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Page 2B SPORTS East Oregonian Wednesday, March 23, 2016 Pro Soccer French authorities on high alert ahead of Euro 2016 By SAMUEL PETREQUIN Associated Press PARIS — With Europe on high alert, French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said on Tuesday that the deadly explosions in Brussels are a reminder that a “very high security level” will be required during this year’s European Championship in France. Speaking hours after three explosions killed dozens in the Belgian capital, Cazeneuve said that everything will be put in place to guarantee “collec- tive security” at the June 10-July 10 tournament, with the mobilization of specially trained emergency staff, police IRUFHVDQG¿UH¿JKWHUV In the wake of the Paris attacks that left 130 people dead in November, France remains in a state of emergency which was recently extended to May 26, two weeks before the opening game. Tournament organizers had strengthened security measures and made changes to the particularly vulnerable fan zones well before the events in Brussels. Fan zones are typically set up in squares or parks near the center of the city, allowing supporters to watch a game on a big screen. Security can be lighter than at stadiums. About seven million supporters visited the fan zones in the host cities during Euro 2012 in Ukraine and Poland, and there are concerns the designated Euro 2016 areas for the public could be targets for attackers. Each fan zone can hold 10,000 to 100,000 people and French authorities want to maintain a festive atmosphere within those areas while protecting crowds. Hockey PREPS: Irrigon takes two on softball diamond Pro Caps clinch top spot Continued from 1B Weston-McEwen had two outs with just one across the plate on an Adrian Renner (2 for 4) single, but Flores doubled to keep the inning going and drive in another run. A dropped third strike DOORZHG %DLOH\ WR UHDFK ¿UVW and Flores to score, then a single by Grogan and an error brought Bailey in to make it 8-3. Keith Wampler pitched WKH ¿QDO IRXU LQQLQJV IRU 6WDQ¿HOG DQG DOORZHG RQH earned run on three hits, struck out three and walked three. Brody Woods got the VWDUWDQGZHQWWKH¿UVWWKUHH He allowed no earned runs on two hits, struck out six and walked two. Thyler Monkus was also 2 for 4 with two runs for 6WDQ¿HOG ——— R H E SHS 004 401 2 — 11 15 3 W-M 003 000 1 — 4 5 4 J. Patrick, H. Sater (5) and catcher. B. Woods, K. Wampler (4) and catcher. W — Woods. L — Patrick. 2B — T. Flores 2, M. Blankenship (SHS). STANFIELD 10, IRRIGON 5 — At Irrigon, Thyler Monkus and Brody Woods hit home runs in back-to-back innings to help WKH 6WDQ¿HOG 7LJHUV past the Irrigon Knights (1-1) on Tuesday at the Columbia Bash. Monkus (2 for 4) hit a two-run shot in the Tigers’ ¿YHUXQWKLUGLQQLQJWKDWODWHU featured a two-run double by Dylan Grogan and an RBI single by Woods. Woods (3 for 4) then hit a three-run homer and Monkus scored on an error in the four-run fourth to make it 9-5. With two outs and one runner on, the Knights chose to intentionally walk Grogan to get to Woods, who hit his KRPH UXQ WR FHQWHU ¿HOG RQ D IXOO FRXQW +H ¿QLVKHG WKH JDPHZLWK¿YH5%, *URJDQ KDG DOORZHG ¿YH runs on eight Irrigon hits to that point, but settled in to keep the Knights scoreless on one hit over the next two innings. He struck out nine and walked four. Ryan Bailey then pitched two shutout innings to preserve the win. Fredy Vera and Zach Henrichs each went 2 for 3 to lead Irrigon. Vera scored twice and Henrichs had two RBI. 6WDQ¿HOG SOD\V DW 5LYHU- side today at 11 a.m. Irrigon plays again today as well, but time and opponent were not available at press time. ——— at 3 p.m. IRRIGON 11, WILLA- MINA 5 — At Irrigon, with R H E strong winds making it hard EHS 120 284 — 17 15 1 WHS 041 000 — 5 9 3 to keep the ball in play, the M. Gonzales and E. Parks. Willamina Irrigon Knights went with a battery unavailable. W — Gonzales. 