Page 2B
SPORTS
East Oregonian
Saturday, May 13, 2017
College baseball
Ducks are bullish on deep
offensive line group
By RYAN THORBURN
The Register-Guard
Staff photo by Kathy Aney
Pendleton’s Kalan McGlothan fist bumps with head coach Tim Cary after hitting a
home run during the first inning of Friday’s game against Hermiston at Sunridge
Middle School.
SOFTBALL: McGlothans on fire
Continued from 1B
Fell wrapped up a perfect
16-0 career record against
Hermiston.
“It feels pretty good, and a
little bittersweet the last time
playing Hermiston,” Hergert
said. “But after coming back
from the loss at Hood River
this week it felt good to get a
win like this. We had a good
week of practice and really
focused down on our hitting
and I think it showed.”
“The girls came out
focused and ready knew we
needed to win this game to
pick up the title and they
got it done and played very
well,” Pendleton coach Tim
Cary said. “And that’s where
we want to be going into the
postseason, it’s all about
getting hot at the right time
and hopefully this is some
indication of how the hitting
will continue, we hope.”
Hergert opened the
scoring in the bottom of
the first inning, when she
crushed a two-run home run
over the right field fence for
a 2-0 lead. Then just two
pitches later, Kalan McGlo-
than followed with a solo
home run as she crushed a
fastball way over the fence
in straightaway centerfield
for a 3-0 lead. Parker and
Fell both tallied RBI hits
in the inning as well, and
Pendleton held a 6-0 lead
after one inning.
“The bats were certainly
hot today,” Cary said. “It
was one of those days where
every single batter no matter
who it was got up there and
hit the ball hard some place.
Whether it was hard on the
ground, hard line drive or
over the fence, it was fun to
see.”
The scoring continued in
the second for Pendleton,
when Kalan McGlothan hit
a seeing-eye single between
third and shortstop and Alexi
Brehaut reached on an error.
It brought Rylee Gentner to
the plate, who unloaded on
a 2-2 pitch and smashed a
three-run home run to right
field.
The Buckaroos poured
it on in the third inning,
scoring nine times on five
hits. Kirah McGlothan
started the run with one out
as she hit a letter-high fast-
ball out to center for a solo
home run. Two batters later,
Hergert followed with an
RBI single and then scored
on a towering two-run home
run by Kalan McGlothan.
“My goodness, I can
remember two or three
home run games but not
this many,” Cary said of the
home run barrage. “The girls
just put the bat on the ball
and really squared things up
today. We’ve been focusing
on hitting, and they were
patient up there and it sure
worked out and it was nice
to see.”
A Hermiston error and a
three straight walks brought
in a run and loaded the bases
for the Bucks, as Kirah
McGlothan came to the plate
again. And not wanting to
get beat by her older sister,
Kirah unloaded the bases on
the second pitch of the at-bat
as she crushed another high
fastball deep to center field
for a grand slam, her second
home run of the inning to put
the Bucks up 18-0.
“It’s never happened
before so that was fun,”
McGlothan said with a
smile. “I didn’t want to let
Kalan beat me, but I wasn’t
trying to hit a home run. I was
thinkining base hit scores a
run and when it went over it
was just a bonus.”
Overshadowed
by
the Buckaroo bats was
pitcher Lauren Richards,
who allowed a mere two
baserunners in five innings.
Her only hit allowed was an
infield single and she walked
a batter in the third, while
adding four strikeouts and
eight groundball outs. For
Hermiston, three different
Bulldogs stepped in the
pitching circle, as Julissa
Almaguer, Janelle Almaguer
and Bailey Noland all strug-
gled to solve the Buckaroos
lineup.
“I guess the girls will take
away that you can’t ever
take a pitch off ... you can’t
relax especially with a good
team like Pendleton,” Herm-
iston coach Kate Greenough
said. “We try and rely on a
big play to make a change in
momentum but they weren’t
quite happening.
“The girls never gave up
at least, they kept trying but
it seemed like ‘gosh every-
thing we try isn’t working,’
so that just means we need
to make our toolbox a little
bit deeper.”
UP NEXT
Pendleton will have a
week off as it waits for its
first round playoff opponent.
Hermiston will be on the
road for a play-in game on
Friday.
————
R H E
HHS
000 00 —
0 1 4
PHS
639 0X — 18 16 0
W — L. Richards, L — Ju. Almaguer.
2B — A. Brehaut, T. Fell, L. Richards
(PHS). HR — P. Hergert, Ka. McGlothan
2, Ki. McGlothan 2, R. Gentner (PHS).
