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About The Observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1968-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 6, 2019)
8A — THE OBSERVER FRIDAY, DECEMBER 6, 2019 SPORTS Six named all-conference Observer staff Observer fi le photo Eastern Oregon University’s Chase Van Wyck (41) and Sage DeLong (top left) were both fi rst team all-Frontier performers on the defensive line. LA GRANDE — Six members of the Eastern Oregon University football team — all defense and special teams players — were selected to the all-Frontier Conference team, and two of them went on to earn NAIA all- American honorable mention nods. Defensive linemen Sage DeLong and Chase Van Wyck were selected to the all- conference fi rst team, while linebacker Isaiah Cranford and defensive back Zack Jacobs were named to the second teams. DeLong and Jacobs also were named hon- orable mention all-Americans. Placekicker Jaiden Machuca and punter Zach Cahill were named to the special teams second team. DeLong was among the most disruptive forces on defense in the conference. The junior fi nished with 13 tackles for loss and 50 total tackles on the season, with his TFL total putting him in the top fi ve in the confer- ence. DeLong also had 4.5 sacks. Van Wyck, also a junior and the other book- end on the Mountaineers’ defensive line, had 58 tackles, seven for loss and 3.5 sacks for EOU. Cranford, a senior, fi nished with 66 tackles — second on the team — and added six tackles for loss. Jacobs, a junior and the Mountaineers’ leading interception-grabber, had 51 tackles and four interceptions, nearly half of the team’s total of nine. Machuca was highly effi cient in his fi rst year as the full-time place kicker, went 11- for-12 on fi eld goals and 22-for-24 on extra points. He also punted 35 times for an aver- age of 39 yards a kick. Cahill, who midseason took over as the full-time punter, had 29 punts at an average of 42.2 yards a boot, and hit six of the 29 bet- ter than 50 yards. Legions from area on all-SD3 Hoops roundup: Cove girls can’t miss in opener Observer staff LA GRANDE — The Elgin football team led the area Special District 3 East teams in the all- league awards following the end of the season, as seven players earned a total of nine spots to rep- resent the Huskies on the field. Tristan Simpson and Cody Harvey each garnered two dis- tinctions. Simpson, the Huskies’ four-year starter at quarter- back, was named fi rst-team all-league at QB, and was also named honorable mention all- league at kicker. Harvey, mean- while, was a second-team tight end/wide receiver and honor- able mention kick returner. Deshaun Trudeau was se- lected as a fi rst-team guard, and Dawson Larman was chosen as a second-team defensive lineman. Jordon Palmer, in his fi rst year on the football team, was an hon- orable mention tight end/wide receiver, and both Gage McKay and Joe Lathrop were honorable mention at defensive back. The Powder Valley Badgers, who reached the 1A state quar- terfi nals, had fi ve players lock up six spots on the SD3-East team. Roper Bingham was selected as a fi rst-team defensive end and a second-team tight end/ wide receiver, and Reece Dixon earned honors as a fi rst-team linebacker. Hunter Lind and Moziss Nesser both landed spots on the second team, Nesser at center and Lind at guard, and Cole Martin was an honorable mention defensive back. Wallowa also had six spots locked down by fi ve players, led by Zeb Ramsden earning fi rst team at both running back and defensive back. On the second team for the Cougars were Jesse Duncan at linebacker, Ry- der Goller at defensive end and Tristin Bales as kick returner, and Rubin was honorable men- tion at center. Cove’s Caiden Hall was a fi rst-team selection at punter, and Bo Ledbetter was honor- able mention at defensive back. The SD3-West teams were led by Union, which had eight Observer staff Observer fi le photos Above: Elgin’s Tristan Simpson was a fi rst-team quarterback and honorable mention kicker. Below: Powder Valley’s Roper Bingham was a fi rst-team defensive end and second-team wide receiver/tight end. The Cove Leopards simply couldn’t miss Thursday. Austin Kendall scored 21 points to lead three players in double fi gures, and the Cove girls basketball team shot 61% and rolled over Cascade, Idaho, 72-33, to win what head coach Doug Girdner called the “best fi rst game” of his coaching career. “Everybody was hitting,” he said. “It didn’t matter. When you’re open, you shoot. The other team was a little slow on the rotation and we made them pay.” Cove (1-0 overall) scored 21 in the fi rst quarter, when it shot 10-for-13, and built a 42-12 lead by halftime. The Leopards stretched the lead to 42 by the end of the third. Seven of the eight players on the team scored. Kierra Moore added 12 points and Elli Hines-Dunlap had 10 for the Leop- ards. Maggie Frisch added 10 rebounds and Raegan Duby had eight of the team’s 24 assists. Cove faces Adrian today at the Union Lions Tournament. Also Thursday LA GRANDE GETS BY NYSSA The La Grande girls basketball team opened the 2019-20 season with a road win against Nyssa Thursday, 48-27. Camryn Collman led the Tigers with 17 points, scoring more in the fi rst quarter (seven) than Nyssa did as La Grande built a 20-5 lead after one. The Tigers didn’t let up, stretching the margin to 34-12 at halftime and 45-18 after three. Grace Neer added eight points and Kenzie Williams scored six for La Grande (1-0 overall), which next hosts Hermiston Monday. BADGERS TOP NORTH LAKE players fi ll six spots, including fi ve fi rst-team nods. Senior Grif- fi n Nash was selected as a fi rst- team offensive lineman and a second-team defensive lineman to lead the Bobcats. Anthony Goodwater also earned two spots as he was named fi rst- team defensive end and honor- able mention running back. Also on the fi rst team for Union was Cameron Dillman at running back, Breese Stenkamp on the offensive line and Gannon Carreiro at wide receiver. Imbler’s