2B — C. Hilliard, A. Ray, K. Blankenship small-ball approach to pick 2 (EHS); Otter (KHS). 3B — C. Hilliard 2 (EHS). up two wins at the Irrigon/ Riverside Tournament on MAC-HI 7, CROOK Tuesday. COUNTY 0 — At Bend, the The Knights (2-1) opened 3LRQHHUV ¿QLVKHG RXW WKHLU with an 11-5 win over Willa- run at the Bend Tournament mina, then shutout Burns 10-0 in the afternoon game. with two wins on Tuesday. Irrigon coach Jeff Bote- Mac-Hi (4-1) started with a 7-0 win over Crook County fuhr said the strategy was before dismantling a young basically the same in both games. Madras squad 17-2. “The wind was blowing Mallory Copeland started both games and Mac-Hi horrible today, so anything coach Nicole Christian said up in the air was going foul,” the team played excellent KHVDLG³:H¿QDOO\KDGDIHZ R H E bunts and put the ball in play defense behind her. SHS 005 401 0 — 10 10 0 IHS 221 000 X — 5 9 1 Christian was also happy and made them make some D. Grogan, R. bailey (6) and catcher. A. Rice, J. Phillips (3), Z. Henricks (5), F. Vera to see the Pioneers picking plays, and they made errors.” (7) and C. Kroske. W — Grogan. L — Rice. Willamina and Burns each up their base runners after 2B — D. Grogan (SHS); F. Vera, T. Mills, A. Roa (IHS). 3B — B. Woods (SHS). HR — B. stranded runners hurt them KDG ¿YH HUURUV DQG ,UULJRQ Woods, T. Monkus (SHS). in a loss to Scappoose on had nine hits in both games. Kayla Gilman and Julissa Monday. Softball ³7KH¿UVWJDPHZHKDGD Garza earned wins in the ECHO 17, WILLA- MINA 5 — At Boardman, couple people that hit the ball circle for the Knights. Garza gave up just the Echo Cougars combined really well,” she said. “Crook six hits with four walks and County was supposed to be two hits and got the better performance, a hit batter to push eight one of the better teams and backing though, as Irrigon made no their pitcher had a few really runs across in the top of the ¿IWK LQQLQJ DQG EUHDN D JRRGSLWFKHV7KH\GH¿QLWHO\ errors against Burns after tie Tuesday at the Riverside stuck with it and did well committing four against Willamina. against them.” Tournament. “(Garza) jumped out early Micha Fortune had a Cheyenne Hilliard and every time with a strike and three-run home run to high- Kenzie Blankenship each hit run-scoring doubles during light that win, and Shannon then could work the edges the decisive frame and led Carter and Rachel Lyon of the strike zone,” Botefuhr (FKR WR LWV ¿UVW ZLQ each had triples during an said. “(Burns) hit the ball but 11-run second inning against everything they put in play with three RBI. ZH¿HOGHGFOHDQO\DQGPDGH Blankenship batted 4 Madras. Christian said there were the plays.” for 5 with two runs scored, Irrigon continues tour- Hilliard was 3 for 4 with four hits coming from all slots in nament play today against runs, Alyssa Ray was 3 for 4 her lineup, but Madras also with two runs and one RBI, suffered from control issues Toledo at 1 p.m. and Knappa and Monique Montoya was in the circle and hit “six or at 3:30 p.m. ——— 2 for 3 with two RBI and on seven” batters. Game 1 R H E run. WHS 020 110 1 — 5 7 5 Freshman Sydney Earls IHS 150 122 X — 11 9 4 MacKenzie Gonzalez SLWFKHGWKH¿QDOWKUHHLQQLQJV Willamina battery unavailable. K. Gilman L. Mills. W — Gilman. pitched six complete innings against Madras and didn’t and 2B — K. McLaughlin, B. Aguilera (IHS) DQGDOORZHG¿YHHDUQHGUXQV allow any runs. RQ QLQH KLWV VWUXFN RXW ¿YH Mac-Hi will host Stayton Game 2 