FRIDAY, AUGUST 14, 2015
Sports shorts
Turner Field to be
vacated after 2016
SPORTS
1B
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FARM-CITY PRO RODEO
ATLANTA (AP) —
Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed
says the Atlanta Braves
will vacate
Turner Field
in downtown
Atlanta by the
end of 2016.
Reed said
in a statement on Thursday
that the team noti¿ ed him
it would leave the ¿ eld by
Dec. 31, 2016 in a letter with
Tuesday’s date.
The Braves announced
in November 2013 that
they would relocate to a
new stadium in suburban
Cobb County. The stadium,
SunTrust Park, is scheduled
to open in 2017.
Reed says the notice
allows the city, county and
the Fulton County Recre-
ation Authority to move
forward. City of¿ cials have
made several announce-
ments about potential
buyers, including Georgia
State University and a team
of developers’ proposal for a
mixed-use complex.
Lindsey Vonn
fractures ankle
QUEENSTOWN, New
Zealand (AP) — Lindsey
Vonn says she has fractured
an ankle bone in a training
crash in New Zealand.
The American skier,
writing on Twitter, says
“Unfortunately
FACES I crashed today
and have a
small fracture
in my ankle.
Headed home
now but will
keep u posted.”
It is the
Vonn
latest setback
for Vonn, who
returned from serious leg
injuries to set the all-time
women’s World Cup win
record last season. She also
won her seventh World Cup
downhill title.
Vonn, who was in
a second week in New
Zealand for her ¿ rst on-snow
training ahead of the new
season, did not say which
ankle was damaged.
The 30-year-old Vonn has
said she will continue racing
through the 2018 Olympics
in South Korea.
“I’m not penciling
it in, as of now,
for next summer.
But this is the start
of the process for
all of us.”
— LeBron James
Cleveland Cavaliers
forward on his status for
the U.S. Olympic basket-
ball team for the 2016
Summer Olympics. If he
plays, James would be
aiming for a record third
gold medal in men’s
basketball, after being
on the 2012 and 2008
gold medal teams for
Team USA.
THIS DATE IN SPORTS
1903 — Jim Jeffries
knocks out Jim Corbett in
the 10th round to retain his
world heavyweight title in
San Francisco.
1959 — The formation
of the American Football
League is announced in
Chicago. Play will begin in
1960 with franchises in six
cities with the probability of
adding two more teams.
2003 — The New York
blackout forces the evacua-
tion of workers and players
from Shea Stadium hours
before the game between
the Mets and the San Fran-
cisco Giants. The blackout
stretches from the Northeast
to Ohio and Michigan.
Contact us at 541-966-0838 or
sports@eastoregonian.com
Staff photo by E.J. Harris
Nik Hamm of Battle Ground, Wash., marks a 5-second time in steer wrestling at the Farm-City Pro Rodeo on Thursday in Hermiston.
Fast times, big scores
Locals win team roping
in competitive ¿ eld on
Day 2 of rodeo
Local contestants
–Clayton, Chase Hansen,
Pendleton, team roping: 9.5
(1st)
–Shane Crossley, Hermiston,
Guy Gregg, team roping; no
time
–Callahan Crossley, Hermis-
ton, barrel racing: 17.46 (T-3)
–Kara Philippi, Hermiston,
barrel racing: 22.96 (10th)
–Aaron Marts, Hermiston, tie
down roping, 25.0 (10th)
By SAM BARBEE
Staff Writer
By the time he was 10 years old,
Scottie Knapp knew he wanted to
be a professional bull rider. He was
already riding full-sized bulls then,
and it quickly developed into a
passion.
Now a sixth-year pro, Knapp is
the 12th-ranked PRCA bull rider
and ¿ xing to earn a place at this
year’s National Finals Rodeo in Las
Vegas. He took another step toward
that Thursday night with an 82 on
Cowboy Up on the ¿ rst ride of the
night, winning the round. Knapp
tied Ty Wallace for the overall lead.
“If I’dve hand-picked one, that
would’ve been one,” Knapp said
of Cowboy Up. “Not that he was
the rankiest or the bull to win it on,
but he was a good, solid bull and a
good, solid score. That’s the name
of the game: consistency.”
Knapp said Cowboy Up beat
him out of the chute, putting him
on the defensive. Once the bull
switched directions, away from his
Staff photo by E.J. Harris
Cimmarron Boardman of Stephenville, Texas, ropes his calf in
8.5-seconds in tie down roping at the Farm-City Pro Rodeo on
Thursday in Hermiston.
hand, Knapp regained the advan-
tage. He had been struggling with
that direction lately, and he said a
weight lifted off his shoulders when
he heard the bell.
