Mount Hood

Opinion: From the Sports Desk

Lake Larsen | Sports Editor

“Football is on solid standing at Western… If we get (to add more games to the schedule) with the Lone Star (conference) then we’ll be playing football for the next 50 years at least,” stated Athletic Director Curtis Campbell. His voice gave me no doubt that he held this belief very near and dear, but the facts seemed to point another direction.

Thursday, Oct. 11, I had the opportunity to sit down and talk with Campbell about the financial status of Western’s athletics. During the interview it became abundantly clear that Western struggles to compete at a high level athletically due to the inability to fully fund any of the varsity athletics.

“We are the lowest funded school in our conference. We offer the least amount of scholarships in every sport. We are at the bottom of the list,” said Campbell about our ability to offer scholarships.

“In football…you can offer 36 full scholarships. We offer about 15. In baseball you can have nine, and we have three. In track and field you can have 12.7 and we have three. So were the lowest funded school in our conference.”

This inability to fully fund athletics comes at the cost of success.

“The more scholarship dollars you have, the more competitive you are — the teams that are winning in football, and in basketball and in baseball. The teams that are winning are the ones that have the most scholarships to award.”

In Issue 3 of The Western Howl in the article titled, “Opinion: From the Sports Desk” I expressed how football may be on its deathbed due to the monumental cost and microscopic size of the conference. After speaking with Campbell, it became apparent to me that football is not only dying, it’s killing off the sports around it.

“We don’t have the funding…We are the lowest funded school in our conference” Campbell repeated over and over.

The question that kept occuring to me, if Western was struggling so much to fund all the athletic programs, why not condense the amount being offered?

When asked about adding programs, Campbell said, “We’re not funding the varsity sports we currently have… When you fully fund the sports you already have, then you start adding sports. But we’re so far away from that.”

But wouldn’t lowering the amount of programs offered allow the rest of Western’s athletics to thrive?

In 2008, when Western Washington University ended their football program, Eileen Coughlin, vice president for Student Affairs and Academic Support Services said to Tim Booth, Associated Press Sports Writer in his story “WWU Ends Football Program; Ensures Excellence of All Other Sports“, “Ending the football program will allow intercollegiate athletics to meet budget reduction targets, and, most importantly, to protect the quality of the remaining intercollegiate sports,”

Maybe Western Oregon should take a page from Western Washington’s book and protect the sports around football. Because if football stays for 50 years, other sports might not.

 

Contact the author at howlsports@wou.edu

Western Men’s Rugby pounces on Seattle University Redhawks

Lake Larsen | Sports Editor

After losing a nail biter to Central Oregon Community College on Oct. 7, Western’s Men’s Rugby looked to bounce back against the Seattle University Redhawks. With the sun shining on their backs, the Wolves didn’t waste any time asserting their dominance over Seattle University.

Two minutes into the first period, the Wolves scored off of a breakaway run and made the conversion to quickly bring the score to 7-0. The Redhawks showed they were ready for a fight as they bullied their way down the field, scoring a try and missing the conversion, making the score 7-5. The feverish battle between the teams looked to make for a close match, but Western wasn’t looking for another at home loss.

Tries were scored back and forth until the end of the first period where the score sat 14-10 with the Wolves on top. But for the Wolves, the best was yet to come.

Lighting up the scoreboard, Western found themselves scoring 17 unanswered points throughout the 2nd period. Every large gain by the Redhawks was met with an overwhelming defensive effort and an even more powerful offensive push. Cheered on by hoots and hollers from the crowd, the Wolves rumbled their way to a now lopsided score of 38-10.

In the final quarter the Redhawks showed some signs of life. Outscoring Western 15-14 in the period, the Redhawks hoped to claw their way back into the game. However this effort was no match for the dominant 2nd period. As time ran out, Western finished on top with a score of 52-25.

 

Contact the author at howlsports@wou.edu

Western Lacrosse stands tall against the Rippers

Lake Larsen | Sports Editor

The freashman heavy Western Lacrosse team took the field on a sunny Oct. 14. The Wolves were pitted against the Rippers, a men’s league team, for their home debut of the fall lacrosse season.

Previously the Wolves split their last four tournament games with two wins and two losses. With this matchm Western hoped to gain experience and add to their winning column.

The first quarter was messy for Western. Unable to win a faceoff, the Wolves quickly fell into a 0-2 hole before finally finding the back of the net. Poor defensive play led to Western falling to a 2-4 score at the end of the first.

