Preseason Finales

Timp Sports Weekly
March 31, 2009

Publisher's Message

With Region Four games coming this week for northern Utah County teams, this issue will be looking at final non-league baseball and soccer games played by American Fork and Lehi teams. We will also look at a three-way track meet held at Lehi March 24. With that said, let's get to those stories.

Dean Von Memmott
Publisher
deanmemmott@hotmail.com

Lehi Kickers End Preseason Play With Home Win Over Payson
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher

The Lehi Pioneers finished their preseason soccer schedule by a lopsided win their Astroturf football field March 24. Lehi drenched the Payson Lions, AKA the Kitties, in the Saturday afternoon game by a score 5-0.

As former University of Utah Chronicle sportswriter Natalie Dicou would say, Lehi had an easy time wiping their carpet with the Kitties from southern Utah County. Lehi Coach Steve McMurdie said, "Our focus was to concentrate our speed on our attacks. We wanted to be quicker on our attacks. We were that today. We're now going to be preparing PG Tuesday. We'll be playing them in a night game. They're a really good team."

For a little while, Lion goalie Mike Tobler kept Lehi at bay. A successful shot by Spencer Gray sparked the Pioneers' control of the game. The Pioneers didn't rest long on their 1-0. Ryan Curtis kicked in a goal to fuel Lehi's scoring spurt. With Gray putting in another goal shortly before halftime, Payson looked exasperated as not knowing how to keep Lehi from hopping all over it.

Early in the second half, Lehi scored another two goals via shots from Curtis and Ian Ramos. Tobler, aided by sweeper Ben Jones, didn't the Pioneers make any further goals, but the Lions couldn't stage a comeback. Lehi goalie Riley Anderson didn't let a single shot get past him. Payson received its best chance for scoring when the Pioneers drew a foul inside their penalty area late in the second half. Payson's Joe Sosa attempted to score on the ensuing indirect kick, but a wall of Lehi defenders kept the shot from flying over their heads.

Earlier in the week, Lehi suffered a 3-1 loss on the Alta Hawks' home field. McMurdie said, "We had a 1-0 lead until the last 20 minutes of the final half. We then gave up three goals to them. We were pushing for a 2-2 in the last minute when they broke away and scored their final goal."

Two of the goals were made by Alta's Colby Tanner.

AF Cavebatters Win 2 Home Games to Finish Non-Region Baseball Schedule
By Dean Von Memmott
Timps Sports Weekly Publisher

The Awesome American Fork Cavemen finished their preseason baseball schedule with two straight wins at home last week. They are now going to be doing mainly Region Four games through all of April.

In March 24 action, American Fork defeated the highly ranked Cottonwood Colts 13-5. To defeat those ponies from Salt Lake County, they got Josh "The Hanger" Mooney to hit two doubles and Ben Beddes one double. Through getting those three doubles, the Cavemen never looked back.

For the March 27 game against the Northridge Knights, alias the Iron Studs, American Fork took firm control in the first inning.

On two outs in the top of it, Gavin Farr and Chris Abbot got on base via walks. When Mikey Goodrich hit a center-field single to load the bases, Northridge seemed certain of pulling off a two-out rally. It didn't happen, however, for No. 6 batter Dakota Combe struck out.

In the bottom of the inning, Cavemen Jake Miller and Stu Duersch got on base via a walk and a single respectively. One-run singles from Mooney, Beddes. Bo Fisher sparked a five-run rally for the Cavemen. They picked up a run in the second.

Aided by Dominique Taylor's home run, Northridge attempted a comeback. The Knights score a run in the third, three runs in the fourth, and a fifth run in the fourth. American Fork kept Northridge at a distance through picking up a run in the second, one in the third, one in the fifth, and one in sixth.

During the contest, Mooney hit a double while Ryan Evans devastated Northridge with a triple.