“That’s a big relief off my
shoulders,” he said, smiling. “It’s a
lot of pressure lifted because time
and time, you ride bulls going that
way and one day it’s not clicking for
you. And then to come out there and
make it happen and let it work, it
feels like you conquered something,
more than a bull.”
Knapp was one of just two bull
riders to go a full eight seconds,
and his 82 was set down on the ¿ rst
ride of the night. Knapp said that’s
where he’s comfortable.
“I like to be ¿ rst because then
I’m not waiting, my anxiety’s not
building up,” he said. “The pres-
MLB
sure’s not riding on me. There’s no
time to think about it. You get in
there, you take care of business, you
do it. That’s the way I like it. I don’t
like to be waiting around, knowing
I’m last. I like to get in there and do
the darn thing.”
Winn Ratliff rode Big Easy to
an 84-point ride in the bareback
go-round, taking the overall lead.
Tim O’Connell, on Tootsie Roll,
and Seth Hardwick, on Flashcard
Champ, posted 83s to move into a
tie for second, and Orin Larsen, on
Loganberry, and Jake Vold, on Royal
Beaver, moved into a three-way tie
with Wednesday’s winner Teddy
See RODEO/2B
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Iwakuma ends AL’s no-no drought
Adams is ¿ nally a Duck
Stops string of
12-straight NL
no-hitters
Transfer QB
passes ¿ nal class
at EWU
By TIM BOOTH
Associated Press
SEATTLE—After years
of waiting, the drought
¿ nally ended thanks to the
Seattle Mariners’ Hisashi
Iwakuma.
No,
not
Iwakuma
becoming just the second
Japanese pitcher to throw
a no-hitter in Major League
Baseball — as important an
accomplishment as that was
— joining Hideo Nomo in
exclusive company when
he shut down the Baltimore
Orioles on Wednesday.
That ended the run
of 12 straight no-hitters
— 11 individual and one
combined — thrown by
National League pitchers.
Almost three years to the
day that teammate Felix
Hernandez threw a perfect
game against the Tampa
Bay Rays, Iwakuma ¿ nally
ended the drought for the
American League.
It’s a rare stat and in
many ways likely just an
By ANNE M. PETERSON
Associated Press
AP Photo/Ted S. Warren
Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma
is mobbed by teammates after Iwakuma threw a
no-hitter against the Orioles on Wednesday.
odd coincidence. But it also
highlights the dif¿ culty of
pitching in the American
League, where there simply
are no free outs thanks to
the designated hitter.
“I think the outs are
tougher. Look, the lineups
are deeper. The DH’s in
the American League,
the DH’s are animals,”
Seattle manager Lloyd
McClendon said. “Those
are tough outs. There really
are no easy outs in the
American League.”
See IWAKUMA/2B
EUGENE––Quarterback
Vernon Adams passed the
math he needed to graduate
from Eastern Washington
and join the Oregon Ducks.
Adams took the ¿ nal test
Thursday. After hours of
speculation over his status,
he posted to Twitter: “Thank
God.” He accompanied the
post with a photo of himself
in his cap and gown holding
his son.
The star quarterback
needed to complete his
undergraduate coursework
— speci¿ cally, a ¿ nal math
class — to transfer from
Eastern Washington. NCAA
rules allow players who
have graduated to transfer
to another school without
having to sit out a season.
An FCS All-American,
Adams is vying to replace
Marcus Mariota as Oregon’s
starter. Mariota, who won
the Heisman Trophy last
season and marched Oregon
to the national champion-
ship game, was the second
overall NFL draft pick by
the Tennessee Titans.
Adams could join the
Ducks for practice as early
as Friday. He will compete
for the starting nod with Jeff
Lockie, Mariota’s backup
last season.
Lockie, who played
last season mostly after
Oregon had already built a
sizable lead over its oppo-
nent, attempted 27 passes,
completing 21 for 207 yards
and a touchdown.
Adams was a two-time
Big Sky Conference offen-
sive player of the year and
a two-time All-American.
He threw for 10,438 yards
and 110 touchdowns in
three seasons at Eastern
Washington.
Two of Adams’ most
memorable games came
against the Pac-12: He
passed for 411 yards and
four touchdowns and rushed
for 107 yards and two TDs in
a 2013 win at Oregon State,
and he threw for 475 yards
and seven touchdowns in a
59-52 loss at Washington
last season.
After declaring his inten-
See ADAMS/2B