Jayce Burnette earned fi rst-team honors at linebacker. Wyatt Frost was named to the second team on the offensive line and Isaac Herron was an honorable men- tion running back. Enterprise did not provide its all-league list. Six Bobcats named all-league The Powder Valley girls basketball team used a second-half scoring burst to open the 2019-20 season with a road win against North Lake Thursday, 51-41. The teams were tied at 24-24 at the break, but the Badgers outscored North Lake 14-8 in the third to gain some breathing room, then fi nished the win in the fourth. “We saw some really good things. We were excited on some of the things they did,” head coach Allen Bingham said. Josi Krieger led the way with 17 points, Autumn Davis added 12 and Dallee Jo Bingham chipped in with eight for the Badgers (1-0 overall), who resume action today against McKenzie in North Lake then travel to Dufur Saturday. Observer staff Boys LA GRANDE — The Union volleyball team landed six ath- letes on the Blue Mountain Con- ference all-league team, including three on the fi rst team, following a sweep through the conference on its way to a fourth-place fi nish in the state tournament. A trio that offense earned fi rst team honors in senior outside hitter Autumn Daggett, junior outside hitter Kylie Marriott and sophomore setter Callie Glenn. Senior libero Brianna Kohr, a mainstay on defense for the Bobcats, earned second team accolades. Senior right side Taylar Daggett and junior middle Ahnica Shoemaker earned honorable mention. The six, all of whom started for the Bobcats, powered the team to a 24-4 record and the program’s best fi nish at state since placing fourth in both 2006 and 2007. The Enterprise Outlaws CASCADE PULLS AWAY IN SECOND HALF TO TOP COVE The Cove boys basketball team hung with Cascade, Idaho, for the fi rst half Thursday before Cascade pulled away for a 62-28 win in the Leopards’ season opener. Cove trailed 22-15 at the break before Cascade broke the game open with a 16-3 third quarter run, then tacked on 24 more points in the fourth for the win. “We’re playing with a lot of young kids — a lot of youth,” Cove head coach Doug Wiggins said. “We have only two seniors, and only one is a returning starter.” Bo Ledbetter led Cove (0-1 overall) with eight points. Braden Dickenson added six points. The Leopards face Adrian today at the Union Lions Tournament. Observer fi le photo Autumn Daggett was one of three fi rst-team all-league per- formers for the Union volleyball team. battled through a tough 10-14 season, but landed two players on all league. Senior outside hitter Ashlyn Gray was named to the league’s second team, and junior libero Claire Farwell was honorable mention. POWDER VALLEY DROPS OPENER The Powder Valley boys basketball team opened the 2019-20 season with a road loss against North Lake Thursday in overtime, 67-63, in a wild season opener. Ethan Stephens led the Badgers with 13 points. Roper Bingham had 11 and Moziss Nesser scored 10. But the Badgers were hampered by foul trouble as they were called for 34 fouls and saw fi ve players foul out. Powder Valley fi nished with just four players on the court in overtime. The Badgers (0-1 overall), who resume action today against McKenzie in North Lake then travel to Dufur Saturday. Wednesday UNION BOYS TAKE DOWN IMBLER The Union Bobcats played lockdown defense and had balanced scoring as they ran past the Imbler Panthers Wednes- day, 55-22, to give new head coach Odin Miller his fi rst win on the bench. “Obviously just going over those scores they played outstanding defense,” Miller said. “I was so happy with their effort on defense. We’ve been working on that since day one. It’s an athletic group that with the right focus can be strong defensively.” Keegan Glenn scored 15 points and Jace Phillips had 14 to lead Union (1-0 overall), which had eight players score. Jayce Burnette had nine points to pace the Panthers (0-1) while Wyatt Frost added six. Union faces Echo tonight at its home Union Lions Tournament, while Imbler faces Pilot Rock in Joseph. WALLOWA RALLIES IN THE FOURTH The Wallowa boys basketball team rallied in the fourth quarter to secure a win in its regular season opener Wednesday as the Cougars edged the Enterprise Outlaws at home, 38-35. The Cougars trailed for a large por- tion of the night, including 28-23 enter- ing the fourth, before stringing enough offense together for the win. Quinten Tillery, who led the Cougars with 10 points, had a key 3-point play down the stretch that boosted Wallowa, according to fi rst-year head coach Cody Lathrop. “We capitalized on some key mo- ments,” Lathrop said. Zeb Hermens added eight points for Wallowa (1-0 overall), while Devin Greer and David Salim both had eight points for Enterprise (0-1). The Cougars are back in action today against Council, Idaho, at the Elgin Lions Tournament, while the Outlaws travel to Crane. Girls ENTERPRISE HOLDS OFF WALLOWA Ashlyn Gray scored a team-high nine points, and the Enterprise Outlaws pulled away in the second half Wednes- day to open the 2019-20 season with a 39-28 road win over the Wallowa Cougars. The Outlaws (1-0 overall) held just a 17-13 lead at the half, but doubled their lead to 28-20 after three quarters and held on. Zari Bathke added eight points for Enterprise, while Shanna Rae Til- lery led the Cougars (0-1 overall) with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Wallowa, though, was unable to shake off a slow start, as it scored one point in the open- ing quarter. Enterprise travels to Crane tonight, while Wallowa faces Council, Idaho, at the Elgin Lions Tournament. BOBCATS TOPPLE PANTHERS The Union Bobcats opened the sea- son with a strong defensive effort and a big scoring night from Callie Glenn Wednesday as they defeated the Imbler Panthers on the road, 41-17. Glenn outscored the Panthers on her own, and fi nished with a game-high 22 points. The Bobcats (1-0 overall) host Echo tonight at the Union Lions Tourna- ment, while Imbler (0-1) faces Pilot Rock in Joseph.
