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14 takeaways from No. 6 Oregon’s win over Washington

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14 takeaways from No. 6 Oregon’s win over Washington


No. 6 Oregon beat Washington 26-14 on Saturday at Husky Stadium.

Here are 10 takeaways from the game as the Ducks (11-1, 8-1 Big Ten) prepare for the College Football Playoff.

1) Exorcising demons

Oregon was supposed to win. Washington was no match, didn’t have the talent to hang and didn’t coach aggressively enough to make up the difference.

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However, the Ducks still faced the pressure of needing to win, on the road, or face the possibility of the next month being about the Holiday Bowl. As Dan Lanning said postgame, there’s the teams that get to keep playing in “the real one” and those that don’t.

Given Lanning’s first two years in this rivalry, another loss given the talent gap and what was on the line would have been devastating. This wasn’t a bad Washington team, but not a particularly good one either. Kalen DeBoer isn’t on that sideline. Nor are Rome Oduze or Michael Penix Jr.

But the Ducks have been and were again limited by injury, particularly on offense. Yet they scored more than any team against Washington this season, and could have had far more. Oregon was turnover free and made more big plays.

The criticism Lanning received in loss to UW in 2022 and 2023, particularly about his aggressiveness on fourth downs, was countered with effective fourth downs and taking points when necessary to secure one of the most meaningful wins of his tenure.

2) Malik Benson’s catch will live in lore

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Benson has been on the receiving end of the biggest plays of Oregon’s season. The 64-yard touchdown to seal a playoff spot should stand the test of time.

Washington had all the momentum after cutting the deficit to 19-14. Third and nine from the UO 36 and Benson finds an opening in UW’s zone, then turns on the jets to blaze past defenders and break the game.

For a player who admittedly knew nothing about the rivalry when he got here, Benson had the kind of performance that can and should be remembered long into its future.

3) Moore settled in for a big performance

It was a slow start for both quarterbacks, but once Moore settled in he made some big throws and smart decisions when running. He just missed on an early throw to Jeremiah McClellan and completely didn’t see a corner blitz that was obvious. After that, Moore was nails, going 17 of his next 20, with two incompletions to Kenyon Sadiq that were off his hands and just out of bounds.

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If Moore’s statline were had by Fernando Mendoza, Julian Sayin or Ty Simpson in their respective rivalry games, it would be celebrated as Heisman worthy.

4) Will Stein’s creativity is masking deficiencies

Stein was again deep into his playbook. Oregon’s wide use of personnel packages is nothing new, but Stein used even more formations, played more receivers and tight ends in the backfield, covered receivers and did plenty of other things to make for a difficult game of chess.

Given how handcuffed Oregon’s offense is by injuries at receiver, then having two tight ends each briefly go out, the production it’s been getting is fairly remarkable. It won’t be remembered as the best offensive day because of four field goals, but there are lots of lesser play-callers who would not have gotten nearly as much out of what Stein has to work with right now.

5) Atticus Sappington is making people forget

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Sappington had another big game on the road and deserves every bit of accolades that come his way.

He’s the first Oregon player with four made field goals in a game since Aidan Schneider on Oct. 29, 2016, vs. Arizona State, and first to go 4-for-4 in a game since Schneider on Sept. 19, 2015, vs. Georgia State. Add his career-long 51-yarder as context and Sappington is the first UO player to go 4-for-4 on field goals with a long of at least 50 yards since at least 1996.

Sappington’s misses earlier in the season are long forgotten about.

6) Dillon Thieneman delivered again

Teams didn’t test Thieneman early in the season. But again two of the top three opposing quarterbacks of the season he’s had two of his best games. Thieneman made plays all over the field and was once again one of Oregon’s best defenders. Given the caliber of matchups ahead in the playoffs this is the kind of play the Ducks need from their best safety.

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7) Washington’s two best plays were touchdowns

The Huskies didn’t move the ball particularly well. But once inside the red zone, even they managed to find the end zone against the Ducks.

Demond Williams Jr. found Denzel Boston on both scores, the first on a pick play and the second on a long crossing route, each with Theran Johnson in coverage. It’s hard to fault Johnson in either instance, as even the crossing route had a pick of sorts.

Oregon later countered on UW’s late fourth and three by having Brendon Finney Jr. on Boston, who was stopped just shy of the first down.

