Cougar Alum Scheese has strong 2008-09 season in NAIA Ranks
Andria Scheese had an incredible season at Concordia University-Portland this year. One of her biggest highlights was her third place finish at the NAIA National Outdoor Championships in the 1500 meters with a time of 4:34.25. Scheese has solidified herself in the record books at Concordia by earning school records in the indoor 5000 meters, indoor distance medley relay, outdoor 5000 meters, and outdoor 1500 meters. These were all accomplished while being a mother of three, wife, full-time manager of a nurse staffing company and being 32 years of age. Scheese never ran competitve distance running until she arrived at Clackamas.
Men and Women finish season on a good note at NWAACC Championships
By Ian Schroeder 11/8/2008
Results: Men :: Women Highlight videos: Runnerspace.com
Battle Ground, WA - The Clackamas Cougars finished their Cross Country season strong at the 2008 NWAACC Championships hosted by Clark Community College at Lewisville Park. The competition was strong despite the weather conditions being less than ideal for some. It was pouring down rain with temperatures in the high 50s to low 60s making parts of the course slick, especially at the end where there was a tight corner with about 75 meters left to the finish.
The men were the first race of day. The Cougars came into the meet ranked 7th and that is where they finished. The men knew it could be a close team race with Treasure Valley, Bellevue, Southwest Oregon and Mt. Hood Community Colleges ranked right behind Clackamas. The men did an excellent job of working with each other during the first mile, which helped them to distance themselves by a large margin from those schools and finish closer to Highline Community College, the 6th place team, than originally predicted. The team was lead by Tom Benson (Fr. Seaside, OR) for the first time this season followed by Robert Deguchi (Fr. Las Vegas, NV). Both Tom and Robert helped each other to a more conservative start than any race this season. The tactic worked as Tom constantly moved up throughout the race to finish 21 spots ahead of where he was projected. Despite slipping at the end of the race and loosing one spot, Tom ran a personal record of 27:33 to finish 25th overall. Robert came in a few spots behind Tom in 28th with a time of 27:40. Also, running strong races were Luke Correll (So. Portland, OR), Joel Hale (Fr. Sherwood, OR), Grant Lewis (So. Portland, OR) and Zach Fund ( Milwaukie, OR) finishing 36 th, 38 th, 55 th and 69 th respectively for the Cougars. Spokane came away with the first place trophy with a score of 32 points. The individual winner was Rigoberto Jimenes in a time of 25:50.
The Cougar women ran strong to place 5th overall, finishing where they were projected to place as well. The team was led by Ashley Braniff’s (Fr. Hood River, OR) 11 th place finish. Ashley ran a very smart and determined race. Ashley started the race around 20 th and slowly moved up. With less than a mile to go, Ashley attacked the big hill of the course to blow past 5 other girls. In doing so, Ashley was able to secure her 11 th place and come within 5 seconds of the top 10. Ashley ran a time of 20:09 beating many girls that defeated her by at least 20 seconds throughout the season. Also helping the Cougars to secure their 5 th place finish was Tarra Brown (Fr. West Linn, OR) running a time of 21:16, placing 32 nd, followed by Katie Olson (Fr. Molalla, OR) in 35 th with a time of 21:26, Karly Osten (So. Gladstone, OR) in 44 th with a time of 22:06, Crystal Spring (Fr. Milwaukie, OR) placing 45 th with a time of 22:20, and Tegan McCarthy (Fr. Milwaukie, OR) placing 50 th with a time of 22:32. Crystal out kicked four runners in the last 50 meters of the race to secure the Cougar’s 5 th place finish just barely beating Southwestern Oregon 163 to 165. Spokane came away with the first place trophy with a score of 34 points. Laura Carlyle of Whatcomb won the individual title in 18:50.
Southern Region Championships:
Women take second, Men Third
By Ian Schroeder 10/25/08
Results: Men :: Women
Oregon City, OR - The Cougars were back in action for the second weekend in a row at home competing in the Southern Region Championships. The course was the same as the Mike Hodges Invitational held last weekend, except the men ran their typical race distance of 8 kilometers apposed to the 4 mile distance ran last weekend. It was another beautiful day with dry conditions and good footing.
The men ran a solid race. They came in ranked third and that is where they finished losing to the community colleges of Lane and Clark, but beating out Southwestern Oregon and Mt. Hood.
The men were led by the 6th place finish of Robert Deguchi (Fr. Las Vegas, NV) with a personal record (PR) of 27:04 for the 8k distance. Robert tested himself in the first half of the race by latching onto the chase pack, but lost contact with them after 2 and half miles. However, Robert was able to secure a top 10 finish by closing his last mile in just under 5 minutes.
