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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (July 19, 2016)
SPORTS TUESDAY, JULY 19, 2016 1B FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @EOSPORTS PENDLETON Pendleton prepared for West Regional trip Team will have sendoff party at Pendleton airport tonight By ERIC SINGER East Oregonian After a one-year absence, a Pendleton team is back in the 11/12-year-old softball West Regional tournament. Pendleton represented the state of Oregon at the Little League tournament in July of 2014, where they fi nished 2-2 in their bracket before getting eliminated. Coaches Kristan Garton and Justin Samp said they are excited for their girls to get the opportunity to represent the state and the city of Pendleton again. “Gosh what an honor,” Garton said. “It’s an honor in so many ways and these girls are up for the challenge. We’re excited to compete again.” The team, which advanced to the tournament after an exciting come-from-behind victory in the state champi- onship game just one week ago, will be traveling down to San Bernardino, California for the tournament, which is set to take place from July 22-29. And for some kids, such as Jordan Jones, it is also their fi rst time fl ying which is creating an even more memorable experience. “It’s exciting, but it’s really nervewracking too,” said Jones. “I’ve never fl own and I’ve never been to Cali- fornia and it’s exciting (to do this with my team) because they’re my best friends and I’m happy to go with them.” Pendleton will get see its fi rst action on Friday morning when they take on Montana at 10 a.m. at Al Haughton Stadium. They will play two more games in pool play against Alaska and Utah and will then be seeded against the rest of the 12-team bracket for single-elimination play. If Pendleton wins the tourna- ment, they will clinch a spot in the Little League Softball World Series in Portland next month. While in California, the coaches said they have not yet planned any activities outside of games or practice, and will wait till they get settled in to decide. Garton said the hope is to be able to take the team to some kind of amusement park or take them to the beach, but they know they have to stay focused on the main task. See SOFTBALL/2B HERMISTON Takin’ it to the Streets wraps up 11th year Hermiston’s Paola secures 3-point three-peat Tournament brings creativity with team names By ERIC SINGER East Oregonian By ERIC SINGER East Oregonian Justin Paola stepped onto the HAPO Credit Union Center Court on Saturday with one thing on his mind: just make shots. That mindset worked as well as it has for the past three years, as the Hermiston resident nailed a total of 19 3-pointers to capture the Takin’ it to the Streets 3-point championship for the third consecutive year. Paola said the adrenaline rush he gets in the event is what keeps him coming back each year. “I’ve played in this every year since it started so there are some really good people that come here for this,” Paola said, “and the new guys each year bring it too. The competition is always great.” The 45-year-old sharp shooter has quite the basketball background, playing collegiately at Eastern Washington University from 1990- 1992 where he earned his place as one of the best 3-point shooters in school history. He currently sits at No. 7 on the all-time list in made 3-pointers with 164. He has played competitively in various 3-on-3 tournaments and other events since graduating from college, which he says has allowed him to keep his shot sharp. “You never really lose it, that’s See 3-ON-3/2B On Sunday afternoon at approxi- mately 4 p.m., Main Street in down- town Hermiston was suddenly silent. For two days, the street had been fl ooded with children, teenagers, and adults for the 11th annual Takin’ it to the Streets 3-on-3 basketball tournament, and for those two days loud music had pulsated the air to keep the competitors and on-lookers upbeat. But once the fi nal games were fi nished, the music fell silent as the fi nal cleanup stage was ready to kick off. During that two-day period, approximately 160 teams made up of more than 600 athletes competed in the tournament and 20 teams walked away as winners of the 20 total brackets. And many of those teams showed plenty of creativity when it came to the most important part: picking the team name. “It’s always fun to see the names people come up with,” said tour- nament organizer Tracy Gammell. “Some are AAU teams that come