2022 Prep Regular Season in the books
Sheldon takes care of business to win District crown, North-South games in Salem, Medford
Seven teams from 6A Special District One continue on to the post-season, but the regular season is over for three others. Here are the results from game nine.
Thursday—Sheldon 41, West Salem 0: The unbeaten Irish kept their record perfect against a short-handed but determined West Salem squad that made limited the visitor’s offensive output in the first half.
It wasn’t like most in the crowd expected the host Titans to win the game, but they did get to cheer at times, as the West defense made life difficult for the Sheldon offense for a part of the first half.
The Irish did start the game with a pair of drives from just shy of midfield, working their way to the end zone, where senior quarterback Brock Thomas threw a pair of short TD passes to make it 14-0 at the end of one.
In the second quarter, West Salem’s defense only allowed Sheldon into the end zone once—and the PAT was missed. Another Irish drive ended with a missed 35-yard field goal. And twice, the Titans sacked Thomas, which the crowd responded to with some semi-raucous cheering.
It was 20-0 at the half.
In the third quarter, Sheldon came out with some increased energy. Long passes were thrown on three drives that eventually produced an Irish touchdown. The score reached 41-0 late in the third quarter, and the running clock was instituted. The final score was the same 41-0 result.
Thomas threw for 392 yards, with five TDs. He also led the team with nine rushes for 64 yards. The win clinched the Special District One title for Sheldon, which ended the season as the #2 team in 6A—behind West Linn, which lost to the Irish by five in week two, 35-31.
Sheldon (9-0) faces Barlow of Gresham (5-4) in the first round of the 6A playoffs—championship bracket. West Salem (1-8) is done for the year.
South Salem 33, North Salem 14: The Mayor’s Trophy was on the line in this contest at North Salem High School’s Littlejohn Field—and South Salem got to take the prize home after breaking open a tight ball game late for the 33-14 victory. The win also was a milestone for Saxons coach Scott Dufault—who recorded his 150th career victory.
The first quarter ended with no score between the two long-time rivals.
It was a physical game,” said North Salem coach Jeff Flood.
“There were a lot of punts, a lot of penalties to start out… both defensives played well.”
It wasn’t until there was just 4:25 left in the first half that somebody finally scored.
The visiting Saxons got on the scoreboard first, when senior quarterback Daschel Smith hit shifty wide receiver Esteban Mendez with a 21-yard TD pass to make it 7-0, South.
“There was a breakdown in (pass) coverage,” noted Flood. “But we responded well.”
And the coach wasn’t kidding
North rapidly moved into Saxon territory after the kickoff, and with the ball at the Saxon 33—the ball was placed in the hands of 5A sprint champion DeMari Thompson.
The speedy junior wingback raced to the end zone with 3:14 left in the half, and the PAT by Josiah Davis tied the game at 7. That was the score at intermission.
In the second half, South scored first again-with another touchdown pass for Daschel Smith—this one a 23-yard strike to Jaxon Watson. This time the extra point was missed, and it was 13-7, Saxons.
North’s reply came much later in the third quarter. This time it was a pass from the arm of highly-touted junior quarterback TC Malumalenua. TC found receiver Erick Gonzalez on an 18-yard pass. Davis hit yet another extra point, and North had the lead at 14-13 with 3:51 remaining in the third.
It was the last lead of the night for the Vikings.
The quick-strike Saxon offense responded fast. With 1:13 remaining in the third quarter, Esteban Mendez came open again, and Daschel Smith hit him with the pass—a 55-yard stunner that gave South a 19-14 advantage—and the momentum.
The Vikings did have one more opportunity—and got the ball down to the South Salem ten with about nine minutes left, but a bad snap was recovered by the Saxons—a mistake that South took full advantage of rather quickly.
With just under eight minutes left in the game, South all but put the game away. Smith fired yet another TD pass to Mendez, and he caught the scoring strike from ten yards out to extend the lead to 26-14 with 7:51 remaining in the game.
The Saxons added an insurance score with just over 1 ½ minutes left, when running back Braedy Vogt rumbled 32 yards to pay dirt to make it 33-14—which was the final.