8) Kenyon Sadiq had a better blocking day than receiving

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By any measure, this was a tough game for Sadiq in terms of receiving. He had two balls go off his hands and a diving catch that was out of bounds. His offensive and receiving grades were brutal.

But the junior tight end did not allow that to impact his blocking, which was still effective and at times critical. He walled off the safety on Benson’s touchdown and created other lanes as well.

9) Devon Jackson’s role is declining

Jackson played his fewest snaps of the season and wasn’t on special teams. He’s in his second game back from injury, but hasn’t been the same player as a year ago.

Jerry Mixon Jr. is clearly LB2. Jackson’s spot as LB3 can’t be secure with what Dylan Williams and Brayden Platt have each shown.

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10) Teitum Tuioti is quietly having a big year

Tuioti is on his way not only to a career season, but an all-Big Ten year. He’s up to 57 tackles, one shy of his career best, with 13.5 for loss including seven sacks. That’s tied for second in the Big Ten in TFLs and fifth in sacks.

It could be argued that Tuioti is having a better season than Matayo Uiagalelei did last year. Because there is no Jordan Burch on the other side to take attention away from Tuioti. Uiagalelei is being schemed out by some opponents and simply not generating havoc in other instances.

11) Jamari Johnson is showing extreme upside

Johnson’s November to remember continued. He had 14 catches for 187 yards over the last four games. He should pass Sadiq’s production from last season, which is good for this season and potentially enormous for the future.

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12) The run game has to adjust to loaded boxes

It came as no surprise that Washington loaded the box. Ryan Walters was utilizing five-man lines a lot this season with good results. Still, Oregon didn’t have great answers for it and will need to as better teams will look to capitalize on this.

Other times, UO’s gains were limited by good tackling in space that prevented longer runs.

13) Effort penalties

Oregon had two discipline-related penalties that are a matter of perspective. Lanning wasn’t thrilled with either postgame.

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Daylen Austin was called for unsportsmanlike conduct for a late shove of a Washington gunner on a punt. However, the ball was bouncing and UO rightly tried to get the UW player to touch the ball. Washington’s player pushed Jadon Canady, understandably, and Austin pushed him back. In plenty of other rivalry games this would go uncalled and chalked up to the intensity of the moment.

Alex Harkey’s personal foul for blocking a player well out of bounds was obvious as far as calls go. But even Gary Danielson said he wouldn’t fault an offensive lineman who found a second defender to block on a play for taking that defender for a ride. It’s also completely on brand for Harkey, who has shown all season that he’s a nasty run blocker.

14) The future of the rivalry appears bright

With most of the top jobs filled and Jedd Fisch still in Seattle it appears Washington has stability. If he can retain Williams and the freshmen who made several huge plays, particularly on defense, the Huskies are trending towards being more competitive.



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100 greatest girls athletes in Oregon high school sports history (Part 1)

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100 greatest girls athletes in Oregon high school sports history (Part 1)


On Feb. 3, 1987, President Ronald Reagan signed Proclamation 5606, declaring Feb. 4, 1987, National Women in Sports Day.

Every year since, National Girls and Women in Sports Day (NGWSD) celebrates female athletes’ accomplishments and honors the progress women in sports have made toward equality in participation and access.

Wednesday, Feb. 4, is the 40th NGWSD.

A year ago, longtime high school sports writer René Ferrán unveiled for High School On SI a list of the 50 greatest girls athletes in Oregon high school sports history.

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Headed up by St. Mary’s Academy legend Anna Maria Lopez through No. 50 Ashley Smith of Oregon City, the list celebrated the rich history of the state’s top female athletes on the 39th anniversary of the creation of NGWSD.

Now, with NGWSD turning 40 this month, The Oregonian/OregonLive tasked Ferrán with adding to the list another 50 athletes who have made significant contributions to the state’s high school sports scene.

We’ll be counting down all week, starting today with No. 100 through No. 91. (The year listed beside each name is the year she graduated from high school.)

Let’s celebrate together the best of the best and their many achievements in their favorite sports.

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100. Piper Daskalos, Jesuit, 2023 (lacrosse)

The Crusaders picked up the mantle as the state’s preeminent girls lacrosse program from Lake Oswego at the end of last decade, ending the Lakers’ three-year championship streak in 2019 to start a run of five consecutive state titles for the Southwest Portland school.

One of the leaders of the changing of the guard was Daskalos, an attacker and midfielder who played on three title-winning teams from 2021-23, earning state player of the year honors in 2022, when she had 62 goals and 21 assists.