and keep their names, but some teams get really creative and have fun with it.” Gammell said her favorite name came from a few years back, when a team called themselves ‘Call Me Maybe’ after the hit pop song, and See TEAM NAMES/2B Staff photo by Kathy Aney Justin Paola shoots during the three-pointer competition at the 3-on-3 basketball tournament Saturday in Hermiston. The Hermiston man has won the competition for three years running. PENDLETON Simmons claims victory again at Wildhorse Amateur Hermiston grad sinks par on 18 to clinch championship By WILL DENNER East Oregonian Kurt Simmons didn’t immediately realize he’d won the Wildhorse Amateur Golf Tourna- ment after sinking his last putt. Nathan Dick held a one-stroke lead over Simmons going into the fi nal hole of the 36-hole tournament Sunday, but Simmons thought he was down two strokes. Simmons missed a three-foot par putt on the 17 th hole, which he fi gured was enough to give Dick the win. Not quite. Dick took a chance trying to clear the long water hazard right of the 18 th hole and it didn’t pay off. His second shot, using an iron, landed in the water and cost him a penalty stroke. “I choked,” he said. Simmons (even, 144) fi nished par on the 18 th hole while Dick (one-over, 145) shot double bogey. Simmons won his second Wildhorse Amateur in defeating Dick – a three-time winner of the tournament. “I thought we were going to a playoff,” Simmons said. “(Nathan) said, ‘Congratulations’ afterwards and I knew I won.” Simmons’ previous win came in 2012, shortly after he graduated from Hermiston High. In the four years since, he said he’s developed a greater appreciation for the game. “I feel like I’m more mature now - look at things a little different,” Simmons said. “I just got done with college and golf is becoming more enjoyable.” Simmons and Dick were grouped with Bob Christensen (seven-over, 151) and Reilly See WILDHORSE/2B Kurt Simmons recieves his cham- pionship trophy from Wildhorse Head Golf Profes- sional Mike He- garty on Sunday at Wildhorse Resort in Pendleton. Staff photo by Will Denner Sports shorts Ex-Pro Bowl RB inks with Dolphins MIAMI (AP) — A person familiar with the situation says four-time Pro Bowl running back Arian Foster has agreed to terms on a one-year deal with the Miami Dolphins. The person confi rmed the FACES deal to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Monday because it had not been signed. Foster, who spent the past seven years with the Houston Texans, is trying to come back from a torn Achilles tendon that ended his 2015 season in late October. Foster The injury happened against the Dolphins in Miami. The Dolphins were looking to add depth at running back after losing Lamar Miller to the Texans in free agency. Jay Ajayi is expected to start after rushing for 187 yards as a rookie last year. “It’s all about the uniform. I appreciate our marketing department and everybody putting out different looks for the Mariners ... but I came to the conclusion that it had to be tied to the uniform.“ — Scott Servais Seattle Mariners manager saying his team’s struggles in Sunday home games are tied to the alternate cream uniform the team wears. The Mariners are 1-7 at home on Sunday’s this season. World Anti-Doping Agency calls for Russian Olympic ban (AP) — The World Anti-Doping Agency’s executive board wants the IOC to ban all Russian teams from the Rio de Janeiro Olympics. WADA issued a seven-point list of requests after it published a report which confi rmed claims of state-backed Russian cheating at the Sochi Olympics and beyond. The call for action comes after an investigator looking into Russian doping found the country’s state-directed cheating program resulted in at least 312 falsifi ed results and lasted from 2011 through at least last year’s world swimming championships. The investigator, Richard McLaren, said Russia’s deputy minister of sports would also direct lab workers which positive samples to send through and which to hold back. THIS DATE IN SPORTS 1910 — Cy Young wins his 500th career game as the Cleveland Indians beat the Washington Senators 5-4 in 11 innings. 1980 — The Summer Olympics open in Moscow without the United States and 64 other boycotting countries. 2014 — Shoni Schimmel, a rookie who doesn’t start for her own team, puts on a record-breaking perfor- mance — scoring 29 points to help the East beat the West 125-124 in the fi rst WNBA All-Star Game to go to overtime. Contact us at 541-966-0838 or sports@eastoregonian.com