LP KNIGHTS WIN TRI-MEET AT LEHI
By Dean Von Memmott
Sports Correspondent

Often referred by American Fork High students as the Loners, the Lone Peak Knights won both sides of a three-way track meet at Lehi March 24. The meet's boy scores read Lone Peak 73, Lehi 54, and American Fork 39. The girls' team scores read Lone Peak 75, American Fork 55, and Lehi 26.

Angie Kaplar opened Lone Peak's domination of the meet with her winning the girls' 100-meter hurdles in a time of 15.22. Knight Spencer Carter won the boys' 110-meter hurdles in 16.4 and boys' 300-meter hurdles in 44.08.

The Knights swept both divisions of the 100-meter dash. Elana Hanssen won it in 15.12. Knight Quade Chappuis' winning time in the boys' version of that event was 11.20. Defeating American Fork's Clayton Young by four-tenths of a second, Lone Peak's Steve Morrin won the boys' 1,600-meter run title in a time of 4:46, and he finished seventh in the boys' 3,200-meter run. Taryn Toolson won the girls' 400- and 200-meter races.

Megan Smith leaped her way to a first-place finish with a mark of 15'04" in the long jump. Knight Cami Richin flung herself to a high jump championship with a 4'10". Knight Eric Turbiville won the boys' javelin with a throw of 133'8"

The Knights won three of the meet's six relays.

The other two schools produced their share of champions during the cold, windy afternoon.
By winning the girls' 1,600-meter run, Alexis Laws opened the way for an American Fork sweep of that event's first four places. Among the other Awesome Cavewomen to place in the top four of the girls' 1,600-meter race, Jamie Lux took second, Lakin Lux third, and McCall Harward fourth. American Fork also swept the first three places of the girls' 800-meter run. During it, Laws took first, Harward second, and Dani West third. Young won the boys' 800-meter run.

In the boys' 3,200-meter race, American Forkers Caveman Robby Lee finished first and Brian Vawdrey second.

Cavewoman Melissa Roberts won the girls' discus with a toss of 97'1" while teammate Hanna Dehmel posted 85'8" to win first place in the girls' javelin.

Kristy Warren won the girls' 300-meter hurdles after having finished third in the girls' 100-meter hurdles.

Lehi's Amber Rice won the girls' 3,200-meter run. The boys' 200-meter champion turned out to be Pioneer Jake Brydson in a time of 23.22. Lehi won the boys' 1,600-meter relay in a time of 3:43. Though the Knights' dominated the boys' 400-meter run, Pioneer Preston Yardley won it in a time of 54.28.

The Pioneers dominated the boys' field events. Pioneer Jesse Tyson won the boys' high jump, Dave Thompson the boys' discus, and Jose Galindo the shot put.

Lady Cavebatters End Preseason Softball Schedule With Shutout Loss to Brighton's Bad Ol' Puddy Tats
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher

The Brighton Bengals deserve to be called the Bad Ol' Puddy Tats for good reason. In a March 24 game at American Fork, they ripped apart the Awesome Cavewomen 12-0 in five innings.

"We played one of the worst games last Tuesday," confessed American Fork Coach Duke Sorensen. "We made lots of errors, and we couldn't make any good hits. Brighton had an inning where they made lots of hits. That inning did us in."

American Fork led Brighton 6-3 in errors during the March 24 game.

The inning in question was the third one. Spurred on by two Shelbi Everett doubles, the Bengals scored seven runs to put the game away. Until that inning the score read 3-0. After the third inning, Brighton never looked back. Umpires called the game after the fifth inning.

American Fork opens Region Four play at home against Pleasant Grove March 31, then play a make-up game at Lehi April 1.

Lehi Suffers Stinging Loss at Wasatch
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher

The Lehi Pioneers suffered a stinging loss on the Wasatch Wasps' Heber City diamond March 24. Wasatch's Cody Ramond hit in four runs to enable the Wasps to win 10-8 over Lehi. Ed Day smacked a double and a triple for the Pioneers for the heartbreaking defeat.