Reporter for The Canyon Weekly
The Santiam High football team continues to show steady improvement offensively as the Wolverines battle through a challenging schedule in one of Class 2A’s best leagues.
Santiam wracked up a season-high 30 points last Friday night against Gervais, but the Wolverines were outscored by the Cougars 52-30. Santiam dropped to 0-3 overall and 0-2 in Tri-River Conference play.
“The game against Gervais saw an improvement on offense,” coach Lyle Schroeder told The Canyon Weekly, “but we still struggled significantly on the offensive line. Our defense struggled against the run, with poor pursuit and tackling.”
Scoring rushing TDs for Santiam were Lukus Lebahn, Esai Romero and Xavier Vital, with QB Lebahn also connecting on a 71-yard scoring pass to tight end Owen Rupert.
Lebahn, a 5-8, 175-pound junior, has taken over for Sam Schroeder, last year’s starter, who was injured in the opener against St. Paul.
The Wolverines got some bad news Monday when it was discovered that Schroeder, who was thought to have a high ankle sprain, in fact has a torn ligament in the ankle and will be lost for the rest of the season.
Coach Schroeder, Sam’s father, noted that “our numbers continue to be low, with injuries and other factors. Our boys are fighters, though, and continue to improve every day.”
Santiam hosted Blanchet Catholic on Thursday night after press time. Look for a report on that game in next week’s The Canyon Weekly.
Blanchet, 3-1 overall and 1-0 in league play, is one of 5 Tri-River Conference teams ranked in the top 16. Regis is No. 3, Blanchet is eighth, Gervais is ninth, Willamina is 11th and Colton is 16th.
Volleyball: Santiam took two out of three Tri-River matches earlier this week to improve to 10-4 overall and 6-3 in league play. The Wolverines swept Culver and Gervais 3-0 and fell 3-2 to Blanchet. Santiam is in fourth place in the Tri-River, trailing 9-0 Salem Academy, 8-1 Western Christian and 7-2 Blanchet.
The league boasts seven of the top 15 teams in Class 2A. Western Christian is No. 2, Salem Academy is No. 2, Blanchet is No. 11, Santiam is 12th, Willamina is 13th, Culver is 14th and Regis is 15th. The top four teams in the Tri-River make the playoffs, with the 16-team bracket also including three at-large teams.
Scio, meanwhile, also is in the playoff hunt with a 4-2 record in Class 3A’s PacWest Conference. The Loggers, 7-4 overall, were tied for second with Dayton and Amity at The Canyon Weekly’s press time. Santiam Christian leads the league at 6-0. The top three teams in the league advance to the playoffs, with one at-large berth also available.
Cross country: Santiam and Scio both competed at the Sept. 19 Green’s Bridge Garden Invite in Jefferson and the Sept. 22 Champs Invite at Cheadle Lake Park in Lebanon. The Scio boys took third as a team at Green’s Bridge, with Syrus Diaz taking 78th in the 2-mile race in 13:18. Santiam’s Tico Irving was ninth in 13:34.
At the Champs event the Scio boys were 24th, with Chris Ennis leading the way in the 5K event in 20:59.66. Irving of Santiam was 115th in 21:31.04. Maggie Sisk of Santiam took 70th in the varsity girls race in 24:55.77. Scio took six in the middle school girls race, led by Jazmyne Bates, who ran the 3K course in 15:07.9. The Scio boys were eighth, led by Matthew Ennis, 49th in 14:26.68.
