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About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 31, 2016)
A8 Blue Mountain Eagle Wednesday, August 31, 2016 SPORTS SCHEDULE WEDNESDAY August 31, 2016 Thursday, Sept. 1 Prairie City/Burnt River football @ Spray/Mitchell, 3 p.m. Grant Union hopeful ‘true grit’ leads to postseason victories Prairie City volleyball @ Spray/Mitchell, 5 p.m. Friday, Sept. 2 Grant Union football vs. Weston McEwen, 7 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 3 Team of 21 starts season Friday at home Prairie City Volleyball Tour- nament, 8:30 a.m. Blue Mountain Eagle Grant Union Dayville/Monument Prairie City Monument/ Dayville volleyball @ Dufur Tournament, 9 a.m. Grant Union and Monument cross country @ Runners Soul XC Fest in Hermiston, 12:55 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 6 Monument/Dayville volley- ball @ Grant Union junior varsity, 5 p.m., beginning with JV Grant Union volleyball @ Culver, 5 p.m., beginning with JV Sept. 2 ..... GU vs. Weston-McEwen .7 p.m. Sept. 9 ..... GU @ Heppner ................7 p.m. Sept. 16 ... GU vs. Stanfi eld ..............7 p.m. Sept. 23 ... GU vs. Burns ...................7 p.m. Oct. 7 ....... GU vs. Culver ..................7 p.m. Oct. 14 ..... GU @ Imbler ...................2 p.m. Oct. 21 ..... GU @ Enterprise .............7 p.m. Oct. 28 ..... GU vs. Union...................7 p.m. Nov. 5 ...... 1st-round playoffs.............. TBA Nov. 12 .... quarterfi nal playoffs .......... TBA Nov. 19 .... semifi nals ........................... TBA Nov. 26 .... championship .................... TBA Head coach: Jason Miller Assistant coaches: Andy Lusco, defensive co- ordinator; Zeke Langum, defense and offense assistant; and Kyle Erickson and Tucker Wright Junior high coaches: Casey Hallgarth and Ray Wenger By Angel Carpenter Grant Union volleyball @ Heppner Tourney, 9 a.m. Monument/ Dayville football @ McKenzie in Dufur, 1 p.m. Grant Union football Grant Union football season starts Friday when the Prospectors will face non-league opponents the Weston-McEwen TigerScots at 7 p.m. at Three Flags Field in John Day. Prospector head coach Jason Miller said Weston-McEwen always plays tough, adding the game should be “a good matchup again this year.” Last year, Grant Union claimed a come-from-be- hind 34-32 victory over the TigerScots in Athena. Miller, who has led the team for eight years with an- other as assistant coach, said his team of 21 is working hard, and that’s what it will take to make it to the playoffs this year. “Our strengths are yet to be determined,” he said. “We have some athletes that have really worked hard to im- Billy prove, and I think that work Copenhaver ethic and determination will be a strength.” Junior Wade Reimers is returning as quarterback this year. “We have many leaders on this team that need to step up and keep a positive attitude,” Reimers said. “League will be tough. We just have to push through.” With Burns, one of Grant Union’s toughest op- ponents, moving up to the 3A class this season and Cove moving to 1A, the Prospectors will face three teams in the 2A Wapiti League: Imbler, Enterprise and Union. The top two teams in league will advance to state playoffs. Miller said the move of Burns changes the dy- namics of the league, but added, “Our league will still have some good talent, and no team should be overlooked.” He expects Imbler to return strong, and Union and Enterprise to compete. In 2013, Grant Union won the 2A state football ti- tle, and that year the Imbler Panthers won the 1A title. Grant Union lost 17 players to graduation in 2014, and Imbler moved up to 2A that year. Imbler shut out Grant Union 40-0 in 2014, and last year Grant Union had a dominating ¿ rst half against Imbler, but came up with a 58-34 loss. Burns and Imbler advanced to the state playoffs, Burns winning the title. The Prospectors ¿ nished 4-4 overall and 2-2 in league. Miller said a solid core