THE MAIN EVENT: BOYS VOLLEYBALL
CRESWELL (1-0) AT PLEASANT HILL (0-1)
■ Game facts: Thursday, April 18 at 7 p.m., PHHS
■ Setting up: The Creswell and Pleasant Hill boys volleyball teams face off for the first time as boys volleyball gets its first season of being an “emerging sport” underway. The Bulldogs and Billies have a storied volleyball rivalry on the girls side, and girls coaches are leading the way for the boys in Anna Baltrusch (Creswell) and Jessica Crawford (Pleasant Hill).
WEEKLY PREVIEWS
BASEBALL
#27 COTTAGE GROVE (7-10)
■ Leading off: The Lions have a chance to end a 10-game losing streak with a non-league matchup against Class 3A No. 14 Siuslaw on Thursday. Seniors Christian Spear and Isaiah Cushman have been key for the Lions.
#28 CRESWELL (4-9)
■ Leading off: The Bulldogs took a game off Pleasant Hill last season, and will need solid hitting from Deacon Edwards and Landon Palmer in the middle of the lineup this time around.
#4 PLEASANT HILL (10-3)
■ Leading off: The Billies look to keep pace with No. 6 La Pine, who is 9-0 in MVC play so far. Pleasant Hill has a three-game series against Creswell this week before facing La Pine next week. Alejandro Ziolkowski has been rock solid on the mound this season, with only 8 hits allowed in his past three appearances.
#32 SPRINGFIELD (1-13)
■ Leading off: Springfield desperately needs to get its offense going with a series against No. 12 North Eugene this week. The Millers have a combined 5 runs over their past five games, but a strong showing from juniors Clay Rhoades and Dylan Leas this week could help kick-start the Millers’ offense.
#4 THURSTON (11-3)
■ Leading off: Thurston takes a brief break from the Midwestern League with its final non-league game of the season – a game on Thursday at Class 6A West Salem. Senior Adam Elliott has been key since returning to the lineup for the Colts, and recorded 4 hits in two games last week.
SOFTBALL
#11 COTTAGE GROVE (8-6)
■ Leading off: The Lions host No. 8 Marshfield next Tuesday as Cottage Grove seeks revenge for a doubleheader defeat to Marshfield earlier this season. Junior pitcher Emily Pacheco is up to 162 Ks on the season, and threw a combined 12 Ks in the two losses to Marshfield earlier this season.
#19 CRESWELL (8-5)
■ Leading off: After a series loss to Harrisburg two weeks ago, Creswell has a key series this week against No. 14 Pleasant Hill. The Bulldogs are battling with Pleasant Hill and Harrisburg for the Mountain Valley Conference title.
#9 PLEASANT HILL (7-2)
■ Leading off: The Billies face off with rival No. 19 Creswell this week, with the Friday DH at Pleasant Hill. The Billies won the series 2-1 last year, and will need leadoff hitters Raigan Obie and Sari Strinz to play well to win again this season.
#27 SPRINGFIELD: (4-10)
■ Leading off: After winning four games in a five-game stretch earlier this season, Springfield has lost five in a row. The Millers can bounce back this week, though, with a series against North Eugene – the team Springfield got its sole win over last season. Senior outfielder Jacey Smith continues to be the catalyst on offense for Springfield.
#20 THURSTON (8-6)
■ Leading off: The Colts have a series against Churchill this week as the team moves into the meat of its Midwestern League season. Senior Bailey Tovey hit four home runs during a series sweep against North Eugene.
WEEKLY RECAPS
BASEBALL
■ Cottage Grove’s losing streak extended to 10 games with three losses last week – one to No. 10 North Bend and two to No. 4 Junction City. In the 7-1 loss to North Bend, senior Christian Spear had 1 hit, 1 run, and 3 Ks.
