10A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 2018 CONTACT US FOLLOW US facebook.com/ DailyAstorianSports Gary Henley | Sports Reporter ghenley@dailyastorian.com Athletes of the Week SOPHIE LONG Astoria ALEX TEUBNER Seaside Photos by Gary Henley/The Daily Astorian ompeting against 125 other runners in the Ultimook Nike Invitational C in Tillamook, Long opened her sophomore season with a fourth-place individual finish in the varsity 5,000-meter race. She covered the course at he senior did it all for the Gulls in their season opener Aug. 30 vs. Hen- ley at Broadway Field. Offensively, he averaged just over 10 yards per run, T finishing with 221 yards rushing on 22 attempts. He scored six touchdowns, Hydrangea Ranch in 21 minutes, 4.5 seconds. Coupled with a sixth-place fin- ish from freshman teammate Lindsay Riutta, the Astoria girls placed second in the team standings behind Tillamook, out of 13 scoring teams. including a 47-yard sprint down the sideline with six seconds left in the sec- ond quarter, and a 49-yard run in the fourth quarter. On defense, he inter- cepted a pass for Seaside’s only turnover in the 55-13 win. HOLE-IN-ONE SPORTS IN BRIEF Back-to-back homers by Cruz, Span lead M’s past O’s 5-2 Lorraine Brown of Warrenton, following her hole-in-one. AP Photo/Stephen Brashear The Daily Astorian Lorraine Brown of Warrenton scored a hole-in-one Aug. 21 at Seaside Golf Course. She aced the par 3, 153-yard fifth hole. Astoria hosts alumni meet The Daily Astorian The Astoria High School cross country team will host its annual “Run with the Fishermen” alumni classic, Saturday, Sept. 15 at Cof- fenbury Lake. The race begins at 5:30 p.m., from the lake’s parking lot in Fort Stevens State Park. A potluck in picnic shelter A will be held after the race. Astoria alumni and support- ers are invited to watch or join in the run, which will include the school’s cross country team. The scenic course is slightly less than three miles and follows the trail around the lake. For more information, contact Astoria coach Andrew Fick at 503-325-3911, or email at afick@astoria.k12.or.us. SCOREBOARD PREP SPORTS SCHEDULE TODAY Volleyball — Astoria at Rainier, 6 p.m.; Seaside at North Marion, 7 p.m.; Knappa at Ilwaco, 6:30 p.m.; St. Paul at Jewell, 6 p.m. Girls soccer — Astoria at St. Helens, 7 p.m. Boys soccer — St. Helens at Astoria, 7 p.m., CMH Field FRIDAY Football — Stayton at Astoria, 7 p.m.; Seaside at Marist, 7 p.m.; Knappa at Toledo, 7 p.m.; Creswell at Warrenton, 7 p.m.; Powers at Jewell, 5 p.m.; White Salmon at Ilwaco, 7 p.m. Volleyball — Jewell at Damascus Christian, 6 p.m. SATURDAY Volleyball — Astoria, Seaside at Cascade tournament, TBA; Knappa at Neah-Kah-Nie tournament, TBA Girls soccer — Marshfield vs. Astoria (at Newport), 11 a.m.; Estacada at Sea- side, 3 p.m. Boys soccer — Marshfield vs. Astoria (at Newport), 1 p.m. Seattle Seahawks’ Earl Thomas warms up before a game against the Atlanta Falcons in Seattle. Seahawks safety Thomas ends his lengthy holdout By TIM BOOTH Associated Press R ENTON, Wash. — Locker No. 29 in the Seattle Sea- hawks locker room was once again occupied Wednesday after being vacant the entire offseason. Earl Thomas was back after end- ing his lengthy holdout. His Instagram post on Wednesday morning announc- ing his return made it clear Thomas wasn’t happy or satisfied. But he was present, giving the Seahawks a major boost heading into the start of the reg- ular season. “He’s been with us for so long. He’s just been part of the fabric of what we’ve been about,” Seattle coach Pete Carroll said. “It’s an adjustment period as he jumps in with us right now and we’ll figure out how that works. ... I don’t have any thought about what to share with you right now because we have to see what he does and how he feels and all that stuff, but it’s great to have him back.” Thomas’ return to the Seahawks facility was a welcome moment for the team and ended a long offseason of drama centered on whether he would play out the final season of his con- tract, receive the contract extension he hoped for, or possibly be traded. Thomas’ reaction to the lack of a reso- lution was clear in his post: “The dis- respect has been noted and will not be forgotten.” He’s not happy, but he wasn’t about to sacrifice a $500,000 game check or leave his teammates without one of their most important defensive leaders. Thomas wrote he’s never let his “teammates, city or fans down as long as I have lived and don’t plan to start this weekend.” But he was quick to add he’s got plenty of good years remaining after his current contract expires. “Father Time may have an unde- feated record but best believe I plan on Shaquem Griffin set to