She repeated as a USA Lacrosse Magazine All–American her senior year, playing through a broken thumb during the postseason to net three goals in a 15-10 victory over Lake Oswego in the 2023 final. She went on to play at Johns Hopkins University, where she was an Academic All-Big Ten selection last year.

99. Sari-Jane Jenkins, South Salem, 2005 (softball, volleyball, basketball)

Jenkins grew up as the only girl among seven siblings, and she told a reporter at the University of Oregon newspaper, “I worshiped the ground my brothers walked on. I really look up to my brothers as role models.”

One older brother, Andy, starred for the Oregon State baseball team and played six years in the minor leagues, getting as high as Triple-A. Another, Riley, helped Linfield win the NCAA Division III football national championship in 2004.

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And Sari-Jane? She earned 11 letters in three sports with the Saxons, twice making the all-state softball team as a catcher before moving to the outfield when she joined the Ducks, where she was a four-year starter and three-time all-Pac-10 selection. She is second on the school’s career stolen base list with 96 and seventh in hits with 230.

98. Isabella Thorndike, Ashland, 2008 (skiing)

Thorndike won the Oregon Interscholastic Ski Racing Association (OISRA) combined state title in 2006 and 2007 — denying Olympian Jacqueline Wiles the overall title in 2007, the Canby skier’s senior season — and placed second as a senior in 2008.

While Thorndike twice won the overall championship, she never won an individual event title. She twice finished second in the giant slalom and placed third in the slalom each of her final three seasons.

Thorndike didn’t pursue a racing career after college, instead translating her love of the outdoors to becoming a floral design artist in the Medford area and exhibiting with Art Beyond.

97. Rebecca Kim, McNary/Tigard, 2006 (golf)

Kim completed her high school career as a three-time state champion, winning her first two clad in the blue and white of McNary before transferring to Tigard for her final season.

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She was the first girl to win three solo titles in a row, twice winning by 10 strokes, and she had a then-state-record round of 69 in each of her three championships.

Rebecca Kim won three consecutive individual state titles golfing for McNary (two) and Tigard (one).Frederick D. Joe

After her senior year, she won the Oregon Golf Association’s Public Links Championship and the Tournament of Champions, then headed to Duke University, where she played for two years before turning professional.

She played in six USGA events — the 2005 U.S. Girls’ Junior, the U.S. Women’s Amateur in 2006-07, the U.S. Women’s Public Links in 2007-08 and the 2009 U.S. Women’s Open.

96. Stephanie Horton, Tigard, 2007 (track and field)

Nine years ago, The Oregonian/OregonLive asked whether anyone would break several of the state’s longest-held track and field records. While some of them have fallen since that time, one that stands is Horton’s 2005 mark in the shot put.

Horton became the first girl in state history to break the 50-foot barrier at an April 27, 2005, dual meet in Forest Grove, throwing 52 feet, 7 inches — the best throw of the year nationally and breaking North Valley’s Christy Ward’s previous state record by almost four feet.

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Stephanie Horton
Many of the state’s track and field records have been broken in recent years, but the shot put mark set by Tigard’s Stephanie Horton has stood for two decades.Sol Neelman

She won the 4A state titles in the shot put and discus that year before heading to the University of Kansas, where as a freshman she won bronze in the shot at the U.S. Junior National Championships.

As a Jayhawks junior, she was an All-American with an eighth-place finish at the NCAA Championships, throwing 54-2.5 to set the school record (since broken by Alexandra Emilianov).

95. Taylor Wallace, Henley, 2008 (track and field, cross country)

Wallace won 10 individual state championships and three relay titles with the Hornets, becoming the first Oregon runner to win the 1,500- and 3,000-meter gold medals four consecutive years.

She holds the 4A state record in the 800 and 1,500, although she never ran the 800 at the state meet. She did run the 400 as a senior, placing fourth — and then came back to anchor the Hornets to a third victory in the 4×400 to cement the team championship.

Taylor Wallace
Henley legend Taylor Wallace won 15 high school gold medals in cross country and track.Klamath Falls Herald and News

Wallace won two 4A cross country state championships, running the fastest time of the four title-winners as a junior and winning Gatorade Runner of the Year as a junior and senior.