of linemen and some tough skill players will make Imbler competitive this year. Grant Union lost six of last season’s players to graduation, all of whom played key roles on the GU SPIKERS RALLY TO TOURNAMENT VICTORY Panthers and Tigers take on competition team, but prospects still look good for Grant Union. Five Prospectors return as starters on offense, six on defense. Miller said this year’s team is a good group. “I am extremely pleased with their effort and enthusiasm,” he said. “Our goals for this year are to establish ourselves as a contender in the state playoff race and to play with true grit.” This year’s roster of varsity and junior varsity players includes one senior, 11 juniors, one sopho- more and eight freshmen. Senior Billy Copenhaver plays center and defen- sive line. He said, for a smaller team, they’ve bonded well. “I’m really excited to be playing with this group of guys because we all get along really well,” he said. “I’m excited. I think it’s going to be a good year.” Zack Deiter said although the team isn’t big in numbers, they’re “giving 100 percent, all the time.” Coaches see potential in PC volleyball squad Players view season in positive light By Angel Carpenter Blue Mountain Eagle By Angel Carpenter Blue Mountain Eagle The Grant Union Prospec- tors came out victorious at Saturday’s home tournament, after a total of 12 teams com- peted in the daylong event. A battle against Burns in the tournament’s champion- ship game looked a little shaky at ¿ rst for Grant Union. They fell 25-21 to the Hi- landers in the ¿ rst set, but the Prospectors rallied in the sec- ond and third to take the win. Grant Union won the ¿ nal two sets with scores of 25-10 and 15-5. “I was proud of the girls for coming back so strong af- ter a ¿ rst-set loss to Burns in order to win the tournament,” said Grant Union head coach Shae Speth. “We just made too many errors, and we were able to clean up our play in the sec- ond and third sets to win the match.” Prospector players Natalie Stearns and Heather Mosley said they were happy with the win. “We worked together, con- sidering it’s the beginning of the season ² at ¿ rst it was rough, but as we continued to work together we started to work as a team,” Stearns said. “We all played great to- gether,” Mosley added. “It was a lot of fun to play with this bunch of girls, and I think we’ll have a great season.” Grant Union’s junior var- sity teams also got into the day’s action and won their matches. Grant County 1A teams Monument/Dayville and Prai- rie City also competed at the tournament, along with 3A Burns, 2A Weston-McEwen, 2A Enterprise, 2A Heppner, 2A Pilot Rock, 1A Crane, 1A Powder Valley and 1A Jordan Valley. Grant Union is in the 2A class. The Eagle photos/Angel Carpenter Prospector quarterback Wade Reimers makes a handoff to Cameron Hallgarth in practice Monday at Grant Union. The Eagle/Angel Carpenter The Grant Union Prospectors celebrate the win over Burns at Saturday’s championship match of the Grant Union Tournament. From left: Reagan Shelley, Heather Mosley, Chelsie Kodesh, Hailie Wright, Mariah Wright and Natalie Stearns. Weekend stats for Grant Union Mariah Moulton — 64 kills, 16 aces, 54 digs Whitney McClellan — 7 aces, 26 digs Reagan Shelley — 10 kills, 3 digs, 9 block assists Chelsie Kodesh — 33 kills, 15 aces, 59 digs Hailie Wright — 3 kills, 4 aces, 27 digs Natalie Stearns — 8 aces, 46 digs Kaylee Wright — 16 kills, 6 digs, 6 solo blocks, 5 block assists Heather Mosley — 38 kills, 8 aces, 12 digs, 10 solo blocks, 10 block assists The Prairie City Panthers had a 2-1 win over Heppner in the consolation round robin. The Monument/Dayville Tigers beat Prairie City 2-1 in the consolation games, and, in earlier pool play, they also claimed a 25-24 win over the Jordan Valley Mustangs. After the game against the Mustangs, Tigers head coach Tiffnie Schmadeka said the win was just what her team needed. “That was good for us, es- pecially since it was