start 1st NFL game for Seahawks Associated Press RENTON, Wash. — Seahawks rookie Shaquem Griffin will start at weakside linebacker when Seattle opens the regular season at Denver on Sunday. Starter K.J. Wright is still recov- ering from minor knee surgery and coach Pete Carroll said Wednesday that the earliest he would return is Week 2 against Chicago. Griffin, who had his left hand UP NEXT: SEAHAWKS • Seattle Seahawks (0-0) at Denver Broncos (0-0) • Sunday, 1.25 p.m. TV: FOX taking him into triple overtime when it comes to my career,” Thomas wrote. Thomas did not speak with report- ers Wednesday. Carroll would not commit to whether Thomas would play against Denver on Sunday in the opener. Seattle received a roster exemption from the league to allow Thomas to practice. Not surprisingly, Thomas seemed to be universally embraced upon his return, both as the longest-tenured Seahawks player and for the on-field boost he can give to Seattle’s over- hauled defense. Doug Baldwin said he ran up and gave Thomas a hug when he saw him in a team meeting. Defen- sive coordinator Ken Norton Jr. joked he became a better coach. Linebacker Bobby Wagner under- stood the dynamics of Thomas’ situation. amputated as a child, became one of the big stories of the NFL offseason with his performance at the scout- ing combine. The former UCF star was drafted in the fifth round by the Seahawks. Griffin got plenty of playing time in the preseason and played well with the exception of the sec- ond game against the Chargers. Griffin will also play alongside his brother Shaquill, the starting left cornerback for the Seahawks. “I think football is football, business is business. That’s coach Carroll and John Schneider, that’s business,” Wagner said. “At the end of the day you can’t really hate a person for wanting to provide for his family. That’s how I look at it. He’s been playing at a high level, he wanted more money. That’s kind of on them.” Thomas is a three-time first-team All-Pro and was the anchor for the Seattle defense that appeared in con- secutive Super Bowls, winning the first. Aside from suffering a broken leg late in the 2016 season, Thomas has been a durable starter from the time he arrived in the league. He has missed just seven regular-season games in his career. His holdout was based on seek- ing certainty for the long term. He asked for a trade if Seattle wasn’t willing to give him a contract exten- sion. The idea of a trade, for now, was squashed by Carroll on Wednes- day when he said: “He’s a Seahawk. He’s always been and will be one forever.” SEATTLE — Dee Gordon says it’s too early for the Seattle Mariners to be worried about the wild-card math. He thinks they should just concentrate on win- ning games. Nelson Cruz and Denard Span hit back-to-back home runs, and Seattle overcame sloppy infield defense to beat the Baltimore Ori- oles 5-2 on Wednesday night. Despite winning a home series for the first time since July 22, the Mariners failed to gain ground on Oakland in the race for the second AL wild card. They still trail by 5½ games with 22 remaining. Nike unveils Kaepernick ad to air during NFL season opener Nike has unveiled its first “Just Do It” ad narrated by Colin Kaeper- nick, a spot scheduled to air during the NFL season opener tonight as well as during the U.S. Open tennis tournament and other major sport- ing events. The two-minute spot released Wednesday highlights superstar athletes LeBron James, Serena Wil- liams and others, and touches on the controversy of NFL players protest- ing racial inequality, police brutal- ity and other issues by demonstrat- ing during the national anthem. Kaepernick narrates the full spot but first physically appears midway through. As a camera pans to reveal Kaepernick’s face, a reflection of a United States flag is visible on the facade of a building behind him. Kaepernick says: “Believe in something, even if it means sacri- ficing everything.” At the start of the ad, Kaeper- nick says: “If people say your dreams are crazy, if they laugh at what you think you can do, good. Stay that way, because what non- believers fail to understand is that calling a dream crazy is not an insult, it’s a compliment.” The former 49ers quarterback is revealed as the narrator toward the end of the spot. President Donald Trump, a fre- quent critic of protesting NFL play- ers, tweeted Wednesday that Nike is getting “killed” over the endorse- ment deal. “Nike is getting absolutely killed with anger and boycotts,” Trump tweeted. “I wonder if they had any idea that it would be this way? As far as the NFL is con- cerned, I just find it hard to watch, and always will, until they stand for the FLAG!” — Associated Press