

Thurston takes home wrestling state title;
Creswell, Pleasant Hill Girls head to state

Athlete of the Week
Thurston Boys Wrestling – Bill Matheus

Matheus’ state title was the clinching match to give the Colts a team title.
Top Stories, Recaps & More
PORTLAND – Two weeks ago, Thurston coach Mike Simons said it would be a “disappointment” if the Colts took anything other than first place at both the Midwestern League district…
PLEASANT HILL – Pleasant Hill finished second in the state last year in Luke Jackson’s first year as head coach. Now the Billies get a chance to reach the top…
CRESWELL – Everything about this heart-throbbing victory was Cres-well-crafted. For several moments during Saturday night’s 3A playoff game against Salem Academy, it appeared that it just wasn’t Creswell’s night. The…
CRESWELL – The Creswell girls put a nice finishing touch on a great evening for coach Tyler Hollingsworth, as he achieved something he’s never done in his tenure as head…
PORTLAND – Jeffrey Conklin solidified his legacy as one of the Cottage Grove wrestling greats last weekend, finishing off his undefeated (52-0) season. No. 1 Conklin took down Sweet Home’s…
SPRINGFIELD –Three future Drifters from UC Davis highlight this week’s Drifters Debrief as Evan Gentil, Keenan Anzai, and Zach Story all had amazing performances for the Aggies. Gentil, a catcher…
PLEASANT HILL (21-5, 10-0) – Tipping off: On Thursday, the 5 seed Billies play No. 4 seed Riverside (23-4, 10-0) at 3:15 p.m. at North Bend High School. The Pirates…
THURSTON defeated Churchill 49-24 on Tuesday to clinch their third league title in a row. Churchill’s previous season low in points was 39, in their first matchup against the…
CRESWELL – Tipping off: The No. 4 Bulldogs (20-6) face No. 5 Sisters (20-6) in the quarterfinals of the Class 3A OSAA state playoffs on Thursday. The Bulldogs are 1-1…
SPRINGFIELD: The No. 2 Millers (22-3) suffered their first Class 5A loss on Friday, going 1-1 on the week. On Tuesday, the Millers beat No. 16 North Eugene (16-16)…
In Case You Missed It
Bulldogs’ defense bullies
Billies for title

EUGENE – The parking lots around the Morse Center – a 2,100-seat all-purpose arena on the Bushnell University campus, were packed Saturday for the Mountain Valley Conference Championship boys basketball game between Creswell and Pleasant Hill.
Inside the gym, the atmosphere crackled with tension as the rivals met for the third time this season. Besides the conference title, the stakes included an automatic playoff berth, first-round bye, and second-round home game.
The Bulldogs haven’t beaten the Billies in their past seven matchups. The Billies haven’t lost a conference game in two years.
Two plays in the third quarter made it clear Saturday would be different.
Late in the third quarter, the Billies’ Jacob Neely stole the ball and threw a long pass to Luke Melvin for what should have been an easy layup. Bulldogs junior Mason Schartz never gave up on the play, and came flying in to block the ball off the backboard. Schartz’s teammates swarmed him in celebration, before quickly getting back to their assignments.






















