10 things to know from Week 9 of Oregon high school football

Sheldon, Sherwood clinch conference titles; Roosevelt earns rivalry win; Glencoe gets first home playoff game since 2009

Lake Oswego quarterback Hudson Kurland launches a pass over Lakeridge's Kilian Eddleman during the Lakers' rivalry win against the Pacers in the annual Battle of the Lake. / Photo by Dan Brood

The Oregon high school football regular season concluded with Week 9 action around the state.

Our predictions: How did we do?

The biggest game took place in Lake Oswego, where the Lakers fought off rival Lakeridge to secure the Three Rivers League title and the No. 1 seed in the 6A playoffs. Read more about that game here:

Lake Oswego wraps up TRL title, No. 1 seed by edging rival Lakeridge: 5 takeaways

Here are 10 other things to know from the Week 9 slate of games.

10 things to know from Week 9

Sheldon responds to getting ‘hit in the mouth,’ routs Sprague to win SCFC title, get first-round bye

Sprague celebrated the 20th anniversary of its last state championship Friday night, honoring members of the 2004 team before its South Central Football Conference matchup of unbeatens against Sheldon.

But on a rain-soaked night in south Salem, it was the Irish who did most of the celebrating, spotting the Olympians a 7-0 lead before romping to a 52-7 victory to secure the SCFC title.

The victory also vaulted Sheldon to the top four in the OSAA Class 6A rankings, giving the Irish a first-round bye in the 12-team state championship bracket.

“Sprague hit us in the mouth, and it was a good test to see how we’d respond when things didn’t go our way for the first time,” said first-year Irish coach Tyler Martell. “Sprague is a team that didn’t quit all year. They were battle-tested, but our guys kept their foot on the gas. They took the momentum and ran with it.”

Senior quarterback Kelsen Sperry was 10 of 13 for 225 yards and four touchdowns, with Kerek Kato catching scoring passes of 68, 46 and 11 yards.

Senior Brody Thomas added 135 total yards, catching a 50-yard touchdown pass and taking a lateral 65 yards for a backbreaking score just before halftime as the Irish (9-0, 8-0 SCFC) seized control.

They led just 17-7 in the final minute of the first half when Sprague (8-1, 7-1) eschewed a 30-yard field goal try, instead throwing an incomplete pass in the end zone on fourth down.

Mana Tuioti gained 22 yards to start the ensuing drive, and the Irish could open things up. On the next play, Sperry tossed the ball to Thomas, who burst through a crease to the left sideline and raced to the end zone with 26.2 seconds left in the half.

“Kelsen was really sharp tonight,” Martell said. “When plays were there to be made, he made them.”

The third quarter turned into a blitzkrieg. A shanked punt set up Tuioti to score on a 28-yard run one play later. After stopping Sprague on fourth down at midfield, Sperry found Kato streaking down the seam for a 46-yard score. 

Two plays later, an interception by Cam Thomas gave the Irish the ball at the Olympians 23-yard line, and they needed three plays for Sperry to find Kato in the back of the end zone for a 45-7 lead that triggered a running clock.

“The second half got away from us,” Sprague coach AJ Robinson said. “We let them get some big plays on us. But there were parts of the game where we competed well with them. There are definitely things we can learn from tonight and apply to our playoff run.

“This is an opportunity now for our kids to be humbled a little bit, go back to the drawing board and get back to work.”

The Irish racked up 451 yards and held Sprague to 184, with 120 coming on 27 hard-fought carries by Kenya Johnson, who scored the team’s only touchdown. Dukatti Witherspoon finished 5 of 21 for 51 yards.

The Olympians fell to the No. 6 seed in the championship bracket and will play host to Clackamas in next week’s first round, with the winner slotted to play at Sheldon in the quarterfinals.

Sherwood wraps up Pacific Conference title, spot in 6A championship bracket

Sherwood led its Pacific Conference title showdown at Newberg 19-7 on Thursday night late in the second quarter but was backed up deep in its territory.

On first down, the Tigers defense swarmed senior running back Wilson Medina and looked like it would drop him for a 5-yard loss. Suddenly, Medina squirmed free, found a crease to the right sideline and jetted 89 yards for a backbreaking score.

From there, the Bowmen cruised to a 55-14 victory that wrapped up a fourth consecutive conference championship and a first-round home game against Nelson.

“That really did swing the momentum,” Sherwood coach Mark Gribble said. “It was an incredible run. He appeared to be stuffed, and his second and third efforts were amazing. Truly a special kid and a phenomenal individual effort on that play.”

