Warriors split dual meet at Arcata  

The Del Norte High wrestling team split a dual meet competition against Arcata High and Hoopa Valley High Tuesday at Arcata High School.

The Warriors lost to the Tigers, 51-42, but defeated the Hoopa Warriors, 60-39. 

“I was disappointed by our performance against Arcata,” Del Norte head coach Aaron Schaad said. “We were lucky to get by Hoopa.”

The Warriors travel to a tournament at Eureka High School on Saturday at 9 a.m. Upwards of 10 teams are expected to compete in the tournament.

DNLL sign-ups to be held Sat.

Registration for Del Norte Little League will take place on Jan. 19 and Jan. 26 at the Mary Peacock School Library from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Boys ages 4–12 and girls ages 4–16 are welcome to participate in baseball and softball.

Warriors suffer three defeats in four duals at against Ore. schools 

Del Norte High wrestler Robert Boulby, in navy singlet, and the Warriors won one dual and lost three at the Crater Classic wrestling tournament, held Saturday in Central Point, Ore. Del Norte Triplicate / Bryant Anderson

The Warriors competed in four scored dual meets at Saturday’s Crater Classic in Central Point, Ore. With 10 teams in attendance, Del Norte was assigned four opponents, three school teams and one combined team.

The Warriors went 1-3 for the tournament.

“We kind of took a step backward this weekend,” Del Norte assistant coach Clint Schaad said.

Complicating matters was the forfeiture of the 120-pound, 138-pound and heavyweight (285-pound) weight classes. The Warriors lost three wrestlers to illness prior to the Crater Classic, and another two wrestlers left the team. Another wrestler weighed in over his limit, forcing lineup adjustments.

“We were shorthanded due to kids getting sick, kids missing weight, kids quitting,” Schaad said. “We don’t have a lot of depth. (Forfeiting matches) definitely hurts.”

Del Norte drew Crater High of Central Point, the tournament host, for its first match. The Comets, who finished third in Oregon’s Class 6A (largest schools) state meet in 2012, defeated the Warriors, 76-6.

Up next: Grants Pass High, a familiar squad that Schaad characterized as strong across all levels. The Warriors dropped that dual as well. (The score was unavailable at press time.)

Tsunami Sirens open season Feb. 2 

Roller Derby is back in season in Crescent City.

The Tsunami Sirens kick off their third season of competition with a Feb. 2 bout against the Southern Oregon Roller Girls of Medford at the Del Norte County Fairgrounds main building. Doors open at 5:30 p.m., with the bout beginning at 6:30 p.m.

The Sirens defeated SORG in Medford, 130-86, last season as they racked up a 4-3 overall record.

Tickets cost $15 and may be purchased at: Del Norte Office Supply, 240 I Street, Crescent City; Hot Rollers Salon, 700 Northcrest Drive, Crescent City; Main Street Skate, 656 Chetco Avenue, Brookings; and online at www.brownpapertickets.com.

For more information on the Sirens and roller derby, visit www.northcoast
rollerderby.com.

Consider a hypothetical scenario: Del Norte Little League fields an 11–12 All-Star team for softball. It’s a very good team, and Del Norte makes it all the way to the Western Regional Tournament. At that tournament, the young Warriors represent ... Oregon.

That scenario could become a reality for Del Norte Little League next season. In a vote on Dec. 17, members of the DNLL Board of Directors voted to remove the league from California District 26, which includes organizations in Humboldt and Trinity counties, and join another Little League district.

“We have permission from (the Little League Western Regional office),” Del Norte Little League president Travis Stover said. “All we’re waiting on now is signatures from all the presidents within our district, signatures of approval. I don’t anticipate anybody saying no.”

The other leagues within District 26 are: Arcata, Blue Lake-Fieldbrook, Eel River (Fortuna), Eureka, Klamath-Trinity (Hoopa), McKinleyville, Redwood Empire (Eureka) and Southern Humboldt (Garberville). 

