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Show i1W Thursday, October 18, 2007 AMERICAN FORK CITIZEN prep COMMUNITY SPORTS, PEOPLE AN p- OUTDOOR FUN Ariel Levao Amvrkun Fork High School Plenty on the line as playoffs near Beky Beaton NORTH COUNTY It's down-to-the-wire time for fall team sports. While the state soccer titles will be decided on Saturday, with a north county team in contention for both of the 5A and 4A crowns, state seeding for football hangs in the balance bal-ance with this week's contests and volleyball teams are also jockeying for position as they enter the final week of the regular season. In Region 4 football, only Lehi has been eliminated from the playoff chase, but' they could keep Spanish Fork from going and end the season on a positive note with a victory Thursday. If Spanish Fork wins and Lone Peak loses, those teams will be tied for fourth place and will have to decide the final fi-nal region berth with a play-in game on Tuesday. If American Fork loses and Lone Peak wins, the teams tie for second with identical records, re-cords, but the Cavemen would get the second seed because AF boys take Jared Lloyd and Beky Beaton NORTH COUNTY The American Fork boys cross country team lost the battle but won the war Oct. 10 at Scera Park. Heading around the final fi-nal loop in the Region 4 boys cross country race, Timpanogos senior Mike Bills thought he might be heading for a second-place finish. Caveman senior Ben Felix had created a gap between them that appeared nearly impossible im-possible to overcome. But as they headed into the final 100 yards of the three- ' mile race, Bills saw that Felix wasn't quite as far in front of him as he had thought. With a stunning surge to the finish line, Bills and Felix dueled until the final step, when the Timberwolf senior crossed just in front of the diving Felix to earn first -place honors in a time of 15:07.3, just .4 seconds in front. While Felix just missed on finishing first, he could take some consolation in the dominant domi-nant performance his team put together, rolling to the region title by 33 points over second-place Timpanogos. The Cavemen took five of the top seven spots with just 24.3 seconds separating Felix from the fifth-place runner, an astounding accomplishment. accomplish-ment. "This had been our goal ever since the end of May," said American Fork head coach Timo Mostert. "I'm proud of the boys and the work they've put in over the last four months. Now I just hope they can keep it going for the next week (at state)." Robby Lee was the next man in after Felix, finishing third at 15:20.2. He was followed fol-lowed by Ryan Bradshaw in fourth at 15:26.6, Evan Melville sixth at 15:30.7 and Shawn Crane seventh at 15:32.0. Even the team's sixth runner, run-ner, Spencer Craft, didn't do too badly, coming in 14th at 15:59.2 in the field of 42. Josh Stewart finished less than a minute behind him. On the girls side, the Timberwolves Tim-berwolves just edged the Cavemen by six points, 4248. Timpanogos junior Brooke Hodson pulled away from the field midway through the race and never looked back, finishing in a time of 17:14.5. American Fork's Alexis Laws was second at 17:56.4, followed by Danielle West in sixth at 18:12.3. Arista Sommers was 11th at 18:37.1, Kaovae Belt was 14th at 18:51.8 and McCall Harward was 15th at 18:52.3. Not too far behind were Amy Riddle at 19:36.2 and rcrwafci they won the head-to-head meeting. If American Fork beats Pleasant Grove, they will share the region title but the Cavemen should get the top seed for winning this game. There are three games remaining in the volleyball season and no team has been mathematically eliminated from the playoffs yet, although al-though winless Spanish Fork has a tough hill to climb to get there. Lone Peak has not lost a game in region play this season sea-son and the Knights (7-0) are two matches up on everyone else so they are in good position posi-tion to win the region title, but they finish the year playing Pleasant Grove, American Fork and Lehi, who are the most likely entrants for the other playoff berths. An upset by any of those teams would help its own po H4T r i five of seven top spots to win . . . , Though American Fork s Ben Felix just missed winning the individual title, he led the Cavemen boys American Fork runners that finished in the top seven spots. ' This had been our goal ever since the end of May. I'm proud of the boys and the work they've put in over the last four months. Now I just hope they can keep it going for the next week (at state)." Timo Mostert AMERICAN FORK CROSS COUNTRY Shaylynn Baugh at 19:50.0 to round out the group. This squad has