Reporter for The Canyon Weekly
Santiam High sophomore Averie Peterson won the 800 meters and placed in three others events to lead the Wolverines’ girls squad to a fifth-place finish at the Class 2A state track and field meet May 25-26 at Hayward Field in Eugene.
The girls scored 42 points, trailing only champion Bandon (61), Heppner (58), Enterprise-Wallowa (51) and Blanchet Catholic (44.50). The boys team, meanwhile, scored 20.5 points to finish 13th.
Peterson won the 800 by just more than 6 seconds, running the two laps in a personal best 2:17.89. She finished second in the event last year as a freshman. Peterson also took third in the 400 (1:01.32), fifth in the long jump (15-2.25) and third in the triple jump (32-11).
Supporting Peterson were teammates Emma Longfellow and Ellie Lindemann. Longfellow took second in the discus (personal best 133-9) and Lindemann was second in the pole vault in a personal best 8-0.
For the boys, Gage Twede took fifth in the 400 in a personal best 52.62, while also finishing fourth in the triple jump (personal best 41-0.25) and fifth in the long jump (19-8.25). Marcos Moreno took fourth and Parker Hanna fifth in the pole vault. Both cleared 10-11.75.
Scio’s Levi Forson was the lone scorer for the Loggers, taking fourth in the Class 3A pole vault with a clearance of 12-9.
Softball: Scio’s softball team, meanwhile, will play in its first Class 3A title game on June 2 against Burns-Crane. The Loggers (24-1), the top-ranked Class 3A squad, take on No. 3 Burns-Crane (28-0) at 5 p.m. at Jane Sanders Stadium at the University of Oregon in Eugene. The Hilanders are the defending champions, claiming a 3-1 win a year ago against Yamhill-Carlton.
“Burns is a big challenge,” Scio coach Jim Mask told The Canyon Weekly. “They have a long winning streak (58 games), including a state title last year. They have a phenomenal pitcher (Ayla Davies) that is difficult to score runs on. We are excited for the challenge but know it will be difficult.”
Scio advanced with a 1-0 semifinal win against Lakeview. The Loggers scored in the bottom of the first. Macy Johnston walked, took second on Taryn Ramsay’s single up the middle and scored on Myleigh Cooper.
Cooper, also Scio’s ace pitcher, made the one run standup, limiting Lakeview to two hits and striking out 28 batters. Both Honkers hits came in the fourth when a hit batter led to the loading of the bases. But Cooper used a strikeout to get out of the jam.
Burns advanced with a 4-2 win against Yamhill-Carlton, which plays in Special District 2 with Scio. The Loggers and Tigers split their two league games and also played in last year’s semifinals, a matchup won by Y-C.
This season marks Scio’s sixth trip to the final since 2015, a streak Mask said reflects the influence of assistant coaches John Cooper and Ashton Zeiher, who played on four of those teams before playing in college at Oregon State.
“She has provided so much leadership and knowledge to our young team,” Mask said. “Her joining our staff has been a real difference maker.”
Cooper has assisted Mask on five of those semifinal squads, Mask called him “a great softball coach and meticulous with all the small details that make a difference. His knowledge and passion has helped this young team mature quickly.”
Santiam participated in the Class 2A-1A tournament, falling May 24 in the round of 16 against Grant Union/Prairie City. The Wolverines, who have made the playoffs in five of the past six years, finished 15-11. They opened the playoffs with a 20-1 win May 22 at Lost River.