After her senior season, she finished third in the 1,500 at the Pan American Junior Championships in 4:31.76 and won the 2009 Steve Prefontaine Award as Oregon’s best high school runner. She then ran at the University of Oregon, where she became a steeplechaser, qualifying for the NCAA championships in 2012.

94. Kennedy Blanton, Forest Grove, 2025 (wrestling, soccer, track and field)

As girls wrestling continues to increase in popularity, Blanton’s state-record 163 wins likely will fall one day, but until then, the two-time 6A/5A state champion and four-time finalist sits atop the list for most wins and most pins (126) during her four years in a Vikings singlet.

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Kennedy Blanton
Forest Grove’s Kennedy Blanton holds the Oregon girls wrestling records for victories and pins.Mark Ylen

Blanton wasn’t just a standout on the wrestling mat. She was a four-time 6A state qualifier in the pole vault, winning a district title as a freshman and clearing 10 feet in all but two meets her final two seasons. Her steady vaulting never resulted in making the podium at state, as tiebreakers kept her from medaling three times.

She also was a midfielder on the soccer team, playing varsity all four years as the Vikings won 38 games during that time. She decided not to wrestle in college and is attending Oregon State.

93. Madison Odiorne, Summit, 2015 (golf)

Odiorne made history at Trysting Tree Golf Club in Corvallis on May 19, 2015, when she carded an even-par 72 to finish at 4-under 140, tying Daniele Giles of Crater atop the 5A leaderboard to secure a piece of her fourth state title.

Odiorne became the first Oregon golfer (boy or girl) to win four individual championships at any classification. She almost didn’t achieve that distinction — as a freshman, she finished behind Churchill senior Caroline Inglis, who was going for her fourth title, but Inglis was disqualified for signing an incorrect scorecard.

Madison Odiorne
Madison Odiorne of Summit made Oregon history by becoming the state’s first golfer to win four individual state championships.Randy L. Rasmussen

Odiorne’s victory her senior year garnered her the National High School Senior Girls’ Golfer of the Year award from the National High School Coaches Association. Later that year, she won the Future Collegians World Tour girls 13-19 division title.

The two-time Junior America’s Cup team member played at Washington State, where she had three top-10 finishes and seven in the top 20 before graduating and pursuing a medical career. She is now a board-certified physician assistant in cardiology at the Bend Heart and Lung Center.

92. Jamie Stone, Centennial, 2017 (swimming)

Stone dominated the sprints during her four seasons at the Gresham school, becoming the first Oregon swimmer to win four state titles in the 50- and 100-yard freestyles.

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She broke the state record in the 100 freestyle as a junior, winning her third championship in 49.46 seconds. Wilsonville’s Helena Jones broke the record in 2023, but Stone still holds the 6A mark.

Jamie Stone
Jamie Stone graduated from Centennial with her name all over the Oregon high school swimming record book.Miles Vance

Stone never broke the state meet record in the 50 free but held the state record of 22.68 that stood until Kaitlyn Dobler of Aloha surpassed it four years later.

Stone swam at the University of Arizona, where she was a stalwart on the Wildcats freestyle relay teams, earning All-American honorable mention in the 200 and 800 relays as a freshman and sophomore.

91. Sarah Conner, Central Linn, 2019 (wrestling, softball, volleyball, basketball)

Conner was one of the pioneers of girls wrestling in the state, joining North Medford’s Kyleigh Lopez her senior year as one of the first four-time girls state titlists. Lopez and Conner won their first three at OSAA exhibition meets, and they helped the OSAA inaugurate the official girls state championships, with Conner earning the 135-pound title.

Conner was a five-time USA Wrestling All-American, winning a Fargo Cadet national title in 2017, and a three-time Junior National All-American. She was the National Wrestling Hall of Fame’s Outstanding Female Wrestler of the Year for the state as a senior.

That spring, she was a first-team 2A/1A all-state selection as an outfielder for the Cobras softball team, the second time she was an all-state honoree (she made the second team as a sophomore). She was a second-team all-league volleyball player, and she made the 2A all-tournament first team after helping Central Linn place fourth in the state in basketball.

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The Oregonian/OregonLive will be counting down the state’s 100 greatest girls athletes throughout the week. Check back Tuesday for Part 2 of the series.



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Mayor of Portland, Oregon, demands ICE leave the city after federal agents tear gas protesters

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Mayor of Portland, Oregon, demands ICE leave the city after federal agents tear gas protesters


The mayor of Portland, Oregon, demanded U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement leave his city after federal agents launched tear gas at a crowd of demonstrators — including young children — outside an ICE facility during a weekend protest that he and others characterized as peaceful.

