Region Four Meet 2016

Timp Sports Weekly

February 1. 2016

Publisher's Message

For this week's issue, our cover story will be the Region Four swim meet, held Jan. 30 at the South Davis Recreation Center in Bountiful. We will also look at the Ferocious Pleasant Grove Vikings' wins over the Lehi Pioneers, AKA the Froggies, in boys and girls' basketball action. We will also see how the Herriman Mustangs, AKA the Pretty Ponies, dried up the Froggies in a girls' basketball game at Lehi Jan. 24. As they say in Lehi, let's stroke straight to those stories.

Dean Von Memmott

Publisher

Lone Peak Loners, Westlake Shockers Have Heyday in Winning Gold Medals at Region 4 Swim Meet

By Dean Von Memmott

Timp Sports Weekly Publisher

The Lone Peak Knights, AKA the Loners, and the Westlake Thunder, AKA the Shockers, had a heyday at winning gold medals at the Region Four swim meet, held Jan. 24 at Bountiful's South Davis Recreation Center.

The Loners' girls 200-yard medley relay team won the first gold medal. A third member of that team, Kenzie Chelser said, "We really want to put extra effort into our event." Chesler herself went on to win the girls' 200-yard individual medley. She said, "I cut my time down by two seconds in my race."

The Loners also won the boys' 200-yard medley relay. The anchor for that team, Nicky Mortensen said, "We had the region title nailed down when our backstroker, Josh Reis, did his turn in the event. He cut down his time by a few seconds to ensure that we would win the event. We all went our fastest times in our race."

"I was so pumped in my winning the girls' 200 free," said Natalie Davis of Lone Peak. "I posted a new personal best in the race."

Loner Bryant "Hai" Kirrattti won the boys' 200-yard freestyle. He said, "I was seeded third for the 200 free. It feels so good to finish first in it."

Loner Spencer "Ya Who Mountain" Dew won the boys' 200-yard individual medley. He said, "I'm so stoked in having posted by best time in my race today. My win got me seeded first at state."

Shockers Kenzie Ford and Kim Petersen interrupted the string of Loner wins at the region meet. Both Shockers won first-place medals in the girls and boys' versions of the 50-yard and 100-yard freestyles. In receiving the girls' championship medal, Ford said, "With today being my best time in the 50, I dropped my time by 1 1/2 seconds. I prepped for my race by focusing on my efforts and staying calm in the high stress situation found at region meets."

"I didn't focus on the other swimmers in my heat," Petersen said. "I focused strictly on how I would do. Jimmy Dock gave me strong competition in the 100 free. That made me want to perform better. That's why I won it, thanks to Jimmy."

Awesome Cavewomen McKenna King won the girls' 100-yard butterfly. She said, "I took my time off by 1 1/2 seconds. I didn't know until I hit the wall for the final time that I had won my race. I took region in the 100-yard butterfly twice in the last four years. This is the third time I've won it. I took third in it at one region meet." King also took second in the girls' 200-yard freestyle.

Westlake won the boys and girls' 200-yard freestyle relays. 

Lehi Coach Dennis Meyring said, "We had great improvements among our swimmers."

Pleasant Grove Coach Lisa Harris said, "I thought our kids had posted some really good times. We're going to have several kids represent us at state."

January 2016 Region 4 Sports Events

Timp Sports Weekly

January 26, 2016

Publisher's Message

Now that I have gotten the distractions of the past Christmas season behind me, I am now back to focusing on the northern Utah County sports scene. What a month January 2016 has turned out to be. For one, it's turning out to be a great period for the Ferocious Pleasant Grove Vikings' girls basketball team. Also, the Lehi wrestling team stayed undefeated at home. Also, the Awesome American Fork Cavewomen have become highly ranked in girls' basketball. On the disappointing side, my Awesome American Fork Cavemen got washed in a humiliating loss to the Lehi Pioneers, AKA the Froggies, in the boys' basketball recently. I know those Webfooters are going to croaking about their one-point win at home over my Awesome Cavemen. That game will be one of our top stories for this week's issue. We will also look at the Awesome Cavewomen drying up the Froggies in a girls' basketball game, the Ferocious Vikings' second-place finish at the Rocky Mountain Rumble, Lehi's win over the Bingham Pickers' wrestling team, and Ferocious Viking girls' hoops. Let's get to those stories.

Dean Von Memmott

Publisher

magnanovelist@gmail.com

Awesome AF Cavewomen Drain Lehi Froggies 83-31 in Girls' Hoop Jan. 21

By Dean Von Memmott

Timp Sports Weekly Publisher

The Awesome American Fork Cavewomen demonstrated in a Jan. 21 Region Four game at home Jan. 21 why they had earned recognition as one of the top 10 overall girls' basketball teams in Utah. On the Jan. 21 game, they drained the Lehi Pioneers, AKA the Froggies, 83-31.

Led by Shire Stephenson and Taylor Moaeki, the Awesome Cavewomen outscored the Froggies 22-3 in the first quarter.

In the second quarter, Bryanna Raff was the only Froggie that the Awesome Cavewomen couldn't hold  scoreless. She scored all six of the Froggies' second-quarter points while teammates Allie Butterfield and Cassidy Johnson battled Awesome Cavewomen Taylor Franson, Savanna Stephenson, and Jenna Shepherd for rebounds. Johnson managed to pull down some defensive boards for the Froggies.