Medina finished with 241 yards (the fourth time in the past five games with at least 200) and five touchdowns, and the Bowmen racked up 413 yards on 41 carries.

The defense sacked Newberg quarterback Parker Sellner three times, held the Tigers to 150 yards and forced three turnovers that Sherwood cashed in for 19 points, including a 70-yard interception return for a score by Talen Gorretta.

“The kids really wanted the fourpeat,” Gribble said. “I feel like our kids are playing really well the last couple of weeks. This is an awesome time of year, and our kids are excited to be in this spot.”

Roosevelt wins rivalry game with Grant to earn spot in 6A playoff field

Roosevelt coach Ryan McCants knew his team’s game at Grant this week was winner-take-all in terms of making the 6A state playoffs.

Toss in that it matched up North Portland rivals, and that ramped up the intensity to an 11.

“There’s always something extra when we play a team with an ‘N’ in their address,” McCants said. “But it was one of those things where you try to keep the kids focused and silence the noise.”

The Roughriders were able to do that to secure their spot in the 16-team playoff field, beating the Generals 21-7 behind two first-half touchdowns from Miles Green and a 2-yard sneak by Caelan Riley with 9:32 left to restore their two-score lead.

Roosevelt’s victory also clinched the PIL’s final playoff berth for Jefferson despite the Democrats’ 36-0 loss to Wells in their finale.

Both PIL teams face long bus rides to Southern Oregon for their first-round games, with the Roughriders set to play North Medford while the Democrats take on South Medford.

“We’re pretty fired up right now,” McCants said. “There’s plenty for us to clean up, but we’re looking forward to next week, for sure.”

Nelson secures spot in 6A championship bracket with rivalry win over Clackamas 

Another rivalry game with playoff implications was the nascent Happy Valley rivalry between Clackamas and Nelson.

Both teams were on the bubble to make the championship bracket and knew a win would secure a spot in the 12-team field.

The Hawks nursed a 9-7 lead at halftime, but a quick spurt early in the third quarter gave them breathing room. Noah Boria returned an interception for a touchdown, and after recovering a fumble, Nyiem Laliberte scored for the Hawks to give them a 23-7 lead en route to a 37-7 victory.

They vaulted over the Cavaliers in the 6A rankings, although both made the championship field. The Hawks will occupy the No. 10 slot in the bracket because of OSAA rules that guarantee Metro League champion Mountainside a first-round home game, while Clackamas gets the final at-large spot in the field and travels to Sprague.

“I’m super proud of our kids for staying the course,” Nelson coach Aaron Hazel said. “This game is always going to be a physical battle, and our kids kept their poise throughout the game.”

Glencoe finishes NWOC play unbeaten to earn first home playoff game since 2009

For the first time in the past 15 years, Hare Field will host a Glencoe playoff game.

The Crimson Tide wrapped up an undefeated run through the 5A Northwest Oregon Conference with a 21-7 victory at Hood River Valley that secured the title — the program’s first league championship since 2007 — in their first year after dropping from 6A.

Daniel Heninger ran 30 times for 318 yards and a touchdown, and Logan Nelson added 93 yards on 10 carries as the Crimson Tide amassed 424 of their 433 yards on the ground.

“Daniel did a ton of work tonight as Hood River did a great job attacking the play side of our plays,” Glencoe coach Ian Reynoso said. “He had a lot of cutback runs.”

Heninger caught a touchdown pass from Lucas Culbertson early in the fourth quarter to give Glencoe a 14-0 lead. The Eagles answered with a 26-yard scoring pass from Davis Parr to Davin Snyder, but the Crimson Tide put away the game with a nine-play, 75-yard drive capped by Zane Bradley’s 1-yard run.

Glencoe’s previous home playoff game came in the 2009 5A quarterfinals, when it lost to Jefferson. The Crimson Tide earned the No. 7 seed and will play host to Lebanon next week.

“I am expecting Hare Field to be rockin’ on Friday night,” Reynoso said. “We are confident but understand that the level is going to go up a lot this week, no matter who we end up playing.”

Central claims 5A playoff spot in elimination game against Canby

The only elimination game in 5A in Week 9 took place in Independence, where Central defeated Canby 38-22 to secure a spot in the 16-team playoff field.

“We set the tone right away that this was a playoff week,” Panthers coach Joel Everett said. “We brought the kids in on Sunday and just said, ‘This is what we do in the playoffs.’”

The Cougars opened the scoring in the first quarter, but Central answered by finding the end zone on each of its next four possessions in the first half. JT Girod had three touchdown passes — two to Jackson Stevens and one to Montrell Rice —  and Nemo Samuelu ran for a score.

