S PORTS
www.hoodrivernews.com
Hood River News, Wednesday, June 17, 2015
A7
Ward, Walker and Harjo have a
good showing in All-Star Series
Photo by Trisha Walker
RYAN WARD, Erich Harjo, and Kam Walker attended the All-Star Series last weekend in Corvallis. Harjo
coached the North team to a 2-1 series victory, while Walker and Ward each had hits and scored runs
during the series, as well as pitched a few innings.
Members of the Hood River Valley base-
ball team traveled to Corvallis this past
weekend for the end-of-the-season Reser’s
All-Star Series held at Oregon State Univer-
sity’s Goss Stadium.
HRV coach Erich Harjo helmed the North
team for the second year in a row and the
North came away with two wins in the three-
game series. The North defeated the South 8-
0 in the first game and 7-3 in the second
game, but lost 5-2 in finale.
On the North team were HRV seniors Ryan
Ward and Kam Walker, who, after coming off
of a 5A state championship win the previous
week, also contributed to victories for their
All-Star squads.
Ward pitched three innings of the game
one shut out, striking out three, walking two,
and giving up one hit.
In game one, Walker singled to second
base in the bottom of the seventh in his first
at-bat, then scored in the same inning. He
struck out in the bottom of the eighth for his
final at-bat. On defense, Walker had an un-
usual task in that he was assigned to third
base, as opposed to his usual position of
pitcher or second base.
In game two, Walker pitched two innings
and gave up three hits and three runs and
walked one.
Ryan Ward grounded out to shortstop in
the top of the second inning for his first at-
bat, then hit one to left field in the top of the
fourth that was good for a double and scored
later in the inning. Ward then flied out to left
field in the top of the fifth for his final at-bat.
In game three, Ward got a walk in the top
of the second, struck out in the top of the
fourth, then had an RBI single in the top of
the fifth off a ball that was hit to left field. On
defense, Ward played in right field.
Looking back:
A great year for
HRVHS athletics
By BEN MITCHELL
News staff writer
It’s been a banner year for Hood River Valley High School
athletics: the Eagles have won state titles, produced individ-
ual state champions, received numerous coaching awards,
and most importantly, have some pretty intelligent, hard-
working athletes to boot.
The HRVHS Athletics Department has been keeping track
of players’ accomplishments and provided a comprehensive
list of accolades chronicling the work our local athletes (and
coaches) have put in this year.
Let’s start with some of the more recently announced
awards:
Baseball:
Photo by Ben Mitchell
PICKLEBALL is a sport that’s gaining popularity in Hood River, with new courts, called Coe Courts, opening up Monday behind Provi-
dence Hood River Memorial Hospital off Montello Avenue. Above, Mitch and Nancy Clement race to return a volley from Robin Panzer
(facing away from camera) and her doubles partner, Mitch Panzer (not pitcured), during the inaugural game Monday evening.
Pickleball court opens in Hood River
On Monday, new courts dedicated to the sport of pickle-
ball opened in Hood River behind Providence Hood River
Memorial Hospital, with about a dozen or so people playing
in the inaugural games that evening.
For those who aren’t aware, pickleball is a paddle sport
for all ages, has simple rules and requires little athletic abil-
ity. A cross between ping pong and tennis, it can be played
at a very low, slow level and at a very high competitive level.
The game, reportedly invented on Bainbridge Island,
Wash., in 1965, is played on a court smaller than what is
used for tennis, uses what look like oversized ping pong pad-
dles, and incorporates a wiffle ball into play.
In September 2013, pickleball was offered for the first
time in Hood River through Community Ed. Local resident
Nancy Clement learned pickleball on a friend’s driveway in
Gig Harbor, Wash., and Therese Franger first played pickle-
ball in San Diego, Calif. They thought it should come to
Hood River, and so went to John Rust at Community Ed,
who was “very supportive and encouraging,” says Clement.
The first pickleball session at May Street School started
out with about eight players. A year later, enrollment in the
Community Ed class had tripled, and this spring there are
over 80 names on the pickleball list, according to Clement.
