October 26, 2017

McKenzie Varsity Sports Schedule This Week

The McKenzie Cross Country runners will have the opportunity to compete at the 3A/2A/1A-SD4 District 4 Championships this Thursday, October 26. The District meet will be held at Lane Community College. Four 5,000 meter races will be run: The Girls Junior Varsity race starts at 3:00 pm., the Boys Junior Varsity race starts at 3:30 pm., the Girls Varsity race starts at 4:00 pm., and the Boys Varsity race starts at 4:30 pm.

The Eagle Varsity Football team will travel to Mohawk on Friday, October 27, and kick off is scheduled for 7:00 pm. The McKenzie Volleyball team will host an OSAA State 1A Championship Second Round match on Saturday, October 28. The Eagles opponent will be determined Wednesday, October 25, in the OSAA State First Round matches. Fans should check with osaa.org/activities/vbl/schedules or call McKenzie High School office at 541-822-3313.

McKenzie Captures MWL Tournament Championship

Eagles Number One Seed To State

What's sweeter than going undefeated in Mt. West League Regular Season play and capturing the MWL Volleyball Championship? How about winning the Mt. West League Volleyball Tournament Championship and earning the Mt. West League's Number One Seed To State? That might work, and that's exactly what the McKenzie Eagles accomplished. Check one more season goal as DONE DID IT! And may we add emphatically, great job Eagles, well done, and whew!

The latter accomplishment did not come easily. In the vernacular of pundits today, let's be clear. The Championship match win was not intended to be, should not have been, and absolutely, was not an easy victory for the Eagles. Credit to Alsea, the Wolverines came to play and what a battle! The Mt. West League Tournament was held at New Hope Christian College in Eugene, on Saturday, October 21. Alsea, entering the MWL Tournament as the League's second seed, qualified for the Championship game earlier in the day with a tough five set victory over a stubborn and determined Lowell team. The Wolverines lost just two League matches all season, both coming courtesy of the Eagles. The old adage in coaching is "it's hard to beat a team three times." You bet!

Alsea set the tone early by winning the opening set, 25-19. The two rivals played even up early on, with six tie scores including a 6-6 score. Alsea broke out of the tie first, 7-6, and the Wolverines would not relinquish the lead the remainder of the set. Alsea's largest lead was at 16-7 and the Eagles would rally some but McKenzie could not get any closer than a five-point margin.

The second set saw the Mt. West League Champion Eagles jump out to an early l-0. The Wolverines tied it up at 1-1, McKenzie respond by breaking the tie to go 2-1, and the Eagles, albeit looking back a bit, kept the momentum going and won the set 25-16. McKenzie's largest lead in the set came with senior Katelynn Caulley serving and the score at Eagles 22, Wolverines 10. Alsea made a small, sustained rally the rest of the set, but could not makeup the difference.

With the Championship Match tied at one set apiece, the two rivals, heated up now, started off where they left off. Following a 1-1 tie, Alsea took the first opportunity to jump out in front, 2-1, and although McKenzie battled hard the rest of the set, the Eagles would not recapture the lead. The Wolverines built a seven-point margin on two occasions, 16-9 and 19-12, but the Eagles rallied hard at the end, down 19-24 and won the next four points to close to 23-24. The Wolverines called a timeout and put the cap on the win, 25-23.

McKenzie Head Coach Dan Brenner has all season talked about his team "never giving up" and the Eagle team had their coaches back by doing just that. The third set McKenzie went up 3-0 before Alsea found a way to win a point. The set became tied at 4-4 and from there, went back and forth, both hard-fighting teams forging seven tie-scores up through a 17-17 score. McKenzie captured the lead at that point, never sustained more than four points, and kept the pressure on to win the set 25-22.

Significant in the third set was the play of Katrina Drummond. The 5'9" sophomore, in her first season of volleyball and playing the Middle Blocker position off the bench for McKenzie, entered the set with Alsea making a serious run at the Eagle lead. Following an Eagle serve by Cassidy Campbell, Drummond made a crucial kill at the net to put the Eagles up 19-7. Drummond continued to play huge at the net, intimidating the Wolverines with her potential blocking presence and kill potential. Drummond hit another just as crucial kill later to lift the Eagles up 23-20.

McKenzie Coach Dan Brenner had this to say about his rookie, "Katrina Drummond came into the match and changed the tenor of the entire match. Alsea suddenly had to hit around her instead of hitting through our Middle Blocker."

