame, though.

“Playing singles and doubles interchange-ably throughout the season for the good ofthe team,” Hertel said. “This is a big changefrom years past where players have primarily

stayed in one position or another. We’re ask-ing them to basically learn two differentstrategies depending on the match, but thestroke is always the same and we have a lot ofgood players this year.”

The returning players will be joined by anintriguing set of newcomers, including De-lOmloParrado.

“She is a foreign exchange student fromSpain and a very good player,” Hertel said.“She has primarily played singles in the past,but we are doing a lot of work with her at thenet with the intention of improving her dou-bles game.”

There are a host of others ready to com-pete for a varsity spot. That level of competi-tion has Hertel excited for the Dragons’prospects this spring.

“We have prepared the girls mentally andphysically to play both singles and doubles,”Hertel said.

Hard Work Pays OffGood luck to all Polk County teams.

Call me if you need aride to or from practice!

Dav. Domes

Silver

DALLAS GIRLS TENNIS 2017 SCHEDULE

March 14 at Woodburn * 4 p.m.March 16 Central * 4 p.m.March 17 Cascade 4 p.m.March 21 Crescent Valley * 4 p.m.March 23 at Corvallis * 4 p.m.April 3 at North Marion 4 p.m.April 4 Silverton * 4 p.m.April 6 at South Albany * 4 p.m.April 11 at Lebanon * 4 p.m.April 13 Woodburn * 4 p.m.April 18 at Central * 4 p.m.April 20 at Crescent Valley * 4 p.m.April 25 Corvallis * 4 p.m.April 27 at Silverton * 4 p.m.May 2 South Albany * 4 p.m.May 4 Lebanon * 4 p.m.May 10 District Tournament TBAMay 11 District Tournament TBAMay 12 District Tournament TBAMay 18 State TBAMay 19 State TBAMay 20 State TBA


Gumpinger

Gillette

Janesofsky

Dan. Domes

Documents

Itemizer-Observer • Section C • March 15, 2017 Swing Awayeaglenewspapers.media.clients.ellingtoncms.com/... · Itemizer-Observer • Section C • March 15, 2017 2017 HIGH SCHOOL