SPORTS
A10 — THE OBSERVER
LOCAL STANDINGS
BASKETBALL
Continued from Page A9
Eastern was a stout 11-1 at
home during the season.
Despite a strong fi nish to
the season, the Mountain-
eers saw their postseason
run come to an end at the
hands of Southern Oregon
on Feb. 25. The Raiders
topped the Mountaineers
65-58.
The two first-team
nominations marked the
29th all-conference selec-
tion for the program under
head coach Anji Weis-
senfluh in 22 years of
coaching.
After the loss to
Southern Oregon, the
Mountaineers will await
the possibility of an
at-large bid to the NAIA
national tournament. The
64-team field is set to be
announced at 4 p.m. on
March 3.
WRESTLING
Continued from Page A9
Sophomore Zach Mauras
is set to make a run at the
133-pound division after
placing sixth at the con-
ference championship. All
fi ve of the wrestlers above
Mauras in the conference are
ranked nationally.
“That is a solid weight
class and he can defi nitely get
in there and surprise some
people,” Azure said.
Freshman Jaxon Morlan
will continue a quality fi rst
season at the collegiate ranks,
competing at the 141-pound
division. According to Azure,
Morlan struggled with inju-
ries throughout the year and
was limited in how many
matches he could compete
in during the regular season.
His second-place fi nish at
the conference tournament
is a promising sign of things
to come for the freshman
wrestler.
Senior Keegan Mulhill, an
anchor on and off the mat for
Eastern, is set to make a fi nal
run at the 174-pound weight
class. Mulhill enters the tour-
nament as one of the more
THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2022
COLLEGE MEN’S BASKETBALL
Cascade Collegiate Conference
Team League Overall
College of Idaho
20-2
28-4
Oregon Tech
18-4
21-10
LC State
14-8
22-10
Corban
14-8
19-12
Southern Oregon
13-9
18-14
Eastern Oregon
12-10
18-13
Warner Pacifi c
10-12
15-17
Multnomah
9-13
13-18
Bushnell
7-15
9-20
Northwest
7-15
10-17
Walla Walla
4-18
5-24
Evergreen
4-18
4-22
COLLEGE WOMEN’S
BASKETBALL
Cascade Collegiate Conference
Team League Overall
LC State
19-3
27-3
Southern Oregon
18-4
27-5
Eastern Oregon
18-4
22-10
Bushnell
15-7
19-13
Oregon Tech 12-10 19-11
Warner Pacifi c
11-11
13-15
Northwest
11-11
17-13
College of Idaho
10-12
16-15
accomplished wrestlers the
program has seen and will
look to end his career on top
as an All-American.
“Heading into the national
tournament, we’re going to
look toward him as a leader,”
Azure said. “We’re looking
for him to come away with
some more hardware.”
Eastern’s lone conference
champion, Knudtson, enters
the national championships
as the No. 3 ranked wrestler
in the country at 184 pounds.
The sophomore went unde-
feated in his division in the
conference tournament to
take top marks. Azure and
Evergreen
Multnomah
Corban
Walla Walla
7-15
6-16
4-18
1-21
9-17
6-23
5-24
2-27
COLLEGE BASEBALL
Cascade Collegiate Conference
Team League Overall
LC State
0-0
19-1
Corban
0-0
9-5-1
Oregon Tech
0-0
11-7
College of Idaho
0-0
9-10
British Columbia
0-0
6-10
Eastern Oregon
0-0
5-12
Bushnell
0-0
2-14
COLLEGE SOFTBALL
Cascade Collegiate Conference
Team League Overall
College of Idaho
3-0
14-2
Oregon Tech
3-0
15-3
Corban
3-0
8-6
Bushnell
3-0
5-5
Southern Oregon
2-1
13-4
British Columbia
1-2
1-5
Eastern Oregon
0-0
8-5
Northwest
0-3
2-7
Warner Pacifi c
0-3
1-7
Carroll
0-3
1-9
the Mountaineers are confi -
dent that Knudtson will be a
contender heading into the
national championships.
“He’s got a good shot at
making a run,” Azure said.
Sophomore Jay Smith was
one of the biggest improve-
ments of the season for
Eastern, going winless in
his freshman year. Smith
compiled a 23-6 record this
season and fi nished second
place in the 197-pound
division at the conference
tournament.
“He’s coming in and defi -
nitely looking to make some
noise at this national tourna-
Providence
0-3
0-4
PREP BOYS BASKETBALL
4A Greater Oregon League
Team League Overall
La Grande
5-1
16-2
Baker
5-1
18-6
McLoughlin
2-4
4-14
Ontario
0-6
0-15
2A Blue Mountain Conference
Team League Overall
Heppner
11-1
21-3
Stanfi eld
10-2
17-11
Union
8-4
15-10
Weston-McEwen
5-7
11-12
Pilot Rock
3-9
6-18
Grant Union
3-9
6-19
Enterprise
2-10
4-18
1A Old Oregon League
Team League Overall
Nixyaawii
9-2
23-6
Powder Valley
9-0
23-2
Cove
8-4
12-11
Joseph
8-3
11-11
Imbler
7-5
10-15
Pine Eagle
4-8
8-14
Wallowa
3-7
5-16
Griswold
1-10
2-21
Elgin
0-10
0-15
ment,” Azure said. “He’ll be a
bit of a sneaker, an underdog
not very well known. He’s been
fl ying under the radar all year.”