Meanwhile, Shire and Moaeki continued racking up points for the Awesome Cavewomen. Three-pointers hit by Shire electrified Awesome Cavewoman fans. Shire racked up four treys during the course of the game. By halftime, American Fork commanded 41-9 lead.

In the second half, Raff did most of the Froggies' scoring from the floor while Johnson, Makenna Fano, Johnson, and Sarah Schlappi, a niece of former Mountain View Teddy Bear basketball legend Julie Schlappi, tossed in occasional charity shots. Raff finished the night as the Froggies' top scorer with 17 points.

Raff led a fourth-quarter rally for the Froggies. They were so far behind by then, though, that their comeback didn't scare American Fork any. Still, Lehi outscored the Awesome Cavewomen 15-14 in the quarter, which did get physical at times. American Fork's Sydney Bishop had some ferocious battles with Raff and Johnson on the boards in the final quarter. Also, Cavewomen Addy Holmstead fouled out at 2:12 while teammate Jenna Shepherd suffered a foot injury that kept her out of action for the rest of night.

Shire Stephenson led American Fork with 19 points while Moaeki added another 18.

American Fork Coach Corey Clayton said/, "We've been playing about 13-14 players a game. So it wasn't unusual that we played our whole bench tonight. Taylor Franson rebounded really fiercely in the first half. Sydney Bishop kept the boards in our control in the final quarter. We also had a lot of great offensive rebounds, thanks to Franson and Bishop."

Two Last-Second Free Throws Send Lehi Froggies Leaping Past Awesome AF Cavemen in Stunning 5-A Boys' Basketball Thriller Jan. 22
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher

Played at Lehi on Jan. 22, the Awesome American Fork Caveman-Lehi Pioneer boys' basketball game went down as one of the most riveting -- correction, ribbiting Region Four contests in recent memory. Two last-second foul shots sent the Pioneers, AKA the Froggies, leaping past my Awesome Cavemen 81-79.

Froggie Blaze "Raise Da Roof" Nield hit the two game-wining shots right after a Braden Condie trey had put the Awesome Cavemen ahead 79-78. Just right after that three-pointer, the Froggies called time out at 0:2.1. In the time-out, the Froggies mapped out strategy for a full-court play that was to end with Nield hitting a long shot. Awesome Caveman Isaac Johnson fouled Nield as the Froggie was about to shoot a long shot inside the perimeter semicircle. With 0:00.1 on the clock, Nield went to the line and hit both of his foul shots.

Right after the game, a large crowd of Lehi students gathered around Nield, and with their webbed hands, they lifted him into the air as they congratulated him for those two foul shots.

Nield told me soon afterwards, "I'm an 80-percent foul shooter. So when I went to the line at the end of the game, I cleared thoughts of the fans out of my mind and kept it on my foul shooting. That's how I held under the stress of that moment."

His teammate Marcus Draney said, "Our defense really stepped it up, especially in the second half."

As much as longtime AF fans like me hate to admit it, those Froggies really wanted to take the Awesome Cavemen down after the Lone Peak Loners had dried up Lehi 100-66 three nights before.

The game opened with Condie hit a trey to put the Awesome Cavemen ahead first. For a while, American Fork had much to grunt about. The Awesome Cavemen secured leads of 5-2 and 8-5, though a Tanner Nygren trey tied the game at five. Once Draney tied the game at eight, Nield hit a three-pointer, the Froggies went on a long scoring run that gave their fans hopes that Lehi would flood American Fork out of the gym. Nygren, Nield, Draney, and Ethan Tuckett pumped in shots that created a 22-12 lead in the first quarter. Johnson trimmed it to 22-14 just before the first quarter break.

Treys by Draney and Nield gave Lehi the momentum to create a double-digit lead in the second quarter. A "distant cousin" of rock legend Chuck Berry, Chase Berry contributed field goals that enabled Lehi to lead by as far as 38-20. A "distant cousin" of comic strip character Beetle Bailey, Braden Bailey hit a trey that sparked a comeback for the Awesome Cavemen. Paced bySpencer  Johnson's three-point plays, American Fork battled back to within 46-42 before halftime. The Froggies would never get another double-digit lead in the game again.

Draney, Nield, and Nygren made sure that Lehi stayed ahead most of the third period even though Awesome Cavemen Benny Judd, Dallin Hucks, and Bailey battled them fiercely on the board. Condie came up with some steals for American Fork as Issac Johnson pulled down some offensive rebounds for the Awesome Cavemen. Finally, on an inbounds pass, Bailey put American Fork 59-58. A Nield trey put Lehi ahead 61-59. Awesome Cavemen Jacob Whitehead tied the game at 61.

A Nield trey broke the tie in the fourth quarter's opening seconds. Lehi stayed narrowly ahead for most of the fourth quarter. A Jensen Hawkins three-pointer improved Lehi's lead at 71-67, but aided by two Isaac Johnson foul shots, Spencer Johnson tied the game at 71. Draney broke the 71-71 tie and created a 77-73 lead. A Judd trey cut it to 77-76. Soon afterwards, Condie hit the three-pointer that American Fork fans hoped would be the game-winner. Nield's two last-second shots turned out to be the game winner, though.

Lehi Coach Shawn Yagger said, "We lucked out tonight."

Nield led the Froggies with 31 points while Draney and Nygren each added another 11. Spencer Johnson led the Awesome Cavemen with 26 points while Bailey added antoehr 17, Isaac Johnson 16, and Judd 11.