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8A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • FRIDAY, JUNE 2, 2017 CONTACT US FOLLOW US facebook.com/ DailyAstorianSports Gary Henley | Sports Reporter ghenley@dailyastorian.com NBA FINALS Durant makes his mark in Game 1 Warriors dominate Cavaliers, 113-91 By JOSH DUBOW Associated Press OAKLAND, Calif. — LeB- ron James had a simple explanation for what stood out in Game 1 of the NBA Finals: KD. With a motivated Kevin Durant playing some of the best basketball of his career and taking the pres- sure off Stephen Curry, Golden State dominated Cleveland 113-91 in Game 1 on Thursday night and showed that Cavaliers-Warriors III might not look anything like the pre- vious showdowns. “You take one of the best teams UP NEXT: GAME 2 • Cleveland Cavaliers (0-1) at Golden State Warriors (1-0) • Sunday, 5 p.m. TV: ABC that we had ever assembled last year, that we saw in the regular sea- son and in the postseason, and then in the offseason you add a high- powered offensive talent like that and a great basketball IQ like that, that’s what stands out,” James said. “I mean, it’s no if, ands, or buts. It is what it is. We’ve got to figure out how to combat that, which is going to be a tough chal- lenge for us. “But that’s what stands out.” Durant finished with 38 points, eight rebounds and eight assists, didn’t commit a single turnover and spent much of the night guarding James on the defensive end in an impressive return to the Finals stage five years after his only previous trip with Oklahoma City. Durant lost to James and the Miami Heat in five games in 2012 and then James and the Cavs knocked off the 73-win War- riors in a seven-game thriller last June. But with Durant added to a mix that includes fellow All-Stars Curry, Draymond Green and Klay Thomp- son, this year’s Warriors proved to be too tough for James and Cleve- land to handle in Game 1. “He can just go get a bucket,” Green said. “That’s one of the things that we need, a guy who can go get a bucket, get to the foul line. ... That’s huge for us. You are talking one of the best players in the game. To have a game like that when he’s playing that way, it’s tough to beat. Thirty-eight, 8, 8, zero turnovers? We’re real tough to beat when he’s doing that.” Durant played well in his first Finals trip but didn’t have the help he has now with a two-time MVP in Curry, one of the league’s best two-way players in Thompson and a do-it-all demon like Green. With his big output in Game 1, Durant joined Hall of Famers Rick Barry, Michael Jordan and Shaquille O’Neal as the only players to score at least 25 points in each of his first six Finals games. AP Photo/Ben Margot Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) and forward Kevin Durant re- act after scoring against the Cleveland Cavaliers during the first half of Game 1 of basketball’s NBA Finals in Oakland, Calif., Thursday. Top-seeded Beavers ready for postseason SCOREBOARD PREP SCHEDULE TODAY Baseball — 2A/1A State Champion- ship: Reedsport vs. Knappa, 1:30 p.m., at Volcanoes Stadium SOFTBALL Lewis & Clark All-League Player of the Year: Landree Miethe, Warrenton Pitcher of the Year: Haley Schimmel, Rainier Coach of the Year: Lance Judd, Port- land Adventist First Team P: Niqui Blodgett, Jr., Warrenton P: Tori Johnson, Sr., PAA P: Haley Schimmel, Sr., Rainier C: Kami Gray, Sr., Rainier C: Trinity Hamm, Fr., Clatskanie C: Landree Miethe, Sr., Warrenton Inf: Emily Blank, Fr., PAA Inf: Jadyn Crape, Sr., Rainier Inf: Paige Kellar, Fr., Rainier Inf: Sage Miller, Sr., Clatskanie Inf: Aspen Norman, Jr., Rainier Inf: Olivia Warren, Jr., Clatskanie Second Team P: Mackenzie Mitchell, Sr., Clatskanie C: Katie Blank, Sr., PAA Inf: Claire Bussert, So., Warrenton Inf: Sarah Halverson, Sr., PAA Inf: Sophia Hansen, Sr., PC Inf/P: Taleah King, So., Rainier Inf: Macy Simmons, So., Clatskanie OF: Natalie Duncan, Fr., Warrenton OF: Maris Jackson, So., Clatskanie OF: Jaedyn Larsen, Fr., Rainier OF: Rylee O’Brien, So., Rainier OF: Kenzi Ramsey, Fr., Warrenton OF: Julia Taylor, Sr., Rainier Honorable Mention Carmen Lindblom, Sr., Clatskanie Elaina Chinchilla, Sr., PC Nellie Ernst, Jr., PC Sportsmanship: Portland Christian TRACK & FIELD OSAA State Meet Team Results 2A Girls East Linn Christian 86, Grant Union 82, Monroe 51, Pilot Rock 47, Enterprise 42, Union 38, Culver 32, Central Linn 28, Kennedy 26, Bandon 24, St. Paul 21, Weston-McEwen 19.5, Faith Bible Christian 19, Imbler 17, Gold Beach 16, Riddle 16, Nestucca 15, Stanfield 11, Toledo 8.5, Neah-Kah-Nie 8, Oakland 8, Elgin 8, Myrtle Point 7, Crow 6, Oakridge 6, Lost River 6, Santiam 4, Regis 3, Knappa 3, City Christian 2, Vernonia 2, Waldport 1. 