Charisma is all smiles after winning first place in Thurston. Back row, left to right: Danielle Lomartire, Serena Stoiantschewsky, Karina Jaroch, Naoko Yamawaki, Mariah Stokes, Leah Klaas, Norimi Funatsu. Front row, left to right: Patricia Nguyen, Clarissa Tolan, Molly Hoffman

(See a related article published online by Beaverton Valley Times Jan. 19, 2012)

SPRINGFIELD -The Valley Catholic Charisma dancers made an impressive competition debut for dance season 2012 at Thurston High School on Saturday, Jan. 14. After watching the Charisma perform first round it was clear their trophy was never in jeopardy. A strong second round performance left no doubt that Valley Catholic’s two-time defending 1A/2A/3A state champion dance team was making a statement. The first place trophy in the small team division and the giant box of candy for winning the “Most Entertaining Routine” award at Thurston were both well deserved. The score put the Charisma first in their division by more than 15 points over the Sweet Home Huskiettes of the 4A and the 6A North Eugene Dance Team. In the intermediate team division Marshfield (Coos Bay) placed first with second place going to Sunset (Beaverton). The winner of the large team division was Stayton and Philomath was second.

It was the score sheets and the judges’ comments that literally brought one coach to her knees eyes while the other coach flashed a 1,000-watt smile. The Charisma dancers had earned an impressive score of 75.61, the highest score they have ever received at a January competition. But it was the realization that the competition’s overall standings had the Charisma in second place for the day only two and a quarter points behind the seemingly invincible 9-time defending 4A Champion Stayton Highlights’ score of 77.80 that delighted the coaches.

“I always feel if we can stay within 10 points of Stayton’s scores, that we’ve had a good day. This was a very good day indeed,” commented Coach Jessica Anderson. “Stayton has dominated dance competitions for the last 12 years. That the judging panel thought so highly of the Charisma’s Ghost of a Girl routine is overwhelming. Megan and I are beyond proud of our dancers. This is a history-making day.”

The Charisma dancers are a young team this year with only three seniors, no juniors, five sophomores and two freshmen, but they danced with poise and confidence. “One of the comments we kept hearing over and over from other coaches, was how prepared we looked for this early in the season, and judges have made comments complimenting our team on how ‘well-trained’ our dancers are,” said Anderson. “Our athletes are very hard-working and all the hours of practice and cleaning really paid off for them today.”

The dancers travel to Stayton on Feb. 3 for their next competition, where they expect to compete head-to-head with teams from the 1A/2A/3A classification. “We are off to an amazing start so far. The Stayton competition will be a true test of the strength of our routine this season,” said Anderson.

Senior team captains Molly Hoffman and Leah Klaas spent Sunday participating in the selection process for the All-State Dance Team. Klaas also auditioned for the Dance Drill Coaches Association Dance Scholarship on Monday. Results will be announced at State. Hoffman said her experience at All-State “…was really fun. I made a lot of good friends and learned some new technique and stretches.”

The OSAA has released the preliminary schedule for the State Championships in March. This year the Charisma will dance on Wednesday and Thursday nights March 14 and and 15 along with the show team division and the 4A dance teams.

Ticket and spectator information is posted on the OSAA website.

As Published by Beaverton Valley Times Jan. 19, 2012

BEAVERTON – It’s quality more than quantity that will count most for the Valley Catholic swim teams this year.

The Valley Catholic girls team, led this season by first-year coach Jacob Sherman, is not particularly deep, but has plenty of talent to compete with the best teams in District 2. This year’s crew is led by junior Julia Anderson (a 2011 state finalist in the 200-yard individual medley and 100 butterfly), a talented group of freshman and another strong foreign exchange student.

“Our girls come in with a wealth of swimming experience,” said Sherman, a 2003 Valley Catholic graduate and three-time state qualifier who later played water polo at Oregon State. “If our girls lose a meet, it will be because we are outnumbered more than outclassed. Because of our strength, when we have more teams (at district), you should see us somewhere near the top.”

Anderson is the defending district champion in the butterfly and later fifth at state in the event, and also took second in the district 200 IM and fourth at state.