Placing second for the Cougars was Joel Hale (Fr. Sherwood, OR) who finished in 11th place running a PR of 27:47. This was Joel's best race of the season. Joel along with teammate Luke Correll (So. Portland, OR), teamed up to run a very smart race starting off towards the back of the pack and slowly moving up together passing runners every mile. Luke finished right behind Joel placing 12th with a time of 27:50.
Tom Benson (Fr. Seaside, OR) finished fourth for the Cougars placing 15th with a PR of 28:10. Tom started out with Robert for the first mile, but couldn't keep pace during the 2nd mile after a severe stomach cramp. However, Tom recovered well and finished strong.
Rounding out the Cougars squad was Grant Lewis (So. Portland, OR) and Zach Fund (Fr. Milwaukie, OR) finishing 22nd (29:23) and 27th respectively. Zach ran a PR of 30:58. Lane won the team race and Matt Moncur of Clark Community College won the individual race with a time of 26:09.
The ladies claimed the second place trophy in a very close team race between the community colleges of Southwestern Oregon and Mt. Hood.
Ashley Braniff (Fr. Hood River, OR) returned to racing after taking the last meet off because of coming down with strep throat. Ashley ran well despite feeling tired from her sickness. Braniff placed 7th with a season best of 20:05.
Placing second (12th overall) for the Cougars was Tarra Brown (Fr. West Linn, OR) with a time of 20:39. Katie Olson (Fr. Molalla, OR) ran another competitive race to place 14th with a time of 20:55. Helping to clinch the team's second place trophy was Crystal Spring (Fr. Milwaukie, OR). Spring ran her best race to date running a PR of 21:32.
Spring started the race by running in a pack with teammates Karly Osten (So. Gladstone, OR) and Tegan McCarthy (Fr. Milwaukie, OR). Spring was then able to pull away and move up through out the race to place 19th.
Rounding out the Cougars was McCarthy and Osten placing 21st and 22nd respectively. Both ran a time of 22:11.
Lane won the team race with 29 points, followed by Clackamas with 66 and Southwestern Oregon and Mt. Hood scored 68 points each with the tiebreaker going to SWOCC. Leah Twombly of Lane won the race in a time of 18:46.
Come out to cheer on the Cougars at the NWAACC Championships hosted by Clark College on Saturday, November 8th. The race will be held at Lewisville Park in Battle Ground, Washington. The men’s race starts at 11am and the women’s at 12pm.
Cougars Prepare For Southern Region Championships at Mike Hodges Invitational
By Ian Schroeder 10/18/08
Results: Men :: Women
Oregon City, OR - The Cougars played host to the fourth annual Mike Hodges Invitational competing against nationally ranked teams from all divisions. The weather was cool and dry, a perfect set-up for good performances.
On the men's side, the team was led by Robert Deguchi (Fr. Las Vegas, NV) in a 4 mile time of 21:27 placing 55th, which put him on pace for a 8k personal record (PR) under 27 minutes. Deguchi ran the 5th fastest time out of the NWAACC schools that participated.
Tom Benson (Fr. Seaside, OR) decided to test himself by going out with Deguchi after several weeks of great training. He finished with a time of 22:03 placing 80th, which put him on pace to run about a 1 minute 8k PR.
Filling out the 3rd and 4th spots was Joel Hale (Fr. Sherwood, OR) placing 96th with a time of 22:39 and Grant Lewis (So. Portland, OR) in 105th with a time of 23:25.
Zach Fund ( Milwaukie, OR) rounded out the top five for the Cougars after Luke Correll (So. Portland, OR) dropped out after two miles into the race because of extreme stomach pain. Luke has typically been running as Clackamas' second runner. Zach has constantly been improving for the Cougars where he was on pace to set another minute PR in the 8k for the third straight race.
The number one-ranked Oregon Ducks perfect scored the meet with 15 points, while the eighth-ranked NAIA school, Southern Oregon, finished second. Andrew Wheating of Oregon, who qualified for the 2008 Beijing Olympics in the 800, won the race in a time of 19:40.
The Lady Cougars had a banner day, averaging 52-second season bests per finisher. The ladies are gaining the experience they need and set themselves up well for the Southern Region Championships October 25th at Clackamas Community College.
The Cougars were led by Tarra Brown (Fr. West Linn, OR) with a 5k time of 20:27 placing 78th. Tarra has been doing a good job of learning from every race and improved her 5k time by 1 minute and 13 seconds.
Finishing after Brown was Katie Olson (Fr. Molalla, OR) who ran a very competitive effort working with Brown for the first half of the race. Katie ran a season best by 1 minute and 12 seconds to place 89th with a time of 20:50 and helped to close the gap between Clackamas' number 2 and 3 girl.
Karly Osten (So. Gladstone, OR), who has been plagued by injuries this season, pushed herself to a personal record of 21:22.
