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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (June 24, 2016)
SPORTS FRIDAY, JUNE 24, 2016 1B FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @EOSPORTS MILTON-FREEWATER La Grande slides into fi nals NBA Draft AP Photo/Frank Franklin II LSU’s Ben Simmons poses for a photo with NBA Commissioner Adam Silver after being selected as the top pick by the Philadelphia 76ers during the NBA basketball draft, Thursday, June 23, 2016, in New York. 76ers take Simmons No. 1 Staff photo by Eric Singer 14 international players picked in first round La Grande’s Rilyn Kirkland slides safely under the tag of Milton-Freewater catcher Ally Marly during the fi fth inning of a Little League softball game at the 11/12-year-old District 3 semifi nals on Thursday in Milton-Freewater. La Grande won 17-2. Milton-Freewater eliminated from Little League bracket By ERIC SINGER East Oregonian The Milton-Freewater 11/12-year-old softball team could not take advantage of a rematch against La Grande on Thursday, as La Grande pounded out 17 hits and 17 runs to take down Milton-Freewater 17-2. The win advances La Grande into the District 3 champion- ship game against unbeaten Pendleton, whom defeated La Grande 14-4 on Wednesday. For Milton-Freewater, its season comes to an end with its second loss of the tournament. Rilyn Kirkland was the star of the game for La Grande, pitching 4.2 innings and allowing only one hit and one run with three strikeouts as well as going a perfect 5-5 at the plate with three triples and four runs scored. She scored the games fi rst run in the fi rst inning after picking up a single and a stolen base to set her team up, and then came Staff photo by Eric Singer Milton-Freewater’s Tallulah Sireels makes contact with a pitch from La Grande’s Callie Glenn during the sixth inning of a Little League softball game at the 11/12-year-old District 3 semifi nals on Thursday in Milton-Freewater. across to score on an RBI triple from Sierra Meuser for the 1-0 lead. La Grande scored one run in each of the fi rst four innings against Milton-Freewater starting pitcher Hanna Prock. In the other dugout, Milton-Freewater’s offense could not fi nd the metaphorical ‘On’ switch, getting retired in order in the fi rst three innings and could not make any kind of hard contact against Kirkland. Milton-Freewater did not earn its fi rst baserunner until the fourth inning when Tallulah Sireels reached on a fi elding error by La Grande’s right fi elder. In the fi fth inning, the wheels fell of for Milton-Freewater. La Grande’s offense sent 11 batters to the plate in the inning and tagged Milton-Freewater pitcher Anna Propeck for four hits and six runs to jump to an 11-0 lead. Milton-Freewater fi nally earned its fi rst and only hit of the game in the fi fth inning as well, when Kadence Brown led off the inning with a single up the middle. She then proceeded to steal second and third base before coming home to score on an RBI groundout by Cambree Chester to cut the lead to 11-1. Propeck, who walked earlier in the inning, scored later in the inning on a passed ball for the 11-2 lead. La Grande came out in the sixth inning and piled on with six runs and four hits to push the See LITTLE LEAGUE/2B By BRIAN MAHONEY Associated Press NEW YORK — Ben Simmons went from Down Under to the top of the NBA draft, and a record number of international players followed. The Philadelphia 76ers took the Austra- lian with the No. 1 pick on Thursday night, making him the fi rst of a record 14 inter- national players chosen in the fi rst round. Nearly half the selections in the 30-pick round were international players, topping the 12 international players chosen in the fi rst round in 2013. Simmons climbed on stage to the sound of cheers from a Philly-fi lled crowd hoping he could turn around the 76ers. Not long after the same crowd was largely quiet as the draft fi lled with unfa- miliar names. The picks included the fi rst Austrian (Utah center Jakob Poeltl, No. 9 to Toronto), the highest Greek player ever drafted (Georgios Papagiannis, No. 13, Phoenix, rights dealt to Sacramento), two Croatians (Dragan Bender, No. 4 to Phoenix and Ante Zizic, No. 23, Boston), and two players from the Caribbean (Buddy Hield, Bahamas, No. 6 to New Orleans; and Skal