The Championship Match, tied at two apiece and a fifth, deciding set pending, was proving to be exactly what most fans from both rural communities expected, a barnburner. But that's where things became interesting. Four sets of toe-to-toe sluggin' it out, changed dramatically. According to Coach Brenner, and perhaps he has it right, the inspired play of Drummond and the support of her Eagle teammates transpired McKenzie to a different level. Perhaps it was the distractions to the Wolverine players from their fan base between sets. Whatever the reason, McKenzie took the lead from the outset and at first glance, the score was Eagles 7, Wolverines 1.

McKenzie's Jade Hayes was dynamite at the service line through the early stretch, taking the serve at 4-1, delivering a hard hit ace and putting the Wolverine libero on her heels. Campbell's block at the net put the score at 7-1. The Eagles regained the serve at 8-2, with a Wolverine miscue and senior Katelynn Caulley immediately served an ace and she continued to serve up to a 10-3 lead. The Eagles could now smell blood and although Alsea never gave up, the Wolverines could not regain the momentum and McKenzie would win the tie breaking set 15-5. The record-setting Eagle regular season (16-0) Mt. West League Championship now included the 2017 Mt. West League Tournament Championship and the League's coveted Number One Seed to the OSAA State Championships.

McKenzie/Alsea Stats

Eagle sophomore Katrina Drummond earned the McKenzie Player of the Match in the Mt. West League Championship match versus Alsea. Coaches comments were "Came in at a crucial time and played big, disrupting the Alsea attack while scoring for us."

Drummond finished with 2 kills. Jade Hayes hit 17 kills, served 9 aces, had 27 digs, 1 assist and had 25 serve receives with 5 receiving errors. Cassidy Campbell finished with 12 kills, had 3 solo blocks and 2 digs, Katelynn Caulley had 2 kills, 4 aces, 11 digs, and 15 assists, and Anna McNutt also finished with 15 assists. Kanyen Kamrath finished her match with 1 kill, 16 digs, 4 assists, and 21 serve receives with just 1 rec. error. Danny Melcher had 3 kills, 1 solo block and a block assist and 1 assist. Chloe Erdahl finished with 3 kills, 2 aces, 8 digs, and 23 serve receives with no errors. Paige Lowry added 8 digs and 2 assists, Sophia Brownlee had 2 aces and 2 digs, and Lola Seiler played.

Six Eagles Land On MWL Volleyball All-League

McKenzie, the 2017 Mt. West League Volleyball Champion, had six Eagles chosen by Mt. West League coaches to the 2017 MWL Mt. West Volleyball All-League Teams. Senior Setter Katelynn Caulley joined Junior Outside Hitter/Middle Blocker Jade Hayes on the MWL First Team. Hayes repeated as a First Team selection, representing McKenzie last season along with her sister Miyanna, the 2016 MWL Most Outstanding Player. This was Caulley's first selection to the First Team. Selected to the MWL Second Team All-League were junior Setter Anna McNutt, junior Middle Blocker/Outside Hitter Cassidy Campbell, and junior Libero/Outside Hitter Kanyen Kamrath. Campbell repeated as a Second Team selection, McNutt was a Third Team selection last season and Kamrath leaped up from last season's MWL Hon. Mention Team. The Eagle's sixth All-League player selected is Chloe Erdahl, named to the MWL Third Team All-League. Erdahl was selected last season to the MWL Hon. Mention Team.

Earning the 2017 MWL Outstanding Player award was senior Lowell player Lily Lane. Alsea Head Coach Katie Sapp was selected as the 2017 Mt. West League Coach of the Year.

MWL First Team All-League: Alsea: Abbie Lowther, Jr., Megan Harper, So.; Lowell: Lane, Sr., Raelynn Trimble, Jr.; McKenzie: Hayes, Jr., Caulley, Sr.; Siletz: Alex Kaiser, Sr.

MWL Second Team All-League: Lowell: Alanna Beyer, So.; McKenzie: McNutt, Jr., Campbell, Jr., Kamrath, Jr.; Mohawk: Peyton Robinson, So.; Siletz: Mahala Fisher, So.

MWL Third Team All-League: Alsea: Jami Harper, Jr.; Lowell: Mikayla Curry, Jr.; McKenzie: Erdahl, Jr.; Mohawk: Jessi Jo Nation, So.; Siletz: Kelsey Nelson, Sr.; Triangle Lake: Natalie Dumford, Sr.

