Photos courtesy Jeff Day Photography (view more) •
The Oregon high school 7s season has experienced a bit of a shake-up this year. In the top tier of competition (Red division), the Valley Panthers Black is currently 9-0 after three series legs, followed by Battle Ground, which is the only other team with a winning record at 7-2. Two more tournaments remain before the state championship on Oct. 29.
“We’ve never won a 7s title,” Valley Panthers coach Jeremy Moore said. “We’ve always come up short [in the final] – two points, five points. Something happens, and I haven’t quite put my finger on it. Maybe it’s me!”
While Moore was half-joking, his point was that issue doesn’t reside with the players’ effort. For the third season in a row, the team has committed to fielding two 7s squads. The Black team is composed mostly of 15s forwards, and its goal in Tier 2 is steady improvement. The top side is running with nine players – seven veterans and two newcomers with big potential – and is driven. The tables-leading team is led by seniors like Legacy Adams and Adriana Mendoza, both of whom have higher-level experience, and has requested extra, separate training sessions to focus on more advanced skills.
“Under their tutelage, the team’s flowing well,” Moore praised. “Coming up is junior Riley Yoder, who is fleet on her feet. She can move and exploits space well. Jazmin Hager is a sophomore, and I have to remind myself that she is only a sophomore. The way she plays, you think she’s been around the game much longer.”
The team is also propelled by a sense of redemption. After going undefeated through the summer 7s season into the championship, the Valley Panthers lost the final game to the Grant combination squad, the Grackles.
“It was really tough on the squad,” Moore said. “I don’t know what happened … maybe I left a few girls in the game longer than I should have. We were leading them at halftime – low 20s to seven – and then they beat us by one try at the end. The field had an extremely downhill slope, and they had the advantage in the second half. Sui [A’au] was still there – a strong player with a downhill advantage.”
Grant still has the A’au twins, but the Valley Panthers have played the Generals twice this fall and won by five tries on both occasions. Meanwhile, Beaverton had to combine with Columbia County for numbers and are currently 3-6.
“It’s been a bit of a shift,” Moore surveyed the field. “The past few years, it’s been Beaverton, Grant and us right at the top. … This year, Battle Ground has a lot of returners who have been playing together for a while, and they’re fast like us. Our biggest competition’s been Linn Benton Black. They have sheer size. They had us on the ropes last weekend – 10-0 at halftime.”
That’s when Moore saw the influence of the summer’s disappointments affect today’s attitude.
“Being down 10 against Linn Benton, I saw it in their eyes during halftime: There was no way they were going to lose that game,” Moore said. “After the water break, they knew what they had to do. For that group of girls, they’re undefeated [this year] except for that one game. It’s a big deal for them to continue on.”
The 7s seasons have been especially important to the Valley Panthers, which don’t play Grant and Beaverton during the regular 15s season any longer. The summer and fall allow some crossover play between the single-school and club teams, although Moore is hoping for 15s friendlies this upcoming season.
The following three weekends are filled with 7s tournaments. The top four teams in the standings will enter the Cup round robin at the state championship on Oct. 29. For full results, click here for the Red Division (top tier) and click here for the Black Division (second tier).