“We were playing against an offensive set we hadn’t practiced against. The different look took us a bit to react to,” said senior history major and defenseman Bryce Hinkle.

The Wolves finally found their offensive footing in the second quarter. The senior led offense found the cage six times to capture the lead over the Rippers. Visibly tired, the Rippers offense struggled to hold a possession while the deep bench of the Wolves lead to an offensive run.

Not ready to give up, the Rippers came storming back in the 3rd quarter. After a couple of missed shots and poor goalkeeping from Western, the Rippers buried four shots to bring the game within three points.

It was anyone’s ballgame as the clock began to run in the final quarter of play. Carrying off their momentum from the third, the Rippers fought their way back to bring the game within one. Great defensive efforts were made on both sides of the field as the Rippers battled to retake the lead.

With just a handful of minutes left to play, the Wolves’s offense cemented their lead with a pair of goals. Western lacrosse’s home debut came to a finish with the Wolves on top, 14-11.

 

Contact the author at howlsports@wou.edu

Discovering Club Sports

Lake Larsen | Sports Editor

Whether students are looking to continue their competitive passion for high level athletics or just wanting to learn something new, a viable option is Western’s Club Sports. Joining a team gives students the ability to compete nationally in competitive team sports. Club Sports are open to student of any skill and experience level — many rosters are full of students who have never played the sport before coming to college.

The teams within Club Sports are split into two types: Tier 1 and Tier 2. The Tier 2 sports are geared more toward practicing and enjoying the sport while the Tier 1 sports are about competition with other schools and competing within a national league. Below, I’ve listed the Club Sports currently offered at Western.

 

Tier 1:

Dance Team

Joining the Dance Team allows male and female students the chance to perform in front of the school at home football and basketball games.

Contact the club president Olivia Ashmanskas at oashmanskas14@wou.edu

Men’s Rugby

Playing for the Men’s Rugby Team gives male students the ability to compete against other schools in this full-contact sport.

Contact the club president Chris Davis at cwdavis@wou.edu

Women’s Rugby

Being the only full-contact female club sport, the Women’s Rugby Team is a way for female students to compete in an aggressive sport.

Contact the club president Ciara Brady at cbrady16@wou.edu

Men’s Soccer

The Men’s Soccer team is for male students who want to participate in a higher level of soccer.

Contact the club president Nash Idler at nidler14@wou.edu

Men’s Lacrosse

Being a full contact sport, the Lacrosse Team is another option for male students looking to get involved in hard hitting and fast paced competition.

Contact the club president Justin Morales at jmorales17@wou.edu

Rock Climbing

Whether a student wants to learn how to climb or compete against other schools, the Rock Climbing Club gives the option of a relaxed or competitive experience.

Contact the club president Kayla Baker at kmbaker15@wou.edu

 

Tier 2:

Women’s Soccer

Competing against other schools all around the west coast, the Women’s Soccer Team is for female students looking to play soccer at a high level.

Contact the club president Haylie Shinsato at hshinsato14@wou.edu

Disc Golf

Brand new this school year, the Disc Golf Club is a way for students to learn about and compete in the sport.

Contact the club president Lucas Castanon at lcastanon15@wou.edu

Martial Arts

No matter what the skill level, the Martial Arts Club grants students the chance to show off their martial art skills with others.

Contact the club president Alex Buschauer at abuschauer14@wou.edu

Running Club

Running with the Running Club gives students the chance to participate in team practices on many different courses and trails as well as the chance to join in on some competitive events.

Contact the club president Sean Martinez at smartinez17@wou.edu

Tennis Club

The Tennis Club gives students the opportunity to hone in their tennis skills against different students in a relaxed or competitive environment.

Contact the club president Jacob Bering at jbering16@wou.edu

Wrestling Club

Meeting several times a week, the Wrestling Club gives students the opportunity to spar with their fellow students to help grow their wrestling skills.

Contact the club president Todd Sjullie at tsjullie17@wou.edu

 

Contact the author at howlsports@wou.edu

Wolves’s Men’s Rugby lose close match against COCC Bobcats

Lake Larsen | Sports Editor

Clouds covered the sky and rain began to fall as Western Men’s Rugby took the field to battle against the Central Oregon Community College Bobcats. A week prior, Western Rugby took on Oregon State University and pulled off an upset beating them 31-29. Hoping to continue their season in the winning column, the Wolves matched up against the Bobcats.

