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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (April 19, 2017)
SPORTS WEDNESDAY, APRIL 19, 2017 1B FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @EOSPORTS HERMISTON Bulldogs get fi rst league win Herm- iston’s Jordan Ramirez dives back to fi rst base as Hood River’s Conner Coerper waits for the ball in the Bull- dogs’ 4-2 win against the Ea- gles on Tuesday in Herm- iston. Prep Roundup Bucks fl atten ‘Hawks Pendleton softball gets eighth shutout to beat The Dalles East Oregonian Staff photo by E.J. Harris PENDLETON — Alexi Brehaut and Kalan McGlothan hit home runs, and Lauren Richards allowed just two hits from the circle as Pendleton steamrolled The Dalles 12-0 in fi ve Softball innings on Tuesday in a Columbia R i v e r Pendleton Conference softball game. Richards struck out 12 and walked The Dalles none to give Pendleton (15-2, 3-0 CRC) its eighth shutout of the season and second straight 12-0 win over The Dalles (1-14, 0-3). “She throws like that and she’ll be very very tough to beat,” said Pendleton coach Tim Cary. “She had great command of all her pitches and did a great job.” Pendleton fell short of Cary’s goal of 10 hits a game by three, but also used some smart plate approaches to earn seven walks, and were hit by pitches twice to keep the base paths busy. McGlothan’s home run broke things wide open in the second inning as it came with bases loaded and gave the Bucks a 7-0 lead. Brehaut hit a three-run shot in the fi fth, and also hit a double to fi nish 2 for 3. UP NEXT Pendleton hosts Hood River for a doubleheader on Saturday starting at noon. ——— 12 0 Hermiston gets effi cient pitching to put away Hood River “I don’t want to just give away free runs,” Schwirse said of his effi ciency. “I wanted to make them put the ball in play and see what With an inexperienced pitching staff, the my defense could do.” Schwirse’s only runs allowed came in the Hermiston baseball team has had its fair share fourth inning when seven Eagles came to of growing pains this season. The majority of Hermiston’s pitchers the plate. Three Eagles reached via hit and had never thrown a varsity inning prior to one walked, with the runs scoring on an RBI single by Lucas Viuhkola and on a this season, which meant a lot of Hermiston (7-9, 1-2 CRC) fi elding learning what it takes to be successful CRC error. He worked out of a few jams as at that level. The biggest thing that well, stranding two runners in the fi rst has plagued the Bulldogs so far is and working around a leadoff double ineffi ciency on the mound, often times falling below 50 percent strikes Hood River in the third inning. “Great pitching, I mean great thrown which results in a high number pitching today,” Hawkins added. “It of walks, hit-by-pitches and extra helps when you’re around the plate bases to runners. with your pitches. We weren’t falling But on Tuesday afternoon at behind and when you’re up early you Armand Larive ballpark, two of the Hermiston can go with a second or a third pitch, younger pitchers gave coach Lance and I think the guys did a good job of Hawkins something to smile about. competing on the mound and that’s Junior righty Caden Schwirse gave what we need.” the Bulldogs fi ve solid innings from On the offensive side of things for the the start and sophomore Jordan Ramirez threw two scoreless innings to save a 4-2 Bulldogs Bulldogs, the bats were kept relatively quiet by Eagle pitching. Hermiston registered fi ve victory over the Hood River Valley Eagles. Schwirse, making his fourth appearance on hits spread in the fi rst and third innings, and the mound this season, allowed six hits with had four innings where the team was retired two runs and one earned to go along with three in order. But in the fi rst inning, back-to-back singles strikeouts. He was very effi cient as well, only walking two and throwing 74 pitches in his by Ramirez and Wyatt Noland plus a walk fi ve innings and he threw just over 54 percent by Lukas Tolan loaded the bases. Slade Gritz strikes. See BULLDOGS/2B By ERIC SINGER East Oregonian 2 4 Staff photo by E.J. Harris Hermiston’s Caden Schwirse throws from the mound in the Bulldogs’ 4-2 win against Hood River Valley on Tuesday in Hermiston. (5 innings) R H E PHS 360 03 — 12 7 0 TD 000 00 — 0 2 1 L. Richards and K. Solomon. B. LeBreton, S. Watson (3) and E. Weir. W — Richards. L — LeBreton. 