Sports – Page 60 – The Western Howl

By: Burke De Boer
Sports Editor

The Wolves football team fell in their homecoming game on Oct. 22 against Humboldt State, 37-42. Most of these points were scored in an explosive second half.

Quarterback Phillip Fenumiai threw the 68-yard opening score to wideout Paul Revis. The Wolves then tried to carry that momentum into a two-point conversion to open with an eight point lead. This was stopped and after Humboldt scored in the second quarter they took the lead, 6-7.

The teams felt one another out in a defensive slugfest. Western had the advantage going into the half after Revis blocked a Humboldt punt to set the team up for a 27-yard Jacob Bannister field goal.

The 9-7 first half gave no indication to how high scoring the second half would become.

The third quarter saw Fenumiai break out on a 73 yard touchdown run, but was ultimately dominated by Humboldt State. The Lumberjacks put up 5 touchdowns in 15 minutes to surge to a 16-42 lead. Turnovers and effective plays kept the ball in Humboldt’s control and kept them visiting the endzone.

Despite the long odds, the Wolves were not yet out and mounted a fourth quarter comeback. Fenumiai completed 11 of his 22 total completions in the fourth as Western fought to pick up three touchdowns. Trailing 37-42 the team onside kicked but couldn’t get a hold of the ball as the comeback
The Wolves fall to 3-5 on the season with two games left to play.

Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu

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Volleyball’s perfect week

By: Burke De Boer
Sports Editor

Wolves volleyball won both matches last week to advance to an 8-11 record overall. They beat St. Martin’s on Oct. 20 and Seattle Pacific on Oct. 22. Both matches were played to four sets that included powerful showings by the Western players.

Against St. Martin’s, outside hitter Mariella Vandenkooy hit for .320, leading her to a career-best 16 kills. Alisha Bettinson continued her impressive ways, where she produced 11 kills and got her season-best 22 digs en route to her tenth double-double on the year.

The fourth match saw St. Martin’s leap out to a 1-5 lead early, but the Wolves rallied and went on to rout their opponents and sealed the fourth and final set at 25-17. This included a dominant 12-2 run.

“We’ve been having a lot of success from a variety of players,” said Bettinson. “I think that’s what is going to help us continue to have success. Also having played every team once already we have a better idea of what to expect from each team the second time round.”

Wolves continued their winning ways to Saturday.

The first two sets saw Western clobber Seattle Pacific with scores of 25-19 and 25-18. Bettinson notched yet another double-double onto her belt, racking up 15 kills and 12 digs while also nailing 2 blocks.

The Wolves look to take this winning streak onto the road. They travel to Washington on Thursday to face national #19 Western Washington, and then visit Canada for a match against Simon Fraser on Saturday.

Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu

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The resurrection of Tim Tebow

tim-tebow-colorlatimes-com

By: Burke De Boer
Sports Editor

Tim Tebow is a hero. After 11 years without playing baseball, he signed a contract with the New York Mets and went to their minor leagues. He hit a homerun off the first pitch of his first at bat. When a fan had a seizure he prayed over the man until paramedics arrived.

Tim Tebow is a joke. The Mets joined the publicity circus and gave him a contract despite the fact that he hadn’t played in 11 years. After joining the Scottsdale Scorpions in the Arizona Fall League, it took 15 at bats before he finally got a hit.

Tebow has been a divisive player since his college football days, and his recent foray into minor league baseball is no exception.

Baseball should be a better fit for a southpaw like Tebow. There are no left-handed quarterbacks in the NFL today. Being left-handed in football has no particular advantage, but in baseball the difference is significant. A lefty hitter gets a clean view of a righty’s pitch and a clean run at first base. When Pro Baseball Insider crunched the numbers, they found left handed hitters pull a batting average of .270, seven above the average for right handed hitters of .263.

Despite these advantages, Tebow’s not having a great time in Scottsdale. He’s hitting 2-for-20 on the season.

The man is no Bo Jackson. He might adjust and make good for the Mets. But seeing as he started this new career only in September, it’s too soon to tell. He needs to adjust fast though, before the Mets start seeing his spot in the organization the way the Patriots and Eagles came to see his spot on their practice squads: expendable.

Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu

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Cross country championships

By: Burke De Boer
Sports Editor

The GNAC cross country championships were held in Bellingham, Washington on Oct. 22. The Western Oregon men’s team finished with enough points to place fourth and the women’s team placed ninth. The 8k men’s course saw David Ribich finish fifth place while Kennedy Rufener was the first Wolf to complete the 6k women’s course, coming in 17th place.

Depth helped the Wolves teams score their finishing positions, as Ribich was later followed across the finish line by tenth-place Dustin Nading. Justin Crosswhite came in 25th, while Tyler Jones and Josh Dempsey came in 34th and 36th, respectively.

The points scorers for the women’s team included 20th place Grace Knapp, 36th place Suzanne Van De Grift, and Virginia Link and Amanda Dirzhazy finished within a second of one another to rank 72nd and 74th.

Ribich crossed the line with a time of 25:23. Rufener completed her race with a time of 22:41. This is the third meet of the season that Rufener finished pole position among Western runners, and her third in a row. It is the fourth such meet for Ribich, who also won the John Frank and Ash Creek Invitationals.

The Wolves will go to Montana State Billings on Nov. 5 to compete for the NCAA Division II West Regional Championships.

Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu

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Know your enemy: Humboldt State

By: Burke De Boer
Sports Editor

When the Wolves host the Lumberjacks on Saturday it will be the 44th installment of the historic rivalry. arne-ferguson-current-head-coach

The teams first met in the days of leather helmets. In 1929, the Oregon Normal School traveled to Arcata, California to face Humboldt State Normal College. At the start of the Great Depression teams would play against anyone they could find, wherever there was a field. The men from Monmouth took a train south and won the first encounter, 31-0.

The teams went back and forth in the decades to come. After World War II, the then-Oregon College of Education hired Bill McArthur to coach the football team. As Wolves football became the team that Bill made, they got a leg up on Humboldt State. Notably, at homecoming 1949, the Wolves whupped the Lumberjacks to cap a 9-0 perfect season.

Wolves hold the advantage in the matchup with a 24-19 record.

For further history, check out the football record book at wouwolves.com

Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu

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Lessons of a tough loss

By: Burke De Boer
Sports Editor

The football team traveled north to face the Central Washington Wildcats in Ellensburg where they were utterly hosed to the tune of 0-35.

Ultimately the Wolves would get 107 yards on the day. Philip Fenumiai was back under center, where he completed 9 out of 27 passes and took five sacks. First-year running back Torreahno Sweet ran for 37 yards to lead the rushing game.

The defense was lead by redshirt sophomore Bo Highburger on the line, hitting 11 tackles on the day.

“We just struggled to get anything going as a team,” Highburger said. “But we are confident with our matchup this week, we’re looking forward to taking a step in the right direction.”

Once again, football follows a win with a loss, making it five games in a row on a win-loss rollercoaster. This bodes well as the Wolves look to rebound once again in the Humboldt State game.

Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu

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Powder to the people

By: Burke De Boer
Sports Editor

The powder-puff flag football game and powder-tuff volleyball tournament return for another year. Homecoming week gives us a week of activities to build the hype for the big game. These games are perhaps the most universal image of the homecoming buildup.

Wolves powder-puff is divided into teams of female students living off-campus and those living on-campus.

Powder-puff football is traced back to World War II. Military conscription made male college enrollment rates plummet. In the spirit of Rosie the Riveter, the homecoming football game continued without them. It became a tradition etched into high schools and universities across the nation.

The powder-tuff tournament gives male students a chance to play volleyball in the same vein. As we build for two home volleyball games and the Saturday football game, the friendly competition of intramurals keep building school spirit.

Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu

Western Oregon University’s Land Acknowledgement
Western Oregon University in Monmouth, OR is located within the traditional homelands of the Luckiamute Band of Kalapuya. Following the Willamette Valley Treaty of 1855 (Kalapuya etc. Treaty), Kalapuya people were forcibly removed to reservations in Western Oregon. Today, living descendants of these people are a part of the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde Community of Oregon and the Confederated Tribes of the Siletz Indians.

Accessibility Public Records Privacy Student Consumer Information

WOU prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, national or ethnic origin, age, religion, marital status, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression in all programs, activities and employment practices as required by Title IX, other applicable laws, and policies. Retaliation is prohibited by WOU.

A tale of two halves

Volleyball’s perfect week

The resurrection of Tim Tebow

Cross country championships

Know your enemy: Humboldt State

Lessons of a tough loss

Powder to the people

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