Rounding out the ladies was Crystal Spring (Fr. Milwaukie, OR) who too ran a personal best, running 21:50.
Ashley Braniff (Fr. Hood River, OR) who has been the Cougars number one runner, sat out this race due to illness and Tegan McCarthy (Fr. Milwaukie, OR) dropped out after a mile into the race because of illness.
The NCAA Division I second-ranked University of Oregon Ducks won the race, while the University of Portland placed second. Lindsey Scherf of Oregon won the race in a time of 17:05.
Come watch the Cougars at home again this weekend, October 25th, in their Southern Region Championships hosted by Clackamas. Teams participating will be the community colleges of Clackamas, Clark, Lane, Mt. Hood, and Southwestern Oregon. The men’s 8k will be the first race of the day at 11:00am and the women’s race will be at 12:00pm. [map]
Hodges Invite to feature Nation's best
Ducks, Beavers, Pilots & others will line up at event
The Fourth Annual Mike Hodges Invitational will be held this Saturday, October 18th at Clackamas Community College. The women's race will begin at noon, and the men's race will start at 12:45 PM.
Many top-ranked teams from different divisions will be competing. The number one ranked University of Oregon Ducks men's team will be one of the teams headlining the event. They will also be bringing their number two ranked women's squad. Olympian Galen Rupp is planning on racing a fast time this weekend.
The number four ranked University of Portland will be bringing their men's second squad. Oregon State University's women's squad, who also receive ranking votes, will be competing this Saturday. Southern Oregon University's men's squad, who is currently ranked 8th in nation for NAIA will be lining up this weekend. Willamette University will be competing their 25th ranked men's and 35th ranked women's teams as well.
Cougars take steps in the right direction at WCC Preview
By Keoni McHone
Clackamas competed at the West Coast Conference Preview on Friday, September 12 th at Pier Park in North Portland. The women’s team improved upon their racing tactics compared to the season opener. The pack of Tegan, Katie and Crystal were on perfect pace at the first mile. Tegan stepped it up two-thirds of the way through the 6,000 meter race and began passing runners. She ran the same pace this past weekend than she did in the first race of the season, and the first meet was 1.25 miles shorter.
Robert Deguchi led the men’s team for the second week in a row. Luke Correll ran a smart race after a hard first mile. Joel Hale and Grant Lewis did a great job of teaming up to help each other throughout the race. The men were in a race with nine four-year schools and finished twelfth overall in a race where they easing themselves into the cross country races.
Cougar Athletes of the Meet: Luke Correll, Tegan McCarthy
Cougars open up cross country season
By Keoni McHone
9/8/08
Clackamas Community College started their season with the Whitman Invitational at Walla Walla Park in Walla Walla, WA on September 6 th. The plan was to race conservatively for the first race due to the current training loads, and that is what they did.
The men raced well as a pack through the first two miles intimidating individual runners as they passed them. This kept an adrenaline rush to the Cougar pack throughout the race and sling shot them to the finish. Robert Deguchi (freshman, Las Vegas High School) led the men’s team with a time of 21:25 for 6000 meters. There was only a 41 second gap between the top five team scorers. The team tactics were executed well for the first time racing as a team this year.
The women were a little more spread out due to a spread in fitness levels and experience. Ashley Braniff (freshman, Hood River Valley High School) led the way for the Cougars after a hard first mile and finished the 4000 meter course in 16:00. She finished 25 th out of 75 in a meet where there were seven senior colleges.
The next meet for Clackamas will be the WCC Preview at Pier Park in North Portland, which is hosted by the University of Portland. The women’s race will start at 4:00 PM, and the men’s race will start at 4:45 PM.
Results: Men :: Women
2008 Cross Country Outlook
Men
The men look strong with the addition of Robert Deguchi. His speed and athleticism will help the men on the front end. Luke Correll is coming off a well improved track season, and his ability to pace will be a benefit to the team. Tom Benson, who was one of the top 15 4A 1500 meter runners, will help out the front end as well. Joel Hale peaks well at the end of the season and will look to be there for the team when it counts. Team captain Grant Lewis looks like he had a good summer base of training and well ahead of his training status from last year.
Women
The women’s team looks to see a lot of improvement during the season due to being relatively new to distance running. Ashley Braniff, who looks to be the front runner for the team, has not raced cross country for two years. She is coming off a strong track and field season, so that background should help propel her to a strong cross country season. Team captain Karly Osten looks to be about a minute and a half faster in the 5000 meters compared to last year. Tegan McCarthy looks to be the wildcard for the team. This is her first year of racing, so there will be a large learning curve about the sport. Katie Olson will use her speed to allow her to cover the long distance race in an efficient manner. Crystal Spring’s ability to race smart will help her over the course of the season.
