Previews
VOLLEYBALL
PLEASANT HILL (27-1, #1)
Setting up: The Billies charge into the quarterfinals this Friday. They have a rematch against Westside Christian. Although the Billies have the edge over the Eagles based on the record, this might be the biggest test of their playoff run. No doubt, Emily Krauss, Cheyenne Green, Claire Crawford, and Ruby Jackson will have to be at their best to advance at Marshfield.
GIRLS SOCCER
CRESWELL (8-3-3, #11)
Kicking off: The Bulldogs won a second playoff slot against the No. 6 Four Rivers Falcons on Wednesday. With such a challenging opponent, the Bulldogs will rely on the offensive support of Mila Nguyen, Elliette Kinney, and Kendal Durflinger. Defensively, Jordyn Marklin, Raelee Green, and 2023 1st-team all-league goalie Kylie Leonard are key players.
PLEASANT HILL (10-3-3, #13)
Kicking off: After winning their first playoff round, the Billies hit the road to Medford to face off against the No. 4 St. Mary’s Crusaders. The Billies have been known to have an imposing defense, and if they want to continue their playoff run against such a highly ranked team, they’ll need to rely on the defensive strength of Ellie Epperson and GK Kenna Caldwell-Copeland.
THURSTON (10-4, #8)
Kicking off: The Colts earn a first-round playoff game against No. 9 Putnam on Wednesday. With home-turf advantage and the play of Macy Taylor, Emily Kranzush and Gabriella Montes, the Colts might have a winning chance of advancing further in the playoffs.
BOYS SOCCER
COTTAGE GROVE (11-3, #6)
Kicking off: The Lions earned the right to play host to a first-round playoff game against No. 9 Hidden Valley/New Hope Christian on Tuesday. They hope to advance at least as far as they did in ’23, when the team lost in the championship match. Junior Emmanuel Rea and striker Armando Legorreta remain key for CG’s offense and goalkeeper Josh Burner leads the defense.
CRESWELL (11-2-1, #9)
Kicking off: The Bulldogs earn a second playoff slot and host No. 19 Blanchet Catholic. They’ll need to rely on the support of senior GK Deacon Edwards and junior midfielder Brady Pratt.
SPRINGFIELD (7-6-1, #18)
Kicking off: Despite winning the league title, the Millers end up with a tough seed and play the top-ranked Summit Storm in Bend on Tuesday. To win against the No. 1 team in 5A, they’ll need outstanding play from Leo Rivera, Jack Sayre, Bradly Velasquez Roblero, and Easton Sankey.
CROSS COUNTRY
State XC Championships
■ Thurston, Springfield girls, and Cottage Grove all head to state this weekend. Watch out for Carter Bengtson, who once again might break records.
Recaps
VOLLEYBALL
■ Cottage Grove won its play-in home game against Mazama 3-1, but then lost its first-round game on the road against Henley 3-1. It has been an exciting season for Abby Ladd, who has been focusing on her players’ mental fortitude more this season. The Lions end their season with an 11-10 record and No. 9 ranking. They finished 3rd in the league.
■ Creswell lost to Vale 3-0 in its first-round playoff game last Wednesday. Leaders for Creswell were Piper Hanson with 18 kills & 20 digs; Anna Davis with 13 kills 11 digs and six aces; Teighlor Nunez with 42 assists and Vika Gabrio 12 kills, 3 aces and 18 digs. Coach Anna Baltrusch said “This year’s team was young and inexperienced. The future for this team is very bright. All the top 3A teams in the state are made up of mostly seniors! With another year of experience, the sky is the limit for the 2025 team.”.
■ Pleasant Hill swept its second-round playoff match vs. Sisters 3-0 – marking the fourth consecutive win against the Outlaws this season. Senior libero Emily Krauss had a great passing and defensive match finishing with 15 digs. Senior outside hitter Cheyenne Green contributed 12 kills and 17 digs.
GIRLS SOCCER
■ Cottage Grove lost its play-in game on the road against Hidden Valley/New Hope Christian 2-0 last Saturday. The Lions finish with a 5-6-3 record, No. 21 ranking, and a third-place league finish.