The team will also rely heavily on the freshman trio of Marisa Jack, Kathleen Shew and Hailey Moraes, as well as on foreign exchange student Momoko Mayumi.

The freshmen “should all make a splash at districts and state,” said Sherman, who has also coached for Tualatin Hills and at Monroe Catholic in Fairbanks, Alaska. “Our girls have a chance to do great things this year, with a perfect storm of young talent, strong senior leaders and a mix of others.”

Sherman expects La Salle and La Grande — both top-11 finishers at state last season — to be strong again this year.

Boys Team

Likewise, the VC boys team is relatively modest in numbers, but should still be talented enough to compete with most of the teams in District 2.

“Our boys have done surprisingly well considering the amount of new swimmers we have,” Sherman said. “While we are rebuilding, we are strong in many of the individual events and have some depth coming in with our new swimmers.”

This year, the Valiants will be led by Basti Froelich in the 100 and 200 freestyle and backstroke, and by Stephen Pierce in the 50 and 100 free and the IM. Other top contributors will include Matt Lawyer (50 and 100 free, butterfly), Ben Krueger (200 and 500 free) and Andrew Linneman (breaststroke).

Krueger was fifth in the 2011 district 500 freestyle, and also swam on VC’s fifth-place 200 free relay team at district.
“These boys are all hard workers, coming to two-a-days and dryland more often than not,” Sherman said. “I’m not sure how good we will be in our league, but for a rebuilding team, I think we may do well.”

Submitted by LoriAnne Anderson

The Charisma Dance team will perform at the Friday night basketball games before debuting their 2012 State routine “Ghost of a Girl” at a competition Saturday, January 14th at Thurston High School in Springfield.

“Ghost of a Girl” is a contemporary dance piece that continues to showcase the Charisma’s signature cutting-edge style. It is danced to music from “The Lonely” and “Stay” and presents an intriguing story line of perception, reality, and ambiguity that is interpreted with elements of ballet, jazz, and modern dance.

Coaches Jessica Anderson and Megan Hoffman are hoping for a good outcome at Thurston—a two-hour bus ride away. “It’s always a bit of a scramble getting everyone ready at Thurston. We will probably have to start their hair and makeup while on the bus so we can make our scheduled floor practice time and the coaches’ meeting. Then it’s a mad dash to get everyone into costume, warmed up and ready to compete,” said Anderson. “But it’s all worth it to be one of the teams at the first competition of the season. It gives us an advantage.”

The Charisma will be competing against teams of similar size but not necessarily from the 3A classification. “It’s not about winning at this stage of the season,” said Anderson. “Rather, it is the feedback from the judges and the scores that are critical. We need to know that the concept we have for “Ghost of a Girl” resonates with the judges. We need to know if we need to make revisions to the routine. The earlier we have this information, the more productive our season will be. For that reason, the Thurston competition is always exciting and a little stressful.”

It’s going to be a full weekend for the dancers. It starts Friday night with the performance at the basketball game. It will be a long Saturday at Thurston, with the team bus scheduled to head South at about 6 a.m. with an anticipated return that night around 9 p.m., after a full day of competition and team bonding. But it doesn’t end there; in fact, the weekend’s activities are just getting started.

The Dance Drill Coaches Association (DDCA) Winter Meeting is on Sunday, in addition to the DDCA All-State Team auditions. Leah Klaas and Molly Hoffman, both seniors, will be vying to be selected to the All-State team. Klaas is also auditioning for a DDCA dance scholarship on Monday. The All-State Team auditions commence on Sunday with a technical Across-the-Floor sequence that dancers will learn and then audition in front of a panel of judges. After the first round of auditions, the judges will make cuts, and call back the finalists to learn the All-State Audition Routine. The All-State Routine this year includes three distinct dance styles: Jazz, Contemporary, and Hip-Hop. After learning the All-State Routine, finalists will audition the routine for the judges. The dancers will have to wait until State in March to learn if they have been selected to the All-State Team.

