The Salem area has produced several high school championships this fall, as well as many other sports in football, volleyball and soccer.
Here’s a look back at some of the top moments from the Salem-Keizer area.
St. Paul football gets the long-awaited 2A football title
Entering this season, St. Paul football was already one of the winningest programs in the history of the OSAA in terms of the appearance of the national title.
This fall, the Buckaroos added another impressive line to their lineup.
In their first season back at the 2A 9-man level, St. Paul completed an undefeated season that culminated in a dramatic victory over Oakland in the state title game Nov. 27 Cottage Grove High School.
It marked the Buckaroos’ first title since 2010 and their first at the 2A level.
Grady Wolf rushed for a team-high 125 yards rushing and a touchdown on nine carries during the 28-20 victory. He also went 7-for-9 with two touchdowns.
Clay Smith ran for 90 yards and a touchdown on 21 carries. Diego Medina rushed for 68 yards on 10 carries and also caught six passes for 41 yards and a touchdown.
Salem Academy volleyball presents another prominent theme
Few programs in the state of Oregon have had as much postseason success as Salem Academy volleyball over the past half-century.
The Crusaders won 2A titles in both 2021 and 2022 and reached the 2A state final in 2023. On Nov. 10, they added the fifth championship in school history with a 25-19, 25-17 victory. , 25-14 over No. 1 Crosshill. Christian at Ridgeview High School in Redmond.
Salem Academy finished the season 25-3 overall and won its last 10 games of the year.
During the title game, Emma Brewer, the reigning 2A state player of the year, led the Crusaders with 27 kills while hitting 38 percent. He also had 10 awards.
Jordyn Copeland added 12 kills (39%) and collected 20 assists. Maya Cooke had eight assists and six digs.
Nelida Dalgas offers high-quality services throughout the country
North Salem junior Nelida Dalgas delivered another big-time performance at the OSAA state cross-country meet this fall.
Dalgas ran a 17-minute, 26.8-second 5,000 to finish as runner-up at the 6A state meet behind Lakeridge’s Chloe Huyler (17:11.6) on Nov. 9 Eugene.
Only five other runners have clocked a faster 5,000 time on the Lane Community College state course than Dalgas did this season.
A week later at the NXR Northwest Regional Championships in Boise, Idaho, Dalgas took sixth place while competing against top runners from Oregon, Washington and Idaho.
Addison Samuell and Stayton boys soccer regular season soccer
Stayton senior player Addison Samuell broke the school’s single-season scoring record with 40 goals this fall.
Samuell, who started his prep career as a defender, switched to forward full time this season and was named the 4A player of the year. He finished the 2024 campaign with the 10th most goals scored by an Oregon high school player.
In addition to Samuell, Stayton sophomore Ruben Bell and Roman Gould earned first-team all-state honors.
The Eagles led Class 4A with 67 goals this fall and went 13-0 during the regular season before falling to Henley in the state semifinals.
Along with the Eagles, several other Salem-Keizer football teams made deep postseason appearances.
McNary (Class 6A), Woodburn (Class 5A) and Blanchet Catholic (Class 3A/2A/1A) all reached the state finals in their respective divisions.
In the girls state championships, Silverton (Class 5A) and Blanchet Catholic (Class 3A/2A/1A) reached the quarterfinals.
Jarrid Denney covers high school and Oregon State sports for the Statesman Journal. He can be reached at JDenney@salem.gannett.com or at X@jarrid_denney
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