With spring upon us – kind of – it’s time to look back at how athletes with local ties fared in college action during the winter season:
Izaak Tobin, Silverton: The redshirt senior wrestler at Oregon State University finished his career with a 17-16 record. He was 2-2 at 149 pounds during his senior year. Tobin also wrestled at 133 and 141 during his years with the Beavers after scoring 131 wins and two state runner-up finishes with the Foxes.
Alia Parsons, Silverton: The Foxes sharpshooter who led the squad to the 2016 Class 5A title, moved from Grand Canyon University to Clackamas Community College where she provided instant offense off the bench for the Cougars, averaging 12.2 points in 19 games while adding 3.1 rebounds. Clackamas finished 21-8 overall and 12-4 in the Northwest Athletic Conference South division. The Cougars advanced to the NWAC tournament but fell in the round of 16 to Everett.
Lakin Susee, Kennedy and Hailey Smisek, Silverton: Susee, a 5-7 sophomore, averaged 9.5 points in the 17 games she played for Chemeketa, which finished 9-18 overall and 7-9 in the NWAC South. Smisek, a 5-3 freshman, averaged 7.7 points in 27 games, led the Storm in steals (1.9 per game) and was third in assists (2.4 per game). Susee helped lead the Trojans to the 2016 Class 2A title, while Smisek took home a 5A title the same year.
Sam Roth, Silverton: Roth, who starred in the Foxes’ 2015 5A title run, played in all 26 games for Northwest Nazarene, which finished 13-13 overall and 9-11 in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference. Roth, a 6-3 redshirt freshman, started 15 times, averaging 6.2 points and 4.3 rebounds for the Nighthawks. He was third on the squad in assists and minutes played and fourth in steals.
Julian Downey, Silverton/Santiam: Downey, who played with Roth on that 2015 state champion team and also led Santiam to a Class 2A title in 2017, averaged 4.5 points per game as a freshman at Warner Pacific in Portland. The 5-10 Downey averaged 47.1 percent shooting on 3-pointers. The Knights were 24-10 and advanced to the NAIA Division II national tournament, where they turned in a 1-1 record.
Baseball: Kennedy is 9-1 overall, 3-0 in Special District 2 play and ranked No. 2 in Class 2A-1A by the OSAA. The Trojans, in typical Oregon fashion, have had five games washed out by weather issues. During spring break the squad captured a tournament hosted by Riverside and Irrigon, scoring 36 runs in their three games. Kennedy scored a critical early league win by triumphing 10-5 at St. Paul on Monday to take over first place. The eighth-ranked Buckaroos, 3-1 in district play, come to Mount Angel on May 4.
Silverton, meanwhile, is 9-2 overall and 5-1 in Mid-Willamette Conference play after scoring a series sweep against South Albany and taking the Central series 2-1. The Foxes are ranked 10th in Class 5A, while conference foes Crescent Valley (8-1-1, 3-0) and Corvallis (6-0, 11-1) rank 1-2, respectively. Because the Mid-Willamette schedule consists of one series against the same team each week, Silverton does not play C.V. or the Spartans until after May 1.
Running: The Victor Point Run for the Hills takes place on May 5. The benefit for Victor Point School includes a 1-mile kids run, a 5-kilometer run/walk and more challenging 10K and 15K runs into the foothills. The 1-mile event starts at 8 a.m., the 15K At 8:15 a.m. and the 5K and 10K at 8:45, Prices range from $10 for the mile to $30 for the 15K. Registration is available at
racenorthwest.com/victor-point.
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