Team captains this season are Klaas and Hoffman along with sophomores Patricia Nguyen and Clarissa Tolan. The Charisma roster also includes: Norimi Funatsu, Karina Jaroch, Danielle Lomartire, Mariah Stokes, Serena Stoiantschevsky and Naoko Yamawaki.

The Charisma dancers are scheduled to compete at four regional dance competitions prior to the state championships, beginning with Thurston and followed with competitions at Stayton High School on Feb. 4, Parkrose High School (Portland) on Feb. 18 and Liberty High School (Hillsboro) on March 3.  The State competition is scheduled for March 14-17 at Memorial Coliseum.

Winter sports are in full swing!

Swimming: Boys and girls earn victories at North Marion
The Valiants traveled to North Marion on Dec. 6 where each team earned victories over both North Marion and Molalla.  Our boys scored 120 points, 32 points ahead of second place North Marion. The girls posted a score of 134, 33 points ahead of second place Molalla.  It was a great day in the pool for our swimmers, highlighted by several first place finishes and school record breaking performances.  Our results are summarized below as posted by head coach Jacob Sherman.

New School Records:

• Basti Froehlich beat his record that he set last week by 1.1 seconds in the 100 back
• Momoko set a record by 3 seconds in the 100 back
• The girls 400 free relay beat their record from last week by 6 seconds (3 seconds faster than the time that won state last year)

Girls Highlights:

• All Girls relays remain undefeated
• Julia Anderson 1st in 200 Free
• Kathleen Shew 1st in 50 Free 2nd in the 500 Free
• Marisa Jack 1st in the 100 Butterfly and 500 Free
• Momoko Mayumi 1st in the 100 Free and 100 Back
• Two 2nd place finishes for Hailey Moraes (200 IM and 100 Free)
• Catherine Lo 2nd in 200 Free
• Taylor Roth 2nd in 100 Breast

Boys Highlights:

• Two firsts and a second place in the 3 relays
• Matt Lawyer 1st place in the 200 IM and 100 Butterfly
• Basti Froehlich1st place in the 50 Free and 100 Back
• Stephen Pierce 1st place in the 100 Free
• Andrew Linnemann first place in the 100 Breast (best race of the night, won by 0.1 seconds)
• Two 2nd place finishes for Ben Krueger (200 Free and 500 Free)

Girls Basketball: After a 5-0 start the Valiants rise to 3rd in the coaches’ poll
Valley Catholic is attempting to return to the state tournament in 2012 after a one year absence. The Valiants have posted road wins over Sheridan, Salem Academy, and most recently in their league opener over Corbett on Tuesday (12-13).  Home wins over LaSalle and Portland Christian has pushed their record to 5-0, which is good enough for the number one slot  in the OSAA power rankings. VC was ranked third in this week’s coaches’ poll.

The Valiants traveled to Corbett last night and came away victorious in what everyone agrees is one of the toughest places to play.  Rebecca Baglai’s 18 points to go along with some solid defense from her teammates helped earn Valley the victory.  Valley Catholic was able to push their four point halftime lead to a 40-33 advantage going into the fourth quarter.  In the end VC’s press was too much to handle for the host Cardinals as Valley moved to 1-0 in league play with a 52-43 victory.  Valley Catholic will host another 1-0 league team on Friday when Warrenton travels to Valley for a 6 p.m. start.

The JV team is off to a 3-1 star (after a win at Corbett last night).  In their two wins against Salem Academy and Sheridan the Valiants outscored their opponents by a combined score of  129-7. Our JV team will also host Warrenton on Friday night.

The JV2 girls team is off to a 3-0 start with impressive wins of LaSalle (4A), Jesuit (6A), and Southwest Christian.  Our JV2 team will take the floor on Dec. 20 when they travel to St. Mary’s.

