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About The Observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1968-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 21, 2021)
SPORTS A8 — THE OBSERVER THURSDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2021 OSAA is going digital with prep playoff tickets By ANNIE FOWLER East Oregonian WILSONVILLE — The Oregon School Activities Association is going dig- ital with tickets to all post- season events. Starting with fall play- off s — football, volleyball, soccer and cross-country — fans can go online and purchase their tickets in advance for events. They then will show their e-ticket at the gate when arriving for the event. “Pre-sold digital tickets will take precedence over any potential walk up at the day of the event,” OSAA Assistant Execu- tive Director Kyle Stanfi eld wrote in a news release. “It’s important that host facilities are prepared to take these tickets at the event.” Though the digital PREVIEWS Continued from Page A7 would give the Ante- lopes an undefeated reg- ular season and propel them into fi rst place in the upcoming playoff s. Kickoff is at 7 p.m. Friday. IMBLER AT DUFUR — Few teams are as hot at this point in the season as the Panthers. They have won three straight games to climb above .500 on the season at 4-3. The Panthers downed Pilot Rock 62-34 last Friday to record their best off ensive output on the season. They will look to keep the winning going when they travel to face Dufur, a traditional power, who is 4-3 on the season coming off a 46-6 loss to Ione/Arlington. Dufur has lost two of its past three games, beating only Pilot Rock 46-44 on Oct. 7. Friday kickoff is set for 7 p.m. IONE/ARLINGTON AT COVE — Cove lost Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian, File La Grande players dump ice on La Grande head coach Rich McIlmoil following their win over Banks in the 2019 state title game. The OSAA is going to sell tickets to postseason events online starting this fall. tickets are preferred, fans can pay at the door if the game is hosted at a high school. Once playoff s reach neutral sites (semifi nals and fi nals), e-tickets will be the way to go. In small communi- ties where internet is lim- a defensive battle against Crane 16-6 last week to fall to 2-5 on the season. The Leopards will con- clude their season after seeing both their starting and backup quarterbacks going down to injury a week ago. Junior David Creech continues to impress from his fullback position after scoring his team’s lone touchdown against Crane. Cove’s defense was impressive in the loss, holding the Mustangs to under 20 points after they averaged 57 points per game across the last four contests. Ione/Arlington is coming off a 46-6 drub- bing of Dufur a week ago to improve to 4-3 on the season. It has won its past two games scoring at least 30 points each time. Kickoff is 7 p.m. Friday. ELGIN AT WAL- LOWA — Injuries have plagued Elgin in the fi nal weeks of the regular season as it was forced to forfeit its game against Adrian last week. Elgin ited or fans prefer to pay at the gate, Stanfi eld said the OSAA will work with those communities to off er both. “Each school and loca- tion may have diff erent restrictions and we want to honor those restrictions,” has just 11 players on its roster this year and would have had to play freshmen or injured players against the top-ranked Antelopes. The Huskies (2-4) will lean, if healthy, on quar- terback Ty McLaughlin and playmakers Bruce Morehead and Joe Lathrop. The trio creates a dominant rushing attack that has been eff ective throughout the season. Wallowa is coming off a 62-24 loss to No. 2 Powder Valley to fall to 1-4 on the season. Its single win on the year came against Union 36-22 on Sept. 24. Kickoff on Friday is set for 7 p.m. ENTERPRISE AT LYLE/WISHRAM/ KLICKITAT — Enter- prise enters the game at 4-3, having won three straight games. The Out- laws received a forfeit from Sherman/Condon their last time out, but scored 51 and 55 points, respectively, in their previous two victo- ries, over Ione/Arlington and Elgin. Stanfi eld said. “We will be communicating consis- tently throughout October and November.” Powder Valley Athletic Director Brad Dunten is unsure of the impact the digital ticketing will have until the school tests it fi rsthand. “Not experiencing it yet, it’s hard to give feedback,” Dunten said. “Yearly we have to train parents and fans on the season’s sched- uling and protocols, so this will just be another element.” Dunten noted that seniors and their parents volunteer to work the gate at sporting events, which goes toward fundraisers for the senior class. Dunten was unsure if the lessened use of up-front ticketing will have an impact on that system. According to Dunten, Lyle/Wishram/Klickitat is looking to bounce back after falling to previously winless Union 34-26 on Oct. 15. It enters the game with a 4-3 record, but has lost its last two games. Kickoff is 7 p.m. Friday in Lyle, Washington. JOSEPH AT PRAIRIE CITY/BURNT RIVER — It will be a bounce-back eff ort this week for the Joseph foot- ball team, coming off a blowout loss to Mitchell/ Spray/Wheeler last Friday. The Eagles lost 49-6 to the online ticketing will expedite the payment pro- cess to OSAA during the playoff s. Local schools send the ticket funds to OSAA, and a smaller bal- ance is sent back to the ath- letics department. With the online process in place, the necessary funds for offi - cials and other expenses can be sent directly to OSAA. According to the OSAA, the pandemic has forced changes, including a con- sumer shift to using apps and digital services now more than ever. By not having large-ticketed events the last 18 months, the OSAA considers this the perfect time to reset and start a new way of thinking on how to enter contests. The move to digital tickets also will reduce the number of people needed drop their record to 4-2 on the year, with the team’s only other loss coming in a forfeit to Pine Eagle on Oct. 1. Mitchell/Spray/Wheeler came into last week’s matchup with a perfect 6-0 record, but Joseph will not be able to take things easy on Oct. 21 as Prairie City/ Burnt River comes into the matchup 5-1. The Panthers are coming off a 44-22 win at Echo last Friday. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m. Thursday. for an event. Venues no longer will need multiple ticket sellers, just a couple of ticket scanners. Finding people to work games has been diffi cult for some schools. This move helps reduce the number of people in the ticket booths while pro- viding frictionless access to patrons. The ease of technology turns most any smartphone into a ticket scanner, pro- vided the venue has a cell signal. An app is used to scan tickets. For a single high school event, the bat- tery usage and amount of data used to run the app is minimal. Schools will no longer be responsible for large sums of cash. Money for digital tickets goes directly to an OSAA account, with no cash or credit card slips left at the site. STREAK Continued from Page A7 limit mistakes, his produc- tion will be key to turning things around for the Moun- taineers’ off ense. Eastern has won its last seven head-to-head matchups with the Lights, holding a 7-5 record in road games between the two schools. Having won nine out of the last 10 matchups, the Mountaineers will be hoping for similar results to end the team’s losing streak. FREE DELIVERY Union and Wallowa Counties ELGIN ELECTRIC 43 N. 8th Elgin, OR 541-437-2054 F a l l K i c k o f f ! S A V E O N G E N U I N E L A - Z - B O Y R E C L I N E R S PINNACLE CHAISE ROCKER RECLINER only $ 699 VAIL only MORRISON only $ $ 599 649 H u r r y i n w h i l e s e l e c t i o n i s b e s t ! 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