R H E BHS 000 00 — 0 2 5 and walked two. on Friday at 6:30 p.m. in IHS 041 32 — 10 9 0 Feist and Peasley. J. Garza and L. Mills. Echo will next play the Spring Break Crossover W — Garza. L — Peasley. Colton at home on Thursday Tournament at Yantis Park. 2B — J. Burns (IHS). ——— DIPLOMACY: Both presidents exit by third inning Continued from 1B men sitting in the front row at Estadio Latinoamericano, the last stop on Obama’s trip to Cuba this week in a bid to further pave the road toward normalized relations. The near-capacity crowd roared as Obama and Castro entered and walked toward their seats right behind home plate, waving to fans and greeting other dignitaries. Chants of “Raul! Raul!” broke out. Rarely has so much pomp and circumstance accom- panied an exhibition game. Former All-Stars Derek -HWHU DQG 'DYH :LQ¿HOG and Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred were among the president’s greeters. Secretary of State John Kerry was also in the VIP box, as well as several of &XED¶VKLJKHVWRI¿FLDOV %HIRUH WKH ¿UVW SLWFK Rays players walked over from the dugout to say hello DQGSDVVHGÀRZHUVDQGVPDOO &XEDQ ÀDJV WKURXJK WKH QHWWLQJWR¿UVWODG\0LFKHOOH 2EDPD DQG ¿UVW GDXJKWHU Sasha. “Appreciate you guys,” said the president, clad in a white shirt and sunglasses. Castro was slightly more formal in a blazer. Obama shared an extended handshake with ace pitcher Chris Archer, who once was a minor leaguer for the Chicago Cubs. He gave Obama, a White Sox fan, a glove owned by Moore. The last time a big league club played in Cuba was 17 years ago when the Balti- more Orioles came to this same stadium during spring training. “We won’t experience anything like this again,” Rays manager Kevin Cash said afterward. “So it’s a very special day for Major League Baseball, the Tampa Bay Rays and obviously all of our Will Vragovic/The Tampa Bay Times via AP Tampa Bay Rays relief pitcher Chase Whitley (47) signs autographs for fans before a baseball game between the Rays and the Cuban national team in Havana, Cuba, Tuesday, March 22, 2016. It’s the first game featuring an MLB team in Cuba since the Baltimore Orioles played in the country in 1999. players, myself included.” Said Moore: “It’s really great, you know, this is something that feels like a very big game back home ... I’ve had the opportunity to be in the playoffs a few times and this feels like that kind of an event.” Both Obama and Castro were gone by the third inning — with Obama heading to WKHDLUSRUWWRÀ\VRXWKIRUD state visit to Argentina — but the stands remained packed XQWLOWKH¿QDORXW Reyes, a hometown favorite who plays for Havana’s powerhouse club ,QGXVWULDOHV ¿QDOO\ JDYH WKH fans a reason to cheer with his solo shot. “It kind of went quiet for a little bit, but then they get something going, you can imagine how loud this place can get when it’s champion- ship baseball,” Cash said. The day left Reyes imag- ining something else, too. “A lot, this game meant a lot, because of the brother- hood there will be from now on” between Cuban and U.S. baseball, the third baseman said. The diamond detente will help “open the door to the possibility that Cuban baseball players can play” in the majors, he said. What the game lacked in offensive productivity from the home team, it made up for in pageantry. Loud music and dancers RQ WKH ¿HOG ZDUPHG WKH crowd up beforehand, and tots in tiny baseball uniforms escorted the players out for introductions. A white-clad choir sang both countries’ national DQWKHPV DQG D ÀRFN RI doves was unleashed from WKH FHQWHU¿HOG VWDQGV 7KH &XEDQ DQG 86 ÀDJV ÀXWWHUHGDWRSWKHVFRUHERDUG under overcast skies. The stadium known as “El Latino” got a facelift just before