Cascade High school entered the holiday season in the throes of two important victories. First, the Cougars’ football team captured the Class 4A title on Nov. 29 with a convincing 52-0 win against Henley in Cottage Grove.
Then, on Dec. 15 the school’s athletic program won a victory as the Oregon School Activities Association concluded its redistricting and classification process for the four-year cycle that starts in the fall of 2026. On the verge of being moved up to Class 5A to face schools with higher enrollment, the Cougars staged a last-gasp effort to overturn the move. The appeal succeeded and Cascade will remain in Class 4A.
First, the football.
A year ago a talented but injury-riddled Cascade side fell in overtime in the semifinals against Henley. This year’s team was healthy, motivated and ready to crush it by championship Saturday. Led by its season-long group of playmakers – Bryce Kuenzi, Matthew Hinkle, Cade Coreson and Josiah Hawkins – the Cougars burst out to a 32-0 halftime lead and were never seriously threatened.
The victory was the third state title for the Turner school, following wins in 1980 and 2015. And it also marked the first state crown for veteran coach Shane Hedrick.
“Yes, it is my first championship,” Hedrick said in an email exchange with Our Town. “Winning your last game is always the target but having players enjoy the season is the primary goal. We really didn’t talk openly about winning a state title but rather winning each week. With that being said, this was the hardest year of my coaching career. It was a real grind as we started playing in the zero week and finished on the last Saturday of November.”
Hedrick also had to step in at the last minute to serve as interim athletic director when James Rise moved on to take a job as a principal in the Silverton district.
Senior QB Coreson and junior wide receiver Hawkins got the program started with a 38-yard touchdown hookup in the first quarter. Cascade tacked on three more TDs in the second period, with Hinkle scoring on a 57-yard TD pass and a 1-yard run sandwiched around a 4-yard scoring run by Kuenzi.
Kuenzi added a 20-yard scoring run in the third period and finished with 127 yards rushing on 17 carries. Coreson was the picture of efficiency, hitting 7 of 9 passes for 179 yards and two TDs and also scoring on a 21-yard run.
Hinkle and Hawkins also shined on defense, with Hinkle recording six tackles, including two sacks, while also forcing a fumble. Hawkins had four tackles and two pass breakups.
Leading the tacklers for Cascade were Vicent Medina with 7 and Cole Drager with 6. Cascade outgained Henley 357 to 164 and finished 12-0, while outsourcing opponents 594-155. Cascade Christian of Medford and the Cougars were the lone 11-man programs in Oregon to finish undefeated.
Hedrick offered praise for a wide range of contributors, singling out the coaching staff, the scout team, his seniors and the Cascade community.
He’s right, state championships are hard to win. Hedrick knows that from his experience at Central, where he advanced to the semifinals five times. You need all facets of your organization operating at peak efficiency. When they are, magical things can happen.
The OSAA battle was a bit of a repeat of a similar struggle in 2018 that Cascade won to remain in Class 4A. This go-round all seemed to be in order until an adjustment of the enrollment caps that occurred at the final meeting of the OSAA’s redistricting committee slotted both Cascade and Henley into Class 5A. The move would have put the Cougars in the same league with much larger schools in Albany, Corvallis and Silverton. But the Cascade community responded, just as it did in 2018.
Cascade made its case on Dec. 15, the OSAA’s Executive Board and Delegate Assembly responded and the Cougars will stay in Class 4A in a league with Central, Newport, Stayton, Philomath and Taft. Henley also was approved to remain in 4A.
“This decision will allow Cascade to compete with schools in comparative size,” Hedrick said, adding that “immediate conversations should take place before any school is put in a place where they can’t be successful.”
That’s two big wins for Cascade.
Got a news tip? Email me at james.d@mtangelpub.com. Follow me on X (Twitter) @jameshday and Our Town on Facebook.
