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About The Observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1968-current | View Entire Issue (March 4, 2021)
Sports THURSDAY, MARCH 4, 2021 THE OBSERVER — 7A 7A Thursday, March 4, 2021 Th e Observer BACK IN THE GAME The La Grande High School Soccer team handily defeats Four Rivers in the first home game in nearly a year By ALEX WITTWER The Observer LA GRANDE — The La Grande High School Tigers returned to the fi eld Tuesday, March 2, and seized victory in the fi rst home game since Gov. Brown lifted restrictions on high school sports. Approximately two dozen spectators took to the stands at Eastern Oregon University’s Community Field to watch the Tigers soccer team play against the Four Rivers Senior Preparatory Falcons of Ontario. Parents and media sat masked and bundled up in blankets as the night went on. The stands were closed to the general public, while guests were limited to two persons of the same household per player, with social distance rules enforced. Still, that didn’t hinder some die-hard sports fans from watching the fi rst home game since the pandemic began. A group of high school students sat in a pickup outside the fi eld along Sixth Avenue and watched from their vehicle, and others did likewise. As the Tigers scored, a fl urry of honks erupted from the vehicles. “I’m glad to get the kids back on the fi eld. I’m glad the parents could watch,” said Darren Goodman, athletic director for La Grande High School. “Hopefully we can iron out the wrinkles and it’ll get smoother and smoother each time.” Regarding restrictions, Goodman said it’s a work in progress to ensure family members can safely watch the games from the stands. “We want to go slow so we’re making sure we’re doing it safely,” he said. The game was a blowout with the Tigers leading 5-0 in the fi rst half against the Four Rivers Falcons. The La Grande offense was too much for the Falcons to handle, and most of the game was spent near the visiting team’s net. By the second half, the Tigers played much more defensively, shifting the ball back toward a middle-game to force their opponents to wear themselves out. The gambit worked. The Falcons were running on fumes from the constant pressure, allowing the Tigers ample breathing room against any comeback attempts. La Grande scored two points in the second half, and the game ended with a resounding 7-0 victory from the Tigers. The next home game will be the girl’s soccer team against Four Rivers on Tuesday, March 9. CCC releases spring season basketball schedule CORVALLIS — The Cascade Colle- giate Conference released the women’s and men’s spring season basketball schedule Tuesday, March 2, with Bushnell Univer- sity, Corban University, Eastern Oregon University, Multnomah University, Oregon Tech, Southern Oregon University and Warner Pacifi c University set to participate. The spring schedule comes on the heels of the approval from the Oregon Health Authority of the CCC’s comprehen- sive “Return to Play” plan for high con- tact sports, according to the conference’s announcement. In mid-February, Oregon Gov. Kate Browns’ offi ce announced it would accept the plans for college sports as well as high school activities that had been prohibited during the pandemic. Seven men’s teams and six women’s teams will hit the hardwood later this month, after Southern Oregon made the decision to opt-out of the spring schedule in women’s hoops. Photos by Alex Wittwer/The Observer ABOVE: La Grande High School forward striker Devin Ingram (17) takes the battle early to the Four Rivers Falcons on Tues- day, March 2, 2021, during La Grande’s fi rst home game in nearly one year. LEFT: Approximately two dozen specta- tors look on Tuesday, March 2, 2021, as the La Grande High School Tigers face off against the Four Rivers Falcons in La Grande. Due to the pandemic, no visit- ing team family members were able to attend, and viewing was closed to the general public. BELOW: La Grande High School assis- tant coach Eric Montgomery (front) and the Tigers stand at attention during the playing of the national anthem before the game Tuesday, March 2, 2021. “I’m glad to get the kids back on the fi eld. I’m glad the parents could watch. Hopefully we can iron out the wrinkles and it’ll get smoother and smoother each time.” — Darren Goodman, athletic director for La Grande High School The schedule will run for an eight-week period and is set to begin the weekend of March 19-20 and fi nish April 30-May 1. The 12-game men’s and 10-game women’s CCC slate has teams playing each other on back-to-back dates and incorporates a bye weekend in which non-conference games can be planned. CCC Commissioner Robert Cashell in the announcement said schools are fi nal- izing their plans to access antigen testing, which will supplement the weekly PCR testing the conference has been doing with Santiam Hospital in Stayton. “Our goal is to have all of that in place to begin play in three weeks’ time,” Cashell said. The revised Return to Play Plan includes strict daily wellness screening, stringent procedures for mitigating against the intro- duction and spread of COVID-19, and twice per week testing. The conference will use a combination of PCR/antigen testing to comply with the approved plan. — The Observer FREE DELIVERY For more coverage, visit The Observer online www.lagrandeobserver.com Bank of Eastern Oregon. WHERE WE MEET All Your Financial Needs in one place. 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