Labissiere, Haiti, No. 28, picked by Phoenix but dealt to Sacramento). Some of the international players won’t come to the NBA next season, and perhaps See NBA/2B MLB Sampson exits without a pitch, Seattle skid hits 6 Nuno gets emergency start, M’s use six pitchers Associated Press DETROIT — The Seattle Mari- ners were at a loss from the start Thursday. Pitcher Adrian Sampson exited with discomfort in his right elbow while warming up for the fi rst inning and Seattle wound up dropping its sixth in a row, 5-4 to Detroit in 10 innings. Sampson will be evaluated back in Seattle. “Was no pop or anything, just a little discomfort. Felt it was best if I Seattle Detroit 4 5 just come out of the game,” Sampson said. Reliever Vidal Nuno started for the Mariners and pitched into the fourth. Seattle used six pitchers overall. Nelson Cruz homered twice and Chris Iannetta and Leonys Martin later hit back-to-back drives for the Mariners. Seattle put a runner on third with no outs in the 10th, but stranded him. Robinson Cano struck out to end the inning. The Tigers got the winning run in the bottom half when pinch runner Cameron Maybin easily scored on a bases-loaded wild pitch by Steve Cishek with two outs. “That’s the way it goes,” Cishek said. “It’s just embarrassing to give it away like that. Rather have him put in play.” Detroit swept a four-game set from Seattle for the fi rst time since August 1980 at Tiger Stadium. Steven Moya drew a one-out walk from Cishek (2-4) in the 10th and Maybin pinch ran. Pinch hitter See MARINERS/2B AP Photo/Carlos Osorio Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Adrian Sampson points to his right forearm as he talks with catcher Chris Iannetta before the fi rst inning of a baseball game against the Detroit Tigers, Thursday, June 23, 2016 in Detroit. Sampson was replaced with pitcher Vidal Nuno. Sports shorts Marbles king and queen crowned WILDWOOD, N.J. (AP) — Louie Lee proved himself the current dominant male player in his sport, crushing his opponent in a national championship match Thursday in New Jersey. Louie, of Mesa, Colorado, is 11 FACES and he shoots marbles. He shoots them so well, in fact, that he scored fi ve “sticks” — think of a tennis player serving and slamming four aces in a row — to beat Zayd Hadjali, 14, of Lansdowne, Pennsylvania, by a score of 8-2 in the best of 15 game series. Lee With the win, Louie was dubbed “king” of the 93rd National Marbles Championship. He took his place on a wooden throne next to “queen” Haley Grensko, 13, of Pittsburgh, who beat Lauren Shuty, 12, also of Grensko western Pennsylvania, 8-5. “This track has been here since the ‘60s. We had the glory days of IndyCar here back in the ‘80s and early ‘90s. To be back, I think it’s what the series needs.“ — Mario Andretti Retired IndyCar driver, 76, on the series’ return to Road America. The Kohler Grand Prix on Sunday marks the return of IndyCar to the rural Wisconsin road course for the fi rst time since 2007. LeBron out of Rio Olympics, Melo left to chase history alone NEW YORK (AP) — With LeBron James taking a pass, Carmelo Anthony alone will have a chance to become the most-decorated Olympian in men’s basketball history. The New York Knicks forward has agreed to chase a fourth Olympic medal, a person with knowledge of the details said Thursday. He and James both have two gold medals and a bronze, but James informed USA Basketball that he has withdrawn from consideration, agent Rich Paul told The Associated Press on Thursday night. James ranks as the team’s career leader in points and assists in the Olympics, while ranking second in rebounds. The Americans still have two spots to fi ll on their 12-man roster that will be named Monday. THIS DATE IN SPORTS 1910 — For the second consecutive year, Hazel Hotchkiss wins the singles, doubles and mixed doubles titles at the U.S. Lawn Tennis Association championships. 1998 — Jamaica becomes the fi rst Caribbean nation to win a World Cup soccer match since Cuba beat Romania in 1938. Theodore Whitmore scores in the 40th and 54th minutes as the Jamaicans beat Japan 2-1. 2012 — Major college football fi nally gets a playoff. A committee of university presidents approve the BCS commissioners’ plan for a four- team playoff to start in 2014. 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