a league opponent,” she said. “We got behind a little bit in the middle. They came back and played strong and aggressive and served well. We had a lot better setting which resulted in more hits.” The Grant Union varsity team moved into Tuarter¿ nal action with a 2-0 win over En- terprise, Wapiti League oppo- nents. They also claimed a 2-0 win over Crane in the semi¿ - nals. The Prospectors’ ¿ rst game of the season was a Friday win in Crane, taking the Mustangs with scores of 25-17, 25-12 and 25-15. Although Crane is in the 1A class, over the years they’ve proven to be one of the tough- est teams in the High Desert League. “The ¿ rst weekend of the season is always a test to see where we are and what areas need improvement early on,” Speth said, adding she was pleased with their team chem- istry, strong blocking as well as back court defense. “Throughout the season, we’ll continue to focus on minimizing our errors, but at this point, I am pleased with how far along we already are in our development,” she said. Grant Union travels for the Heppner Invitational Tourna- ment on Saturday with games starting at 9 a.m., and they face Culver on the road Tuesday at 5 p.m. Prairie City faces Spray/ Mitchell in Mitchell on Thurs- day at 5 p.m., and hosts a tour- nament on Saturday at 8:30 a.m. Monument/Dayville travels to the Dufur Tournament on Saturday with games begin- ning at 9 a.m. Prairie City Panther co-coach Lance Zweygardt said his main goal is helping his players master skills that will help them, not only in this year’s volleyball season, but throughout their lives. The goal is “developing con¿ dence and leadership skills in all the girls, especially the younger girls, through an environment of competitive sports,” he said. Last year, Louanne Zweygardt, Lance’s wife, was head coach, and this year they’ve de- cided to share the responsibilities as co-coaches. There are 16 Panther players this year, the same as last year. Lance said they’re working on the varsity Jones roster, and Saturday’s Prairie City Tournament should help them decide which lineups will work best for the season. In addition to three seniors, the team in- cludes four juniors, three sophomores and six freshmen. “We have a lot of talented freshmen, willing and hard working and athletically talented, so Perrenoud the future looks good for sure,” Lance said. The team also has returning starter junior Brianna Zweygardt who, last season, was select- ed for an All-State honorable mention. Last year, she led the team stats in serving, setting, hit/tipping and blocking. She was also recognized as Setter of the Year in the 1A High Desert League the past two sea- Ennis sons. Among the seniors are returning starter Sar- ah Ennis and MaKenzie Jones, a returning varsity player. Taci Perrenoud, new to the team, is also a senior. “I think we still have a lot of progress to make, but I think it’s going to be a good season, overall,” said Ennis, who is an outside See PC, Page A16 Prairie City volleyball 2016 Sept. 1 ..V @ Spray/Mitchell in Mitchell ........... 5 p.m. Sept 3 ...Prairie City Tournament................... 8:30 a.m. Sept. 7 ..JV/V @ Grant Union .................5 p.m./6 p.m. Sept. 9 ..JV/V @ Pine Eagle in Halfway .2 p.m./3 p.m. Sept. 17 Interleague Jamboree in North Powder .. TBA Sept. 20 JV/V vs. Burns ...........................4 p.m./5 p.m. Sept. 21 JV/V vs. Grant Union ................5 p.m./6 p.m. Sept. 23 JV/V vs. Monument/Dayville ....2 p.m./3 p.m. Sept. 24 V @ Crane Tournament .......................... TBA Sept. 28 V @ Burnt River in Unity ................4:30 p.m. Sept. 30 JV/V @ Jordan Valley ...............2 p.m./3 p.m. Oct. 7 ....JV/V vs. Crane (homecoming) ..2 p.m./5 p.m. Oct. 13 ..JV/V vs. Adrian in Unity ...........3 p.m./4 p.m. Oct. 15 ..JV/V @ Harper/Hun. in Harper 12 p.m./1 p.m. Oct. 22 ..High Desert District Tournament ............ TBA Head coaches: Lance and Louanne Zweygardt (All times are Pacifi c Standard Time.)