Published:Monday, December 10, 2007 10:44 AM PST
Serving the South Coast of Oregon

From left, Sheldon’s Tanner Harris (60), Tyler Price (40) and Wil Anderson (52), celebrate their state title after Sheldon beat Tualatin 28-14 in the Class 6A finals game in Corvallis. Associated Press Photo.
Sheldon captures Class 6A state title
Monday, December 10, 2007 10:44 AM PST

CORVALLIS — Jordan Johnson passed for 127 yards and ran for 61 more to lead Sheldon to the OSAA 6A state football title Saturday with a 28-14 win over Tualatin at Reser Stadium.

Levi Levasa threw for 189 yards and two touchdowns for the Timberwolves (9-4), who were the Pacific Conference co-champions but were unranked entering the playoffs. Dennis Ranck ran for 97 yards for Tualatin, Danny Johnson had three catches for 77 yards and Andrew Patton had three for 65.

Third-ranked Sheldon did much of its damage early, building a 14-0 first-half lead on Zach Todd’s four-yard touchdown run and Jordan Johnson’s nifty 31-yard TD pass to Tyler Martell.

Martell had four catches for 62 yards and Curtis White had three catches for 37 yards. Todd ran for 34 yards and had three catches for 28 yards.

Jordan Johnson led Sheldon’s balanced attack with a steady hand, completing 10 of 14 passes and carrying the ball 12 times. He had 64 yards rushing in the first quarter, including a game-best 35-yard scamper.

The Irish (13-1) won their only other championship in 2002, with future Washington State quarterback Alex Brink. Sheldon’s only loss this season was to Westview in the second game of the season.

Jordan Johnson is the son of Sheldon head coach Marty Johnson, a Marshfield graduate. Lane Johnson, Marty’s brother, serves as defensive coordinator. Their father, John Johnson, is a past Marshfield coach.

Marist 36, Sisters 28

Ryan Bell passed for 203 yards, Bobby Edwards ran for 169 yards and Marist won its fourth football state title with a 36-28 win over Sisters in the OSAA Class 4A championship Saturday at Reser Stadium.

The No. 5 Spartans (11-3) rolled up 468 yards of total offense. Colton Thomas had five catches for 74 yards, Gianni Carter had five catches for 53 yards and Marist shut down prolific Sisters rusher Cory McCaffrey in the first half.

McCaffrey, the state’s all-time leading rusher at 8,460 yards, ran for 99 yards, mostly in the third quarter for the Outlaws (13-1).

Jarred Hasskamp threw for 195 yards and three touchdowns for top-ranked Sisters, the Sky-Em conference champion, which lost in the 4A title game for the second straight year. The Outlaws lost to Siuslaw in overtime last season in Eugene.

The Spartans led 13-0 at halftime. Bell ran for a 20-yard touchdown and then threw a 21-yard pass to Mitchel Wilson.

Marist stifled McCaffrey in the first half, holding him to 11 yards on 12 carries. But McCaffrey and the Outlaws warmed up in third quarter. The senior tailback ran for 84 yards in the third and Sisters scored three times in the quarter, taking a 21-19 lead.

But Gabe Schepergerdes kicked a 28-yard field goal and Edwards ran for scores of 24 and 17 yards for the Spartans.

Hasskamp found Hodges for a 45-yard reception that set up a 5-yard TD pass to Nathan Jackson, but the Outlaws couldn’t recover the onside kick and Marist ran out the clock.

Hodges had eight catches for 111 yards and two touchdowns for the Outlaws.

Sisters entered the playoffs as the favorite, and quickly dispatched Hidden Valley 55-8. But the Outlaws had defensive problems in a 50-46 win over North Bend and a 50-49 win over No. 2 Ontario.

Marist blew out Illinois Valley and Yamhill-Carlton in its first two playoff games and beat Central 35-21 in the semifinals.

The Spartans, also of the Sky-Em, avenged a 53-36 loss to Sisters on Oct. 11. Marist also lost to 6A champion Sheldon and beat Marshfield during the preseason.

Marist also won state titles in 2005, 2003 and 1973.

West Albany 34, Glencoe 7

Anthony LaCoste ran for 210 yards, Reese Miller passed for 151, and West Albany cruised to a 34-7 win over Glencoe in the OSAA 5A state final Saturday, capturing the first football title in school history.

The top-ranked Bulldogs finished an undefeated season and earned the championship that eluded them in a 17-14 triple-overtime loss to Corvallis in the finals last year.

West Albany, of the Mid-Willamette Conference, cruised through the regular-season and playoffs, drilling Hermiston, Crater and Mountain View en route to the championship game.

David Puckett ran for 107 yards in the first half and Glencoe led 7-3 at halftime, but Puckett, who has run for 2,854 yards this season, suffered cramping and gained just four yards in the second half.

The Bulldogs (14-0) rolled up 31 unanswered points, scoring three times in the third quarter and twice in the fourth. West Albany was outscoring opponents by an average of 38.3 points entering the game.

With its power-I formation, Glencoe gained 219 yards on the ground and chewed up clock effectively in the first half. But after West Albany retook the lead, the Crimson Tide had didn’t have the offense to counter, especially with Puckett on the bench.

Kyle Hogan ran for 103 yards and AJ Burke passed for 122 yards for No. 4 Glencoe (11-3). The Crimson Tide, of the Northwest Oregon Conference, beat Churchill, Ashland and Bend in the playoffs.


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