District 26 secretary Kathy Moody has helped Del Norte collect signatures of league presidents to approve the split; according to Stover, only the president of Klamath-Trinity Little League has not signed the petition.

Once the divorce is final, Stover said that DNLL will request approval to join Oregon District 8, which includes Brookings-Harbor, Central Point, Challenger (Cave Junction), Gold Beach, Grants Pass American, Grants Pass National, Illinois Valley (Cave Junction), Medford National and Rogue River. 

The move must be formally approved by Little League’s Western Region office in San Bernardino and the national office in Williamsport, Pa. (Western Region Director Jim Gerstenslager, the primary contact for DNLL during this transition, did not respond to an e-mail requesting comment.)

At the crux of the matter is softball. The nine members of California District 26 voted this fall to separate their softball programs from Little League Baseball. Softball in the nine leagues will now be played under the banner of the Amateur Softball Association of America (ASA), which bills itself as the national governing body of softball.

Girls who play softball in District 26 have also played on ASA-sanctioned travel teams that compete in tournaments across the state and the West Coast. The nine members of District 26 have merged their Little League softball programs into an entity called Humboldt Fastpitch, an ASA-affiliated umbrella organization for recreational softball (what is presently offered by Little League) and travel softball. Humboldt Fastpitch President Kelly Helms and Vice President Nick Hetrick did not respond to an e-mail requesting comment.

Members of the Lost Coast Legacy Stunt Squads of Klamath hold up a first-place trophy won at the Southern Oregon Cheer Classic on Jan. 5. Courtesy of Carlene Lacy

The Klamath organization, which started up in February 2012, sent four teams of 38 individuals, some of whom competed with more than one team, to the 3rd Annual Southern Oregon Cheer Classic in Eagle Point, Ore.

All four teams — Tiny (ages 5 and younger), Mini (ages 8 and younger), Junior (ages 14 and younger) and Senior (ages 14 and above) — won first place in their respective divisions at the event. Twenty-two cheer organizations were represented at the competition.

Three individuals, Jolea Gregorio, Jayce Bachmann and Venice Going, also competed in individual cheering events for their age divisions. All three girls won first place.

Lost Coast Legacy also took home the competition’s Sportsmanship Award.

Members of the Tiny team include Ava Barrett, Sarah Barrett, Tatum Diaz, Aliyah Green, Brylynn Walker, Bella Williams, Katelynn Ball and Jillian Young.

Members of the Mini team include Tegan Diaz, Charles Going, Venice Going, Trinity Kawate, Calah King, Jayden Lacy, Isabel Mejia, Kylie Re, Emma Salas, Lucy Schaub, Zaid Titus, Charleston Tygart, Olivia Whitaker and Hailey Green.

Members of the junior team include Shania Anderson, Jayce Bachmann, Mackenzie Barrett-Cox, Tegan Diaz, Venice Going, Samantha Green, Selena Green, Jolea Gregorio, Trinity Kawate, Kiersten Kime, Calah King, Kierstin Lopez, Natasha Lopez, Grace Mayes, Isabel Mejia, Cadence Salas, Taylor White, Jaclynn Young and Lauren Espey.

Members of the Senior team include Mackenzie Barrett-Cox, Jolea Gregorio, Shaylee Travis and Kelsey White.

Lost Coast Legacy is based out of Lost Coast Gym in Klamath, which is owned by Wendy Going and Danielle Robertson.

Lost Coast Legacy’s next event is the Emerald Classic Cheer Competition in Springfield, Ore., to be held on Jan. 26.

Del Norte High freshman Regin Loftin scored eight points as the Warriors lost to Eureka High, 46-42, on Tuesday night. Del Norte Triplicate / Bryant Anderson

Case in point: The Del Norte High girls basketball team had three second-chance opportunities through three quarters against Humboldt-Del Norte Big 5 League opponent Eureka High — and trailed, 38-29, entering the fourth quarter.