2A Boys Weston-McEwen 67, Bandon 63, Regis 61, Kennedy 47, Delphian 42, Union 39, East Linn Christian 37, Vernonia 31, Monroe 31, Columbia Christian 24, Myrtle Point 23, Oak- land 21, Heppner 20, Central Linn 19, Yoncalla 15, Elgin 14, Enterprise 13, Neah-Kah-Nie 10, Santiam 10, Pilot Rock 10, Culver 8, City Christian 8, Lost River 7, Oakridge 7, Faith Bible Christian 7, Waldport 7, St. Paul 6, Crow 6, Bonanza 4, Imbler 2, Grant Union 2, Nestucca 2. By ANNE M. PETERSON Associated Press CORVALLIS — None of the other teams in the Corvallis Regional have any illusions about the challenge they face: the Ore- gon State Beavers are the top- ranked team in the nation, the No. 1 national seed in the NCAA Tournament, and they only lost four times during the season. The Daily Astorian/File Photo Warrenton catcher Landree Miethe, the 2017 Player of the Year for Lewis & Clark League softball. Warrenton’s Miethe catches MVP award Junior pitcher Blodgett takes first-team honor The Daily Astorian Warrenton senior Landree Miethe capped her final year of high school with the highest individ- ual award — Player of the Year for Lewis & Clark League softball. The Warriors missed out on the state playoffs, but still had two first-team selections — Miethe and junior pitcher Niqui Blodgett — with three more players named to the second team. Miethe finished her high school softball career as the Warrior’s all-time leader in hits, stolen bases, tri- ples and home runs. League champion Rainier, which will be playing for the 3A state title today vs. Dayton, had five first- team selections. The Columbians had another four players on the second team. Warrenton had two freshmen outfielders on the second team — freshmen Natalie Duncan and Kenzi Ramsey. They were joined on the second team by sophomore teammate Claire Bussert. Rainier senior Haley Schimmel was named the league’s Pitcher of the Year, and Lance Judd of Port- land Adventist was the Coach of the Year. Two-run shot lifts Washington past Oregon in WCWS By CLIFF BRUNT Associated Press OKLAHOMA CITY — Washington appears to have Oregon’s number. Kirstyn Thomas’ two-run homer in the top of the seventh inning helped the Huskies defeat the Ducks 3-1 on Thursday in the Women’s College World Series. The Huskies have taken three of four from their Pac-12 rival this season, and this time, they snapped Oregon’s 15-game win streak. Taran Alvelo (33-7) pitched a complete game for Wash- ington, which advanced to winners’ bracket play today. It was Washington’s first World Series win since 2013. “It’s tough to win that first game, tough to play in this environment for a bunch of kids that hav- en’t done it before but have only dreamed about it their whole lives,” Washington coach Heather Tarr said. “But now it’s not a dream. It’s reality, and we’re ready for the next game.” Washington (49-12) scored one run in the third to open the scoring. Oregon (52-7) put two run- ners on with one out in the fifth, but didn’t score. After Thomas’ homer put Washington up 3-0, Oregon’s Lauren Lindvall doubled to start the bottom of the seventh. Jenna Lilley was hit by a pitch to put two on with no outs. Pinch-hitter Madi Bishop drove in a run, but that’s all the Ducks got. “So, yeah, there’s runners on and runners in scoring position, but all that matters in that moment is that pitch that I’m about to throw,” Alvelo said. “So I know if I can execute the next one, then those runners aren’t going to pose a threat to our team if we can just execute in the moment.” Lilley, who was hit twice, was upset and threw her bat after she was hit the second time. “I was just trying to throw, like, around the zone and do what I needed to do,” Alvelo said. “A few got away from me, and that happens. But no hard feelings. I feel like it’s part of the game. You’ve got to move on from it.” The Ducks had five hits and left eight runners on base. “I just felt like we weren’t aggressive at the right times,” Oregon’s Nikki Udria said. “I think we waited a little bit too long to get going and put that pressure on them. I’d like to see us come out on Saturday just ready to go. I felt like it took us a long time to get going today.” Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman Oregon’s Megan Kleist pitches against Washing- ton during an NCAA Women’s College World Se- ries softball game in Oklahoma City, Thursday. “Everyone knows they’ve had a good year,” Holy Cross first baseman Anthony Critelli said. “They’re solid and all. But we’re more focused on us and what we need to do.” Oregon State will host fourth- seeded Holy Cross on tonight fol- lowing a game between No. 2 Nebraska and No. 3 Yale in the double-elimination bracket. It’s been a record-setting sea- son for the Beavers, who at 49-4 have the fewest losses going into the postseason since Texas was 53-4 at the end of the regular sea- son in 1982. Oregon State went 27-3 in Pac- 12 play for the league title, sur- passing Arizona State’s record of 26 league wins set in 1981. Along the way, coach Pat Casey sur- passed the 1,000-win milestone. The Beavers are riding a 16-game winning streak into the postseason. “Our guys kept staying with it, the ball bounced our way, we got a lot of breaks. We stayed inju- ry-free till the end,” Casey said. “We played consistent. I never thought we got too high or too low. We stayed pretty consistent.” The back-to-back College World Series champions in 2006 and 2007 have made the postsea- son 17 times with a 51-33 over- all record. It is the sixth time they will host a regional, and they’re 26-6 in postseason play at Goss Stadium. Holy Cross is headed to the tournament for the first time since 1978. The Crusaders (23-27) won their first-ever Patriot League title since the school joined the confer- ence in 1986. Holy Cross won the NCAA title in 1952. “I don’t think these guys need much motivation, to be frank,” Crusaders coach Greg DiCenzo said. “They’re excited to partake in the tournament, they’ve worked extremely hard. They know how hard we’ve worked as a coach- ing staff to develop the program and put our fingerprints on this program and build that culture. And whether we’re playing the No. 1 team in the country, or the 63rd-ranked team in the country, I don’t think it matters to us, it’s about getting between the white lines and competing.”