South Salem coach Scott Dufault said despite the late scores to increase the final margin of victory, North Salem was a tough team to put away.
“We moved the ball, but didn’t score as much as we like,” says Dufault.
“Hats off to North—they played solid defense.”
Daschel Smith finished the game with 320 passing yards for South, on 27-40 throws. He had four touchdown passes, including three to Esteban Mendez. Mendez had a team high 11 catches for the Saxons for 154 yards.
Senior Tini Tinitali—who was dinged up during the course of the game, managed two catches for South for 31 yards. Zach Wustigg had six receptions for 46 yards. Vogt had 65 yards rushing on six carries to go with his late TD.
Coach Dufault said his defense was the difference maker, choking off the normally productive North Salem running game. The Vikings managed 42 yards on 31 carries, and star running back Josiah Davis—who struggled through a turf toe injury originally explained as a broken toe—had just 14 yards on 11 carries.
Without making an excuse, Flood said having three linemen out with injuries was a huge factor for the Viking rush offense.
“Those hurt starters on the line hurt JoJo’s (Davis’s) effort during the game—it was tough.”
North quarterback TC Malumaleuna had one of his best passing games of the season, completing 17 of 29 passes for 159 yards, and an 18 yard-TD to Erick Gonzalez. He was also picked off three times.
Both teams have postseason games coming up.
South Salem (8-1) travels to Pacific Conference champion Sherwood (7-2) next Friday night in the OSAA 6A championship bracket. North Salem (5-4) will also be on the road—facing the Tigers of Newberg (5-4) in the Columbia Cup bracket.
Sprague 35, McNary 7: The visiting Celtics came to Sprague’s Olympic Stadium looking to finally pick up their first victory of the season. After a promising start, the banged-up Celts turned the ball over to the Olympians deep in Sprague territory, and the Olys never looked back in their 35-7 win to improve to 5-4 on the season.
On the first drive of the game, McNary got into scoring position after quarterback Jackson Alt completed a 50-yard bomb to Evan Lawson, putting the Celts near the red zone. But a couple of plays later, Alt was picked off by Sprague’s Landon Baldwin-Branch. The turnover shifted momentum slightly—even as Sprague struggled to move the ball.
Both teams exchanged a series of punts. Sprague finally had the ball near midfield and moved into McNary territory. That was when Olympians quarterback Athan Palmateer dropped back and threw deep to Colorado State-bound Drew Rodriguez, who caught the ball and sauntered into the end zone on a 43 yard pass play with 2:08 left in the first quarter. Kenya Johnson hit the PAT, and Sprague lead 7-0.
The two teams then exchanged punts and even a fumble—but neither team could get to the end zone.
After a McNary punt to the Sprague 18, the Olys began a methodical drive mixing pass and run, ending with a 20 yard pass from Palmateer to Rodriguez--again. With the extra point, Sprague extended its lead to 14-0 with 8:24 remaining until half time.
Again, an exchange of punts ensued up until the last 2 ½ minutes of the second quarter. The Olympians went to the ground game, with hard running from Barik Hill and Kenya Johnson. A first down at the McNary 20 set up the final score of the half.
Palmateer executed a perfect wide receiver reverse play, faking a handoff into the line, and giving the ball who Rodriguez, who sprinted around left end with :52 seconds remaining until intermission. Johnson hit the PAT for a third time, and Sprague would take a 21-0 lead to the locker room at the break.
Both teams were unable to reach the end zone in the third quarter, but Sprague mounted a long drive at the end of that period—and cashed in on the first play of the fourth quarter.
From inside the five-yard line, Palmateer took a short drop and fired into the middle of the end zone, connecting in traffic with sophomore Trayton Futi for a 4 yard TD, capping off an eight play, 80 yard push down the field. The extra point made it 28-0, Olympians.
McNary finally got on the board behind back-up quarterback Kaiden Akerman, who came on late in the second quarter after starter Jackson Alt was injured on a tackle. Alt did eventually return—but only as a holder for the place kicker.
Akerman directed a seven play, 52 yard drive that ended with a 26 yard pass to senior receiver Jabol Balos. The extra point cut the Sprague lead to 28-7 with 4:58 remaining in the ball game.