Eagles Drop Two In Days Creek

The McKenzie Varsity Volleyball team took the long road trip to sunny, southern Douglas County and Days Creek High School to participate in a high level three way Volleyball match with Hosanna Christian and host Days Creek. The Hosanna Christian Lions hail from Klamath Falls, recently won the Mt. Valley League Regular Season Championship with a perfect 9-0 League record, and are ranked 6th in the OSAA State 1A Volleyball rankings. The Days Creek Wolves finished second in the Skyline League Regular Season with a 10-2 League record and a 5th State ranking. Days Creek's two Skyline losses came at the hands of League rival North Douglas, the State's 1st ranked Class 1A Volleyball team, who won the Skyline League with a perfect 12-0 record.

This three-way match was a great opportunity for McKenzie, the Mt. West League Regular Season Champion. The Eagles, ranked 8th at the time, will, along with the Lions and the Wolves, move on to post season action and this three-way dust-up was just what the doctor ordered for pre-post-season preparation. The Skyline, Mt. Valley, and Mt. West League Tournaments all start this weekend and the three teams representing each of those Leagues in the State playoffs will be determined. While the opportunity for great competition was evident, it also became apparent early that the Eagles had their hands full. Days Creek and Hosanna Christian kicked off the competition in a big way, a five set match that was battled furiously from the opening serve to the last kill.

The Wolves won the first set 25-20, lost the second set, 19-25, won the third set, 25-23, lost the fourth set, 22-25, and won the fifth, deciding set, 18-16. Who said you don't stand toe to toe and slug it out in volleyball! Standing in the on-deck circle was the Eagles, hoping the Lions had worked the Wolves down a bit. Indeed, the Eagles put up a good battle in the first set, but the Wolfpack had already tasted blood and prevailed 25-21.

In the second set, the Wolves took charge and won easily, 25-14. McKenzie regrouped in the third set, but Days Creek finished the match with a 25-20 win in the set. Hosanna Christian used their time out effectively, obviously taking notes on Eagles and Wolves, and the Lions roared back with decisive victories in all three sets versus McKenzie, 25-13, 25-8, and 25-14.

McKenzie Head Coach Dan Brenner and his staff singled out Danny Melcher as the Eagle Player of the Match versus Days Creek, citing the sophomore's having "moved in front row, completed her swings, hit hard." Against the host Wolves, Melcher led her team attacking with 8 kills and she added 1 assist. Jade Hayes hit 7 kills, served 2 aces, had 5 digs and an assist. Cassidy Campbell, playing very well as of late, hit 3 kills, had 2 solo blocks and 1 block assist, had 1 dig and 1 assist. Chloe Erdahl played a fine match as she hit 2 kills, served an ace, led her team with 6 digs and had 1 assist. Kanyen Kamrath finished with 3 kills, 2 aces, and 4 digs, Katelynn Caulley had 1 kill, an ace, 1 dig and 9 assists and Anna McNutt added 3 digs and 9 assists. Katrina Drummond had 1 solo block, Paige Lowry finished with 4 digs, Brook Caulley added 1 dig, and Sophia Brownlee served 1 ace. Days Creek was led by Carlie Dossman, who hit 13 kills, Joleen Crume with 11 kills and 4 aces, Cyndal Brown who finished with 6 digs, Moriah Michaels with 5 digs and Kyla Crume who had 13 assists.

Against the Lions of Hosanna Christian, Cassidy Campbell, the Eagle Player of the Match, once again paced McKenzie. Campbell's play was described by her Coaches as "good to have an all-around games' attitude person." Campbell finished her match with 6 kills, a team high. Jade Hayes finished with 2 kills, 1 ace and 9 digs and Kanyen Kamrath also had 9 digs and 1 assist. Kanyen Kamrath had 9 digs and 1 assist, Chloe Erdahl served an ace and had 9 digs, and Katelynn Caulley had 1 kill, 1 ace, 4 digs, and 4 assists. Anna McNutt finished with 1 dig and 3 assists, Paige Lowry had 7 digs, and Lola Seiler played.

Montes Runs PR In Country Fair Classic

Alder Montes ran and established a new personal record at the Country Fair Classic Boys 5000 meter Junior Varsity course, last Wednesday, October 18. Montes was timed at 21.11.1 minutes, which qualified him for 41st place. There were 200 runners in the race representing 18 schools, Class 6A through Class 1A. Paesen Timm of Cottage Grove won the race in a time of 18:21.6 minutes and Samuel Ramage of Sheldon followed in second place with a time of 18:39.1 minutes.

Other McKenzie runners in the race were Bodie Harbick, who finished 154th with a time of 25:02.5 minutes, Rowan Maranda, timed in 30:46.1 minutes for 196th place and Shane Eck, who finished 197th with a time of 31:01.5 minutes. The Eagle runners will have the opportunity to travel to Lane Community College on Thursday, October 26 to participate in the Special District 4 meet, with an opportunity to qualify for the OSAA State Cross Country Championship Meet, which will be held at LCC, for all Classifications, on November 4.

