High School

Oregon high school football Week 7 instant analysis: 10 things to know

10 takeaways from the seventh weekend of action

René Ferrán

Here are 10 takeaways (in no particular order) from the seventh weekend of the Oregon high school football season. 

Photo by Dan Brood 

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How the SBLive Oregon Class 6A media poll Top 10 fared

1. Central Catholic (7-0) def. Barlow 55-7 

2. West Linn (7-0) def. Tigard 53-14

3. Tualatin (6-1) def. No. 4 Lake Oswego 14-0

4. Lake Oswego (5-2) lost to No. 3 Tualatin 14-0

5. Sherwood (7-0) def. Newberg 58-0

6. Jesuit (3-4) def. Sunset 26-21

7. Lakeridge (6-1) def. No. 10 Oregon City 27-7

8. Sheldon (5-2) def. North Medford 24-3

9. South Salem (7-0) def. Roseburg 63-0

10. Oregon City (5-2) lost to No. 7 Lakeridge 27-7

Senior group has Lakeridge believing it can challenge state’s elite 

The Lakeridge players are well aware of their reputation entering the season as paper tigers.

Shedding that reputation fueled their summer program. 

“The word we said all offseason was believe,” said senior quarterback Gabe Motschenbacher. “That’s the biggest thing that’s changed. At no point in any game have we believed that we wouldn’t win.” 

That belief shone through with a goal-line stand to end the first half and deny Oregon City points after a 19-play, 95-yard drive, and it showed throughout the second half of the Pacers’ 27-7 Three Rivers League victory Friday in Lake Oswego.

“We believe in this program, and we really believe in ourselves,” said Motschenbacher, who threw for 316 yards and two touchdowns. 

“Last year, we struggled in TRL play, so there was added motivation to come this year and prove that we’re one of the best teams in the state. We see all the rankings, all the, ‘You know, they’re not going to do well in league play,’ and we love that.”

Pacers coach Spencer Phillips took over the program a month before the COVID-19 pandemic swept across the country. Now in his fourth season, he believes having had these seniors since they were freshmen also has made a difference. 

“It’s the first class where everyone beneath them only knows what these seniors know,” Phillips said. “You have all these young sophomores and juniors playing with Joey Olsen and Tashi (Crofut) and Jake (Moleiro), these kids who are phenomenal leaders and great players. That is what to me has propelled all this.”

Lakeridge pic Rene Ferran

Phillips also singled out Motschenbacher as someone who could have transferred and started for most 6A teams in the state, yet stuck close to home and bided his time behind three-year starter Ryan Oliver. 

“Ryan’s superpower was he was like a coach on the field, and Gabe just wasn’t there yet, but now he is,” Phillips said. “Gabe stayed. He wanted to be here, and now he’s shining. Gabe stuck it out, and I’m so happy because he grew up right down the street and played all his youth games here. And now, he’s getting to do this, so it’s pretty cool.”

Sophomore sensation Ansu Sanoe ran for 105 yards and a touchdown, and the Pacers forced three turnovers while holding the Pioneers to just 33 rushing yards.

Next for Lakeridge is a trip to West Linn, which romped past Tigard 53-14, and the Pacers have built momentum they hope will propel them into the matchup.

“Obviously, they’re a very talented team,” Sanoe said. “But you know, we come into every week with the same mindset, no matter who we play. We’ve got to come out and just find a way to win.”

Tualatin rebounds from big defeat to shut out Lake Oswego 

Tualatin bounced back from its 37-0 shellacking at West Linn last week to blank visiting Lake Oswego 14-0 in what served as an elimination game from the TRL title race.

Senior AJ Noland, making his third start behind center in place of injured junior Nolan Keeney, threw touchdown passes of 29 yards to Kenen Elder and 20 yards to Tyson Hunt, then sealed the victory with a late interception deep in Timberwolves territory.

“AJ did great. He was very consistent and made plays when we needed him to,” said Tualatin coach Dominic Ferraro. 

Ferraro also praised a defense that rebounded after giving up 389 yards and 37 points a week ago. The Timberwolves forced three turnovers and posted their first shutout in more than two years.

“The defense was great tonight and stopped the run well,” he said.

Sheldon shrugs off North Medford to keep pace in SCFC title race

Sheldon took advantage of a North Medford team missing University of Oregon commit AJ Pugliano, downing the Black Tornado 24-3 to take a big step toward winning at least a share of the South Central Football Conference title.

Pugliano sat out the game dealing with a knee sprain suffered in last week’s victory at Roseburg.

The Irish had three interceptions of Traeger Healy and pulled away after trailing much of the first half. Colby Parosa’s touchdown pass to Marley Bonin with 14 seconds before halftime gave them a 7-3 lead entering the locker room.

