After working at the junior varsity level for two years, Judi Gay couldn't resist the prospect of trying her hand at guiding the Canby High School varsity program this fall.

Gay only learned about the team's coaching vacancy days before the job closed in mid-August, and she decided to go for the position despite having a two-month-old baby in the house.

Her reasons for applying are simple: She loves the sport and is excited about taking on a squad that has benefited in recent years from an influx of club players.

"I've enjoyed working here the past two years, and I'm looking forward to a new challenge," said Gay, who has extensive playing and coaching experience. "We don't have a lot of go-to players, but we're very balanced and should keep teams guessing. We're pretty spread out offensively, with a number of girls who can hit well."

The Cougars admittedly lost a lot to graduation, including first-team all-league players Andrea and Chris Beck, second-team picks Katie Steinke and Kim Erskine and honorable mention selection Adrienne Giger. In all, six seniors graduated, leaving Gay with five returners: seniors Ellie Raines, Caitlin O'Connor and Jamie Schuknecht and juniors Michelle Boeckman and Jamie Schantin.

Of those, Raines and O'Connor saw the most playing time, at middle blocker and outside hitter, respectively. Schuknecht figures to be a right-side hitter, Boeckman a middle blocker and Schantin a setter.

Joining them from the junior varsity squad will be senior outside hitter Natalie Postlewait and senior middle blocker Dani Palmer. The Cougars also welcome a transfer, Jenny Lawrence, and a pair of sophomores in Justine Rhodes and Tori Beck.

Unlike last year, when the team had a dominant hitter in Andrea Beck, the offense will be more evenly distributed this fall.

"We're all pretty even in terms of skill, so teams will have to stay true to their blocks rather than concentrate on someone like Andi," Gay said. "We may run a 6-2 rather than a 5-1, with the setter always coming from the back rather than rotating her up front with two hitters. That will allow us to put three capable hitters up front."

And while Canby may be regrouping now, Gay is optimistic the team will still be a playoff contender. Not only has Canby's varsity been a winner the last several years, qualifying for the final-16 state tournament two of the last three seasons, the jayvee and freshman teams both went 13-1 a year ago. "We have very high expectations and the girls are coachable," Gay said.

Gay herself gained experience as a player at Yoncalla High School, Clackamas Community College and Western Oregon State College (now University). She also spent two years as an assistant at the University of Portland before taking the varsity job at Sunset High School for the 1995-96 seasons.

Gay then took a year off before coming to Canby two years ago to work at the junior high level.

"Every job I left was for family reasons," said Gay, who has three children, ages 5, 3 and 2 months. "At first I wasn't sure if I should go for this job, but I'm glad I did. It's quite a commitment, but I enjoy the girls."

Canby opens the season with a home league jamboree Thursday at 3:30 p.m. The team's league opener is Sept. 7 at Tualatin.

They have never been to the Class 3A state cross country meet, but all that could change this season when the North Marion girls open their fall season.

Not only do the Huskies return one of the Capital Conference's top runners in Erin Gerhardt, they return the bulk of a lineup that placed third at last year's district championships.

Gerhardt, a junior, figures to challenge for the league's individual title after her third-place district effort a year ago.

And head coach Pete Danner can't seem to contain his enthusiasm when discussing the possibility of reaching state and making history.

"This could be the year," he says emphatically. "We've got a number of girls who are looking good in practice right now. Of course, there are a number of things that can happen the next couple months."

First and foremost, the Huskies will have to contend with strong programs at Cascade and Molalla, who finished a respective first and second at district last year.

And unfortunately, only the league's top two squads advance to state. Gerhardt should get there as an individual after a productive summer in which she competed in Australia and locally. Joining her on the varsity team will be junior Jessica Long, sophomore Kristina Griffiths and newcomer Renee Douglas, also a junior.

The Huskies also welcome Kate Haas, who recently moved back to the area after attending school here in junior high. Danner said there is also the possibility of a German exchange student joining the program.

"We only graduated one girl, so we could be tough," the coach said. "Erin is a great competitor and we've got three or four other quality girls. We may even get some more out hopefully."

The North Marion boys, on the other hand, face a predicament after graduating four of their top seven runners.

Only Curtis Hammond, a top-15 district finisher a year ago, and Joe Cady, a sophomore, are back from a team that took second at district and sixth at state. The team has only one senior, Jon Snodderly, and he didn't run last year.

Still, Danner is excited about a handful of newcomers, including juniors Francisco Rosas and Jacob Taylor and freshmen Josh Davidson, Jeff Roerig and Mike Martin.

"All of those guys have tremendous potential," Danner said. "Probably two of those three freshmen will make varsity."

On the down side, North Marion will face a stiff challenge in its quest to get back to state. Molalla, third at state a year ago, graduated only one of its top five runners. And Cascade, Sweet Home and Stayton also figure to be strong, the coach said.

North Marion opens its season with a visit to Tillamook for an invitational on Sept. 7. The program's traditional home invitational, which may feature some Class 4A teams this season, is set for Sept. 28.