Elmira Grapplers Give Strong Showing at Springfield Invitational

As the new season unfolds for Elmira's wrestling teams, results from the Springfield Invitational on Saturday, December 8, portends a good season ahead.  The Falcon boys' team placed six wrestlers in the top five of five weight classes to secure a second place finish out of 32 teams.

Ian Drago goes on the offensive in a match during the Springfield Invitational Wrestling Tournament, Saturday December 9.  Photo by Kimberly Lillie

 Leading the way was Mikey Montgomery who placed third at 220 lbs.  Ian Drago (126 lbs.), Hunter Davis (132 lbs.), Grey Canada (138 lbs.) and Nat Brown (155 lbs.) all took fourth place in their respective weight classes.  Ayden Walgamott finished 5th in the 145 lbs class.

Elmira's Hunter Davis scores a ferocious take down during matches at the Springfield Invitational Wrestling Tournament, Saturday September 8.  Photo by Kimberly Lillie.

The girls were led by Liberty Barlow who took 1st place at 105 lbs.  Elva Zhao and Anna McDougal took third in the 100 lbs. and 155 lbs classes, respectively.  Destiny Ruppert took 4th at 155 lbs.  The Lady Falcons finished the meet fourth overall.

Liberty Barlow gains leverage in a match at the Springfield Invitational Wrestling Tournament, Saturday December 9.  Barlow placed first among girls in the 105 lb. class.  Photo by Kimberly Lillie.

6A Mountain View was the meet team champion.

Lady Falcons Find True Grit; Come from Behind to Dump Sisters

Except for a sublime, impromptu moment, Elmira's girls basketball victory over Sisters was anything but a work of art.

"We have a long way to go in our execution, conditioning, and in a lot of our skill work," noted Falcon's head coach Ken Best in an email.  "But I was proud of how level-headed and focused we were."

Junior Maranda Hanson towers over three Sisters' defenders as well as Elmira's Megan Porter and Sydney Green to snatch a rebound in the Lady Falcons' 34-29 victory over the Lady Outlaws.  Photo by Kimberly Lillie

In a sluggish game where both teams shot horrendously, especially in the first half, Elmira's backcourt accounted for 61% of the Falcon's scoring, overcoming a first half deficit and pulling out a 34-29 victory in their season opener in the nightcap game, December 4 at Elmira High School.  Senior Sydney Green scored 11 points and Carly Grossmiller added 10 for the winners.

Second team 4A-Sky Em, all conference player Sydney Green goes up for an uncontested lay up in Elmira's 34-29 win over Sisters, Tuesday December 4.  Green led all Falcon scorers with 11 points.  Photo by Kimberly Lillie

Defense was the order of the day, especially in the second half where the Lady Outlaws were reduced to a meager 10 points in 16 minutes of play.  Led by defensive specialist Megan Porter, the Falcons regained the lead on the first possession of the second half and began to wear down the Sisters offense.

Elmira forward Megan Porter defends against Sisters' shooter Sydney Head in the Lady Falcons' opening night victory against the Lady Outlaws, Tuesday December 4.  Photo by Kimberly Lilly.

"Megan is the type of defender I can put on their point guard, their best shooter, or their best post," Best added.  "I trust her in every defensive situation."

The punctuation mark on the victory belonged to Cheyanne White, who provided the most scintillating, albeit inadvertent,  highlight of the night.  Breaking the Sisters press, White drove into the right side of the paint with the intention of scoring.  According to White, she realized that a defender was going to be in the way and chose to pass.  As the defender lunged, the pass bounced on a dime through the defender's legs and into the hands of the Falcons' Alexis White, who scored in one fluid motion.  It was one of three pivotal plays that sealed the victory for Elmira.

White got another assist to Porter who hit a transition lay-up.  With three minutes to play, White had a shot blocked but was able to tip it to Porter who found Green for an open baseline jumper.

"I liked our tenacity and effort," Best said.  "They kept their heads in the game and never panicked, and they seemed to having fun.  The part about having fun is important to me."

Falcons Grounded in Hoops Opener

The season opener was a schizophrenic display of what one might expect from a team playing its first game against a team playing its third.  Despite a strong bench performance by sophomore Jacob Marr, the Falcons were on their heels all night and fell listlessly to Sisters 53-40 at Elmira High School, Tuesday December 4.

Sophomore Jacob Marr skies to collect one of his 4 blocked shots against Sisters' forward Zach Anderson.  The Falcons lost to the Outlaws 53-40 at Elmira High School, Tuesday December 4.  Photo by Kimberly Lillie

  

Marr came off the bench to score 10 points, 4 offensive rebounds and 4 blocked shots.  At times, the 6-6 sophomore virtually dominated the game.  However, still recovering from a shoulder injury, he couldn't stay on the floor and the Outlaws took advantage when he was on the bench, sending raiding parties into the paint for easy lay-ups that Elmira was flummoxed to stop.

"The most disappointing part of the game for me," commented Falcon's head basketball coach Nick Garman in an email, "was how many direct-line penetrations we gave up and our absence of help side defense."

Elmira's Bryson Forsman battles Sister's forward Zach Anderson for a rebound in the Falcon's 53-40 loss to the Outlaws, Tuesday December 4.  Photo by Kimberly Lillie

The primary benefactor for Sisters was 6-3 swing man Zach Anderson who helped lead the Outlaws to ten more free throws than Elmira.  The Falcons also committed 13 turnovers.

The win left Sisters 2-1 on the young season and now 6th ranked in 4A.  The Falcons fell to 0-1.  Elmira travels next week to play Philomath in Corvallis next Tuesday, December 11.