The Warriors attempted to mount a comeback in the fourth quarter, but the Loggers’ zone defense held Del Norte at bay in a 46-42 Eureka victory Tuesday night at Del Norte High School.

“When they went to their zone at the end of the second half — it’s hard when your guard play throws the ball away,” Warriors head coach Mike Ernest said.

Del Norte’s (8-7 overall, 0-2 HDN Big 5) offense came in fits and spurts throughout. The Warriors opened the first 3:42 of the game without a point but finished off the first quarter with four straight baskets and a 13-11 lead. Del Norte cooled in the last five minutes of the second quarter, scoring two points as Eureka gained a 20-19 halftime lead.

The Loggers blazed out of the halftime locker room on the backs of guards Gloriana Moua and Brittany Glavich. Each player hit a pair of three-pointers as Eureka made eight of its 14 field-goal attempts in the period.

Warriors senior Brittany Maready caught fire early in the fourth quarter, scoring seven of her team-high 12 points in the period. Junior guard Panhia Yang cut a seven-point Loggers lead to four with a basket-and-the-foul with 3:02 remaining in the game.

“Panhia did a good job coming in,” Ernest said. “She was most effective at driving to the basket. We need more of that.”

A Maready jumper with 2:28 remaining put the Warriors within a possession of a tie or a lead, but Glavich came through again with a three-pointer. (She finished the game with 10 points, all in the second half.) Trailing 45-40 with two minutes remaining, Del Norte struggled against the Loggers’ zone defense as the game wound down.

Moua led Eureka with 11 points, and Emma Card scored 11 points for the Warriors.

Del Norte was assessed a procedural technical foul with 3:11 remaining in the first quarter. Ernest substituted senior wing Samantha Swinger into the game, but she was not listed in the official scorebook as an eligible player. The Loggers made one of the two free throws.

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Emma Winter, of Independence, Ore., holds a 21-pound hatchery steelhead, the first of her life, she caught Jan. 5 while fishing the Chetco River with her father, Orie. Courtesy of Andy Martin / Wild Rivers Fishing

Chetco River

So far, 2013 has been the year of the Chetco for local rivers, as the waterway has maintained perfect levels for driftboating for steelhead since New Year’s Day. 

Referring to the first week of the year, guide Tony Sepulveda of Green Water Fishing Adventures wrote in his fishing report: “The beginning of the week saw some huge scores posted and now it’s settled into good, steady fishing for slab chromers fresh out of the salt. Side-drifting a fish pill with a tiny piece of roe tied to light fluorocarbon leaders has been the key to success.”

Although rain Wednesday and today are predicted to push up the Chetco out of drift boat levels and into plunking territory, the river is predicted to drop back below 3,800 cfs by Friday evening.

Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing said there are steelhead spread out throughout the river, and conditions should be perfect through the weekend with recent rains. Slow days have still bagged two steelies a day; Martin’s best day so far was Tuesday with seven steelhead.

Emma Winter, of Independence, Ore., caught a 21-pound hatchery steelhead — the first of her life — on Jan. 5 on the Chetco with Martin.

Smith River

As the river has dropped, so has fishing pressure, although a few steelhead are being caught here and there.

In the past week, the Smith slowly dropped from around 3,500 cfs to 2,500 cfs on the Jed Smith gauge, before Tuesday and Wednesday rain kicked in more water, color and hopefully steelhead, guides said.  The river was predicted to peak around 8,000 cfs from 11 p.m. Wednesday to 4 a.m. today. 

The river was predicted to turn to a drop around 5 a.m. this morning, meaning that today could be a prime steelhead day.

Fishing guide contacts: Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing at 541-813-1082; Tony Sepulveda of Green Water Fishing Adventures at 707-845-9588.

Reach Adam Spencer at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Del Norte L.L. sign-ups on tap

Registration for Del Norte Little League will take place on Jan. 12, Jan. 19, and Jan. 26 at the Mary Peacock School Library from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Boys ages 4–12 and girls ages 4–16 are welcome to participate in baseball and softball. 

