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Upstart Apollos next up for Grizz Playoff History ASHLAND Years in playoffs: 15 Playoff Record: 34-12 Championships: 1989, 1991 Runner-up: 1992, 1993 Semifinals: 1952, 1987, 1990 SUNSET Years in playoffs: 19 Playoff Record: 23-16 Championships: 1975, 1976 Semifinals: 1977, 1981, 1990 By DON HUNT It took a flip of the coin for the Sunset Apollos to sneak into the state football playoffs. But for all those naysayers who thought the No. 4 team from the Metro League didn't belong in the postseason extravaganza, please take note that the Beaverton school is still playing. Sunset meets Ashland in the Class 4A state quarterfinals Saturday at Eugene's Autzen Stadium. The game begins at 6 p.m. and is the third game of a tripleheader. Skyline Conference champion Hidden Valley faces Central of Monmouth in a Class 3A quarterfinals matchup at noon and Tualatin takes on Mountain View at 3 p.m. in another 4A battle. "Everybody keeps bringing up that coin toss, but all that did was give us an opportunity to keep playing," Sunset coach Floyd Halversen says. "That coin hasn't played a down for us." Sunset barely forged a winning season (5-4), had a losing record in league play (3-4) and found itself tied with Glencoe and Century for fourth place in the Metro when the regular season ended, necessitating the coin toss. But now that the Apollos have punched their ticket to state, they're off and running. They beat Redmond 27-6 in the first round, then squeaked out a 22-18 victory over Tigard last week. "There weren't any easy games for us in the Metro, so our kids are used to adversity," Halversen says. "I think the Metro was the toughest league in the state, top to bottom. If you can get through it and make it to the playoffs, then you should be fairly well-prepared." A different kind of adversity hit the Apollos this week, however: injuries. They lost 6-foot-5, 270-pound tackle A.J. Franzke with a torn knee ligament and leading rusher Dee Baxter with a severely sprained ankle in the win over Tigard. Franzke was a second team all-conference selection in the Metro while Baxter scored two touchdowns against Tigard and had racked up 450 yards rushing on the season. The Apollos were already playing without starting quarterback Greg Van Gordon, who went down with a broken wrist four weeks ago. "We'll just have to find a way to fill in those gaps," Halversen says. Sunset does have a fine backup signal caller in Steve Eney, a 6-2, 205-pound junior who has completed 34 of 69 passes for 510 yards, five touchdowns and five interceptions since taking over for Van Gordon. The Apollos have won three of four starters under Eney. The Apollos have four other notable skill positions players in 6-4, 215-pound tight end David Tennent, wide receiver Chris Fromhart, flanker Ray Lions and running back Nick Kaiel. Tennett was a first team all-conference performer on offense and Lions was a first team pick on defense as a cornerback. Ashland coach Jim Nagel admits Sunset doesn't look nearly as intimidating as Churchill. The unbeaten Grizzlies (11-0) came from behind to clip Churchill, 13-6, last week. "When you look at the video there's just no way that Sunset matches up (to Churchill)," Nagel says. "Churchill was a big team with three or four excellent running backs and they had a couple of Division I prospects. "Sunset doesn't have that sort of personnel and, quite frankly, they look inconsistent on the video we've seen." Toss in the injury factor, and Ashland looks like a heavy favorite. Does that mean the Grizzlies will head to Eugene with king-sized egos? "I sure hope not," Nagel says. "The playoffs are sudden death." Nagel says the Grizzlies are looking forward to getting on the Autzen Stadium Astro-Turf, where their quick defensive players and fleet receivers are sure to be a step quicker. "But I'm not sure we have an advantage in quickness," Nagel says. "Sunset's a quick team also." Sunset is in the playoffs for the first time since 1993, when nearby Westview High opened its doors and sucked away a good portion of its enrollment. Halversen arrived that same year and has slowly built the program back up. Halversen is a son of former Churchill High football Floyd Halversen. The younger Halversen with the same first name says he has been "knee deep in football" since he was 6-years-old, first as a ballboy for his father, later as a player for Churchill (he graduated from high school in 1982) and then as a player at Linfield College. The younger Halversen was a star defensive back on two NAIA national championship teams at Linfield and was a graduate assistant on a third title team. He then spent four years as an assistant at West Albany High and three years as an assistant to Ron Linehan at Sunset before taking over the head job with the Appolos. "I learned an awful lot from my father," Halversen says. "Not so much the X's and O's stuff, but the organizational stuff, the dealing with people and just getting kids ready to play." Halversen is highly impressed with the Grizzlies, who were penciled in for a third-team finish in the Southern Oregon Conference this season but have yet to taste defeat. Ashland has been in the playoffs 14 straight years and is seeking its third state championship under Nagel. "They're awfully good, very fundamentally sound," Halversen says. "They play great defense and on offense they're very explosive. "We know we've got our hands full but our kids have overcome some big obstacles this season. We're going in with the attitude that we'll just play our best and see what happens." 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