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SPORTS TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2016 1B FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @EOSPORTS HEPPNER Mustangs stampede past Prospectors Heppner back in 2A semis for fourth straight year Football By ERIC SINGER East Oregonian On Saturday afternoon, Heppner’s six seniors — Jake Lindsay, Logan Grieb, Kolby Currin, Tim Jaca, Kevin Murray, and Trevin Horne — stepped onto the grass of Les Payne Field for one fi nal home football game. The fi eld at Morrow County Fairgrounds has been a place of great success for the Mustangs over the course of the seniors’ four-year high school career, with Heppner winning 25 of 26 games in that span. But this game held more meaning than typical home game — a win over Grant Union on Saturday would send the Mustangs back to the state semifi nals for the fourth straight season. The senior six did their parts to leave a lasting impression on the Mustang fans once the game was played, leading No. 4 Heppner to a 46-0 victory over No. 5 Grant Union. “It’s awesome, really awesome,” Grieb said of the victory. “I never thought it (home fi nale) would come Staff photo by Kathy Aney Heppner’s Logan Grieb (5) scampers downfi eld on his way to a touchdown during Saturday’s state playoff game against Grant Union at Les Payne Field in Heppner. this fast, but it did and it’s a heck of a way to go out.” “We’re playing in the best town with the best fans and atmosphere you could ask for and we played as hard as we could to get the best memory here,” Murray added. “And all of my brothers were on great Heppner teams and they didn’t even make it to the semis four years in a row, but it feels awesome and we’re jacked to get back.” With a steady wind blowing from left to right for College Roundup Grant Union Heppner 0 46 most of the game Saturday, Heppner (8-2) coach Greg Grant did not venture into the pass section of the offensive playbook except once — an incomplete pass in the fi rst quarter. But the Mustangs didn’t need the passing game to be effective, running the ball 43 times for 380 yards and seven touchdowns scored by four different players. “Coach Grant gave us a great game plan and we focused on the fundamentals a lot because that’s what wins games in the playoffs,” Grieb said. “You just have to dig deep and do what you learned back in fi fth, sixth grade and we did a good job of that.” Grieb led the way with three of those touchdowns from his running back spot — all scored in the fi rst half — and fi nished with 145 yards on 18 carries. Junior running back Coby Dough- erty had a solid game with 103 yards on 16 carries and two scores. “It’s the greatest thing ever to block for those guys,” Jaca said, “and when you feel their hand on your back to See MUSTANGS/2B Rodeo EOU hits the road for fi rst playoff game Patterson Football team matches ropes fourth program record for wins gold buckle East Oregonian LA GRANDE — Following Saturday’s 27-17 win over Carroll College, the Eastern Oregon Mountaineers offi cially clinched a spot in the NAIA football playoffs for the fi rst time in program history. The No. 9 Mountaineers (8-2) will begin their playoff journey this coming Saturday when the team travels to Crete, Nebraska to battle the No. 7 Doane Tigers (9-1) in the fi rst round. Doane reached the postseason with the No. 2 at-large bid out of the Great Plains Athletic Conference, while EOU wrapped up its spot with the No. 4 at-large spot from the Frontier Conference. The Mountaineers have had tremendous success in road games in 2016, fi nishing the regular season with a perfect 5-0 record on the road. EOU is also one of three squads making its fi rst playoff appearance. Saturday’s win at Nelson Stadium saw the teams combine for 35 points in the second half after EOU took a 6-3 lead into the locker room at halftime. Senior quarterback Zach Bartlow tossed two touchdowns and 144 passing yards, while junior wide receiver Brenden Kelly caught fi ve passes for 64 yards and two touchdowns. On the ground, senior running back Alfred Gross paced the Mountaineers with a career-high 158 rushing yards on 24 carries. Carroll had a chance to score late in the fourth, but senior linebacker Tucker Stanley came up with his third interception of the season. Eastern’s eight wins matches a program high, a mark it’s achieved