WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 26, 2015 Sports shorts SPORTS EOU ready for kickoff College Football Big 12 supports ban on transfers with violent pasts Big 12 Conference athletic directors are unanimously backing a proposal that would prohibit schools from accepting transfers who were disciplined for violent acts at their previous schools. In a text to The Associated Press, Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby said Tuesday that conference ADs meeting in New Orleans “supported a policy draft similar to that of the (Southeastern Conference).” Bowlsby said the draft ZRXOGVWLOOQHHGWREHUH¿QHG and submitted to a joint council of faculty athletic representatives and athletic directors for approval. The SEC earlier this year passed a rule preventing schools from accepting transfers who have been dismissed from another team for “serious misconduct,” GH¿QHGDVVH[XDODVVDXOW domestic violence or other forms of sexual violence. QB Finley named Broncos starter BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Sophomore Ryan Finley has been named the starting quarterback for No. 23 Boise State for its season opener against Washington. Boise State FACES coach Bryan Harsin made the announcement on Sunday. Finley was in a four-way race for the job with Tommy Finley Stuart, Alex Ogle and freshman Brett 5\SLHQ)LQOH\¿QLVKHGVSULQJ practice as the clear leader in the competition, but an April misdemeanor arrest clouded his status. Harsin has previously said Finley is eligible and won’t face further discipline for his arrest. Finley had the most experience of the four quarterbacks after appearing LQ¿YHJDPHVODVWVHDVRQ as a redshirt freshman. He completed 12 of 27 passes for 161 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. He’ll replace Grant Hedrick, who graduated after leading the Broncos to a Fiesta Bowl title last season. “There won’t be alcohol in our building ever again.“ — Steve Sarkisian USC football coach in a public apology for his slurred, profanity laced speech at a team rally last weekend. Sarkisian said his behavior was caused by mixing alco- hol with medication. He said he will seek unspec- ifi ed treatment although he does not believe he has a substance-abuse problem. USC also is banning alcohol on cam- pus and at the Coliseum for all members of the coaching staff. THIS DATE IN SPORTS 1939 ² 7KH ¿UVW PDMRU league baseball game is tele- vised. NBC-TV broadcasts a doubleheader at Brooklyn’s Ebbets Field between the Cincinnati Reds and the Dodgers. 1961 — The International Hockey Hall of Fame opens in Toronto. Contact us at 541-966-0838 or sports@eastoregonian.com 1B FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @EOSPORTS Mountaineers bring back top weapons for 2015 East Oregonian File photo In this Oct. 11, 2014 fi le photo, Eastern Or- egon University quarterback Zach Bartlow looks to pass in a game against Carroll Col- lege in La Grande. Bartlow returns to lead the EOU offense this season and the Moun- taineers play their fi rst game on Saturday at College of Idaho. LA GRANDE — The Eastern Oregon University football team opens its 2015 campaign on Saturday when it travels to Frontier Conference foe College of Idaho. $ VWURQJ ¿QLVK DQG WKH return of several key players helped earn the Mountaineers a No. 13 ranking in both the NAIA spring and preseason coaches polls, and EOU will be ORRNLQJ WR ZLQ LWV ¿IWK VHDVRQ opener under eighth-year head coach Tim Camp. Redshirt junior quarterback Zach Bartlow will be looking for another big game against Tailgate on enemy territory Alumni and fans are invited to join EOU President Tom Insko in cheering on the Mountaineers as they open the 2015 football season. WHAT: EOU Alumni Association/Mountaineer Athletic Association pre-game tailgate. WHERE: East corner of the College of Idaho Activities Center parking lot in Caldwell, Idaho. WHEN: Saturday, 10:30 a.m. (MT), game starts at 1 p.m. the Yotes, which he burned for WRWDO\DUGVDQG¿YHWRXFK downs in a 47-7 win last season in La Grande, and was named one of the team’s four captains on Sunday. Senior running back Jace Billingsley, senior defensive back Adam Bese and senior linebacker Gary Posten will join him as captains. “This is a group of guys that have been selected by WNBA their teammates and coaches because they are outstanding ambassadors for our program,” said Camp, who guided EOU to an 8-3 record and the verge of a national tournament berth last season. “They are leaders in the classroom, in the community, in the locker room, and are ¿QH UHSUHVHQWDWLYHV RI (DVWHUQ Oregon University and this See MOUNTAINEERS/2B MLB Cruz blasts No. 38 as Mariners come from behind at home Atlanta Dream’s Shoni Schimmel during the fi rst half of a WNBA basketball game, Sunday, Aug. 23, 2015, in Unc- asville, Conn. AP Photo/ Jessica Hill SEATTLE (AP) — Austin Jackson’s bases- ORDGHGWZRUXQVLQJOHLQWKH¿IWKLQQLQJFDSSHG 6HDWWOH¶V FRPHEDFN IURP D ¿YHUXQ GH¿FLW DQG led the Mariners a 6-5 victory over the Oakland Athletics on Tuesday night. Down 5-0 entering the fourth inning, Nelson Cruz sparked Seattle’s comeback with his major league-leading 38th home run, a solo shot off Jesse Chavez. He extended his streak of reaching base safely to 35 straight games. /RJDQ0RUULVRQRQKLVWKELUWKGD\¿QLVKHG the fourth-inning rally with a two-run shot, his 13th, off the foul pole in right. 