TCP; CCC produces new legends of the fall season

This article originally ran at www.theclackamasprint.com. Too see the original, click here.

David Beasley, Sports Editor
Wednesday, October 16, 2013
Volume 47, Issue 1
Sports

Amidst the busy bustle of autumn, new beginnings have given shape to CCC’s 2013 fall sports season. With so many new recruits added to each of the Cougars’ fall sports teams, this season promises a fresh experience.

Volleyball

The Volleyball team acquired 11 new players for the season. The team has a record of 3-2 in NWAACC league and 21-8 this season. They are ranked third in south region.

Cross Country

Cougar cross country picked up seven new men and seven new women this season. The team competed in a few recent events. Sept. 7 was the Clark XC Classic NWAACC Preview in Battleground. CCC competed against Spokane, Clark, Everett, Highline, Lane, Mt. Hood, Olympic and SW Oregon. Two Clackamas runners finished the men’s 8000 meters ahead of the rest. Jorge Gil-Juarez was first with a time of 26:03 and Jackson Baker came in second at 26:04.

Clackamas competed against Mt. Hood on Sept. 21 at the Oak Knoll Loop in Independence, Ore. Jorge Gil-Juarez finished the 8000 meters first out of all NWAACC competitors with a time of 25:06.15.

CCC hosted the annual Mike Hodges Invitational this past Saturday. The Cougars placed four men in the top five of the 8000 meter race against Spokane, Clark, Highline, Mt. Hood and SW Oregon. Pake Benthin finished first at 26:19.54, Jackson Baker was second with 26:19.77, Jorge Gil-Juarez came in third at 26:19.97 and shortly behind was Scott Schmitt in fifth at 26:28.03. CCC men placed first as a team and the women placed fourth.

Soccer

CCC women’s soccer gained eight new recruits this fall. The soccer team is 8-1-1 in NWAACC league and 8-3-1 this season. They are the top team in the south region and are second in league points, tied with Walla Walla.
“We’ve had a few good games, the girls are doing really well,” said Miriam Coto, assistant coach. “Pretty much half the team is returners, we’ve got a good freshman class too.”

Non-Fall Sports

CCC’s winter and spring sports teams have also been gearing up for their respective seasons.

Wrestling

The wrestling team has been active as they ready for their first scheduled events. Navy & Scarlet, an exhibition, will be at home on Thursday Oct. 24 starting at 7:30 p.m. Saturday Oct. 26 CCC will host their 30th annual Takedown Tournament which is open to the public. All ages and weight classes are eligible. Registration begins at 8 a.m., a takedown clinic will be offered between 9:30-10:30 a.m. and the competition starts at 11 a.m.

Basketball

The women’s and men’s basketball teams have been hard at work preparing as well.
“We worked out two to three days a week during the summer,” said the men’s head coach Clif Wegner. “This is our first official week of practice.”

Softball and Baseball

Both CCC’s softball and baseball teams have been keeping busy, practicing and playing non-league games. The baseball team was proud to have some star players shine last month at Lower Columbia in Longview, Wash.

“Seven of our guys were selected for the sophomore showcase All-Star game for NWAACC,” said Robin Robinson, head baseball coach. “Four of them have been heavily recruited since.”

The Cougar baseball team will play seven weeks of fall ball.

TCP; Clackamas wrestling team says goodbye to some, hello to others

This article originally ran at www.theclackamasprint.com. Too see the original, click here.

David Beasley, Associate Sports Editor
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Volume 46, Issue 18
Arts & Culture

“Where do we go from here?” some might ask after Cougar wrestlers said farewell to a large portion of the team.

“I’m real proud,” said head coach Josh Rhoden. “Twelve kids graduated and we gotta’ replace ‘em all, but that means we’re doing good. I’m glad to see it’s working out for those guys.”

Of those departing, three team members answered some “what’s next” questions for The Clackamas Print.

Signed to California Polytechnic Institute, Trent Noon:

TCP: How did you decide to sign?

Noon: I like the coaches. I knew some of the wrestlers and I have a really good partner, Dominic Kastle. The location is awesome. It’s on the beach. It’s a really good school to get a degree from.

TCP: What are your academic plans?

Noon: I’m going to major in communications.

TCP: What is your biggest strength you bring to the team?

Noon: Being an upper-classman I’ll have experience to bring to the table.

Signed to Northern Colorado, Beau Roberts:

TCP: How did you decide to sign?

Roberts: I like the coaches a lot, they are really young and have a lot of energy. I wanted a coach like Rhoden.

TCP: What are your academic plans?

Roberts: I’d like to major in sports psychology and get my teaching degree.

TCP: What is your biggest strength you bring to the team?

Roberts: I really hate losing; I hate it so much I look for new ways to win on the mat all the time. Team chemistry is really important to me.

Signed to Campbell University, Jacob Laden:

TCP: What are your academic plans?

Laden: Major in administration and minor in social work.

TCP: What is your biggest strength you bring to the team?

Laden: My biggest strength? Enthusiasm.

TCP: How do you envision the new experience?

Laden: Going from the West Coast to the East Coast, it’s gonna’ be cool, maybe meet a Southern belle.

A highly skilled and qualified group of wrestlers from various locations across the state and country were recruited to fill the holes left by the transcendent members of the team.

Three time regional champion, three time high school All- American, two-time Oregon state finalist and recent 170-pound Greco Junior Regional champion, Kyle Bateman joined the Clackamas wrestling team from Sandy High School.