Boys Basketball: The boys start out 3-1; 1-0 in league play
The Valiants took advantage of 30 points from Christian McDonald and 15 points from Liam Cassidy to earn a season opening win over two time defending champion Horizon Christian in their league opener on Dec.1.  Horizon Christian entered the game ranked 2nd in the coaches’ poll and the Valiants were 10th.  VC followed that game with a close loss at LaSalle (12-5) and a blowout win at Sheridan.  The Valiants opened up Lewis and Clark play on Tuesday (12-13) with a road win at one of the league favorites Corbett by a score of 61-45.  It was the ninth consecutive league road win for the Valiants dating back to last season.  Corbett had a roster filled with 12 seniors, compared to Valley’s roster with only two.  Christian McDonald paced the Valiants with 23 points, John Boileau (playing all 32 minutes) had his first career double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds.  Jake Olsen added 12 points and five assists.  Canaan Sellers took on the lead defensive role in holding Corbett’s leading scorer two only two field goals.  Valley Catholic will host Warrenton on Friday night  (12-16) at 7:30 in their first home game of the season.  VC will finish out the week on Saturday when they host 2nd ranked Blanchet on Saturday (12-17).

A loss by our JV team at LaSalle (12-5)  was the first for our program since 2008.  Our JV team did bounce back with a win at Corbett on Tuesday (12-13) to run their league winning streak to seventeen games, dating back to last season.  The Valiants will host Warrenton and Blanchet this weekend.

The JV2 team provided the basketball program with an early highlight when the traveled to Jesuit (6A) last Friday (12-9) and secured a 39-37 win over the Crusaders.  The JV2 team will also host Warrenton and Blanchet this weekend.

For all of the latest scores, schedules, and updates please visit our athletic website at www.valleycatholic.org.

Friday night will be a special night in the gymnasium
We will be honoring and entertaining past Valiants (our alumni), while  showcasing our programs and school spirit to future Valiants when VC hosts Warrenton in girls (6:00 pm) and boys (7:30 pm) basketball.  Here are some of the highlights for Friday:

• Free admission to students and parents of all of our guests.
• Christmas treats will be complimentary in the VCHS Athletic Center lobby throughout the evening.
• Meet the coaches! Our head boys coach, Jeff Gallagher, will be available at halftime of the girls game in Room 306 just outside of the Athletic Center. Our head girls coach, John Innes, will be available at halftime of the boys game in room 306 as well.
• Please stay after the boys game as we remember our 2007 girls (2nd in state) and boys (state champions) teams on the five-year anniversary of the most successful season in school history.
• It will be Valley’s first “Blue Crew” night of the winter season. All of our high school students will be wearing their Blue Crew t-shirts as they cheer on the Valiants!
• One of the region’s best pep bands, Valley’s own, will be playing throughout both ball games.

Dance and Ski team updates coming shortly
It has been a quiet few weeks for our state champion dance team and for Valley’s athletes that compete in ski racing with Southridge.  All of these athletes will return or begin competition after the break and we look forward to updating everyone on all of their achievements.

Varsity boys Basketball @ LaSalle 60 Valley Catholic  52

JV boys Basketball @ LaSalle 64 Valley Catholic  28

JV2 Boys Basketball @ LaSalle 61 Valley Catholic  28

Varsity girls Basketball @ Valley Catholic  50 LaSalle 40

JV girls Basketball @ Valley Catholic 30 LaSalle 32

Winter sports competition begins this week
Our traditional winter sports will open up play this week against some tough competition. 

Swimming: Valiants will travel to Seaside on Thursday
The Jacob Sherman era will open up on Thursday when he takes his Valiants to Seaside on Thursday, December 1.  Coach Sherman took over this year for former coach Abe Gleason, after Coach Gleason was promoted through his work.  The Valiants will return to the pool on Tuesday, December 6 when they travel to North Marion for a 3:30 p.m. start.

Girls Basketball: Valiants start with an away game and return home next week
Coach Innes enters into his 8th year as head coach of the Valiants.  In that time he has compiled four conference championships and three state trophies.  This year an experienced Valley Catholic team will open up their season at Salem Academy on Friday December 2.  The JV game will begin at 5:30 p.m. and the Varsity game will begin at 7 p.m..  The Valiants will make their home debut on Monday December 5 when they host LaSalle.  On Monday the JV2 game will begin at 3 p.m., JV at 4:30 p.m., and Varsity at 6 p.m.