7KH 0DULQHUV DGGHG WKUHH UXQV LQ WKH ¿IWK ¿QLVKLQJZLWK-DFNVRQ¶VWZRRXWJRDKHDGVLQJOH that chased Chavez (7-13). Chavez, who tied Cleve- land’s Corey Kluber for the most losses in the American Seattle League, worked 4 2-3 innings, allowing eight hits and six runs. He walked two and struck out three. He is 0-5 in 15 career appearances against Seattle. Marcus Semien hit a two-run Oakland homer to highlight Oakland’s four-run second inning as the A’s chased Mike Montgomery, who lasted just 1 2-3 innings. 0RQWJRPHU\ JDYH XS ¿YH UXQV and seven hits in the shortest of his 16 big-league career starts. Edgar Olmos (1-0), taking over for Mont- gomery with two outs in the second, earned the victory. He worked a career-best 3 2-3 innings and allowed three hits and no runs. His previous best was 1 2-3 innings. Billy Burns had three hits for Oakland. The A’s left at least one runner on base in every inning, 12 total. UP NEXT Mariners: RHP Felix Hernandez (14-8, 3.74) has been well below his standard over his past ¿YHVWDUWVZLWKDQ(5$ A’s: Since he was recalled from Triple-A Nashville on July 25, RHP Chris Bassitt (1-5, 2.48) is 1-3 in six starts with a 2.18 ERA, the ¿IWKORZHVWLQWKH$/GXULQJWKDWVSDQ 6 Dream cruise past Sun Schimmel dialed in from field MXVWWKUHH¿UVWKDOISRLQWVDQG ¿QLVKHGZLWK Atlanta’s DeLisha Milton- Jones, the 40-year-old Atlanta Connecticut Associated Press forward in her 17th season, matched the WNBA record ATLANTA — Sancho for career games set by Tina Lyttle had 17 points and ¿UVWKDOISRLQWV Thompson (496). Shoni Schimmel made four the Atlanta Dream beat the The Dream led by 23 Connecticut Sun for the third 3-pointers and scored 15 points points midway through the time in 10 days, 71-57 on for the Dream. Schimmel was third quarter. Connecticut 4 for 6 from three-point range used a 23-12 run, capped Tuesday. ,WZDVWKH6XQ¶VWKHLU¿IWK DQGIRUIURPWKH¿HOGZKLOH by Shekinna Stricklen’s also adding three rebounds 3-pointer, to pull to 58-46 straight loss. Atlanta (11-16) opened on and two assists. with 8:22 remaining. Angel McCoughtry, who a 10-0 run and never trailed Stricklen scored 14 points while holding Connecticut scored 33 points against the and Chelsea Gray had 12 to (12-15) to a season-low 18 Sun on Sunday, was held to lead the Sun. 71 57 5 Track & Field Americans struggle through opening four days U.S. medal count at 5 United States’ Jen- nifer Simp- son wears just one shoe as she passes by Ethiopia’s gold medal winner Gen- zebe Dib- aba after fi nishing the women’s 1500m fi nal at the World Athletics Champion- ships in Bei- jing, Tues- day, Aug. 25, 2015. By PAT GRAHAM Associated Press BEIJING — Jenny Simpson lost her left shoe after being stepped on and ran the last lap of the 1,500-meter race with her bare foot striking the surface. That’s just the way things have been going for the Americans so far at the world championships. Lots of favorites are stumbling. “I’ll get over it,” Simpson said 7XHVGD\ DIWHU DQ WKSODFH ¿QLVK two years after taking silver in the event and four years after winning it. “Just got unlucky.” She’s not the only one. 7KH FRXQWU\ WKDW¶V ZRQ ¿YH straight overall medal counts at the worlds is in serious trouble nearly halfway through the competition. The Americans have one gold, a silver and four bronze medals. Its total is just ahead of Poland and way behind Kenya, which has nine total AP Photo/ Ng Han Guan medals even after getting shut out of the men’s marathon. One of the red, white and blue’s former stars is taking notice. Sprinter Michael Johnson tweeted: “US team need to turn it around quick! Competition management has been atrocious with multiple event favorites failing to advance to ¿QDO´ The Bird’s Nest has never been all that friendly to the Americans. At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the team captured 23 medals — a total that led to a revamping of various aspects of USA Track and Field’s operation. It worked; the Americans won 29 medals in London. They then won 25 medals at the worlds in 2013 but have put them- selves well behind that pace with ¿YHGD\VWRJR They’re faltering in all sorts of ways, besides Simpson’s shoe mishap: — Long jumper Jeff Henderson GLGQ¶W TXDOLI\ IRU WKH ¿QDO GHVSLWH entering with the world’s top leap this year. — Tori Bowie won bronze in the 100 but was the only U.S. woman to PDNHWKH¿QDO — Galen Rupp, the 2012 Olympic silver medalist in the 10,000, couldn’t hang with the pack DWWKHHQGDQG¿QLVKHG¿IWK — Five-time national champion Bershawn Jackson failed to advance RXW RI WKH ¿UVW URXQG LQ WKH See STRUGGLE/2B