Document text
North, Ashland victorious in state volleyball BEAVERTON - North Medford coach Ron Beick had two goals for his volleyball team heading into Monday's Class 4A first-round state playoff match against St. Mary's Academy: serve tough and block the net. The Black Tornado accomplished Beick's goals, routing St. Mary's Academy 15-2, 15-8. North (12-10) stays up north today to take on Lincoln, the No. 3 seed from the Portland Interscholastic League. Against St. Mary's, North senior Chaley Higgins and junior Stacey Casebier owned the net as they combined on 15 kills and six blocks. "They both did a great job of blocking quite a few balls," said Beick. Casebier notched five of the Tornado's seven points on kills in a crucial run in Game 1 that pushed the Tornado's lead to 12-2. "It was her (Casebier) strongest performance of the season," said Beick. North's serving was precise and strong, never allowing St. Mary's Academy to get into the match. "I think it took them out of their offense," said Beick. Senior Candace Fleener added 13 assists, three blocks and one kill. ASHLAND 15-15, NORTH SALEM 7-6 - At Ashland, the Ashland volleyball team was the model of efficiency. The Grizzlies utilized a strong passing game and an accurate service game in downing North Salem, the No. 4 seed from the Valley League, 15-7, 15-6 in the first round of Class 4A state playoffs. Seniors Molly Grossmann and Kacey Gundel paced the Grizz, combining on 12 digs, 10 assists, eight kills and three blocks. "We came out strong," said Ashland coach Josh Rohlfing. "We were disciplined, got into our offense and were able to distribute the ball. We were just very efficient." The Grizz (16-7) were almost perfect from the service line, going 48-for-49 with three aces. At one point in Game 2, it held a 12-1 lead. "Another key for us tonight was our serving," said Rohlfing. "We had really solid serving." Junior Megan Beugli served 11 points for the Grizz. Sophomore Emily Stone served up 10 points. Ashland heads to Prineville on Wednesday to take on Crook County, the No. 3 seed from the Inter Mountain conference. Water Polo ASHLAND BOYS WIN - For the second straight year, the Ashland boy's water polo team finished first in the Southern Oregon Conference district championship on Saturday. Senior Brad Scoles led the way for the Grizzlies (10-0 in SOC) posting seven goals, five steals and three assists in a 22-2 rout of Marist, followed by a 9-5 victory over Sheldon. The boys will be the No. 1 seed in the state tournament, which begins Nov. 9 in Tualatin Hills. The Ashland girls finished fourth in the district meet and were eliminated from state-tournament contention after consecutive one-goal losses to Cottage Grove and Sheldon. Junior Keely Zodrow paced the Grizz with five goals for the tournament. Scoles was named the conference's most valuable player for the second straight year. He and senior teammate Evan Mather were named to the all-conference first team, and junior Kyle Asher made the second team. For the Ashland girls, senior Elisa Jessop took home first-team honors and senior teammate Ava Godfrey was on the second team. Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.