Boys Basketball: Valiants will play Horizon Christian on Thursday
Valley Catholic will play former WVL rival Horizon Christian on Thursday, December 1st at George Fox University in Newberg.  Game time will be at 7:30 p.m.  Last year on their way to a 2nd consecutive state championship Horizon defeated the Valiants in a close game in the quarter finals of the OSAA state championships.  Horizon is ranked second and the Valiants tenth in the first coaches poll.  The JV team will host Summit High School (Bend) on Friday at 7:30 p.m. to start their season, and our JV2 team will travel to Riverdale on Friday as well.  All three teams will travel to LaSalle on Monday, December 5 for games at 4 p.m., 5:30 p.m., and 7 p.m. 

Dance: Charisma continues season on Saturday
Our dance team will have some time off before they continue to build on their strong season.  Charisma has already competed well against the majority of larger classification schools at Clackamas and at West Albany.  They will compete on Saturday December 10 at Reynolds High School.  The dance team is looking for their third consecutive state championship and will move from category competitions to competitive competitions after Christmas Break. 

CYO Jamboree: Teams will compete on Saturday
Valley Catholic, along with a number of other area schools, will be hosting the annual CYO Jamboree on December 3 and 4.  There are a total of seventeen boys and girls teams  that will represent Valley Catholic  on the basketball court this winter.

Valley Catholic Athletic Update
Nov. 17, 2011

Fall Sports Come to a Close

This fall was filled with some wonderful team and individual performances.   Volleyball capped off the fall campaign with a 6th place finish at the OSAA state championships. Please see below a re-cap of each season. 

Cross Country: Valiants sweep district meet, boys claim state championship

Here is an update from the district meet:

The Valiant boys and girls swept the District 1 Cross Country Championships on at THPRD in Beaverton. 11 teams were vying for 2 berths into the state championship meet in Eugene.  

The Valiant girls won their first district title since 1983, edging defending state champion Catlin Gabel by 5 points. Josephine Chau, Sophia Chau, and Annika Holstrom all earned 1st team all-district honors, finishing in 2nd-4th place overall. Sophomores Grace Mannen and Morgan McDougal earned all-district honorable mention with top-15 finishes.

Morgan sprinted by three Catlin Gabel runners in the final 100 meters, sealing the win for the Valiants. Freshman Fiona Walker and senior Autumn Davis also notched top-20 finishes. 

The Valiant boys won their second consecutive district title, finishing 42 points ahead of runner-up OES. All seven varsity runners earned spots on the all-district team. Seniors Connor Garcia and Andy Holstrom and sophomore Cooper Roach led the Valiants with 1st team all-district honors. Connor finished in 2nd place overall, setting a new school record with a time of 16:16 for 5000 meters. 

Cooper set a new sophomore record by completing the course in 16:48. Seniors Danny Hernandez and Anthony Alfieri, both named 2nd team-all district, rounded out the scoring for the Valiants. Sophomore Sam Teague and senior Aidan McLeod both earned all-district honorable mention with top-15 finishes. 

The Valiant boys also won the JV race, with seniors Callum Hamilton and JP Rivera finishing 1-2. Sophomore Karina Jaroch finished 2nd overall in the JV girls race. 

Valley Catholic then set their sights on the state championships.  The Valiant boys earned their first cross country state title in school history at the state championship meet at Lane Community College in Eugene. The Valiants placed 4 runners in the top 17, scoring 73 points, 33 points ahead of runner-up Pleasant Hill. Senior Connor Garcia led the Valiants with a 5th place finish (in a field of 108 runners), completing the 5000 meter race in 16:29. 

Connor earned 1st team all-state honors for the second consecutive year. Sophomore Cooper Roach and senior Andy Holstrom earned 2ndteam all-state honors by finishing in 12th and 14th places, respectively. Senior Danny Hernandez earned 3rd team all-state with his 17th place finish. Senior Aidan McLeod closed out the scoring for the Valiants with a 43rd place finish, running a personal record of 17:58. Senior Anthony Alfieri (43rd place) and sophomore Sam Teague (60th place) were also members of the state championship team.