The first 20 minutes saw offensive domination by the Wolves with the ball only crossing back over midfield once. However, despite the offensive pressure, Western was only able to score one try, missing the conversion.

Shortly after their try the Wolves’ defense fell back on their heels. The Bobcats scored and were able to complete their conversion to take a 7-5 lead with close to 15 minutes left on the clock in the half. After a few defensive stops by Western, the Bobcats once against found themselves on the board with another try. After missing the conversion the Wolves were down 12-5 going into the half.

Western needed to make some adjustments at halftime in order to stall the offensive momentum of the Bobcats.

“We made some substitutions because some guys were a little fatigued,” said senior criminal justice major Chris Davis. “But overall it was more so just getting back to the basics… settling back down and getting back to what we do well: running our offense.”

Shortly after the half Western started to battle back, bringing the score to 10-12. However both defenses were relentless as no points were scored either way for the majority of the second half.

As the clock came down to just a few minutes left, the Wolves pulled ahead 15-12. Unfortunately for Western, this lead was short lived as the Bobcats scored a try and conversion to retake the lead. With just a few minutes on the clock Western was unable to recover the lead, finishing the game 15-19 with the Bobcats on top.

Despite the loss, Western still kept their heads high.

“It was encouraging because this team was the conference champion last year and we matched up pretty well,” said Davis. “I think that going forward for the rest of the season, only a two point loss to a really good team like this can be pretty encouraging”

 

Contact the author at howlsports@wou.edu

Photo courtesy of Ashlynn Norton

Opinion: From the Sports Desk

Lake Larsen | Sports Editor

The football program has been a part of Western Oregon University since 1923. However, the end might be in sight.

Western belongs to the Great Northwest Athletic Conference and competes at the NCAA DII level for football. Along with Western there are four other schools: Central Washington, Simon Fraser, Azusa Pacific and Humboldt State that complete the conference.

As of July 17, Humboldt State announced that the 2018 season will mark the final season for football at their school. Due to this loss in the conference, I believe that the GNAC might be seeing its final days, leading to an eventual death of Western football.

After losing Humboldt State, the GNAC will only have four members. For a comparison, the average NCAA DI conference hosts about 12 teams, meaning the GNAC size is far below average. Due to this, Western is forced to play every team in the conference twice in order to field a full season of games.

With Humboldt State no longer on the schedule, Western will be forced to travel approximately 1,000 miles at the closest to play another opponent. This is due to NCAA DII football being very sparse on the western half of the United States with only five teams west of Colorado. The added travel will lead to student athletes being away from classes for a longer period of time as well as an increased cost — something that Western Oregon, per the fiscal year 2019 working budget, already budgets $85,630 for.

If Western wants to continue to field a football program, the answer might lie in moving up a competition level to NCAA FCS (DI-AA). The FCS level hosts far more teams much closer for Western to travel to. However, in order to join, Western would have to pass a multitude of obstacles, something that the school would need to investigate if they wanted to keep a program.

Regardless of which route Western wants to take in regards to a football program, action needs to be taken. The GNAC is already a tiny conference in comparison to the rest of collegiate football conferences and with the loss of Humboldt State, Western’s options are dwindling. Traveling hundreds of miles for games will only increase the budget making the funding side of the program increasingly more difficult. If the school doesn’t act soon, I believe there will no longer be a team to watch.

 

Contact the author at howlsports@wou.edu

Wolves’ scoreboard

Lake Larsen | Sports Editor

Date Sport Opponent Score

Varsity

10/6 Football @ Texas A&M Kingsville W 13-7
Women’s Soccer vs. Simon Fraser University L 1-3
Volleyball vs. Western Washington University L 0-3
Cross Country Conference Crossover @ Lewis University Men place 9th
10/9 Women’s Soccer vs. Saint Martin’s University W 1-0

Club Sports

10/6 Men’s Soccer vs. Willamette University L 0-7
Lacrosse vs. University of Portland W 7-5
Lacrosse vs. Humboldt State University W 6-2
Lacrosse vs. Montana State University L 3-10
10/7 Men’s Rugby vs. Central Oregon Community College L 15-19
Men’s Soccer @ Central Oregon Community College W 5-2
Lacrosse vs. University of Montana L 2-9