also won several meets this season and sition and create some other scenarios, but each of them must also guard against being upset by the teams they expect ex-pect to beat. American Fork and Pleasant Pleas-ant Grove are tied for second right now at 5-2. The teams split their region matches but the Vikings have the easier schedule the rest of the way, so that will be a battle to watch. Lehi is better than their 34 record looks and will get a chance to prove it in the state tournament if they can win at least one of their remaining three matches to secure the fourth seed. Here's a look at what's on tap for the next week. Thursday, October 18 VOLLEYBALL I American Fork at Lehi (6:30 p.m.): The first match between these two went four games with none being decided by more than five points. Expect another barn-burner with playoff implications for both squads. '.V I ; ' . y : :' ':v: Pi4' ' ' y V ' v , . : I COACH had an impressive spread of 55.9 seconds as well. Both teams figured to do well at yesterday's state Lone Peak at Pleasant Grove (6:30 p.m.): The Knights will all but assure themselves of a region title with a victory vic-tory in this contest, while the Vikings would like to make a statement with the upset and solidify their hold on second place.- FOOTBALL I Spanish Fork at Lehi (7 p.m.): The Pioneers would love to play the spoiler and say something some-thing about the direction of their program as they wrap up the year. Friday, October 19 FOOTBALL I Pleasant Grove at American Fork (7 p.m.): This game will determine the region title. The Vikings (4-0, 7-2) can win it outright or be forced to share with the homestand-ing homestand-ing Cavemen (3-1, 6-3) and drop to the second seed with a loss, though they have lpd the region all season and enjoy a top-five ranking. ft Timpanogos at Lone Peak (7 p.m.): The Knights (2-2, 2-7) Region 4 title; meet. Results were not available avail-able at press time, but will be in next week's issue. In the junior varsity races. or the Timberwolves (2-2, 44) will assure themselves of a playoff berth and a probable third seed with a victory here, while the loser faces a probable prob-able play-in game. Saturday, October 20 SOCCER I Lone Peak vs. Alta at Juan Diego (noon): The Hawks (17-2) have sailed through the tournament and will be the prohibitive favorite in this contest, but the Knights ( 17-2) 17-2) will show up and have the ability to surprise. Tuesday, October 23 VOLLEYBALL ft American Fork at Lone Peak (6:30 p.m.): The Cavemen would like to build some momentum mo-mentum for the playoffs with an upset here. ft Pleasant Grove at Timpanogos (6:30 p.m.), Lehi at Spanish Fork (6:30 p.m.): The visiting teams need to hold serve to maintain their spots in the standings. AF girls finish FILENorth County to a Region 4 crown, lie finished in second place to lead five ' K,u,LUU,ve the Cavemen blew away the competition in both divisions, an encouraging sign for the future of the program. The boys took five of the top 10 places to beat Spanish Fork 29-54, while the girls earned five of the top six spots to post a 17 to 49 for second-place Timpanogos. For the boys, Brady Pulsipher Pul-sipher led the effort, coming in second at 16:36.0. Adam Thomas was fourth, Corey Jackson sixth, Holton Shunn seventh and Kevin Judd 10th for a spread time of 45.3 seconds. sec-onds. Also competing for American Ameri-can Fork were Brian Vaw- Parents: Helen and Tino Levao Year: Senior Sport: Volleyball Position: Middle blocker Favorite sports team: BYU women's volleyball Favorite food: Polynesian Favorite restaurant: Matiki Island Barbecue Favorite movie: The Princess Bride Favorite magazine: Ensign Hero: Emillie Toone Grade Point Average: 3.50 Most memorable career moment: "Beating Pleasant Grove at our place." Future plans: To attend college. Coach Danette Moea'i said: "She Is a leader that's not always on the court. She's my bucket filler, one who builds up her teammates by giving them compliments and pumping them up. She's very coachable and fun to have around. Sometimes she doesn't play a lot but she works hard and is a great team player. She's just a gem and I enjoy her." in close second drey (13th), Graham Walker, Adam Derfler, Jacob Healey, Austin West, Brock Harrison, Cameron Hodges and Trevor Carson. The girls swept the top three spots with Natasha Lye first at 20:03.2, Audrey Lewis second and Lrminia Martinez third, followed by Grace Bent-ley Bent-ley fifth and Rebecca Thorpe sixth for a spread time of 32.9 seconds. Other Cavemen competitors included Lakyn Lux (15th), Ashley Lewis (17th), Whitney Gatenby, Jennie Makin, Lori Clemons, Jerrica Osmun, Alex Hansen and Kaitlyn Livingston. |