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About The nugget. (Sisters, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (April 22, 2015)
Wednesday, April 22, 2015 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon Equestrians bring home the gold The third and final meet for the Central District Oregon High School Equestrian Teams (OHSET) was held last weekend at the Deschutes County Fairgrounds. The Sisters team rode in fine form, col- lecting more than their fair share of medals and buckles. Junior Cammi Benson claimed five gold med- als, a feat never before accomplished in the Central District. She also won the Individual Performance High Point buckle for the season. She qualified for state com- petition in all five of her events: Hunt Seat English Equitation, Showmanship, Horsemanship, Reining, and Working Rancher. Team Co-captain Ellie Chandler brought home another three gold med- als, and qualified for state in Equitation Over Fences, Dressage, and Saddle Seat English Equitation. She also won the Individual Versatility High Point buckle, which is a combination of performance events and timed events. Sisters Head Coach Yvette Chandler said, “Ellie and Cammi both had a stellar season, and brought home eight gold medals between them. Both of them train year ’round, not just during the high school season, and it really paid off in being con- sistent. Add to it that they won two High Point buckles is just the icing on the cake!” Freshman Liberty Harig added to the Outlaws’ medal count with a bronze medal in Saddle Seat English Equitation. This also quali- fies her to compete at the State championships. Coach Golf teams continue to improve By rongi Yost Correspondent photo by Julie benson sisters’ ohsEt competitors turned in strong performances. Chandler was thrilled, say- ing, “As a freshman, Libby qualified for state in her first year; not an easy task.” In the team events, the Canadian Flag team of Ellie Chandler, Chawndra Craig, Rylee Hurtley and Tessa Georges claimed the silver medal in Team Canadian Flags, qualifying them for state. Coach Chandler was happy with the district results. “A couple of the girls who I thought would qualify for state did, but a number of us were pleasantly sur- prised by the results in Team Canadian Flags. A Silver medal means that both of our seniors will now be going to state, too.” Rylee Hurtley also quali- fied to compete in the state championships in Barrel Racing, placing fifth overall for the season. The Sisters team placed second in the medium team category this year. Coach Chandler said, “I’m really proud of the entire team. Everyone contributed Running like the wind... photo by Jerry baldock sisters graduate Brandon pollard matches his all time pr in the 1,500 at the Elite run of the oregon relays at hayward Field. to the team points. We were the smallest team in the medium division, and it’s tough when we’re compet- ing against big schools like Redmond and Summit.” The third district meet includes an emotional spe- cial presentation of seniors, where all the seniors from the 19 teams in the Central District are recognized. While a short biography is read, each senior rides into the arena and is recognized for their accomplishments in OHSET. This year, the Sisters team had two seniors: Team Co-captain Chawndra Craig and Tessa Georges. The state championships will be held at the Deschutes County Fairgrounds in Redmond, May 14-17. The top athletes from eight dis- tricts and 135 schools around Oregon will gather to com- pete in the largest annual equestrian event in the state. 9 The boys golf team played under tough, cold, and windy conditions in an eight-team tournament held at Bend Country Club on Monday, April 13. Summit took the tourna- ment by storm and claimed championship honors with a team score of 309. Bend was runner-up at 311, and Hermiston finished third at 323. Sisters recorded a team- total of 413. Austin Lake and Devin Robillard both carded a 98 for the Outlaws. Robillard’s 98 was a career-best. Devin improved on his short game and only had two three-putts in the round. Robillard fin- ished his round with a great par four on the No. 18 hole by chipping in his fourth shot from off the green. “Devin is improving weekly, and his short game is the key,” said Coach Bill Mitchell. Kade Owen carded a 105. Owen shot a 49 on the front nine for his best nine ever. “Kade had three three- putts,” said Mitchell. “We want to eliminate all three- putts, but this is easier said than done.” Ben Saba finished at 112 and Steen Johnson shot a 125. “This was probably the best team effort we’ve had in the last couple of years,” stated Mitchell. “We need to keep working toward our goal of everyone breaking 100, and as a team we’d like to break 400. We had 413, so we are close!” Mitchell told The Nugget that a day later Austin Lake had an unfortunate mishap at school and broke his arm in two places. “It’s going to be very dif- ficult to replace him, particu- larly because he’s been our best player,” said Mitchell. On the girls side, Emily Christen played at Tokatee on Wednesday, April 15. Christen lowered her score for a career-best 102. Emily shot a 48 on the front nine, but added a few strokes on the back nine to finish with a 58. She started the back nine great, and shot bogey golf for the first five holes, but from there her game unraveled a bit. “Those five holes were her best stretch of golf she’s played by far,” said Mitchell. “She had her goal of breaking 100 in sight, and then nerves got the best of her. She was still right there and was so close.” The boys will play in a tournament at Meadow Lakes on Friday, April 24. The girls will not play next week. Classifieds are online at NuggetNews.com