The Silverton High School athletic program, which has been searching to replace several departed coaches, now must also look to replace the head of the department.
James Rise, who has served in the athletic director position for the past 4 years, has been announced as the new AD at Cascade High in Turner. He assumes the Cascade post Aug. 1, according to a press release from the Cascade School District.
Rise, who taught and coached baseball at Silverton before taking the AD post, replaces Tim Ganfield, who is retiring at the end of June. Ganfield has been the AD and an assistant principal at Cascade High since 2018. He also led the softball program to a pair of state titles during his coaching years.
“I’m excited for the opportunity to join a great team at Cascade High School,” Rise said in the release. “This is a great chance for a new adventure in a tight-knit community where athletics play a major role.”
“Rise will be a great addition to the administrative team at Cascade High School,” said Cascade Superintendent Drill. “His background in coaching will help him hit the ground running. He understands the important role athletics play in students’ social and emotional well-being.”
“Throughout our exhaustive and very competitive hiring process, James Rise was simply an outstanding candidate,” said Cascade Principal Pete Rasmussen. “We are so glad to have someone of his experience.”
The 2021-22 school year was perhaps the best for athletics in Silverton High history. The Foxes won Class 5A state titles in football and boys track and field, were runners-up in boys basketball and girls golf and reached the quarterfinals in boys soccer, girls basketball and softball.
“James is an amazing person,” said first-year Silverton principal Sione Thompson, who noted the challenge Rise faced as both an AD and assistant principal.
“That was a huge task to take on, with its institutional leadership and supervision of teachers. Over the year I’ve seen the care and attention he puts into the programs.”
Rise still has business to conclude at Silverton. He has been working on hiring for the boys basketball, girls basketball, volleyball and girls soccer positions. Thompson told Our Town that the school hopes to have some announcements in the coming days, perhaps within a few days after the June 9 graduation. He hopes to replace Rise by the end of June.
Softball: Kennedy and Silverton both made strong runs in the OSAA playoffs, with the Trojans advancing to the Class 2A-1A semifinals and the Foxes playing their way into the Class 5A quarterfinals.
The Trojans, who won the 2018 title and finished 2nd in 2019, the most recent year of a full OSAA tournament, ran into red-hot Lakeview in the semifinals in Mt. Angel. Tyler McNeley, the 5-11 junior right-hander for the No. 7 Honkers, allowed just a 7th-inning Isabel Berning double and struck out 15 Trojans in a 2-0 victory. Kennedy finished 19-4. Lakeview captured its first state softball title with a 5-3 win against Grant Union/Prairie City.
“The players worked hard every day to try to get better on every play and in every game,” JFK coach Walt Simmons said of his 2022 squad. “If you do that, then good things can happen. This was quite a team.”
And it should remain so into 2023. Kennedy started just two seniors against Lakeview.
Silverton also featured a young squad. Despite just 4 seniors on the roster the Foxes won 8 of their final 9 Mid-Willamette Conference games before ousting No. 4 Crater 7-5 in the first round of the playoffs. The No. 13 Foxes then fell 3-1 to MWC co-champion Dallas/Falls City in the quarterfinals to finish 18-10.
“We’ve got a good group coming back … we’re going to be good for years,” Silverton coach Ralph Cortez said.
