By James Day
Silverton High football just keeps rolling along. The Foxes blasted Pendleton 54-6 on Nov. 7 to move into the Class 5A quarterfinals. The 10-0 Foxes, seeded No. 2, faced No. 10 Ashland (8-2) on Friday, Nov. 14 after Our Town’s presstime.
It was the fifth game this season in which a running clock was used after the Foxes pulled ahead by 45 points or more. The average score in Silverton’s 10 games is 42-6.
“That was a good performance,” Foxes Coach John Mannion told Our Town after the victory against Pendleton. “We’re excited to get to the next round, but it’s going to get tougher.”
Versatile junior Noah Dahl had another strong game for the Foxes. Dahl scored on a 74-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Cole Chandler and added touchdown runs of 55 and 26 yards and six PAT kicks.
“We did great on defense, only allowing six points,” Dahl said. “And we turned in 54. That’s a heckuva job. I love these guys. I couldn’t be prouder.”
Chandler was a model of efficiency. The three-year starter was 12 for 14 passing for 190 yards and three touchdowns.
Silverton also dominated the all-Mid-Willamette Conference all-star team selected by league coaches. Chandler was named offensive player of the year, linebacker Sam Kuschnick took home defensive player of the year honors and Mannion and assistant John Howard captured the coaching awards.
The Foxes put 12 players on the first team: Chandler, running back Kuschnick, wide receiver Logan Munson and linemen Owen Koger, Brett Miller and Cody Gubbels were named on offense.
Defensive first-teamers included lineman Camryn Clokey, linebackers Kuschnick and Colton Cypert and defensive backs Dahl and Travis Sinn. Dahl was the first-team kicker and also was a second-teamer at running back.
Also winning multiple honors were Munson (second-team defensive back), Gubbels (second-team defensive line) and Sinn (second-team wide receiver).
Kennedy football: The Trojans finished 7-3 in the first season for Coach Joe Panuke. Kennedy earned a slot in the Class 2A playoffs with a 31-27 win Oct. 31 against St. Paul in their Tri-River Conference finale. Kennedy, however, drew No. 1 Burns in the first round and fell 57-7 to the Hilanders on Nov. 7.
Kennedy volleyball: The Trojans completed a second consecutive trophy-winning season with a fifth-place finish in the Class 2A tournament in Redmond. Kennedy, which entered the tournament ranked No. 1 in the state after an undefeated Tri-River Conference season, won its tournament opener against Bonanza but fell to Grant Union in the semifinals. Culver defeated the Trojans in the third-place match. Kennedy senior Loghan Sprauer earned first-team all-tournament honors, while junior Lakin Susee was slotted onto the second team. The Trojans took fourth in 2013.
Silverton girls soccer: The Foxes came within one goal of winning the Mid-Willamette Conference title in their first year under Coach Gary Cameron. Silverton came into its Oct. 28 match vs. Corvallis with a 6-0-0 record, but the Spartans won 3-2 to claim the title with a 6-0-1 record. The Foxes advanced to the Class 5A playoffs as the No. 11 seed but were ousted by Churchill 2-0 in the round of 16.
State cross country: Kennedy freshman Kaylin Cantu took 10th in the Class 3A-2A-1A meet Nov. 1 at Lane Community College in Eugene. Cantu finished in 20:17. Senior teammate Lauren Stokley was 21st in 21:03. Stokley ended her sterling career with four top 25 finishes at state. She was 17th last year, 18th in 2012 and 23rd in 2011.
The Kennedy boys, meanwhile, finished 10th as a team, led by junior Adrian Parra, who took fourth overall in 16:35.
Silverton’s Maddie Fuhrman took ninth in the Class 5A girls race in 19:05. The Foxes’ boys team was 12th, with senior Robbie Leparc (36th, 16:50) leading the way.
Sean Mannion: The senior quarterback at Oregon State and son of Foxes coach John Mannion, has taken over as the all-time leader in passing yardage in the Pac-12 Conference. Mannion passed the 12,327 mark of USC’s Matt Barkley by throwing for 320 yards Nov. 1 against California, which gave him 12,454. Mannion also threw for 419 yards Nov. 8 against Washington State, pushing the mark to 12,873. With three games left Mannion should easily pass the 13,000 mark and perhaps hit 13,500.
All-academic: All six Silverton squads turned in combined grade point averages of better than 3.0, with five of the teams finishing in the top 10 in Class 5A. Girls cross country (3.88 GPA) and boys cross country (3.81) each took second in 5A. Football was third (3.16), boys soccer was seventh (3.22), girls soccer was ninth (3.53) and volleyball was 20th (3.29).
Kennedy also turned in combined GPAs of better than 3.0 in all of its fall sports as well, continuing a streak for the Trojans, all of whose teams in the 2013-14 school year turned in 3.0 marks or better. Kennedy’s football team (3.14) and volleyball squad (3.79) both finished sixth in Class 2A. The girls cross country (3.13) and boys cross country (3.31) teams both finished 18th in Class 3A-2A-1A.
Silverton dance: The Foxes, the defending OSAA Class 5A small school champions, opened their season Nov. 8 in a competition at David Douglas High in Portland. The squad was judged first in jazz but dropped into second after points were deducted for exceeding the three-minute time limit. Silverton placed fourth in contemporary dance.
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