2B — Ki. McGlothan, A. Brehaut (PHS). HR — Ka. McGlothan, A. Brehaut (PHS). See PREPS/2B HERMISTON Flores taking his talents to college, signs with Blue Mountain Hermiston guard stays close to home for college hoops By MATT ENTRUP East Oregonian When Hermiston senior Chance Flores stepped off the court following a 65-50 loss to Parkrose in the 5A boys basketball play-in round, he knew nothing more than he wasn’t ready for it to end. Injuries during his junior and senior seasons had assured Flores and his 17-points-per-game average had fl own under the radar of collegiate coaches and recruiters. That could have been that. But Flores, a 6-foot-1 guard who also averaged 5.7 rebounds, 3.5 steals and 3.2 assists his senior season, had been dreaming of playing college basketball since the sixth grade and wasn’t ready to leave it there. “Someone one time told me, ‘Don’t quit something until you’re forced to,’” he said of some words of advice from Hermiston’s Dennis Stefani, a former assistant with the boys’ program and the Bulldogs’ girls JV head coach. “He told me that a long time ago and it just stuck with me.” With the assistance of Hermiston head coach Casey Arstein, he compiled his best highlights and started sending them out. One of the fi rst programs Flores contacted was Blue Mountain Community College in Pendleton, and when head coach Gavin Burt returned his interest Flores said he didn’t expand his search much further. On Monday Flores offi cially brought his short search for a college landing spot to a close when he signed a National Letter of Intent to join the BMCC Timberwolves in the fall. Surrounded by family, friends and teammates during a ceremony at Herm- iston Highh, Flores said there were two people he especially needed to thank for See FLORES/2B Contributed photo courtesy of Hermiston Athletics Chance Flores, second from right, signs his National Letter of Intent with Blue Mountain CC men’s bas- ketball on Monday at a ceremony at Hermiston High. Also shown are Flores’ parents, his older brother C.J. (standing), and his HHS coach Casey Arstein (far right). Sports shorts Another Duck leaves for NBA EUGENE (AP) — Oregon junior forward Jordan Bell has become the latest Ducks player to declare for the NBA Draft. Bell made his announcement on Tuesday on the website riselongbeach.com. The Long Beach, California, native says he plans to hire an agent, which would end his eligibility. Bell joins Dillon Brooks and Tyler Dorsey, who both have also declared for the draft since the end of the season. “Oregon has become my Bell home. I’ve gained lifelong friends and made unforgettable memories here,” Bell wrote. “After talking it over with my family and friends, I have decided now is the best time for me to pursue my dream of playing in the NBA.” Bell averaged a career-high 10.9 points and 8.8 rebounds a game this season. Oregon fi nished 33-6, setting a program record for wins. “There is a passion I have and we have as Latinos because we love to have fun, we love to show our joy on the fi eld ... the pitcher can strike you out four times in a game so we like to show our joy when we hit that one home run. Baseball is fun. It’s exciting. It’s a game.“ — Yasiel Puig The Los Angeles Dodger wrote an article on MLB.com about his moti- vations for things such as adding a bat-fl ip after home runs, something that has angers MLB pitchers. Pirates outfi elder suspended 80 games for PED use NEW YORK (AP) — Pittsburgh Pirates All-Star outfi elder Starling Marte has been suspended 80 games by MLB after testing positive for a performance-enhancing drug. The league said Tuesday that Marte tested positive for the steroid Nandrolone. He will be eligible to return in mid-July. Marte was an All-Star for the fi rst time in his career in 2016 and moved from left fi eld Marte to center fi eld in the offseason after winning his second Gold Glove. The 28-year-old from the Dominican Republic is hitting .241 with two home runs and seven RBIs this season. Under the league’s drug agreement, Marte is ineligible for the 2017 postseason if the Pirates were able to advance. THIS DATE IN SPORTS 1897 — John J. McDer- mott wins the fi rst Boston Marathon in 2 hours, 55 minutes, 10 seconds. 1991 — Evander Holy- fi eld successfully defends his heavyweight title with a unanimous 12-round decision over 42-year-old challenger George Foreman in Atlantic City, N.J. 1998 — Chicago’s Michael Jordan scores 44 points to lead the Bulls over the Knicks, 111-109, in the fi nal game of the regular season, securing his record 10th NBA scoring title with a 28.7 average. Contact us at 541-966-0838 or sports@eastoregonian.com