Sprague slammed the door shut on any hope for a Celtic comeback of any sort with their fifth touchdown on the night.
The Olympians got the ball at the McNary 33 after the Celts failed on their onside kick attempt, giving them fantastic field position.
In the process of just wanting to run the clock down, the Sprague line opened a hole that Kenya Johnson sprinted through with great enthusiasm for 16 yards. With the ball at the McNary 17, Sprague turned to linebacker/running back Riley Penn to carry the ball.
Penn powered into the end zone and another PAT by Johnson made it 35-7 with 4:21 remaining. And that is how the game ended.
Sprague racked up just shy of 400 yards—390 total—on 62 plays for the game. Athan Palmateer had 233 passing yards on 12 of 22 passing, with three touchdowns and a pair of interceptions. Kenya Johnson topped the rushing attack with 71 yards on just 7 carries. Receiving-wise, Drew Rodriguez had seven catches for 157 yards and two scores.
For McNary coach Connor Astley, the contest marked the end of a tough season with no wins to show for it. Astley shared admitted after the game that “the season didn’t go our way,” but praised the heart shown by his seniors to finish out the last game with strength and class.
The visiting Celts tallied 197 yards total on 52 plays for the game.
McNary concluded the 2022 season with a record of 0-9are done for the year.
Sprague (5-4) has some more football to play, hosting Sunset (5-4) Friday in a Columbia Cup bracket first round game.
NOTE: Sprague star receiver and defensive back Drew Rodriguez was tossed from the Olympian’s home game against McNary Friday night.
The ejection by officials took place late in the second quarter following a hard tackle by Rodriguez on Celtics quarterback Jackson Alt.
“(He got a) personal foul. They said he threw the kid to the ground too hard. (He will be) out next week pending appeal,” confirmed coach Jay Minyard.
Alt did not return to run the McNary offense, but did hold for field goals and PATs.
Rodriguez is one of the best players in Oregon, and he showed that before being sent to the showers early—recording a pair of touchdown receptions and a touchdown run off a reverse.
His sitting out next week—if upheld—would be a big blow to the Olys’ post season chances.
Stay tuned.
5A—McKay 20, West Albany 14: The McKay Royal Scots got the perfect end to an otherwise disappointing season with an upset win Friday night.
McKay’s Justice Anthony picked off an errant West Albany pass with 1:39 left in the game, and running back Jamahl Wilson scored on a three-yard one with 13 seconds left to give the Scots a huge 20-14 win over the fifth-rated Bulldogs.
The win for McKay helped to somewhat heal the shattered hopes the Scots had going into the season about a post season berth. Head coach Brandis Piper lavished high praise on his junior-dominated team.
“Tonight was one of the best team performances I’ve ever been a part of,” exclaimed Piper.
“I’m immensely proud of our guys for stepping-up and overcoming multiple injuries—and also proud of the players who made plays when it mattered the most.”
Anthony’s interception gave McKay the ball just inside the West Albany 40. The Scots lined up to pass, and junior quarterback Kyrin Fuimaono found Wilson with a 35 yard catch and run to push the ball inside the five with a first and goal from the three. That led to Wilson’s heroic touchdown run.
Fuimaono ended the game with better than 200 yards passing with a touchdown. Justice Anthony and Lukes Dominguez both had nearly 100 yards receiving for the Scots. Wilson also had over 100 yards on the ground, and 60 yards receiving.
North Medford 35, South Medford 0: The annual Black and Blue game between North Medford and South Medford was tight through the first half, as North Medford led just 7-0 at intermission of the contest at Spiegleberg Stadium.
But that all changed quickly in the second half.
North Medford—with quarterback Caiden Lacey back at the helm for the first time in two weeks since he was held out under concussion protocol—broke the game wide open in a matter of one minute.
Lacey threw a pair of touchdown passes to wideout Connor Cesaro in 61 seconds to begin a rout in North’s favor. The Black Tornado kept on the pressure and overwhelmed South Medford 35-0 in the 37th meeting between the two schools. It was North’s first win in the series since 2019.