The Valiant girls earned a 6th place finish at the state championship meet. Sophomore Annika Holstrom (19th place) and junior Sophia Chau (21st place) both earned 3rd team all-state honors. Josephine Chau, Autumn Davis, and Grace Mannen rounded out the scoring for the Valiants. Autumn ran an 18 second personal record in the final race of her career. Sophomore Morgan McDougal and freshman Fiona Walker both participated in their first state meet. 

Six seniors ran their final race as a Valiant on Saturday-Anthony Alfieri, Autumn Davis, Connor Garcia, Danny Hernandez, Andy Holstrom, and Aidan McLeod. Collectively these seniors led the cross country program to 1 state championship, 5 state trophies, and 3 district titles. Congratulations to our VC seniors on an excellent four years. 

Coaches Eric Berge and Tommy Manning were able to present our state trophy to the kids at a school wide assembly.  They were able to express their gratitude to their athletes and to all of the support they received throughout the year from the parents.   

Team Awards

• Boys Team-State Champions, District Champions
• Girls Team-District Champions, 6th place at state

Individual Awards

Boys Team

• Connor Garcia – 1st team all-state, 1st team all-district, school record holder, senior class record holder
• Andy Holstrom – 2nd team all-state, 1st team all-district
• Cooper Roach – 2nd team all-state, 1st team all-district, sophomore class record holder
• Danny Hernandez – 3rd team all-state, 2nd team all-district
• Anthony Alfieri – 2nd team all-district
• Aidan McLeod – Honorable mention all-district
• Sam Teague – Honorable mention all-district

 Girls Team

• Annika Holstrom – 3rd team all-state, 1st team all-district
• Sophia Chau – 3rd team all-state, 1st team all-district
• Josephine Chau – 1st team all-district
• Grace Mannen – Honorable mention all-district
• Morgan McDougal – Honorable mention all-district
• Eric Berge – District Coach of the Year

Volleyball: Valiants claim another state trophy

A win over St. Mary’s (Medford) in the round of sixteen to advance to the OSAA state championships at Lane Community college for the fifth consecutive year.  Unfortunately a loss in the quarterfinals put the Valiants into the consolation bracket.  With an opportunity to win a trophy the Valiants swept through Cascade Christian to advance to the 4th/6th place game where they fell to Santiam Christian.  The 6th place trophy is Valley’s fifth consecutive trophy. 

Overall the Valiants finished the year with a 26-6 record and secured tournament championships at the Wilsonville Invitational and Santiam Christian Invitational.  Their efforts throughout the season left them with a 2nd place state ranking at the end of the regular season.   

The future looks bright for Valley Catholic as both our JV and JV2 teams completed undefeated regular seasons against our league opponents.  Each team also won both of the tournaments that they participated in this year.  

The Valiants will host their end of the year awards for volleyball next week and team awards will be announced at a later date.  Please see below for our all league and all state performers. 

All Conference

• Tori Kemper – 1st team all-district, District Player of the Year, 2nd team all-state tournament
• Rebecca Baglai – 1st team all -district, 2nd team all-state tournament
• Amanda Stevens – 2nd team all-district
• Kelsey Luyten – Honorable Mention all-district

Football: Youngest team around competed hard all year

Valley Catholic was able to post one dominant JV win this year, but did not get a win at the varsity level.  However that only makes sense for a team comprised of three seniors and eighteen freshman and sophomores.  However, comments throughout the league and from officials who worked our games were overly positive.  Organization, hard work, and enthusiasm seemed to be words that often described Valley Catholic, under first year coach Doug Ierardi.  The Valiants are tentatively scheduled to kick-off next season in their annual match-up over Labor Day next September when they travel to Willamette University to play Blanchet.  If last off-season is any indication it will be filled with hard work in the weight room and at summer work outs.  Listed below are the team award winners and our kids that were recognized as all-conference.