■ Pleasant Hill edged out the Cascade Christian Challengers 1-0, winning their first-round playoff game last Saturday. The Billies outshot Cascade 12-1 in the first half, even though the game was scoreless. With only 21 seconds left in the game, Junior GK Kenna Caldwell-Copeland made a save and then drop-kicked the ball 50 yards downfield to sprinting freshman midfielder Annaleigh Epperson,who headed the ball over the Cascade Christian defensive line. Sophomore midfielder Zoe Dilts then raced to the ball and scored with eight seconds left to put the Billies on top 1-0. Caldwell-Copeland finished with 5 saves for the shutout.
■ Springfield edged out Crater 2-1 last Saturday. This concludes its season with a 4-7-2 record, No. 20 ranking, and a fifth-place league finish.
BOYS SOCCER
■ Cottage Grove won the 4A Sky-Em League for the second year in a row. In their last regular game of the season last Tuesday, the Lions swept North Bend 5-0. Armando Legorreta had a hat trick and scored the first goal assisted by Carter Bengtson. The second goal was scored by Elijah Smith assisted by Emmanuel Rea. The third goal was scored by Tristyn Burnes assisted by Rea again. The final two goals were scored by Legorreta. In his second goal, no one assisted the goal, then his last one was assisted by Ben Stewart. Josh Bruner had another shutout.
■ Springfield earned the 5A Midwestern League title this past weekend. It started with winning its rivalry game against Thurston 2-0 last Wednesday and winning its final league game 8-0 against Crater. For their game against Thurston, it was a stormy day and the game had to be stopped for 30 minutes. After a scoreless first half, junior Bradly Velasquez Roblero scored from 30 yards giving the Millers a 1-0 lead. Then, just minutes before the end of the game, the Millers got a free kick, and sophomore Easton Sankey scored from the 35-yard line. For their last regular-season game against Crater, senior Ziaire Zavalla scored at minute 15 and sophomore Easton Sankey scored the second goal. After a goal from Velasquez Roblero, the Millers were winning 3-0 at halftime. Sophomore Leonardo Rivera Verduzo scored the fourth goal early in the second half, and then Sankey scored again for the fifth on a corner kick – with an assist from senior Alan Velasques Cifuentes. Senior David Morales scored the sixth and five minutes later Zavalla recorded the seventh goal. Cifuentes scored the final, giving the first 5A-Midwestern League title to Springfield boys soccer since 2016, according to coach Juan Gonzalez.
■ Thurston capped off its season with a 5-9 record and No. 27 ranking. It won its last game on Senior Night against Eagle Point 3-1. Thurston’s seniors, Tucker Fitzpatrick, Tyler Raven and Noah Zanotto, scored the three goals for the Colts. “I think our season concluded on an absolutely perfect note,” coach Jake Bonnett said. “Our seniors have all stepped up and led this team, so three seniors scoring our goals on Saturday is pretty much how it had to end. We’ve spent this season creating a better culture and deeper friendships and it helped us fight to the very end. As we look at next season, it’s clear that we have to step it up and turn up the intensity of our training in the offseason if we want to catch up with the rest of our league. Going to the playoffs is always the primary goal for the team, so we’ll take a bit of a break and then get right back to work. We’ve got some amazing young talent on our varsity team and some guys are ready to step up from JV. We’ll also have around 10 seniors next year.”
CROSS COUNTRY
OSAA 5A State Championships
■ Thurston boys and girls placed 4th as a team. Carson Buergey placed 3rd overall to qualify for the state meet and received First Team All-District honors. Owen Smith placed 13th overall for the Colts to receive 2nd Team All-District Honors. For the girls, Evie Woodward placed 19th overall to receive 3rd Team All-District. Nyah Marchant came in closely behind placing 21st overall to receive 3rd Team All-District honors. Emma Smith placed 6th overall in the girls’ JV race to receive a Top 10 medal.
■ Springfield’s girls placed 2nd in league, earning an automatic qualifier to the state. Freshman Adrian Estes was named to 2nd team All-League. Senior Jeyder Espino Sosa was named to 3rd team All-League. Freshman Olivia Uehlin was named to 3rd Team All-League. Freshman Bella Wells, sophomore Ellen Auxier, and senior Audrey Sommerville were all named to 2nd Team All-League for the girls.