Alumni Still Got It!

The McKenzie Varsity Volleyball team entertained the McKenzie Alumni Volleyball team and both teams entertained all the fans in the gymnasium last Wednesday, October 18. The match went a full five sets, with the McKenzie Alumni winning three.

The Eagle Alums took the first set 25-18, the Varsity rebounded to win the second set 25-16, the Alumni took the third 25-23, and the Eagle Varsity won the fourth set 25-21. The Alumni, 15-10, won the fifth and match deciding set. Alumni Volleyball players returning to showcase their skills were Shyla Harlan, Buggy Hiddleston, Kaila Hiddleston, Taylor Quirk, Ayshia Seiler, Samantha Winningham, Miyanna Hayes, Aly Mathews, Patence Winningham (Melcher), Melissa Norlund, Melissa Hayes, Sarah Rux, and Lorinda Marcy.

Warriors Stampede, Trample Eagles 68-18

North Douglas ran away with the Spoon. Well, most likely not, but that is about all the Warriors didn't run away with in the final Mt. West League regular season game versus McKenzie, last Friday night, October 20. North Douglas ran the football. In fact, the 13th ranked Warriors ran at, over and through the Eagle defense and in the process, ran away with the Mt. West League South Division title. This Fall, the Warriors ran to an undefeated MWL record, at 4-0, and are currently 6-2 overall. McKenzie, on the other end of the gridiron spectrum, fell to 0-4 in MWL play, and 0-6 overall.

Back down at Drain, the player introductions had barely settled in when the Warriors decided the outcome of the game. End of one quarter of play, North Douglas 40, McKenzie 0. The Warriors scored five touchdowns in the opening quarter, with Caleb Parks leading the charge. Parks scored three of the touchdowns on runs of 24, 61, and 14 yards respectively. The 6'1" 170 lb. junior running back would account for 176 yards gained on the ground on just 9 carries and 4 touchdowns total. Wyatt McDaniel, a 6'0" 180 lb. freshman running back would nicely complement his teammate with another 180 yards gained on the ground on 20 carries and three additional touchdowns.

McKenzie's Danny Quirk would put the Eagles on the board in the second quarter, hauling in a 21-yard pass from Quarterback Jermiah McGlasson. The PAT run failed to score, thus at halftime it was North Douglas 46-6.

With the 45-point mercy rule in play in the second half, each team would add 1 touchdown in the third quarter. For the Eagles, it was Quirk again, who picked up a fumble and returned it 65 yards to pay dirt. At the end of three the score was North Douglas 54, McKenzie 12. Sophomore Wide Receiver River Bloomer scored the final points for the Eagles in the fourth quarter, hauling in a McGlasson pass and taking it 49 yards to the end zone. The PAT run attempt failed. The McKenzie coaching staff made no other Eagle stats available.

Mt. West League Update

Volleyball: Fifth place Mohawk, defeated Sixth place Triangle Lake, 3-1 in Game 1 of the Mt. West League Tournament on Thursday, October 19. Saturday, October 21, at New Hope Christian College, second place Alsea defeated third place Lowell, 3-2, and fourth place Siletz defeated Mohawk, 3-1. Lowell defeated Siletz in the Consolation Championship, 3-0, and earned the MWL #3 Seed to the OSAA State Volleyball playoffs. McKenzie defeated Alsea in the Championship game, the Eagles earning the MWL #1 Seed and the Wolverines are the #2 Seed. In OSAA First Round action, Lowell, 25th ranked, travels to Top ranked North Douglas, the second seed out of the Skyline League. Alsea, 15th ranked, will host 21st ranked Jewell, the third seed representing the Casco League. Both matches will be played on Wednesday, October 25, at 6:00 pm. McKenzie, 7th ranked, earned a First Round bye and will host a Second Round match on Saturday, October 28, with the opponent and match time to be determined on Wednesday.

Football: South Division first place North Douglas plays at North Division first place Falls City. Winner earns First Seed to OSAA State Football playoffs, loser earns Second Seed. South Division third place Lowell travels to North Division second place Mapleton and South Division second place Yoncalla hosts North Division third place Siletz. The two winners of the latter two games will represent the MWL at the OSAA State playoffs as the Third and Fourth Seeds. South Division fifth place McKenzie will travel to fourth place Mohawk for the final game of the season for both teams. All playoff games will be played on Friday, October 27, at 7:00 pm.

McKenzie River Reflections