All Conference

• Liam Walsh – 1st team RB, 1st team LB
• John Tate – 1st team DE
• Clay Kemper – 2nd team RB

Team Awards

• Most Valuable Offensive Player:  Liam Walsh
• Most Valuable Offensive Lineman: John Tate
• Most Valuable Defensive Player:  Liam Walsh
• Most Inspirational: Carter Buuck
• Coaches Award: Luke VanderZanden

Boys Soccer: Valley misses state tournament by one game

Valley Catholic had it most successful season since 2007.  Head coach Brad Pollard had the Valiants finish 13th overall in the OSAA power rankings with a record of 8-6-1.  Their league record of 3-2-1 earned Valley a home winner to state playoff match, unfortunately the Valiants were defeated and eliminated from the playoffs.  VC had an opportunity to clinch the league championship on the final regular season match, but fell short which left them in the loser out match.  Coach Pollard had a good mix of youth and experience this year that helped contribute to a great season for the Valiants.  The year was highlighted by an early season four match win streak and a late season win at OES, the first in quite some time for the boys.  Valley Catholic was well represented on the all-district team.  Listed below are this year’s honorees.

All Conference

• A.J. Bernards – 1st team all-district
• Bjorn Westermann – 1st team all-district
• Nick Konen – 1st team all-district
• Patrick Casale – 2nd team all-district
• Alex Vennes – Honorable Mention

Girls Soccer: Crandall era off to a good start

Head Coach Kayla Crandall had her team on the brink of a league championship and a state playoff berth before falling just short.  On a team loaded with youth the Valiants posted an overall record of 7-6 and a 4-4 record in conference play.  According to Coach Crandall, “The girls were dedicated and hard working. They came to practice every day ready to learn something new and with a desire to get better. The girls improved greatly throughout the season and had fun while doing it.”  The Valiants will say goodbye to only three seniors this year and return a group that will eye the district and state championship next season. Listed below are our all league performers and team award winners.

All Conference

• Sarah Connelly – 1st team all-district
• Meg Rapp – 1st team all-district
• Chelsea Alsdorf – 2nd team all-district
• Emily Gabourel – 2nd team all-district
• Katie Ford – Honorable Mention
• Amanda Carrera – Honorable Mention
• Makenzee Cleveland – Honorable Mention *also lettered as our kicker in football 

 Team Awards

• Rookie of the year: Amanda Carrera
• Most inspirational: Claire McLoughlin
• Most improved: Lisa Schwemmle
• Offensive MVP: Meg Rapp
• Defensive MVP: Katie Ford
• Coaches Award: Chelsea Alsdorf

Winter Sports Are Under Way: Dance, swimming, and basketball are now competing 

Dance – Congratulations to our Dance team “Charisma” for claiming 5th place at the Clackamas show competition last Saturday.  Their performance this weekend at West Linn can put them into the state “show” competition and get them qualified for the state championships in March.  Charisma is the two time defending state champions at the 3A level. 

Swimming – Head coach Jacob Sherman began his 1st season as head coach this past Monday.  Jacob is replacing Abe Gleason who took a promotion at work and after five great seasons had to step back.  Jacob was a standout swimmer for the Valiants and is extremely excited about this upcoming season. 

Girls Basketball – The Valiants will have nearly forty girls out for basketball this year.  VC is looking to return to the state tournament after a one year absence.  Valley earned state trophies and league championships in 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010. 

Boys Basketball – Valley Catholic will have two seniors, four juniors and the remaining players will be sophomores and freshmen, however they are excited to defend their league championship.  Junior guard Christian McDonald was recognized by ESPN.com as one of the state’s pre-season all state players (honorable mention) regardless of classification or grade.  For more information and a complete list, please click this link.  

Please continue to visit our website www.valleycatholic.org for the most up to date information.

The Varsity Volleyball lost in the quarterfinals of the State Tournament to Blanchet Catholic School in 4 games.  The Valiants won the first game of the match 25-20 but lost the next three games 20-25, 23-25, and 23-25.

On Saturday morning, Valley Catholic will square off with Cascade Christian in the consolation semi-finals at 10:00 a.m.  The winner of the 10:00 a.m. game will play for 4th place at 2:15 tomorrow.

Our volleyball team, ranked #2 in the state, beat St. Mary’s Medford in the 1st Round of State Saturday night to advance to the Final Eight in Eugene. The Valiants (24-4), who finished 4th in last year’s State Tournament, will play Blanchet Catholic School (14-9) in the quarterfinals at 3:15 on Friday afternoon.