Another pickleball enthusiast, Elizabeth Whelan, has
helped put together the newly formed Gorge Pickeball As-
sociation, with the goal of acquiring more courts for public
pickleball play. She and Lori Stirn, director of Hood River
Parks and Recreation, worked together to get permission to
put courts up at Coe Park: the cement area north of the Hos-
pital off Montello Avenue.
Several Hood River pickleball players have even started
going to tournaments around the area. A group just re-
turned from the Rivers Edge tournament in Washougal,
Wash., with many first, second, and third-place ribbons. An-
other group is going next weekend to Bend to participate in
the Oregon Senior Games.
There are currently 15 people members of the GPA. A $25
membership provides the lock box combination at Coe
Courts to access the nets, balls and a couple paddles as well
as priority in any organized play. The Coe court play is not
part of Community Ed. Drop in players pay $4 per session.
The process involved to develop the Gorge Pickleball As-
sociation has been a community effort with helping hands
from many sources, says Whelan, the secretary of
GPA. Community Ed is currently providing the group with
an indoor venue at the May Street Elementary gym until
June 30. Then, the summer Community Ed session is at
Westside School on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 5:30 p.m.
to 7:30 p.m.
Parks and Recreation is the driving force behind getting
the Coe Courts up and running, says Whelan. Parks and Rec
has donated funds for the building materials and lock
box. Morgan Paint has donated all the striping and painting
material for Coe Courts.
For more information, call Community Ed at 541-386-2055.
SPORTS BRIEFS
Summer sturgeon seasons on tap above Bonneville
Looking for a unique way to spend Father’s Day? Think about
spending a day fishing for North America’s largest freshwater
fish species – white sturgeon – on the Columbia River. The first
of three scheduled summer sturgeon seasons kicks off just in
time for Father’s Day on June 21. Retention sturgeon fishing will
take place June 19-21 on the Columbia River between the Bon-
neville and John Day dams. Additional three-day fishing periods
are scheduled for June 26-28 and July 3-5, although managers
may adjust those dates to remain within the 1,100 fish annual
harvest guideline. Retention sturgeon fishing is also open from
McNary Dam to the Oregon/Washington border through July. The
rest of the Columbia is limited to catch-and-release sturgeon
fishing. Sturgeon must be between 38 inches and 54 inches fork
length to be retained. The bag limit is one fish per day and two
for the year. Fishing is restricted to the use of a single, barbless
hook. Anglers are reminded that sturgeon fishing, including
catch-and-release, is not permitted in the sturgeon sanctuary
from The Dalles Dam downstream 1.8 miles to the upper end of
the boat ramp at the Port of The Dalles.
post-ride meals. When: Saturday, June 27th, 2015. Day-of regis-
tration and rides begin at 7:30 a.m. at Trout Lake School, 2310
WA 141, Trout Lake, WA 98650. Cost: Family Loop $10, all others
$65. More information and register online
at troutlakewashington.com/mt-adams-bicycle-tour. Questions:
E-mail TroutLakeBikeTour@gmail.com
Oregon Enduro series returns this weekend
The second leg of the Oregon Enduro mountain biking series
is in town this week, with competition slated to take place at the
Post Canyon trail network located on the west side of Hood
River. The two-day race will occur Friday and Saturday and offer
multiple stages on both days. Final race course is to be released
Wednesday according to the event’s Facebook page. The endure
series is described on the competition’s website as an event that
“combines the best parts of riding with your buddies and ripping
down some of the best trails in existence, with that of some
good old-fashion competition,” with a race format that “offers a
great experience for serious competitors, weekend warriors and
those who just want to enjoy world class mountain biking with
an après-ride festival atmosphere.”