Two time Nebraska state finalist and recent state champion, Kenny Martin from Lincoln Southwest High School in Nebraska, helps fill the spot left by Beau Roberts.

A top senior at 170-pounds, Sisto Santana Pina from Kamiakin High School in Washington joined with the assignment of helping out with the 164 and 174-pound divisions after the departure of Noon and 165-pound Niko Hughes. Pina was a three time state medalist for Kamiakin High School in Kennewick, Washington, finishing third once and first twice.

182-pound Adrian Salas from Clovis High School in California joined the team to compete in the 184 and 197-pound divisions. Salas is a state champion, three time state medalist and one of the top wrestlers in the nation for his weight class.

Robbie Rizzolino from Easton High School in Pennsylvania will compete in the 141-pound weight class for the Cougars.

One of the top heavyweight prospects, 285-pound Brandon Johnson joined from Lake Stevens, Wash., where he is a two-time state finalist and the 2013 state champion.

Washington state 152-pound champion Brandon Davidson joined from Bothell, Wash. Oregon state champion Ihoghama Odighizuwa enlisted to the Cougars from David Douglas High School.

Clackamas wrestling also welcomed three-time Oregon State champ Eleazar DeLuca from Phoenix High School. DeLuca won this year’s FILA Junior Greco championship.

With the veterans continuing their journey elsewhere and the new recruits bringing their fresh abilities, next year’s wrestling season promises to be an exciting new experience for Clackamas.

TCP; Successful recruiting brings strength to Clackamas athletic programs

This article originally ran at www.theclackamasprint.com. Too see the original, click here.

David Beasley, The Clackamas Print
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Volume 45, Issue 23
Sports

For many years, Clackamas Community College has had success in the athletic department. Not only does the department provide positive reinforcement and opportunities to continue education for students, it also manufactures a high quality athletic product. With the last of the sports seasons wrapping up for the year, focus now turns to rebuilding and revamping each team in an effort to pick up where they left off.

Recruiting is used for sports at CCC to help gain advantage and put together a team with a strong talent base. This is just as important to junior college athletics as it is for four-year university teams. The coaching staff at Clackamas is a tireless group of enthusiasts who share their love of athletics with students and strive to help them succeed in sports and academics equally. It is not just a job to the coaching staff; it is a favorite pastime and hobby.

The wrestling program is a great asset to athletics at Clackamas. Head coach Josh Rhoden recalls, "In six years we haven't placed lower than eighth in the NJCAA National Championships (where the team placed fourth in 2012). We've got Austin Morehead, 184 lbs national runner-up this year and he just signed with OSU, the PAC-12 champs, 10th in the country."

How does the wrestling team stay on top and gain student athletes like Morehead of Sutter, California? Aside from the obvious roster building methods like signups and try-outs, recruiting lends strong leverage to teams and can help tip the competitive scales of talent and ability. Rhoden and his assistants spend a great deal of time scouring stats and data on the internet, calling high schools, attending large competitions, and general networking with students and coaches.

The wrestling program enjoys a large talent pool to choose from. Students from across the US travel to Clackamas for the wrestling program.

"We have recently been able to recruit all over the United States," said Rhoden. "We search in-state and the Portland area of course, but we've got kids from places like Pennsylvania, Arizona and Minnesota. We have a kid walking on from the state of Texas. He'd done some research and found that this is a great program and then he decided to come to Clackamas.. we can help kids with a tuition waiver — there are 16 three-term tuition waivers — that number is set by the NJCAA."

The success of individual athletes and the team helps grow the program and build a strong presence in the league as well as nationally. Being well known also helps to attract good wrestlers. "Winning the nationals helped us a bunch because now kids seek us out," said Rhoden.

Wrestling is the only sport at Clackamas that competes at the national level, but wrestling isn't the only program that benefits the college. Among the other athletic teams currently recruiting members for next season are men's and women's basketball.

"We look for players within the Northwest states, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Nevada and Alaska," said women's basketball assistant coach P.J. Martineau. "Recruiting is vital. It determines how the season will go the following year."

Athletes are recruited in a number of different ways for each sport at Clackamas. Attending and hosting competitions are good examples.

"Each year the women's basketball team holds the nationally recognized End of the Trail Tournament," said Martineau. This event attracts many top ranked, talented players and is a great yearly opportunity to recruit.

The scholastic side of women's basketball is just as talented as their last four years on the court.

"In the past ten years, 90 percent of our players who played both seasons with us graduated with associates degrees," said P.J. Martineau.

As a whole, the athletic department has great ways of helping students through college. GPA expectations and requirements are monitored and guidance is facilitated by coaching staff and the athletic academic adviser.

"P.J. Martineau is the academic advisor for all the sports," said Jim Martineau, director of athletics and husband to P.J. "She helps all the student athletes and keeps them on track throughout their time at Clackamas. Our number one job is to help student athletes develop academically and athletically to transfer. Number two is winning."

A little known advantage of recruiting is finding natural leaders. A good leader can be a great asset to a team that has studentathletes playing only two seasons. There is not a great amount of time to develop the tools required for a strong team captain, so when a born leader comes along it is of great help to the team coaching staff.

When student-athletes at Clackamas perform well athletically and scholastically, it attracts more students and community support for the school. Athletic recruiting is a vital lifeline for the college.