the Rays’ visit, providing a freshly scrubbed backdrop. “It’s beautiful. The ¿HOG ORRNV PDUYHORXV´ said Guillermo Gonzalez, an 18-year-old university student. “We are celebrating a union between two peoples, between the United States and Cuba. It’s marvelous.” The stands were notably more mellow than your average Cuban game, where the music, dancing and horn- blowing can be practically nonstop. Admission was free, and tickets were distributed to Cubans through organiza- tions such as student groups and workplaces. That essen- tially assured a well-behaved crowd and no government opponents around to protest. Maria Ester Mendoza Alvarez, a 52-year-old university professor, agreed that cultural exchanges like this one can help heal geopolitical schisms, but also said the United States ought to end its economic embargo on and give back the naval base at Guantanamo — two longstanding grievances of the Cuban government. “Forget all the politics — we are going to enjoy this as a game, nothing more,” Mendoza said. The trip was also a homecoming for Tampa ULJKW ¿HOGHU 'D\URQ 9DURQD who was born in Havana and spent seven years playing in Cuba before hopping a boat to Haiti in 2013. On Monday he had a tearful reunion with relatives he hadn’t seen in three years. In a symbolic moment, 9DURQD ZDV ¿UVW WR EDW 7XHVGD\+HÀLHGRXWWR¿UVW to polite applause. He said after the game that “playing baseball here is a really beau- tiful thing, very impressive.” Meeting Obama, that also stood out. “That gave me a lot of satisfaction,” Varona said. “I hope someone took a photo and has it somewhere so I can go pick it up.” Luis Tiant, a three-time MLB all-star, and Pedro Luis Lazo, who had a long career with Cuban club Pinar del Rio and the national team, WKUHZRXWWKH¿UVWSLWFKHV The stadium observed a minute of silence before the game in memory of the Brussels attacks. in Eastern Conference Associated Press OTTAWA, Ontario — Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals know they still have room to improve going into the playoffs. Ovechkin scored his 43rd goal and the Capitals clinched the Metropolitan Division and the top seed in the Eastern Conference with a 4-2 victory over the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday night. “It’s huge,” Ovechkin said. “I think we deserve how we play all year to clinch it. Right now, 10 games left, I think we just have to play more simple and be ready for the play- offs.” Mike Richards, Nicklas Backstrom and T.J. Oshie, with an empty net, also scored for the Capitals. Braden Holtby stopped 28 shots. “It’s one of those things where we’re not in a playoff push, but with 10 games left and we’re not playing the way we want to play it’s almost a blessing in disguise that we can wrap it up,” Holtby said. HERMISTON: Almaguer with two strong outings again against the Warriors, Hermiston scored four tossing ground ball after times in the opening frame, JURXQG EDOO 6KH ¿QLVKHG highlighted by a double with seven ground ball outs. Against Douglas, from Mikayla Kopacz. The senior shortstop had two Hermiston just couldn’t do doubles in the game and enough while the Scots did three doubles on the week, plenty. “They showed up, they lashing another in Hermis- were ready,” Greenough ton’s win over Aloha. said of Douglas. “Every- +HUPLVWRQ EHQH¿WWHG from nine Julissa Almaguer thing that could go wrong strikeouts against Madison did, (like) calls (and) (1-3), easing to a win in unlucky foul balls.” In addition, Hermiston +HUPLVWRQ¶V ¿UVW JDPH LQ failed to get runners in Happy Valley. “She’s not exactly over- from scoring position, powering, but she throws squandering opportunities balls to the right places,” with