■ Creswell was swept by No. 11 Sisters, though all three games were tight. In the 3-2 Game Three loss, Deacon Edwards allowed only 4 hits while also recording 2 hits and 1 run himself. Tyler Pratt had 2 hits and an RBI in the defeat.
■ Pleasant Hill had a non-league game against Santiam Christian last Friday, with the Billies winning 10-0 in 5 innings. Caden Richardson and Nate Curtis had identical stat lines – 3 hits, 2 runs, and 2 RBI – in the victory, and Alejandro Ziolkowski had 5 Ks.
■ Springfield fell to No. 10 Crater in all three games last week, extending the Millers’ winless streak to 11 games. Springfield’s best offensive showing was a 15-4 loss, led by Troy Lopez, who finished with 1 hit, 2 runs, and 1 RBI.
■ Thurston extended its win streak to eight games with a series sweep over North Eugene. In a Game One 9-0 win, Eli Crist had 3 hits, 1 run, and 3 RBI, and Grady Saunders threw 14 Ks. The Colts won Game Two 5-3 behind Connor Molony’s 2 hits, 1 run, and 1 RBI, and Kyle Miller propelled Thurston in the 6-1 Game Three win, throwing 10 Ks.
SOFTBALL
■ Cottage Grove lost a game to No. 13 North Bend on Tuesday before splitting a doubleheader with No. 16 Junction City on Friday. Emily Pacheco led the way for the Lions, pitching all three games and ending with 14 Ks, 17 Ks, and 12 Ks. In a 5-0 win over Junction City, June Thornton led the offense with 2 hits, 1 run, and 2 RBI.
■ Creswell dominated a series against Sisters, winning the three games 10-0, 16-2, and 17-5. In the 10-0 Game One win, Lauren Bailey had 2 hits, 1 run, and 3 RBI, and Hope Ukolov had 8 Ks and allowed only 2 hits.
■ Pleasant Hill’s sole game was a makeup from earlier in the season – Game Three of the series against No. 6 Harrisburg. After splitting the first two games, the Billies took Game Three 1-0 behind pitcher Bella Black’s one-hitter.
■ Springfield had a tough week against No. 8 Crater – the defending Midwestern League champions. The Millers scored 2 runs in an 18-2 Game Three loss as Jacey Smith finished with 2 hits, 1 run, and 1 RBI.
TRACK & FIELD RECAPS
■ Creswell raced at the La Pine Invitational, with the girls team coming in 3rd and the boys finishing 9th. Freshman Jordyn Lee led the girls side with wins in the 200 and 400 – including a personal-record 26.73 in the 200, the 5th-best time in Class 3A this season. Lance Risdal had a personal record in the javelin and finished 2nd for the boys.
■ Pleasant Hill hosted an MVC meet and won the boys and girls team competition. For the girls, Ryan Thomas won the 100 and 200, and Ellie Epperson won the 800 and 1500. On the boys side, Andrew Taylor earned 1st in the 200 and 2nd in the 100.
■ Springfield traveled for the Sherwood Need For Speed Classic on Saturday. Freshman Sailor Hall had the best finishes for the girls with a 2nd-place finish in the discus and 6th-place finish in shot put.
■ Thurston raced North Eugene and Sheldon at Sheldon. Savannah Efseaff had a dominant showing for the girls, winning the long jump, triple jump, and 300m hurdles. Carson Buergey led the boys with a win in the 1500 and a 2nd place in the 800.
CONFERENCE CALL
Weekly notes from around our area teams’ conferences:
Junction City baseball leading league early
■ The Junction City Tigers baseball team sits atop the Sky-Em League standings through two weeks of league play after a win over No. 8 Marist, followed by a doubleheader win over Cottage Grove. The Tigers, 11-5 overall and ranked No. 4 in Class 4A, beat Marist 3-1 thanks to 2 hits, 1 run, and 1 RBI from Josh Berry, and 7 Ks from Jayden Lucas. Marist has won the past three Sky-Em titles, but the win gives the Tigers an early edge over the Spartans.