Ryan Perkins returned the second-half kickoff for a touchdown to push the lead to 35-7, which was more than enough against the injury-riddled Cougars, who lost three-year starting quarterback Kellen Oliver to a torn ACL in Week 5 and were down three starting offensive linemen and their top two running backs. 

“Once they seized the momentum, it was hard for us to recapture it,” said Canby coach Jimmy Joyce, who started freshman Brody Joyce (no relation) behind center in the final four games. 

“It was just one of those years.”

The victory rocketed the Panthers to No. 13 in the final rankings, with Midwestern League champion Churchill awaiting them in Round 1. 

Estacada shuts out Molalla to win Tri-Valley title, earn 4A first-round home game

A year ago, Estacada had to win its final three regular-season games to make the 4A playoffs after struggling through a rugged nonconference slate. 

The Rangers challenged themselves again in nonleague play and entered Tri-Valley action 1-4, but they ran the table in the TVC, finishing with a 30-0 victory over rival Molalla to clinch a first-round home playoff game. 

“This feels great,” said coach Andrew Mott, who led the program to its first state championship two years ago. “I knew we had a tough preseason and did not get the outcomes we wanted, but I feel that we’re peaking at the right time. Winning our league with a big win over our rival, we’re right where I want us to be.” 

Elliott Coyle ran for two touchdowns, and Lincoln Rathmanner and Blake Barger also scored rushing touchdowns, but Mott was more pleased with the effort of his defense, which held Molalla to around 200 yards in posting its first shutout of the season.

“Their quarterback (Mason King) is a really special player and a big piece of their offense,” Mott said. “He’s made plays all year with his feet, so one of our keys was to stop him, and we were able to keep him under wraps.”

The Rangers are No. 10 in the final rankings, good enough under OSAA seeding rules to move up to the eighth seed and get a home game against Stayton, which beat them 35-21 in Week 2.

Henley rolls to Southside Series win over Mazama to secure Big Sky crown 

The Southside Series rivalry game to decide Klamath Falls bragging rights and the Big Sky Conference title went to Henley for the second consecutive season.

The Hornets built a 40-0 lead midway through the third quarter and defeated Mazama 40-8. The Vikings were without standout running back Kris Baldwin, who might be lost for the season with a torn ACL.

Joseph Janney ran for four touchdowns for the defending 4A state champion Hornets. Trapper Cundall ran for another score, and Mark Carpenter scored on a punt return.

“We preached all week that it starts and ends at the line of scrimmage,” said first-year Henley coach Matt Green. “We established the run game by winning the line of scrimmage.”

The Hornets enter the playoffs as the No. 3 seed and will play Seaside in Round 1, while the Vikings travel to Pendleton in a rematch from last year’s first round.

Marist Catholic clinches 4A top seed by beating Philomath, winning OWC title

Marist Catholic and Philomath boast two of 4A’s most prolific passing games, but on a muddy field at Philomath, the Spartans turned to sophomore running back Conner Harvey to lift them to a 34-6 victory and wrap up the No. 1 seed in the playoffs.

Harvey ran for four touchdowns — giving him 15 in five Oregon West Conference games — and Nick Hudson connected with Christian Guerrero for another score as the Spartans won their sixth in a row to secure their second consecutive OWC title.

“Just a mentally tough group of kids,” first-year coach Zach Loboy said of running the table in a league that features four teams in the top seven of the OSAA rankings. “Motivated and dedicated.”

The Spartans, who lost to Henley in last year’s 4A final, will play host to Gladstone in next week’s first round. The Warriors, seeded sixth, will play host to La Grande.

Santiam Christian returns from Oregon Coast victors of 3A PacWest Conference title 

Santiam Christian needed a pick-me-up after struggling through the first half of its showdown with Taft in Lincoln City that would decide the 3A PacWest Conference championship.

The Eagles got it with Max David’s 27-yard field goal just before halftime to give them a 10-6 lead. They tacked on two touchdowns early in the second half, then held on to beat the Tigers 31-20 to win the title.

“That was just a really good way to finish that first half,” Santiam Christian coach Justin Carley said. “We were trying to figure out some things with our run scheme in that first half, but we went in, made some adjustments and then opened the second half with a really strong drive.”

That drive ended with a touchdown run by Steen Smith, and Jeremy Ness added his second touchdown run later in the third quarter. Taft closed to within 24-20 late in the quarter, but the Eagles answered with another touchdown run by Ness. His brother Kameron intercepted a pass on Taft’s next drive to seal the win.

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