Sheldon and South Salem are 5-0 in SCFC play. They do not play each other during the regular season, setting up the possibility of a tie for the conference championship. 

Jesuit, Mountainside set up Metro League title showdown next week 

Don’t look now, but here comes Jesuit — just like everyone predicted the Crusaders would do once Metro League play began.

The Crusaders, who started 0-4 against one of the most brutal schedules in the Northwest, earned their third consecutive win, 26-21, over Sunset at Cronin Field to set up a Week 8 showdown against Mountainside and its first-year coach, former Jesuit standout Keanon Lowe. 

The Mavericks romped past Beaverton 48-6 to match Jesuit at 3-0 in league play entering next week’s game at Mountainside.

Jesuit trailed for much of the first half against Sunset before Trey Cleeland gave the hosts a 10-7 lead with 2:51 before halftime on a 4-yard touchdown run.

Cleeland added a 38-yard touchdown pass to Elias Johnson and a 2-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter, and Kadyn Butcher kicked his second field goal to help Jesuit build a 26-7 lead. The Apollos rallied with two late touchdowns. 

Sherwood continues state’s longest shutout streak in past 16 seasons

Sherwood extended its streak of shutouts to six Thursday night with a 58-0 victory over Highway 99W rival Newberg to remain undefeated in Pacific Conference play.

The Bowmen’s streak is the state’s longest since Heppner posted seven consecutive shutouts during the 2007 season.

“Yeah, the kids know about it,” Sherwood coach Mark Gribble said. “Heck, we reward them with doughnuts after a shutout. But we don’t talk about that as the goal. We just want to be as prepared as possible when facing an opponent.” 

The Bowmen allowed just 99 yards of total offense and had five interceptions — including an 89-yard touchdown return by junior free safety Andrew Waletich to cap the scoring.

“Our defense is playing phenomenal football right now,” Gribble said. “The kids are really locked in and doing all the little things. It’s been fun to watch.”

Senior quarterback Kasen Covert threw for 129 yards and three touchdowns and ran for another touchdown as the Bowmen scored a season-high in points.

“This group is very driven,” Gribble said. “Our success thus far is all about the kids and how they approach everything.”

Wells, Roosevelt win to set up showdown for PIL title next week

Neither Wells nor Roosevelt took its eyes off the ball Thursday night, remaining undefeated in PIL play to set up a showdown next week in North Portland with the league title up for grabs.

While each won a 5A PIL title during the four-year period when Lincoln and Grant remained 6A (Wells in 2012, Roosevelt in 2013), the Guardians last won a unified PIL title in 2003. Their last close call came in 2014, when only a loss to Grant denied them the championship. The Roughriders have won a share of the past two city crowns but haven’t won an outright title since 1995. 

The Guardians kicked off a stretch of three consecutive road games by defeating Southwest Portland rival Lincoln 50-13 at the Cardinals’ new downtown home. Wyatt Andler ran for three touchdowns, and Griffin Scott ran for one score and returned an interception 35 yards for another.

The Roughriders kept pace with a 38-0 victory over McDaniel — their fifth consecutive victory in the series. 

How the SBLive Oregon Class 5A media poll Top 10 fared

1. Wilsonville (6-1) def. Southridge 61-8

2. Silverton (7-0) def. No. 10 McKay 50-14

3. Mountain View (7-0) def. Ridgeview 40-0

4. Summit (4-3) def. Redmond 31-21

5. Thurston (5-2) def. South Eugene 42-0

6. Canby (5-2) def. Hood River Valley 40-6

7. West Albany (6-1) def. Crescent Valley 35-21

8. Dallas (4-3) lost to South Albany 15-14

9. Springfield (6-1) def. Willamette 54-0

10. McKay (5-2) lost to No. 2 Silverton 50-14

Caldera holds off crosstown rival to position itself for playoff berth 

Caldera moved one step closer to securing a playoff berth in just its second season with a 9-7 victory over crosstown rival Bend to move into sole possession of third place in the Intermountain Conference standings.

With two weeks left in the regular season, the Wolfpack need to at least split their remaining games against Redmond and Summit to secure one of the conference’s three 5A playoff berths. 

“The team just hung in there and did what they had to do to win,” Caldera coach Mike Mitchell said. “We played great defense all evening.”

Caldera led 3-0 at halftime on Alex Byler’s 28-yard field goal after recovering a muffed punt. The Wolfpack made it 9-0 midway through the third quarter on Tommy Morris’ 14-yard pass to Brady White.

The Lava Bears finally drove into Caldera territory in the fourth quarter, with Uriel Valdez capping the possession with a 1-yard touchdown run. They had one last chance to win the game, converting twice on fourth down before the Wolfpack held on to seal the victory. 

