McKenzie Sports Report

McKenzie Varsity Sports Schedule This Week

The McKenzie Varsity Cross Country teams travel to Harrisburg on Wednesday, October 12, to participate in the Harrisburg Gatorade Challenge, held at Harrisburg High School. The Varsity Girls 5K race will start at 5 pm and the Varsity Boys 5K race starts at 5:30 pm.

The McKenzie Varsity Volleyball team hosts Eddyville Charter on Thursday, October 13. The match time is set for 6 pm. This is the last home match of the season for the Eagle team and Senior Athletes and their families will be recognized.

The McKenzie Varsity Football team hosts Elkton on Friday, October 14. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 pm.

Siuslaw Showdown:

Sailors subdue strong Eagle effort

McKenzie's Varsity Volleyball team took the bus to Mapleton last Monday, October 3, for a doubleheader showdown with the Sailors that turned into a knuckle-down, buckle-down volleyball brawl in Mapleton’s tiny, iconic gym. Both teams dressed down fully aware of the opportunity awaiting. The Sailors and the Eagles stepped out onto the court knowing the double-header match was the best chance to pull in a couple of wins - elusive to both teams this season.

Going in, Mapleton was tied with McKenzie in the Mt. West League standings, with neither yet posting a League victory.

The Eagles have shown significant improvement under rookie Coach Rachele Mark. Coach Mark has returned to her alma mater where she starred in volleyball under then-Head Coach Dan Brenner. She inherited a program that had not seen the hardwood since the 20-2021 season no-thanks to the double-whammy of Covid/Holiday Farm Fire. So, it was not unreasonable to think McKenzie had a decent chance of victory.

Nobody expected Mapleton to lie down of course, and to their credit, the Sailors made their hometown fan base proud. The Eagles and the Sailors brought it to the House and credit to both teams and their coaching staffs, this was an intense and entertaining Volleyball match!

The teams participated in a double-header. The first match set the tone, with them going toe-to-toe to the end. The Sailors prevailed in three straight sets to win the match, but the Eagles played hard, losing 23-25, 22-25, and 22-25.

Following a brief interlude, the dust-up resumed with fervor. McKenzie won the first set of the second match 25-14. Mapleton took issue with that and won the second set 25-15. The Eagles prevailed in the third set 25-22 and knew the Sailors would need to win the next two sets to secure the victory.

One Eagle set win, however, sailed away as Mapleton rallied to win the fourth set 25-17 and the deciding set 15-10. Aargh! So close.......!

But no reason and no time to hang heads. The Eagles will wrap up their regular season schedule at home, on Senior Night, hosting the high-flying Eagles of Eddyville.

Mohawk maintains a one-game lead over Eddyville

Mustangs defeat McKenzie 3-0

Mohawk defeated visiting McKenzie, 3-0, and held onto a one-game lead over second place Eddyville in the 2022 Mt. West League Volleyball title race. The OSAA 21st-ranked Mustangs easily dispatched the Eagles in three straight sets, 25-13, 25-10, and 25-13.

Later in the week, on Saturday, October 8, McKenzie dropped a match to the Lakers in Triangle Lake. The Eagles lost the first set, 12-25, dropped the second set, 11-25, won the third set, 25-21, and lost the fourth set, 17-25.

One week of regular season contests remaining, and the Mt. West League regular season champion may be decided on the last night of the season in Eddyville. Eddyville has three games left on its schedule: fourth place Alsea at Eddyville, McKenzie in Finn Rock, and lastly, Mohawk at Eddyville.

Mohawk also has three matches remaining: third place Triangle Lake at Mohawk, Mapleton on the road, and the big match with Eddyville. McKenzie, with just one match left on their schedule, could fill the role of spoiler if Eddyville arrives in Finn Rock tied in the MWL standings with the Mustangs and the spat between the two Eagle teams wraps as a McKenzie victory.

The way McKenzie Head Volleyball Coach Mark has her team progressing, with a loud and proud McKenzie fan base in the House, who knows?

This we do know! The doors open at 5 pm in the Eagle gymnasium, Thursday, October 13. Come see the new roof on the iconic new gym and then get ready to blow the lid off supporting Coach Mark and Co. See all you spoilers there!!

