Writing the Pine: Ashland Sports Blog

Former Ashland High guard Kelsey McKinnis is turning into quite the find for the University of Puget Sound. The sophomore sharpshooter, who graduated from AHS in 2009, was averaging a team-high 16.6 points heading into Tuesday’s game at UC Santa Cruz. She didn’t hurt her average Tuesday, scoring a team-high 18 points to help the Loggers snag their ninth win in a row.

McKinnis has become a deadly shooter. She’s shooting 46 percent from 3-point range and 86 percent from the free throw line.

Follow McKinnis here.

It was just like old times at the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City, Utah, on Monday, where three former Ashland High Grizzlies played on the same court, though one (Allison Gida) represented Utah and played against the other two (Jamie Roupp and Josi McDermott). Gida played just four minutes against Southern Oregon, but still managed to outscore both Roupp and McDermott by hitting a 3 with eight seconds left in the game. Not that it mattered. Utah, an NCAA Division I school, won the exhibition game by 55 points, 91-36.

Roupp, a senior, and McDermott, a junior, both start for Southern Oregon. Gida, a true freshman, has played sparingly.

I do the best I can, but there never seems to be enough time and space to adequately cover Ashland sports. Especially Friday night football. Why? Not because prep football demands a little more attention than anything else I handle here at the Tidings (although it does). It’s a logistics thing, actually. Ashland football games don’t begin until 7 p.m., which means they don’t end until about 9:15 p.m. or so, which means by the time I’m done with interviews it’s 9:30 to 9:45 and, with an 11:30 p.m. deadline set for the sports section, I’m pretty much sweating silver bullets all the way back to the office.

Anyway, here’s a few notes that didn’t make it into Saturday’s story.

• The musical quarterbacks strategy that Ashland employed Friday against Churchill is not just some desperate gimmick that the Grizzlies used to catch the Lancers off guard. The truth is, Jake McCoy can pass and pass well. He may not start over Jake Scarminach this season, but McCoy proved on Friday that if it comes down to it, Ashland wouldn’t be dead in the water if Scarminach was forced to move over to running back. McCoy displayed a nice touch on a couple deep passes, and also proved that he can handle the pressure the comes with being under center.
• One unsung hero from Friday night’s game was tight end/linebacker/punter Franklin LimeMa. At 6-foot-4, 190 pounds, LimeMa certainly possesses a body frame well equipped to smash footballs into the stratosphere. That’s what he did a few times Friday, at key moments. Even his short punts were good hang-time wise, so his 37.8 average-per-punt didn’t really do justice to LimeMa’s impact.
• The turf at Walter A. Phillips Field looked as good as ever, thanks to Ashland’s new groundskeeper, Brian Cool. Cool knows his stuff. We’re going to feature him before the season’s over. It may seem like a reach to feature a groundskeeper, but how many local groundskeepers can list the NFL under the “previous employment” category on their resume?
• No, the game was not technically a league contest, but one can forgive players and coaches for referring to it as such since the teams will compete against each other when it comes to all-conference voting. In an agreement that was struck prior to the season, the 5A teams from the Southern Oregon Hybrid (Ashland and Eagle Point) and the Midwestern Hybrid (Churchill, Springfield, Marist, Marshfield, Willamette, North Eugene) will consider players from all eight schools in their all-league ballots.
• As far as all-conference awards go, Scarminach didn’t hurt his chances with Friday night’s spectacular effort. In case you didn’t notice from the box score (because I didn’t include this bit of minutia in my story), Scarminach led the Grizzlies in rushing yards, receiving yards, was second in passing yards, and on defense tallied two turnovers with a fumble recovery and the game-clinching interception. Wow.

The first official game/match/meet/whatever of the 2010-11 Ashland High school year is now in the books – Ashland’s freshman football team fell short in a comeback bid and lost its season opener to Klamath Union, 31-28, tonight at Walter A. Phillips Field. The fans had to watch from the portable bleachers near the school-side end zone since the stadium is still being repaired following the mid-summer fire. Too bad, because there was a lot to see Thursday. Ashland’s Danial White threw a touchdown pass with about a minute to go to get the Grizzlies within striking distance, but the Pelicans recovered the onside kick to put the game away.

Ashland’s volleyball and soccer teams (boys and girls) also were in action Thursday – jamboree action, that is. The first varsity event of the school year is Friday night’s prep football clash between Ashland and Klamath Union, at Klamath Falls.

I talked to Ashland coach Charlie Hall after practice Thursday and he seems pretty excited about this year’s team, especially when it comes to the speed the Grizzlies are expected to field. And if anyone can figure out how to best utilize that speed, it’s Hall.

Ashland returns a host of starters on both offense (5) and defense (9), but that still leaves plenty of first-year starters who will be asked to make major leaps in terms of production this season.

