Sports
A9
Saturday, May 7, 2022
EOU
softball
hauls in
all-league
honors
Smith, Gaither earn
first-team nods
By DAVIS CARBAUGH
The Observer
LA GRANDE —
Coming off one of the most
successful regular seasons
in program history, the
Eastern Oregon Univer-
sity softball program was
well represented in the Cas-
cade Collegiate Conference
award selections.
Five Mountaineers
earned all-conference
honors, while two players
were named to the confer-
ence first team.
Eastern
pitcher
Amanda
Smith, who
finished the
regular season
second in
Smith
the confer-
ence with 17
wins, earned a
first-team nod
after an excel-
lent season
in the pitch-
er’s circle.
Gaither
Infielder
Grace
Gaither, who
started in all
52 games for
the Moun-
taineers, also
earned a first-
team selec-
Crist
tion. Gaither
hit .300 on the year, with 21
RBIs and 27 runs scored.
Infielder Caitlin Crist
earned a spot on the second
team after leading Eastern
with 41 runs scored in the
regular season. Crist also
was tied with Hannah Tyree
and Kayla Berg for most
RBIs on the team with 30.
The junior led the way with
82 total bases and crushed
six home runs.
Outfield duo Shelby
Starr and Karsyn Zara-
goza both earned honorable
Davis Carbaugh/The Observer, File
La Grande High School golfer Sydney Cox lines up a putt at the La Grande Country Club on Tuesday, April 26, 2022. The Tigers placed first overall at the La
Grande Invitational, with a team score of 428.
ON THE GREEN
Well-rounded team effort propels La Grande girls golf team into district, state contention
By DAVIS CARBAUGH • The Observer
A GRANDE — With a stellar regular
L
season in the rearview mirror, the La
Grande High School girls golf team is
aiming high in the postseason.
A well-balanced one-
through-five led the way for
the Tigers, who have won
every team-scored tournament
this regular season. As the
4A/3A/2A/1A Special District
4 tournament in Pendleton on
Monday, May 9, approaches,
La Grande is hoping for sus-
tained success with the season
on the line.
“I think they’re pretty con-
fident, seeing the scores this
year,” La Grande head coach
Bill Waldrop said. “I think
they’re all expecting to make it
to state and do well.”
The Tigers have relied on a
team effort, with the team’s top
four golfers averaging under
110 this season. Marissa Lane
has led the way, averaging 102,
while Emma Bell was right
behind at 105. Sydney Cox
averaged a 107. Dylann Justice
put together a season average
of 108, and Natasha Lane aver-
aged 120.
La Grande concluded the
regular season with a strong
showing at the Ontario Invite,
totaling a 437 team score — the
Tigers were 57 strokes ahead of
second-place Ontario.
Marissa Lane, a junior,
remarked that the team has
shown vast improvement from
the start of the season through
now.
“We’ve gotten better as the
season goes on,” she said. “Our
best score this year was 411,
which is way down from what
it was at the beginning of the
See, Golf/Page A10
Davis Carbaugh/The Observer, File
La Grande golfer Dylann Justice attempts a putt during the La Grande
Invitational on Tuesday, April 26, 2022. The LHS girls team enters the
postseason after placing first in each match this regular season.
See, Softball/Page A10
SPORTS SHORT
Hair rules updated for high school basketball and wrestling
Changes allow for
diversity of styles as long
as safety is maintained
By NIK STRENG
The Oregonian
PORTLAND — The National
Federation of State High School
Associations (NFHS) has altered a
couple of hair rules that will allow
for more participation and increase
a diversity of hairstyles in basketball
and wrestling.
In its May meeting, the NFHS
Board of Directors approved a
recommendation that will allow
hair adornments that are made of
hard material as long as they are
securely fastened close to the head
and do not present an increased
risk to the player, teammates or
opponents.
The NFHS said the hair rule was
changed to be more inclusive of hair-
styles among student-athletes.
“It was extremely important to the
rules committee to create rules lan-
guage that supported diversity of hair
trends while minimizing the risk of
injury to the athlete, teammates and
opponents,” said NFHS Director of
Sports Lindsey Atkinson in a news
release.
For wrestling, the NFHS has
altered a long-standing rule and will
now allow facial hair as long as that
facial hair does not impede a skin
check.
Previously, the only facial hair that
wrestlers were allowed was a mus-
tache (trimmed above the lip line)
and sideburns. Now, wrestlers will be
allowed to keep hair that covers the
chin and neck.
This rule change is one of many
changes to wrestling that have
taken place to increase participation
nationwide. In recent years, wres-
tling has allowed an optional two-
piece uniform to be worn in compe-
tition instead of the classic singlet.
There have also been changes to
weight classes to allow for more
participation.
The rule also makes it so any
wrestler who has facial hair for reli-
gious purposes does not have to feel
separated. In the past, any wrestler
who had facial hair had to wear a
face covering.
East Oregonian, File
Haley Ferry (35), of Salem Academy, and Union’s Kaylin Nowak
prepare to grab a rebound after a free throw during the state 2A
girls championship basketball game on Saturday, March 5, 2022,
at the Pendleton Convention Center. Union won the game 52-38.
Find up-to-date scores and additional game coverage
for your local high school, available 24/7 at
www.lagrandeobserver.com.