four times. “It is a great day to be a Mountie,” said head coach Tim Camp. “I’m proud of the players and coaches.” See EOU/2B NFL Seattle ignores excuses, comes up with victory Seattle Sea- hawks wide receiver Doug Baldwin (89) catches a pass for his third touch- down of the game during the second half of an NFL football game against the New England Patriots, Sunday in Foxborough, Mass. The Se- ahawks won 31-24. Seahawks’ latest win ranks among most impressive under Carroll By TIM BOOTH Associated Press RENTON, Wash. — Playing across the country on a short week and facing one of the top teams in the NFL coming off a bye, the Seattle Seahawks had every reasonable excuse available. And yet, what could have been an expected setback instead became one of Seattle’s most impressive regular season wins under coach Pete Carroll. Kansas cowboy wins steer roping national title PRCA Media MULVANE, Kan. — Roping steers is what Rocky Patterson does — and does well. In fact, no cowboy in the PRCA roped them better in 2016 than the Pratt, Kansas, cowboy. With Pendleton’s Curt Robinson calling the action from the announcer’s booth, Patterson earned $56,432 at the 2016 Clem McSpadden National Finals Steer Roping and rode away with his fourth gold buckle. “It’s big,” said Patterson, 50, about Patterson his latest accomplish- ment. “It isn’t as easy for me to get out there and practice as it was 25 years ago. It probably has not sunk in yet, but this is big.” Patterson’s NFSR performance vaulted him to the world championship with a single-season steer roping record of $141,350, surpassing the previous record of $121,112 by Trevor Brazile last year. Although Patterson came into his latest NFSR — the 22nd of his decorated career AP Photo/Steven Senne See SEAHAWKS/3B See PATTERSON/2B Sports shorts Mariners acquire Danny Valencia SEATTLE (AP) — The Seattle Mariners have acquired utility player Danny Valencia from the Oakland Athletics for minor league pitcher Paul Blackburn. Valencia played four positions for Oakland last season and hit .287 with 17 HR and 51 RBIs in 130 games. Seattle general manager Jerry Dipoto said Saturday that Valen- cia’s ability to play fi rst and third base and left and right fi eld gives manager Scott Servais a “welcome Valencia level of fl exibility.” The 32-year-old Valencia also has played for Minnesota, Boston, Baltimore, Kansas City and Toronto. He’s a career .321 hitter against left-handed pitching. Blackburn, 22, was 9-5 with a 3.27 ERA in 26 games in Double-A last season. Blackburn was acquired by Seattle in July as part of the trade that sent Mike Montgomery to the Cubs. “It’s not just a normal, ‘Hey, I hurt my knee in practice.“ — Gary Andersen Oregon State football coach con- fi rming sophomore wide receiver Seth Collins treated at a hospital for an undisclosed ailment on Monday. Due to privacy issues, he would not comment further than to say that his thoughts and prayers were with Collins and the team would be there to support him in any way possible. Dodgers’ Seager, Tigers’ Fulmer take Rookie of the Year honors (AP) — Los Angeles Dodgers shortstop Corey Seager is the unanimous winner of the NL Rookie of the Year award, and Detroit right-hander Michael Fulmer beat out New York Yankees catcher Gary Sanchez for the AL honor. Seager is the 17th Dodgers player to earn Rookie of the Year honors easily the most of any team but the franchise hadn’t had a winner since Todd Hollandsworth in 1996. Seager hit .308 with 26 home runs and 72 RBIs this year. Fulmer went 11-7 with a 3.06 ERA, establishing himself as a Rookie of the Year candidate early on and holding off a late challenge from Sanchez. Fulmer received 26 of 30 fi rst-place votes from the Baseball Writers’ Association of America. The votes were announced Monday night on MLB Network. THIS DATE IN SPORTS 1943 — Sid Luckman of the Chicago Bears becomes the fi rst pro to pass for more than 400 yards as he throws for 433 and seven touchdowns in a 56-7 victory over the New York Giants. 1964 — Gus Johnson and Walt Bellamy become the fi rst NBA teammates to score 40 points apiece as the Baltimore Bullets beat the Los Angeles Lakers 127-115. Johnson has 41 points, Bellamy 40. 1970 — Forty-three members of the Marshall football team die when their chartered plane crashes in Kenova, W.Va. Contact us at 541-966-0838 or sports@eastoregonian.com