Eastern’s fi nal wrestler
heading to Kansas is heavy-
weight Noel Orozco. The
senior has been a domi-
nant wrestler all season for
the Mountaineers, but ulti-
mately came up short and
fi nished as the runner-up at
the conference tournament.
Orozco was defeated by Uni-
versity of Providence’s Kc
Buday, a wrestler that Orozco
defeated twice during the
regular season. Azure noted
that facing the same compe-
PREP GIRLS BASKETBALL
4A Greater Oregon League
Team League Overall
Baker
6-0
19-5
La Grande
4-2
13-9
McLoughlin
2-4
8-11
Ontario
0-6
0-17
2A Blue Mountain Conference
Team League Overall
Union
11-1
22-3
Enterprise
9-3
15-11
Stanfi eld
10-2
22-5
Grant Union
5-7
8-15
Heppner
4-8
10-13
Weston-McEwen
2-10
9-15
Pilot Rock
1-11
5-19
1A Old Oregon League
Team League Overall
Nixyaawii
11-0
24-4
Powder Valley
9-3
14-12
Wallowa
8-3
16-9
Imbler
8-4
10-14
Joseph
7-4
12-11
Elgin
5-7
9-15
Cove
2-10
3-17
Griswold
1-10
6-17
Pine Eagle
1-11
2-18
tition multiple times in the
same season can be a diffi cult
challenge.
“Beating somebody you
see three times in a year is
really tough to do, they say
that third time is always the
toughest,” he said. “I don’t
see that happening again. I
think he’s going to come in
ready to battle hard.”
Eastern’s six wrestlers
heading to the national cham-
pionships tied a record for
most athletes sent to the fi nal
site since the program’s rein-
statement in 2016. Azure and
the Mountaineers are hoping
to achieve success at the team
stage, while shooting for
each wrestler to place in their
weight class.
“At the start of the year,
your goal is always to be
national champs,” Azure
said. “If these guys all com-
pete well and get six guys on
the podium, I think we can
realistically come home with
a trophy.”
The wrestling action is set
to begin on March 4 at the
Hartman Arena in Wichita,
Kansas. The competition
will extend through March
5, when a champion will be
named at the conclusion of
the season.
ON THE SLATE
Thursday, March 3
COLLEGE TRACK AND
FIELD
Eastern Oregon at NAIA Indoor
Championships, Brookings,
South Dakota, TBA
PREP GIRLS BASKETBALL
Union vs. Faith Bible, Pendleton
Convention Center, 6:30 p.m.
Sale
ends March
May 8, 9, 2020
Sale Ends
2022
Friday, March 4
COLLEGE MEN’S
WRESTLING
Eastern Oregon at NAIA
National Championships,
Wichita, Kansas, TBA
COLLEGE TRACK AND
FIELD
Eastern Oregon at NAIA Indoor
Championships, Brookings,
South Dakota, TBA
COLLEGE SOFTBALL
Eastern Oregon at Bushnell,
1 p.m.
Eastern Oregon at Bushnell,
3 p.m.
PREP BOYS BASKETBALL
La Grande at Baker, 6:30 p.m.
PREP GIRLS BASKETBALL
La Grande at Cascade, 5:30 p.m.
Saturday, March 5
COLLEGE MEN’S
WRESTLING
Eastern Oregon at NAIA
National Championships,
Wichita, Kansas, TBA
COLLEGE TRACK AND
FIELD
Eastern Oregon at NAIA Indoor
Championships, Brookings,
South Dakota, TBA
COLLEGE BASEBALL
College of Idaho at Eastern
Oregon, 11 a.m.
College of Idaho at Eastern
Oregon, 2 p.m.
COLLEGE SOFTBALL
Eastern Oregon at Bushnell,
11 a.m.
Eastern Oregon at Bushnell,
1 p.m.
COLLEGE WOMEN’S
LACROSSE
Eastern Oregon at Corban,
1 p.m.
Sunday, March 6
COLLEGE BASEBALL
College of Idaho at Eastern
Oregon, 11 a.m.
College of Idaho at Eastern
Oregon, 2 p.m.
LA GRANDE
BAKER CITY
ENTERPRISE
111 Elm Street
La Grande, OR 97850
2021 Washington Ave.
Baker City, OR 97814
541-605-2109
541-239-3782
113-1/2 Front E. Main St.
Enterprise, OR 97828
541-239-3877
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