It also marked North Medford’s first shutout in the rivalry since 2006.
The Lacey-to-Cesaro pass combination was the only score of the first half, a connection of 12 yards for the early one touchdown advantage. The drive to open the second half was just three plays in length—and was punctuated by a 32 yard run by the Tornado’s Ty Pugliano. Two plays later, Lacey found Cesaro from 20 yards out to make it 14-0, North Medford.
North got the ball back quickly—after South Medford fumbled the ball away. Lacey went to Cesaro on the very next play, connecting from 34 yards out to push the North Medford advantage to 21-0.
Lacey—who had been taken off the field on a stretcher two weeks earlier at the beginning of the Roseburg game—finished 14-21 for 202 yards and three TDs. Cesaro caught eight of those passes for 133 yards.
Ty Pugliano had 150 yards rushing on 18 carries for the Tornado. His brother—tight end and University of Oregon commit AJ Pugliano—missed most of the game when he injured his knee early in the contest. Tests will be conducted this week to determine how severe the injury is to that joint.
On the South Medford side of the ledger, the short-handed Panthers—down two receivers after Ty Henry went down this week with a broken collar bone—could not generate any offense. Senior quarterback Deacon Edgar had a rough night—completing just 1 of his first 14 passes, and finishing just 8-for-26 for 92 yards with no touchdowns and an interception.
South Medford managed just 48 yards on the ground on 24 carries. The Panthers were actually without s total of five starters coming into the game.
North Medford capped off the scoring in the fourth quarter with a one-yard run by Pugliano and a 16-yard rush by Alex Angulo.
Both teams still have post season games next week—and are part of the five-team contingent from Special District One to advance to the championship bracket—along with Sheldon, South Salem, and Grants Pass.
North Medford (6-3) will face Lake Oswego (6-3) next Friday, while South Medford (6-3) squares off at defending state champion Central Catholic (9-1).
Grants Pass 49, Roseburg 26: Grants Pass marched into Roseburg’s Finlay Stadium, determined to leave with a decisive win against winless Roseburg on their way to the state playoffs.
The Cavemen got what they wanted, but the young and oft-injured Indians also got what they wanted in the 49-26 loss. Roseburg got some self-respect.
Grants Pass jumped out to a 21-7 lead by halftime, and extended the lead to 28 points in the third quarter.
But a stubborn and gritty Roseburg squad produced 19 points in the fourth quarter and finished with 257 yards of total offense, including 197 yards passing to wrap up their 2022 campaign—the team’s first winless season in 83 years.
Grants Pass quarterback Jace Blanchard paced the Caveman offensive attack with 185 yards passing on 15 of 20 throws. Gage Blay had four touchdown runs for GP, while Trevor Reeves had a game-high 85 yards and three scores.
For Roseburg, freshman QB Corey Kimball threw for 82 yards on 7 of 9 passing. Junior Jayce Wilder had three catches totaling 63 yards.
The last time Roseburg went an entire season without a victory was in 1939.
Grants Pass (6-3) travels next Friday to 2021 6A-runner up Tualatin (7-2) for a first-round game in the state championship bracket. Roseburg is hoping for greater success next season.
Here are the LOCAL (Salem-Keizer) 6A playoff game match ups for Friday, November 4—after adjustments made by the OSAA:
CHAMPIONSHIP BRACKET (#1-16)
#9 South Salem at #8 Sherwood
COLUMBIA CUP BRACKET (#17-32)
#26 Sunset at #23 Sprague
#28 North Salem at #21 Newberg
OTHER SPECIAL DISTRICT ONE REPRESENTATIVES
CHAMPIONSHIP BRACKET
#15 Barlow at #2 Sheldon
#10 North Medford at #7 Lake Oswego
#12 Grants Pass at #3 Tualatin
#12 South Medford at #5 Central Catholic
Check the OSAA website for start times.
Mark,
Just want to let you know this old Saxon has enjoyed this high school football season like none before, thanks to your online reporting. Also this photographer gives a tip of the hat to your team of contributors! The photos of the games are top shelf! Thanks and keep up the great work!
Phil Beard
Class of 73