Parents must bring their child’s birth certificate and three documents dictating proof of residency dating from February 2012.

Registration forms may be obtained at the DNLL website, www.delnortell.com.

DN JV, freshmen win games 

Del Norte High sophomore Grace Bruschi scored 20 points and sophomore Kayla Costello recorded a double-double (14 points, 16 rebounds) to pace the Warriors over Eureka High, 48-36, in Tuesday night’s junior varsity girls basketball game at Del Norte High School.

It was a welcome turnaround for Del Norte (7-3 overall, 1-1 HDN Big 5) after losing to McKinleyville, 53-34, on Jan. 3. The Warriors were outscored 24-1 by the Panthers in the first half.

In the freshman game, Del Norte parlayed an 11-2 first-quarter advantage into a 26-21 victory over Eureka. The Warriors are now 1-1 in HDN Big 5 play (4-4 overall) after a 31-22 loss to McKinleyville on Jan. 3.

Del Norte High forward Sean DeArman’s layup with 1:12 remaining capped off a 15-point comeback against Eureka High as the Warriors defeated the Loggers, 42-39, on Wednesday night at Eureka High School.

Steven Maready had a game-high 14 points — 13 in the second half — as Del Norte notched its first Humboldt-Del Norte Big 5 League win of the season (6-7 overall, 1-1 HDN Big 5). Maready hit a three-point basket with 3:40 remaining to give Del Norte a 36-35 lead, the Warriors’ first lead since 5-2 early in the first quarter.

Eureka (5-8 overall, 0-1 HDN Big 5) finished the first quarter on an 11-0 run and extended its lead to 23-12 at halftime. Loggers forward Nathan Madsen opened the third quarter with back-to-back baskets, extending the lead to 27-12.

Del Norte chipped away at the lead over time behind the efforts of Maready and Dylan Pease, who scored a season-high 11 points.

In its biggest test of the season to date, Del Norte High wrestling showed that its wrestlers can compete with some of the best in three states.

The Warriors finished 21st out of 55 teams from across California, Oregon and Nevada at the NorCal ‘Beast of the North’ Tournament in Anderson on Jan. 5–6.

The 12 Del Norte wrestlers competing combined to score 73 points, 1.5 behind 20th-place Shasta High. Elk Grove High was the tournament champion with 232.5 points.

“I was pleased,” Warriors coach Aaron Schaad said. “There was a lot of improvement. We got through Christmas Break and New Year’s (Eve) and had a good week of practice. Most of the kids are in really good shape.”

Junior Robert Boulby had the best weekend of any Warriors wrestler, claiming fourth place in the 138-pound weight class. 

His big second day included a 50-second pin of Blake Nauman of Spanish Springs High (Sparks, Nev.), a Nevada state runner-up in 2012, in the consolation semifinals.

“It was a big event, a feel-good moment,” Schaad said. “He was on a roll, doing good things.”

Boulby held his own early in the third-place match against Davis Hallberg of Elk Grove High, according to Schaad, but Hallberg pinned Boulby after 3 minutes and 22 seconds in the second round. Boulby went 6-2 for the tournament.

Evans, a junior wrestling at 145 pounds, clinched a placement with a 45-second pin on Preston Wallers of Shasta High. Evans pulled a muscle during the match, however, and forfeited the next match to finish in eighth place (3-3).

Cristian Puente (heavyweight) and David Plechaty (195 pounds) each went 3-2 in advancing to the second day of tournament action. Hawk Mattz (152 pounds) also advanced to the second day, going 2-2.

“A lot of kids, that was just their goal — that’s how tough this tournament is,” Schaad said. 

Eric Turner (171 pounds),   and Skiler Haddad (126) each went 2-2 during the tournament’s first day. Nicole Mattz (113 pounds), Justin Schrader (120), Kaleb Hurley (132), Robin Pearce (160) and Wade Mayes (220) also competed for the Warriors.