By James Day
It was a magical first season in Turner for new Cascade High football coach Steve Turner.
Turner, who in 2011 guided Mountain View of Bend to an OSAA Class 5A state title, nearly got another shot at a title with the Cougars. Cascade and perennial Class 4A power Baker fought through four quarters and three overtimes before the Bulldogs claimed a 35-29 semifinal victory Nov. 24 at Hillsboro Stadium.
Cascade finished the season 10-2, while Baker takes a 10-1 record into Saturday’s title game vs. North Bend/Oregon Coast Tech.
Baker took a 29-13 lead into the fourth quarter, but the Cougars staged a stirring rally to force overtime. First, quarterback Cody Crawford scored on a 2-yard run with 9:24 left and passed to Paul Vettrus for the two-point conversion to make it 29-21. Moments later Justin Kruse rumbled 42 yards with a fumble recovery to make it 29-27. This time Crawford hit Josh Schnepp for the two points, tying the game 29-29 with 8:59 left.
Baker had a chance at a game-winning score down the stretch, but the Cougars’ defense stopped the Bulldogs on downs after they had marched from their own 22 to the Cascade 2.
Neither team scored on their first two overtime possessions. Baker finally broke through in the third overtime on a 5-yard scoring run by quarterback Braden Phillips, and the Bulldogs stopped the Cougars on downs to preserve the win.
Crawford rushed for 129 yards and two touchdowns and passed for 85 yards and another score. Morris Back added 132 yards rushing for Cascade.
Baker’s Phillips passed for 302 yards and three touchdowns. Receiver Dane Bachman caught 14 passes for 247 yards and a score. Ben Baxter led Bulldogs rushers with 99 yards.
Scio, meanwhile, proved to be a raging success in its first year playing in Class 3A. The Loggers advanced to the state semifinals before falling 29-14 to Cascade Christian on Nov. 24 at Cottage Grove.
Scio, which finished 11-2, took a 14-0 lead on an 80-yard touchdown run by Nathan Jones and a 17-yard scoring pass from Brady Smith to A.J. Holmberg. But it was all Cascade Christian after that as the Challengers scored the game’s final 29 points, led by running back Brandon Williams (229 yards rushing and two TDs) and quarterback Daniel Scottow, who threw a pair of scoring passes to Tanner Parker.
Cascade Christian plays Dayton on Saturday for the state title. Cascade Christian and Dayton were the only teams to beat Scio this season.
“This was a very rewarding season as a coach,” said Scio’s Jim Mask. “This group of seniors is very special and an absolute joy to coach. They all work extremely hard and want to succeed.”
Scio had 15 seniors on its roster, and the team was 51-4 during their four years, with two Class 2A titles, a Class 2A runner-up finish and four state semifinal appearance.
“We are really going to miss this group of young men, but we have some great young players coming up and will work hard to be ready for next season,” Mask said,
In other action:
• Boys soccer: Stayton continued to show it is a perennial statewide power. The Eagles ripped through the Oregon West with a 9-0-1 record and advanced to the Class 4A quarterfinals before losing to La Salle Prep 2-0. It was the lone loss of the season for Stayton, which finished 12-1-3 and allowed just eight goals all season.
Stayton won the Class 4A title in 2010 and advanced to the semifinals in 2011 before falling to Phoenix.
Cascade, meanwhile, finished 10-5-1 overall and 5-4-1 in the Oregon West. The Cougars blanked Sutherlin 3-0 in a play-in game before falling 3-0 to Molalla in the state playoffs.
• Girls soccer: Cascade took second in the Oregon West with a 4-2-2 and lost to North Valley 2-1 in the play-in round.
• Football: Regis finished 5-5, including a 3-2 record in the Tri-River Conference. The Rams lost at Grant Union 29-26 in the first round of the Class 2A playoffs.
• Girls cross country: Cascade took eighth and Stayton finished ninth in the OSAA Class 4A state meet Nov. 3 at Lane Community College in Eugene. Kristen LaChappelle took 26th in 21:03 for the Cougars. Raquel Albee was 30th for the Eagles in 21:20.
• Volleyball: Cascade finished second in the Oregon West with an 8-2 record. The Cougars downed Douglas 3-1 in a Class 4A play-in match before falling Nov. 3 to Banks 3-1 in the first round of the state playoffs. Stayton, which finished third in the Oregon West at 7-3, lost 3-0 to Elmira in the play-in round.
Regis took third in the Tri-River at 10-4 and advanced to the Class 2A playoffs before falling 3-0 to Weston-McEwen in the first round. The Rams finished 17-9.
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