Mt. Adams Country Bike Tour June 27
Maryhill Festival of Speed
The 2015 Mt Adams Country Bike Tour on Saturday, June
27th is almost here. Four spectacular tours to choose from in the
Trout Lake, Wash., area. You’ll wind over the stunningly scenic
flanks of magnificent snow clad Mt Adams on good roads with
easy to challenging rides and unequaled vistas. Riders can
choose from the 11.5 mile Family Fun Ride (Trout Lake Valley);
the 51 Mile Loop through Trout Lake, BZ Corner, Glenwood, and
back; the 54 Mile Forest Loop (up and down the flanks of Mt
Adams); and the combined 105 Mile Infinity Ride (51 + 54 mile
loops). Each well-marked ride takes you on quiet country roads
and is fully safety-supported with sag wagons, emergency
teams, radio coverage, snacks/rest stops, optional box lunch and
The annual Maryhill Festival of Speed returns next week to the
Mayhill Loops Road near Goldendale, Wash., featuring the the
largest gravity sports festival in North America. Athletes from
around the world will arrive in the Gorge next week to compete
in street luge, classic luge, and downhill skateboarding in this
world cup race. Practice for the events will occur Wednesday and
Thursday, June 24 and 25, then the action gets going on Friday
with qualifying rounds running from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. followed by
final races for a number of classes during the day on Saturday
and Sunday. For more information, go to
www.maryhillfestivalofspeed.com.
The team wrapped up its successful season earlier this
month by winning the 5A state title, blanking Liberty, 2-0, in
the finals. The team never gave up a run in the playoffs. In
addition to receiving the state champi-
onship title, coach Erich Harjo, was recent-
ly named the 5A Coach of the Year. Harjo
coached his team to a 22-8 overall record (9-
3 league regular season record). Ace Ryan
Ward was named the 5A Pitcher of the
Year, and The Oregonian/Oregon Live
named him the Oregon Baseball Player of
the Year last week. He ended the season
with an incredibly low .681 earned run av-
erage and pitched an astounding 64 consec- RYAN WARD
utive innings this season without allowing
an earned run (not even including the All-Star game). He
also had a team-high batting average of .423. In addition to
Ward, junior shortstop Skyler Hunter was also named First
Team All-State and sophomore catcher Adam Cameron and
senior pitcher Kameron Walker were named to Second
Team.
Softball:
ZOE MUNN
Freshman catcher Zoe Mun, who was as
great at the plate as she was behind it this
season, was named to Second Team All-
State. The frosh led the Eagles in batting
average (.418), runs scored (21), hits (41),
and stolen bases (29). The softball team
ended its season with a 5-0 loss to St. He-
lens in a play-in game late last month. The
Eagles finished up with an 11-16 overall
record, 4-8 in the Columbia River Confer-
ence.
Boys soccer:
Junior midfielder Gio Magaña was
named Male Prep Soccer Player of the Year
at the Oregon Sports Awards ceremony
held last week at Nike World Headquarters
in Beaverton. Through 18 games (all of
which HRV won, including a 2-0 win over
Woodburn in the state title game), Magaña
scored a total of 16 goals and racked up 13
assists.
GIO MAGANA
Now, a look back at this year’s accom-
plishments by the numbers:
2:
Number of state championships this school year — one for
baseball and one for boys soccer. The baseball team’s 2-0 vic-
tory over Liberty in the final was the team’s first state title
since 1990 and was the fifth in team history (1980, 1986, 1988).
The soccer team’s 2-0 defeat over Woodburn was the first
time the team has taken home the championship trophy in
the program’s history.
14:
How many conference titles HRV took this year, including
boys soccer, girls soccer, boys alpine skiing, girls alpine ski-
ing, girls swimming, girls freestyle skiing, boys freestyle ski-
ing, baseball, boys track, girls track, boys tennis, as well as
choir, band, and speech and debate, which are also included
by the OSAA.
6:
Runner-up finishes this year: girls cross country, boys
cross country, boys water polo, boys swimming, boys basket-
ball, wrestling.
20:
Top-10 state finishes including: boys soccer (champions),
boys and girls combined alpine skiing (champs), girls
freestyle skiing (champs), boys freestyle skiing (champs),
girls wrestling (champs), baseball (champs), boys water polo
(2nd), boys Nordic skiing (2nd), boys alpine skiing (2nd),
speech and debate (2nd), girls Nordic skiing (3rd), girls
alpine skiing (3rd), girls swimming (4th), girls track (4th),
boys track (4th), girls soccer (quarterfinals), girls cross coun-
try (8th), boys cross country (8th), cheerleading (8th), and
boys tennis (8th).
See HRV, Page A8