Cook Moves on to Girls 4A State Championship Cross Country Meet

Kaitlin Cook, who ran to a scintillating 5th place finish at the 4A-4 Sky Em Conference Meet last week has qualified to run in the 4A State Championship this Saturday at Lane Community College.
Cook, who ran a time of 18:59:00, will race for the Championship at 11:35 AM, November 3 for all who would like to cheer Kaitlin on.

Andrea Griffin finished 7th at the Conference Meet with a time of 19:23:24.

Paul Ossowski continued his strong season with a 7th place finish at the Conference Meet also at Lane Community College last week, with a time of 16:39:90.  Right behind him placing 10th was Elmira runner Keegan Cook with a time of 16:51:00.  Ossowski and Cook failed to qualify for the state Championship which takes the top 5 times in the state.

PARKER SHINES IN RETURN BUT FALCONS' SEASON ENDS WITH A THUD

Many things aren't easily quantifiable.  This was the case as Elmira hosted the Klamath Union Pelicans, with both teams desperate to win a spot in a play-in game for the state playoffs on Friday, October 19 at Swartz Field.  Coming in, both squads were evenly matched with identical records and similar victories over common opponents.  Indeed, the game lived up to the quality of a chippy, hotly contested battle.  Despite forcing 5 turnovers, however, the Falcons found themselves staring at an inexplicable 13-7 loss, leaving Elmira on the outside looking in.  So despondent was the team's reaction following the loss that they voted to shun the opportunity to play, essentially, an exhibition game against 3-4 Stayton.

Bryce Sawyer (20), Cedars Marshall (72), Ethan Lasby (52), and an unidentified Falcon gang tackle Klamath Union's Courtney Taylor in Elmira's 13-7 loss in the season finale Friday, October 19 at Swartz Field.  Photo by Kimberly Lillie. 

The game marked the return of Gavin Parker to the team after serving a two game suspension.  At times it seemed like he was literally keeping the  Falcons in the game with big plays on both sides of the ball.  Parker was the recipient of Rowdy Ramirez' 33 yard touchdown pass as he was embarrassingly wide open to end Elmira's first possession of the game, tying the score at 7-7.

However, Parker's value shown more clearly on the defensive side of the ball. The statistics told of his dominance; 10 tackles, a sack, and a spectacular interception as the Pelicans were driving to a score that would have sealed the game.

Falcon's wide receiver Gavin Parker catches this Rowdy Ramirez pass and takes it to the house for a 33 yard touchdown.  It would be the lone score for Elmira as Klamath Union defeated the Falcons 13-7, Friday October 19 at Swartz Field.  Photo by Kimberly Lillie.

Still, there was a leak in one of the Elmira tires and that was the running game, where Klamath Union out performed the Falcons in yardage, 198-65.  So unable to get free against the Pelican defense was star running back Brady Nagel that Ramirez wound up leading the Falcon's in rushing.  Klamath Union's ability to run the ball and hold possession just enough for the Falcons to not get a good look at the endzone for the rest of the game. 

Elmira ends their season 4-4,  ranked 23rd in the state in 4A, although those numbers are likely to shift as next week's games unfold. 

Looking forward, the Falcon fans can anticipate the return of dynamic quarterback Cobyn Herbert to the team after recovering from knee surgery and hope to have Parker back for a full season.  Both will be essential for Elmira if they are to challenge the triumvirate of Marshfield, Marist Catholic, and Cottage Grove that finished ahead of them in the 4A-Sky Em Conference. 

TAKING A BREAK

For all who were hoping for articles this week, I took some time in the basement so that my actual job doesn't get behind.  I can tell you that for one notable exception, it was a forgettable week in Elmira sports.  The girls' soccer team is still clinging to playoff hopes going into their Wednesday night game at Marist Catholic after beating Junction City 1-0 Tuesday October 16.

The Falcon's playoff chances in football took a serious blow after another crushing loss, this time 49-0 to powerful Marshfield, Friday October 12 in Coos Bay.  Elmira hosts Klamath Falls this Friday night in need of a convincing victory to move into contention for a play-in game. 

The boys soccer team lost to Junction City at Swartz Field 2-0 on Tuesday, October 17.  The girls' volleyball team's season ended with a straight set loss to Marshfield here in Elmira on the same night.

As the fall season winds down, I will be taking a break.  I will pick the blog up after my football broadcast on KOCF, 92.5 FM.  If you enjoy listening to live sports on 92.5, please write or call the station and tell them you want more Falcons sports on KOCF.  At this time, the station is projected to broadcast limited sports this winter. 

I will pick things up next week.

Herbert, Cottage Grove Dominate Falcons in Volleyball

Cottage Grove senior Cassidy Herbert and her family are coy to talk about colleges that have interest in the 5-9 outside hitter.  The Elmira Lady Falcons were left with no doubt why.

Herbert lashed 33 kills and 4 aces as third ranked Cottage Grove demolished the Lady Falcons 3-0 (25-12, 25-14, 25-7) in a match that wasn't as close as the score indicated.  16 of Elmira's 33 points were the product of service faults and unforced errors.  When rallies did ensue, the Lions funneled the ball to Herbert who from all over the floor with both powerful strikes and deft placements which had the Falcons' defense reeling.

While her family won't discuss the matter, Lions' head coach Kendra Anderson confirmed that Herbert has been receiving interest both at Cottage Grove High School and in club play.  When asked if it was her best game of the season, Anderson was emphatic.

"Oh no," Anderson said.  "This is indicative of her game."

 The loss dropped the Falcon's record to 6-11.  Elmira is off until next Tuesday when they host Marshfield.