South Albany rallies to knock off a ranked opponent for second consecutive week 

A week after South Albany ended a 17-game losing streak to crosstown rival West Albany, the RedHawks were at it again Thursday, coming back from 14 points down in the fourth quarter to defeat Dallas 15-14.

Gaje Nicholson’s 70-yard pass to Sawyer Hallberg with 1:59 remaining capped the rally and came one play after the RedHawks forced a turnover on downs.

The junior wideout streaked past two defenders and hauled in the pass around the Dallas 30, juggling it for a second before securing possession and racing to the end zone. Tristyn Lopez kicked the PAT for the winning point.

The Dragons had one final chance, but after getting one first down, Isaiah Stewart intercepted a third-down pass in the final minute to seal the victory, which improved the RedHawks to 3-4 and kept them alive for a 5A playoff spot.

“The kids came out slow after a very emotional win last week but gritted out a great victory,” said South Albany co-coach Jeff Louber. “Our defense got a key stop to give our ‘O’ a chance, and we capitalized. I’m very proud of them finding a way.” 

Cash Hallberg ran for 172 yards and two touchdowns for the Dragons.

How the SBLive Oregon Class 4A media poll Top 10 fared

1. Scappoose (7-0) def. St. Helens 47-14

2. Marist Catholic (6-1) def. Philomath 43-6

3. Mazama (6-1) def. Klamath Union 54-7

4. Henley (7-0) def. Marshfield 63-18

5. Pendleton (6-1) def. Ontario 47-7

6. Cascade (5-2) lost to Junction City 22-16

7. Tillamook (5-2) def. Astoria 54-13

8. Seaside (4-3) def. Milwaukie 56-21

T9. Baker (3-4) def. Madras 56-0

T9. North Bend (7-1) def. Hidden Valley 28-26 

La Salle Prep in control of Tri-Valley Conference title race

La Salle Prep seized control of the Tri-Valley Conference race with a 10-0 victory at Molalla to move to 3-0 in TVC play.

The Falcons play host to The Dalles next week and can secure their first league championship since 2012 with a victory.

“It was a really tough game for both teams,” said La Salle Prep coach Dustin Janz. “Overall, it was a gutty win that we needed to have, and we believe that it will help us as we continue our season.”

Neither team scored in the muddy conditions until quarterback Paul Skoro scampered 30 yards for a touchdown with 3:58 left in the third quarter.

The Falcons made several more forays into Molalla territory but were denied each time until Vance Sheffield kicked a 26-yard field goal with 2:18 remaining to seal the victory.

“We made some offensive adjustments at halftime that allowed our kids to play downhill and keep the chains moving,” Janz said. 

Mason Mueller had an interception, Max Bishop recovered a fumble, and Grant Ellison and JJ Kuunifaa had multiple sacks apiece as the Falcons posted their third consecutive shutout and fourth of the season.

Junction City grabs last-second win at Cascade to stay unbeaten in OWC

The biggest shocker in 4A this week comes courtesy of Junction City, which traveled to Cascade and stunned the Cougars 20-16 to remain undefeated in Oregon West Conference play.

On a third-and-11 play, Cooper Rothenberger hit Tylen Franks on a crossing pattern at the goal line after the senior wideout escaped traffic for a 14-yard touchdown with 9.5 seconds left for the winning score.

The matchup was the first of three games in three weeks involving teams that entered Week 7 unbeaten in conference play. The Cougars travel to Marist Catholic next week, with the Spartans then heading north up Highway 99E to Junction City to close the regular season. 

Another week, another big win for Dayton, Cascade Christian in 3A

The 3A ranks saw two more clashes of titans this week, with Dayton again involved in one of them. 

The Pirates traveled to Adair Village and knocked off Santiam Christian 22-7 to seize control of the PacWest Conference title race with two weeks left. They improved to 7-0 for the first time since 2016. 

Defending state champion Cascade Christian took down Lakeview 35-7 in Medford in a matchup of the last two Far West League unbeatens. 

Ashton Moody threw for two touchdowns and ran for another, and Caleb Scaglione ran for two scores for the Challengers, who notched their 20th consecutive win. They face Holy Bowl rival St. Mary’s (Medford) and South Umpqua in their final two regular-season games. 

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STATEWIDE SCOREBOARD

Week 7 predictions: How did we do?

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Week 6 recap: 

What we learned in Week 6 of Oregon high school football

Instant analysis: 10 things to know from Week 6 of Oregon high school football

Our Week 6 predictions: How did we do?

State leaders: Class 6A | Class 5A | Class 4A

Media polls: Class 6A | Class 5A | Class 4A

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René Ferrán
RENÉ FERRÁN

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