Coach Justin Denham thinks his team is entering the tournament on a high note, “The team really came together this past Saturday in the match against St. Mary’s. Our emphasis all week had been working as a team and staying focused no matter what the other team was doing. It paid off and all the players sustained excellent positive energy and great play throughout the match. I feel the match was an excellent send-off for our trip down to Eugene.”

Coach Denham also added these details about this coming weekend, “Down in Eugene we are scheduled to play Blanchet first, a team we have already played three times this year. We have beaten them all three times but we are not taking them lightly since all teams come into playoffs at the top of their game. If we beat Blanchet, we’ll play the winner of Burns and Cascade Christian, both good match-ups for us also. Though Burns is an excellent team, and will be tough to beat, we match up well against them and I could not have asked for a better half of the bracket. If we win twice on Friday, we’ll play for the championship on Saturday afternoon.”

Click the links below for Spectator and Bracket info from the OSAA website.

• Spectator Information from the OSAA
• 3A Volleyball Bracket Info from the OSAA

Valley Catholic Athletics Update
Nov. 9, 2011

Cross Country
The Valiant boys earned their first cross country state title in school history on Saturday at the state championship meet at Lane Community College in Eugene. The Valiants placed 4 runners in the top 17, scoring 73 points, 33 points ahead of runner-up Pleasant Hill. Senior Connor Garcia led the Valiants with a 5th place finish (in a field of 108 runners), completing the 5000 meter race in 16:29.

Connor earned 1st team all-state honors for the second consecutive year. Sophomore Cooper Roach and senior Andy Holstrom earned 2ndteam all-state honors by finishing in 12th and 14th places, respectively. Senior Danny Hernandez earned 3rd team all-state with his 17th place finish. Senior Aidan McLeod closed out the scoring for the Valiants with a 43rd place finish, running a personal record of 17:58. Senior Anthony Alfieri (43rd place) and sophomore Sam Teague (60th place) were also members of the state championship team.

The Valiant girls earned a 6th place finish at the state championship meet. Sophomore Annika Holstrom (19th place) and junior Sophia Chau (21st place) both earned 3rd team all-state honors. Josephine Chau, Autumn Davis, and Grace Mannen rounded out the scoring for the Valiants. Autumn ran an 18 second personal record in the final race of her career. Sophomore Morgan McDougal and freshman Fiona Walker both participated in their first state meet.

Six seniors ran their final race as a Valiant on Saturday-Anthony Alfieri, Autumn Davis, Connor Garcia, Danny Hernandez, Andy Holstrom, and Aidan McLeod. Collectively these seniors led the cross country program to 1 state championship, 5 state trophies, and 3 district titles. Congratulations to our VC seniors on an excellent four years!

Volleyball
Our volleyball team, ranked #2 in the state, beat St. Mary’s Medford in the 1st Round of State Saturday night to advance to the Final Eight in Eugene. We open against Blanchet in the quarterfinal at 3:15 Friday afternoon. If we win, we play the winner of the Burns-Cascade Christian match in the semi-finals at 8:30 Friday evening. Good luck volleyball!

Winter Sports begin on Monday
Swimming, girls basketball, and boys basketball practices will begin on Monday, November 14.

Dance
Dance will continue on with their normal practice schedule. Complete practice schedules and more team information will be handed out at the first practice.

Boys Basketball
All grades meet in the Valiants gym for practice from 3:30-6:00 pm. Please plan on staying for a brief players meeting afterwards until 6:15 p.m. If you have any questions please contact Mr. Gallagher.

Girls Basketball
All grades meet in the Valiants’ Gym for practice from 6:15-9:00 pm. If you have any questions please contact Mr. Innes.

Swimming
Please meet at the Mittleman Jewish Community Center for practice from 7:30-9:00 p.m. If you have any questions please contact Mr. Sherman.

Full Fall Sports Wrap Up Comes Out Next Week
Next week we will recap all of the tremendous success of our fall sports teams. We will highlight team achievements and post our all-league selections.

Jeff Gallagher
Athletic Director
Valley Catholic High School
jgallagher@valleycatholic.org
503.520.4720