McKenzie Spors Report

McKenzie Varsity Sports Schedule This Week

The McKenzie Varsity Cross Country teams travel to the Valley of the Rogue State Park on Thursday, October 26, to participate in the 3A Boys, 2A/1A Boys, and 3A/2A/1A Girls Special District 4 Cross Country Championship Meet. The 2A/1A Varsity Boys race starts at 1:30 p.m. and the 3A/2A/1A Varsity Girls race will start at 2:15 p.m.

The McKenzie Varsity Six-Man Football team travels to Falls City, on Friday, October 27, to play the Falls City/Kings Valley Charter team. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.

Eagles Celebrate, Homecoming, And Seniors

McKenzie Defeats Siletz Valley 21-0

The McKenzie Valley has been celebrating quite a lot lately, and last Friday night, the celebrations continued. Once again, Mother Nature, as She has so many times this past month, blessed the Community event with fine weather. That evening, at iconic Wade Thomas Field, located on the campus of McKenzie River Community School, Folks gathered for the 2023 McKenzie Homecoming and Senior Night celebration.

The Eagles invited the Siletz Valley Warriors to the party for the Special District 2 North (Mt. West) League Six-man football game. Add in five Eagle seniors and their families, a Homecoming Court, some really cool cars, and a pep band and Party ON!! Friday night lights were lit, fans settled into the new stadium digs and the new concession stand started selling dogs, coffee, and candy!

First up, prior to the opening snap, McKenzie honored its Fall senior athletes. Football seniors Salomon Acevedo, Thomas Hayes, and Levi Allan Lockard and managers Jane Dellinger and Riley Morales, along with their respective families were honored for their past Eagle activities, honors, and memories. It was also an occasion where the Seniors could share their thoughts and thank those who have walked with them on their journeys.

The halftime celebration, steeped in Eagle tradition, saw this year’s Homecoming Princesses representing their classes; arrive before the fans in the stands riding in some really “down” Auto-Mo-Biles. Freshman Princess Sapana Mitchell-Chavez circled the field first in a 2016 Dodge Challenger and was met at the Grandstands by her Freshman Prince, William Valtinson. Next, Sophomore Princess Paiten Clevenger entered riding in a 2008 Ford Mustang GT Convertible driven by William Valtinson and met by her Sophomore Prince, Asaiah Story. Junior Princess Hailey Jefferson was next in the lineup as she arrived riding in a 2008 Chevrolet Corvette, driven by Tanner Rucker, and met by Junior Prince Aytan Brown. Senior Princess Savanna Drummond rode high in her chosen auto, an H2 Hummer, driven by her sister, Katrina Drummond and her Senior Prince, Levi Lockard, escorted her. 2022 McKenzie Homecoming King Allen Acevedo and Queen Riley Morales crowned this year’s Royalty, voted on by the McKenzie Associated Student Body, King Aytan Brown, and Queen Paiten Clevenger.

And, oh yeah, there was a football game as well. The Eagles and the Warriors came to play this evening and although there wasn’t a lot of scoring either side, both teams battled hard throughout.

Coming into the game, both McKenzie and Siletz Valley had defeated one foe this Fall, C. S. Lewis Academy. Needless to say, both teams were hungry for a victory and each bench looked like a tasty opportunity to the other.

Credit to a scrappy Warrior team but at the final horn, the Homecoming victory was the Eagle’s to claim, a 21-0 win which earned Head Coach Neil Barrett’s team a 2-4 League record and a 5th place tie with Crow/City First Christian Academy. Siletz Valley dropped to 7th place with a 1-5 record.

McKenzie will conclude its 2023 Fall season with a road trip to the State’s 11th-ranked team, Falls City/Kings Valley Charter Academy. No game stats were available at press time.

Myra Dion Finishes 11th At Umpqua Invite

Will Meister Sets New PR

McKenzie Varsity Cross Country runner Myra Dion finished 11th at the Umpqua Invite held at Stewart Park in Roseburg. Dion competed in the Junior Varsity 5,000-meter race with a field of 97 runners representing 45 teams, Classifications 1A through 6A. The Eagle Soph finished the course in 24:33.10 minutes, a season record, and the race was won by Grants Pass freshman Lucia Atondo in 22:19.90 min.

Fellow sophomore, Will Meister, competed in the Boys Junior Varsity 5,000 m. race, finishing 74th out of 205 competitors. Meister’s time of 21:03.3 min. was a personal record. Craig Israelsen of South Medford won the race with a time of 18:03.00 min.

McKenzie Trio Earn All League Honors

McKenzie Varsity Volleyball players freshman Ellie Boykin, sophomore Mya Triplett, and junior Bekah Short each earned Honorable Mention Mt. West All-League awards for their play this Fall Season. The Mohawk Mustangs (14-2) and Eddyville Charter Eagles (14-2) shared the 2023 Mt. West League Regular Season Championship and Mohawk won the Mt. West League Tournament Championship, defeating Eddyville Charter 3-0 at Junction City, last Saturday, October 21. The Mustangs will represent the Mt. West League as its top seed in the 2023 OSAA/OnPoint Community Credit Union 1A Volleyball State Championships and Eddyville Charter earned the second seed.

Triangle Lake defeated Alsea at the Mt. West Tournament to seal the third seed opportunity. The Mustangs are ranked 16 out of the 32-team field in the First Round of State playoffs and will host 17th-ranked Bonanza, representing the fourth seed out of the Mt. Valley League. That match at Mohawk is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. starting on Wednesday, October 25. Eddyville Charter, ranked 24th, will travel to 9th-ranked North Douglas, and Triangle Lake, ranked 31st, will travel to the State’s 2nd-ranked team, Powder Valley.

Winning First Round teams will match up for Second Round action on Saturday, October 28, with match times to be determined. Mohawk would face the winner of 32nd-ranked Condon or top-ranked Crane if the Mustangs win their first-round match. Eddyville Charter, with a First Round victory, would face either 25th-ranked Central Christian or 8th-ranked Adrian. And if the Lakers of Triangle Lake advance, they would face either 18th-ranked Myrtle Point or 15th-ranked Imbler.