Thousands of people attended the “ICE out” protest on Saturday in South Portland, according to the Portland Police Bureau. The protest began near Elizabeth Caruthers Park, and demonstrators later moved to an ICE facility a few blocks away, CBS affiliate KOIN reported. That’s where witnesses said agents deployed tear gas, pepper balls and rubber bullets.

Erin Hoover Barnett, a former OregonLive reporter who joined the protest, said she was about 100 yards from the building in Portland’s South Waterfront when “what looked like two guys with rocket launchers” started dousing the crowd with gas.

“To be among parents frantically trying to tend to little children in strollers, people using motorized carts trying to navigate as the rest of us staggered in retreat, unsure of how to get to safety, was terrifying,” Barnett wrote in an email to OregonLive.

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The use of tear gas continued intermittently through the night as the group of protesters dwindled, KOIN reported.

The federal government “must, and will, be held accountable,” Portland Mayor Keith Wilson said Saturday night. “To those who continue to make these sickening decisions, go home, look in a mirror, and ask yourselves why you have gassed children.

Wilson also said the city would be imposing a fee on detention facilities that use chemical agents.

The mayor said the daytime demonstration was peaceful, “where the vast majority of those present violated no laws, made no threat and posed no danger” to federal agents.

“To those who continue to work for ICE: Resign. To those who control this facility: Leave,” Wilson wrote in his statement Saturday night. “Through your use of violence and the trampling of the Constitution, you have lost all legitimacy and replaced it with shame.”

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The Portland Fire Bureau sent paramedics to treat people at the scene, police said. Police officers monitored the crowd but made no arrests on Saturday.

In a statement posted Sunday to social media, Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek condemned the presence of ICE in the state. 

“Trump’s ICE has no place in Oregon,” Kotek wrote. “The use of tear gas against families, children, and peaceful demonstrators yesterday is a horrific abuse of authority that undermines public safety and violates constitutional rights. Federal agents must stand down and be held accountable.”

The Portland protest was one of many similar demonstrations nationwide against the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown in cities like Minneapolis, where in recent weeks federal agents killed two residents, Alex Pretti and Renee Good.

In downtown Los Angeles, federal officers also deployed tear gas into the crowd on Saturday after local police issued an unlawful assembly order, CBS LA reported. At least eight people were arrested, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

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Federal agents in Eugene, Oregon, deployed tear gas on Friday when protesters tried to get inside the Federal Building near downtown. City police declared a riot and ordered the crowd to disperse.

President Trump posted Saturday on social media that it was up to local law enforcement agencies to police protests in their cities. However, Mr. Trump said he has instructed Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to have federal agents be vigilant in guarding U.S. government facilities.

“Please be aware that I have instructed ICE and/or Border Patrol to be very forceful in this protection of Federal Government Property. There will be no spitting in the faces of our Officers, there will be no punching or kicking the headlights of our cars, and there will be no rock or brick throwing at our vehicles, or at our Patriot Warriors,” Mr. Trump wrote. “If there is, those people will suffer an equal, or more, consequence.”



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Johan Munch, Matija Samar lead Oregon State over San Diego 78-76 in OT

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Johan Munch, Matija Samar lead Oregon State over San Diego 78-76 in OT


SAN DIEGO — Johan Munch scored 15 points and Matija Samar added six in the overtime as Oregon State knocked off San Diego 78-76 on Saturday.

Isaiah Sy made two free throws, Samar followed with a 3-pointer and the Beavers never trailed in OT.

Munch added nine rebounds for the Beavers (12-12, 5-6 West Coast Conference). Josiah Lake totaled 12 points, eight assists, five rebounds and four steals. Dez White scored 12 on 4-for-7 shooting from 3-point range. Sy pitched in with nine points, six rebounds and five assists.

The Toreros (10-14, 4-7) were led by Adrian McIntyre with 21 points, six rebounds and six assists. Assane Diop added 13 points, eight rebounds and two blocks. Tim Moore Jr. finished with 11 points, seven rebounds and five blocks.

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Sy scored six points in the first half for Oregon State, who led 30-25 at the break. Lake scored 12 second-half points and hit the game-tying 3-pointer with 14 seconds left in regulation to send the game to overtime tied at 60-all.

___

The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.



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