Eagle Point softball perfect in Midwestern League
■ The Eagle Point softball team, second-place finishers in the Midwestern League the past two seasons, is off to a 5-0 start in league play this season. The Eagles dominated Churchill last week, winning games 9-0 and 14-2. In the 9-0 win, junior Kady Lindstrom finished with 3 hits, 2 runs, and 2 RBI. In the 14-2 win, sophomore Kady Ledbetter led the way with 3 hits, 3 runs, and 4 RBI.
RESULTS/SCHEDULES
RESULTS
BASEBALL
Tuesday, April 9
■ North Bend 7, Cottage Grove 1
■ Sisters 6, Creswell 2
■ Crater 11, Springfield 1
■ Thurston 9, North Eugene 0
Thursday, April 11
■ Sisters 5, Creswell 0
■ Sisters 3, Creswell 2
Friday, April 12
■ Junction City 12, Cottage Grove 0
■ Junction City 12, Cottage Grove 2
■ Pleasant Hill 10, Santiam Chr. 0
Saturday, April 13
■ Crater 15, Springfield 4
■ Crater 12, Springfield 0
■ Thurston 5, North Eugene 3
Monday, April 15
■ Pleasant Hill 9, Harrisburg 6
■ Thurston 6, North Eugene 1
SOFTBALL
Tuesday, April 9
■ North Bend 13, Cottage Grove 5
■ Creswell 10, Sisters 0
■ Crater 10, Springfield 0
■ Thurston 11, North Eugene 1
Thursday, April 11
■ Creswell 16, Sisters 2
■ Creswell 17, Sisters 5
Friday, April 12
■ Cottage Grove 5, Junction City 0
■ Junction City 8, Cottage Grove 5
■ Thurston 10, North Eugene 4
■ Thurston 11, North Eugene 4
Saturday, April 13
■ Crater 19, Springfield 1
■ Crater 18, Springfield 2
Monday, April 15
■ Pleasant Hill 1, Harrisburg 0
SCHEDULES
BASEBALL
Thursday, April 18
■ Siuslaw at CGHS, 4:30 p.m.
■ Thurston at West Salem, 5 p.m.
Friday, April 19
■ PHHS at Creswell, 2 and 4:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 20
■ N. Eugene at SHS, 1 and 3:30 p.m.
Tuesday, April 23
■ Sutherlin at Creswell, 4 p.m.
■ PHHS at La Pine, 4:30 p.m.
■ Marshfield at CGHS, 5 p.m.
■ Churchill at Thurston, 5 p.m.
Wednesday, April 24
■ N. Salem at Springfield, 5 p.m.
SOFTBALL
Friday, April 19
■ PHHS at Creswell, 2 and 4:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 20
■ N. Eugene at SHS, 1 and 3 p.m.
Monday, April 22
■ Dayton at Creswell, 4:30 p.m.
Tuesday, April 23
■ Creswell at Sutherlin, 4 p.m.
■ PHHS at La Pine, 4:30 p.m.
■ Marshfield at CGHS, 5 p.m.
■ Churchill at Thurston, 5 p.m.
Wednesday, April 24
■ Creswell at Marist, 5 p.m.
TRACK & FIELD
Friday, April 19
■ Cottage Grove, Pleasant Hill, Springfield at Oregon Relays (at UO), 10:30 a.m.
■ Creswell, Thurston at John Oliver Invite (Central HS), 2:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 20
■ Cottage Grove, Pleasant Hill, Springfield at Oregon Relays (at UO), 10 a.m.
■ CGHS at Meet of Champions (Sweet Home HS), 10 a.m.
Tuesday, April 23
■ Cottage Grove at Sky-Em Varsity Meet (North Bend HS), 3:30 p.m.
Wednesday, April 24
■ Creswell, Pleasant Hill at MVC Meet (Creswell HS), 3 p.m.
■ Springfield, Thurston at South Eugene, 3 p.m.