Dion finishes second in Stayton Regis Invitational JV Race

McKenzie Freshman Cross Country runner, Myra Dion captured a second-place finish in the Stayton Regis Invitational Junior Varsity race last Thursday, October 6, held at Stayton Middle School. Dion toured the 3,000-meter distance in 14:08.7 minutes, finishing right on the coattails of Willamette sophomore Maddy Warberg, who won with a time of 14:07.0 min.

Eagle Freshman Will Meister ran his Boys 3K JV race in 13:16.1 minutes and that time was good for twelfth place. Teammate Sophomore Devon Lawson finished thirtieth, timed in 16:01.6 min. Sam Blake, a Junior out of North Eugene won the Boys JV race with a time of 11:45.9 min.

Eagles to Race in Philomath Cross Country

McKenzie Varsity Cross Country athletes Myra Dion and Will Meister traveled across Lane County to Philomath in Benton County to run in the Paul Mariman Invitational, held at Philomath High School. That race was held on Saturday, October 8.

Dion, running in the Girls 5,000 meter Junior Varsity race, finished eleventh with a posted time of 26:05.2 minutes. Meister, took home a ninetieth place finish, finishing the Boys 5,000 meter Junior Varsity race in 26:19.7 minutes.

The Girls 5K JV race was won by Monroe Senior Ella Hinton in 23:13.9 min. and the Boys 5K JV race was won by Philomath Sophomore Warwick Bushnell, who finished in 19:24.7 min.

Top-ranked Triangle Lake tramples McKenzie

McKenzie endured a good old-fashioned football trampling last Friday night in Triangle Lake. Coming off a 78-47 rout win over Jewell the week prior, the Eagles were served a plate of reality and some humility for dessert when they toed up to the state's top-ranked six-man football team.

Triangle Lake laid the wood, so to speak, winning 73-0, all the while running up 477 total yards and holding the visiting Eagles to minus 54 yards offensively. Needless to say, the Lakers held school and it will be up to the young McKenzie team how it receives the lesson.

Make no mistakes and no excuses. This lop-sided defeat may be one of the best “ah-ha‚” teachable opportunities for McKenzie Head Football Coach Neil Barrett. As the saying goes, “if you want to be the best, you have to play with the best‚” by all appearances currently, it appears as though the Lakers are hitting their stride at the right time in this initial OSAA-sponsored Six-man season.

Hold on just a minute, however, and don't bet the farm just yet. Those boys down in Southern Oregon and over the hump in the East fully plan to take a crack at number one. And remember, six-man and eight-man football is a wide-open affair, known for outrageous and unpredictable outcomes. It may be banned in Eugene, but look for the fireworks to continue on the State's smallest rural gridirons.

Back to Lakerville, last Friday, Eagle Senior Trent Peek passed for 20 yards, completing 3 passes out of 5 attempts. Peek also rushed twice for minus 9 yards. Teammates Griffin Withalm carried 6 times, also for minus 9 yards, Allen Acevedo rushed 7 times for minus 22 yards, and Solomon Acevedo carried 6 times for minus 34 yards.

Surprisingly, as much as the swarming Laker defense spent time in the Eagle offensive backfield, McKenzie suffered just one sack. Triangle Lake recovered 3 fumbles, 2 caused by the Lakers, and the hosts intercepted the Eagles 3 times.

McKenzie sophomore Jovial Jordan led his team with 1 pass reception, good for 15 yards. Defensively, the Eagle's Withalm totaled 9 tackles (5 solos), S. Acevedo and A. Acevedo each totaled 6 tackles (3 solos), Peek finished with 6 total (4 solos), Jamie LeClair totaled 7 tackles (3 solos), and Levi Lockard had 1 solo tackle. Jordan finished with a tackle assist.

It's Elk season this week as Coach Barrett's Eagles host the fifth-ranked Elkton Elks on Friday, October 14, at 7 pm. The Elks are currently enjoying a four-game win streak, averaging 42 points scoring while only giving up three touchdowns total in those last four contests.