“I think we’ve got some good experience, but there’s still a lot of question marks and that’s really going to be the key thing,” Hall said. “Do those newcomers step up and fill in the gaps of the kids that left the program?”

Friday night’s game kicks off at 7 p.m. at Modoc Field. It will be broadcast live locally on 580-AM.

In case you missed it, here’sa very informative article by Kris Henry that details Ashland High’s unfortunate predicament when it comes to prep sports for the next four-year time block. The good news is, as far as the team sports go the Grizzlies are assured of at least one playoff game/match. The bad news is, it could be a very long regular season for several programs.

Heads up: the 2010 fall sports season begins in Ashland on Monday, when the Southern Oregon University volleyball team hosts Holy Names at 6:30 p.m. It’s a nonleague match, but still … it’s a match. And, nothing against baseball, but it will be nice to watch something else for a change.

By the way, if you’re wondering why we have not ran a SOU volleyball preview, it’s going to run prior to the Raiders’ first league match.

The Pilots have pulled it off.

Ashland beat Powell (Wyo.) 12-9 today in Bozeman, Mont. to claim the American Legion A Northwest Regional championship.

It’s a first-ever accomplishment for the Pilots, who tied for first in Area 4 play during the regular season, overcame a first-round loss at the state tournament then mostly ravaged opposing pitching at regionals, averaging 12.4 runs per game.

Check out the championship game box score here, and the Pilots cumulative stats here.

By Joe Zavala

Ashland Daily Tidings

Before heading off to Bozeman, Mont., to compete in the American Legion A northwest regional tournament, Ashland Pilots’ infielder/pitcher Ethan Schlecht insisted that despite the stakes, he and his teammates would not be intimidated.

Turns out, Schlecht knows his team pretty well.

Billy Hansen went 4-for-5 with three RBIs, Schlecht hit his second home run in three games and Brady Thomas dominated on the mound as Ashland walloped the Powell Pioneers of Wyoming 15-1 in the first round of the regional tournament Friday at Heroes Field.

The Pilots (32-12) scored four runs on four hits, including Schlecht’s solo shot, in the third to open up a 6-0 lead, then tacked on seven more in the sixth, three on Hansen’s bases-clearing triple, to bury the Pioneers (42-15). The game, scheduled for nine innings, ended after seven by the 10-run mercy rule.

“I’m not surprised that we came out and played really good baseball, but I’m kind of surprised with how many extra-base hits that we had,” Ashland head coach Jeff Turner said. “We just attacked them for seven innings. We didn’t leave any shadow of doubt, and we haven’t really seen that from this team a lot this summer.”

Read the rest of this story in Saturday’s Tidings. The box score can be found here.

For those crazy enough to try, the Mt. Ashland Hillclimb Run will be held Saturday. It’s full, so don’t show up at Lithia Park hoping to sign up. And consider yourself lucky. The run goes from the park to the summit, which, for those keeping track, is 5,600 feet of ankle-twisting, leg-cramping, lung-stabbing hell. Otherwise known as a great way to start the day, at least for those trail-running studs that make their home here in Ashland. We’ve quite a few, you know.

The impressive list of entrees for this year’s event includes Erik Skaggs, Max King, Robert Julian and Jenn Shelton.

For more details, check out the Web site here, and the list of entrants here.

The bracket is up, and the Ashland Pilots will play the Powell Pioneers of Powell, Wyo., in the first round of the northwest regional tournament in Bozeman, Mont. Friday.

The good news for Pilots’ fans is that every game of the tournament will be covered via live stats here. The bad news is, they have a 1,000-mile trip to look forward to, starting today. It takes 16 hours by car, but the Pilots will be traveling by van. Pray for the drivers (head coach Jeff Turner will be one; he’ll take turns with some other unlucky volunteer/parent/passerby).

I talked to a Powell reporter today and he gave me the lowdown on the Pioneers (42-14). First of all, they’ll be one of the most experienced teams Ashland has played, boasting at least one college sophomore and one college freshman. The college sophomore, Scotty Jameson, is the coach’s son and plays wherever he’s needed. Usually, he’s needed on the mound, where he throws a fastball that was clocked in the high 80s last year. He’s a righty that earned a scholarship to play for Arkansas State.

Another stud for the Pioneers is Colter Bostick, a lefty who will play for Midland College in Texas next spring. He leads the Pioneers with 10 home runs. Grant Geiser may be the team’s best overall hitter. He hit about .600 most of the season and has nine homers.

The Pioneers hit well as a team – about .420. Read about them in the Powell Tribune here.

If the Pilots win their first-round game, they’ll play either Washington or the host team on Saturday. The tournament wraps up with the championship game Tuesday.

Check back here for updates following each Pilots game. I’ll get as much as I can in. Photos are a possibility, and of course stats (as long as the site keeps its promise).