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PREP ROUNDUP: Ashland nets opening win over North By Mail Tribune staff Updated: Sep 03, 2022 08:40 PM A A GRANTS PASS — A whirlwind Saturday morning spent searching for a place to actually get a boys soccer game in kept Ashland head coach Abdiaziz Guled quite busy. It didn’t matter where that site may be — the Grizzlies were prepared to drive as far north as Roseburg — they just wanted to get on the field. Once they did find a venue, though, they made their season opener a successful one. Senior Silas Reinkensmeyer scored the lone goal of the game in the 57th minute to give Ashland a 1-0 win over North Medford in nonleague action at the Dutch Bros Soccer Complex. “It was a great game,” said Guled. “North really played well and came close on a lot of chances. ... The kids were just really happy to be out there playing.” Ashland (1-0) was originally scheduled to open its season Friday against South Medford, but saw that game get pushed back and then ultimately canceled due to poor air quality. “It was at 152,” quipped Guled regarding the air quality reading Friday in Medford. The OSAA requires all outdoor activities to be canceled or moved once the AQI reaches 151 or higher. Following a scoreless first half, the Grizzlies found a breakthrough courtesy of Reinkensmeyer, who received a long ball from the back and fought his way through three Black Tornado defenders before slotting a shot into the bottom-right corner of the North goal. Ashland was able to hold off North (1-1) from there, as Grizzlies keeper Charlie Sherman finished with nine saves. Guled was also quick to credit his four defenders in front of Sherman — Gabe Hernandez, Theron Patridge, Hank Stringer and Julian Rennie — who also helped keep the shutout. “My four defenders did a great job,” said Guled. “North really played well and put us under a lot of pressure.” CATLIN GABEL 1, ST. MARY’S 0: At Sutherlin, Catlin Gabel scored a goal in the 13th minute and that proved to hold up in a well-played season opener for St. Mary’s in a game moved north due to poor air quality in the Rogue Valley. Crusaders freshman Jose Munoz had a golden opportunity to score pass by in the second minute when he got in behind the defense in front of the goal, while fellow freshman Oliver Ford made a solid first impression of his own at fullback. St. Mary’s goalkeeper Davis Jones, who made five saves, had to exit briefly to get cleaned up following a blow to the face and sophomore Dang Nguyen stopped two shots in the interim. Girls Soccer CATLIN GABEL 8, ST. MARY’S 0: At Sutherlin, Bella Mussio and Gabriella Cooper each created good scoring opportunities inside the first 10 minutes for St. Mary’s but Catlin Gabel heated up after then and used three goals in an eight-minute span to pull away in a game shifted to Sutherlin due to local air quality issues. Catlin Gabel (3-0) led 5-0 at halftime and ended the game early with an eighth goal coming about eight minutes left in the match. Cooper, who mostly plays goalkeeper, was pressed into action at striker due to a team need by the Crusaders (0-1), while Katelynn Balsiger supplied some diving saves against the Eagles’ relentless attack. Cross-country BILL SPRINGHORN CLASSIC: At Redding, Calif., Crater sophomore Josiah Tostenson and junior Lindsay Siebert each posted dominant wins as the Comets placed four in the top six for the boys and girls at the 15th annual event Friday at Shasta College. Tostenson won with a time of 15 minutes, 12.63 seconds on the three-mile course, nearly 12 seconds ahead of Ashland senior Nathan Stein (12:24.02). Crater also placed runners in fourth, fifth and sixth positions, with Caleb Doddington (15:50.00), Shaun Garnica (15:52.14) and Tayvon Kitchen (16:17.42) rounding out the top six. It was just as impressive for the Crater girls, with Siebert winning in a time of 19:03.21. Fellow Comets Haylee Baldwin (19.26.07) and Emma West (19.39.70) finishing second and third, respectively, while Samantha Payne (20:03.24) was sixth. Crater won the boys title with 24 points, well ahead of Chico (81) and Yreka (91). Crater also posted a comfortable team win on the girls side, finishing with 27 points, ahead of Chico (47) and Yreka (77). ULTIMOOK RACE: At Tillamook, South Medford sophomore Eli Dixon finished 50th to lead all Panthers at Hydrangea Ranch. Dixon came in at 18:45.6 in the 5,000-meter race, while sophomore teammate Devon Scott was 55th in 18:53.02. soccer.jpg