runners at second or Greenough said of her third. Despite the struggles, Greenough takes away the sophomore lefty. ,Q ¿YH LQQLQJV $OPD- perspective that Hermiston guer allowed just the one had those opportunities, run on six hits, striking out and that they may not come through every time. nine and walked just two. “It was nice to see that On Tuesday, Hermiston some teams are gonna be battled for a win against Aloha (2-3), and ran into tough and you gotta step a Scots buzzsaw against up,” Greenough said. “It wasn’t a bad loss. There Douglas (1-3). The Bulldogs fell behind were things to learn.” Hermiston is back on the Warriors early, but battled back by putting balls the diamond on Friday for in play and making things a doubleheader in Pasco happen. The Warriors against the Bulldogs. First plated three runs in the pitch for the opener is 4 ¿UVW LQQLQJ EXW +HUPLVWRQ p.m. ——— responded with two of its R H E MHS 100 000 0 — 1 6 4 own, one in the second and HHS 010 206 0 — 7 9 0 three in the third to take (Hermiston batted first) Almaguer and J. Hinkley; S. Ryan and control. Kopacz had two N. J. Maceclo. W — Almaguer. L — Ryan. 2B — S. Ryan (MHS); S. Stefani (HHS). hits and scored three times, ——— Ellery Jones had a triple and R H E HHS 400 01 — 5 5 0 Sydney Stefani dropped in FHS 154 0X — 10 12 0 a double. T. Betz and J. Hinkley; S. Brauckmiller M. Brauckmiller. W — Brauckmiller. Greenough likened it and L — Betz. 2B — M. Kopacz 2 (HHS), B. Nguyen to Hermiston’s nightcap 3B — S. Brauckmiller (FHS). against Liberty last week, (FHS). ——— R H E where Hermiston’s propen- AHS 302 00 — 4 3 1 sity for putting balls in play HHS 213 10 — 7 10 1 J. Almaguer and J. Hinkley; L. consistently led to runs. Whalstrom. W — Almaguer. L — “We just kept hitting the Whalstrom. — L. Whalstrom (AHS); M. Kopacz, ball and things happened,” S. 2B Stefani, K. Hinkley (HHS). 3B — E. (HHS). WKH ¿UVW\HDU FRDFK VDLG Jones ——— R H E “We made things happen. HHS 000 00 — 0 2 1 We weren’t stopping, we D-D 201 60 — 9 7 0 B. Naylor and J. Hinkley. Battery for weren’t cooling down.” David Douglas was incomplete. Almaguer was good 2B — J. Hinkley (HHS). Continued from 1B BUCKAROOS: Morrison leads off with home run against Central Catholic “I thought we came out and played better than we had solo home run off the bat of been, and swung the bats Alexis Morrison, and in the like we know we can.” ¿IWKLQQLQJRQDQ5%,VLQJOH On the mound, Murphy by Ellie Richards. Morrison got the start and tossed also added a double in the three innings and allowed JDPHWR¿QLVK The match-up with just one run and three hits Central Catholic lasted in that span with a pair of just four innings due to the strikeouts and four walks. tournament’s time limit, but Gracie Lyon came on in it was plenty of time for relief and tossed the fourth Pendleton to rack up 11 runs inning and did not allow a and 12 hits to breeze to their base runner. Pendleton plays again sixth win of the season. Morrison started off that WRGD\ DW 6DQG\ ZLWK ¿UVW game with a lead-off home pitch set for Noon. ——— UXQDVZHOODQG¿QLVKHGWKH Game 1 R H E PHS 434 0 — 11 12 0 game with two hits. Ellie CCS 100 2 — 4 3 1 Richards, Kiersten Murphy, Murphy, Lyon (4), Solomon. McDonald and Cox. W — Murphy, L — McDonald. Payton Hergert and Lauren 2B — Hergert, Murphy (PHS). HR — Richards each added two Morrison (PHS). hits in the game also, Game 2 R H E PHS 100 010 — 2 4 0 with Hergert and Murphy RPS 010 22X — 5 10 0 combining for four RBIs. L. Richards and Solomon. Abramson and Lee. W — Abramson, L — Richards. “It was a nice way to 2B — Morrison (PHS), Robinson, Webb start off our day,” Cary said. (RP). HR — Morrison (PHS). Continued from 1B