————
Contact Eric at esinger@
eastoregonian.com
or
541-966-0839. Follow him
on Twitter @ByEricSinger.
JENSON: Has pitched in three no-hitters
Continued from 1B
dead-on,” Monkus said. “His
curveball works really well
and he’s been really efficient
lately.”
Stanfield’s game at
Irrigon on April 25 was the
game Jenson said made him
feel fully re-acclimated.
He started the game on
the mound and threw a
five-inning no-hitter against
a dangerous Knights lineup,
and added seven strikeouts
and one walk. To make the
day even better, Jenson also
hit a home run.
“It was definitely the
game where I felt ‘OK, I’m
back,” Jenson said. “It was
unreal. The team was really,
really happy for me and I
was happy for myself.”
It was actually the third
no-hitter he had contributed
to this season, as he and
Dylan Grogan combined for
a six inning no-no on April
7 in an 11-0 win against
Burns and a five-inning
no-no on May 12 in a 10-0
win over Vale. In the game
against Burns, Jenson threw
five innings of relief with
a strikeout and three walks
and against Vale he threw
one inning of no-hit ball
with three strikeouts.
But the one versus
Irrigon was more mean-
ingful, he felt, because it
was a game that he started
and finished all by himself.
With Jenson’s return
and the way that he has
performed this season,
it’s not hard for Tigers
fans to be excited about a
possible state championship
Staff photo by Kathy Aney
Stanfield’s Klay Jenson has demonstrated his talent
this season on the mound, in the outfield and in the
batters box.
repeat. He gives Stanfield a
formidable pitching rotation
along with Dylan Grogan,
Brody Woods and Tony
Flores — any of which
could be considered the ace
at this point. And with the
pitch count rules in effect
this year, having a fourth
dominant arm could be
a huge advantage for the
Tigers.
“It’s a good problem to
have,” Stanfield coach Brad
Rogers said with a smile.
Jenson has also parlayed
his success into a college
baseball scholarship, as he
has committed to join his
teammate Flores at Blue
Mountain Community
College starting in the fall.
He will compete immedi-
ately to find a niche in the
Timberwolves pitching staff.
“It’s been super
exciting,” Jenson said of
his senior season. “Just
knowing that I get to play
with Tony (Flores) next year
is awesome.”
But until then, Jenson
is hungry for another state
championship ring now,
and is determined to do
anything he can — on the
field, this time — to help
the Tigers achieve that. He’s
thankful to have one state
championship ring in his
possession, but he wants to
add another that he’ll feel he
actually earned.
“Last year was
awesome,” he said, “but
this year would be a little
bit more meaningful to me
because I actually did it, I
wasn’t just a support.”
————
Contact Eric at esinger@
eastoregonian.com
or
541-966-0839. Follow him
on Twitter @ByEricSinger.
EUGENE — Royce
Freeman understands the
risks of returning for his
senior season at Oregon
instead of starting an NFL
career in the fall.
But the Ducks’ star
running back also knows
this could be a rewarding
season behind Mario Cris-
tobal’s bullish offensive
line.
“Big ups to the O-line,”
Freeman said during spring
practice. “I’ve seen tremen-
dous improvement with
them. I feel like coach Cris-
tobal helped so much with
that. The way he coaches
and instructs in meetings is
just a new vibe and a new
mentality for everybody on
offense.”
Oregon’s
offensive
line already had strong
chemistry
with
four
freshmen starting together
last season. Now standout
Tyrell Crosby is set to
return for his senior season
after missing the bulk of the
2016 schedule with a foot
injury.
The competition during
fall camp will be heightened
as Cristobal — the former
Alabama assistant coach
Willie Taggart lured away
from SEC country with the
co-offensive coordinator
title — sorts out his best
starting combination.
Taggart is implementing
his “Gulf Coast” spread
offense from South Florida.
Last season the Bulls were
fourth nationally in scoring
(43.8 ppg), fifth in rushing
(285.3 ypg) and 11th in
total yards (511.5 ypg).
The Ducks finished 27th
in scoring (35.4 ppg), 27th
in rushing (226.4 ypg) and
15th in total yards (491.7
ypg) during a 4-8 finish that
led to the firing of coach
Mark Helfrich and his
assistants.
“We grew so much as
a whole unit,” center Jake
Hanson said after the spring
game. “Obviously there’s
some growing pains when
you’re coming in with a
new coaching staff and
everything. We already
had good camaraderie with
each other with four of us
starting 10 or more games
last year and having Tyrell
back.
“We had a good base
to start with, but coach
Cristobal has done a great
job this spring. We’ve come
a long way and we have a
lot to build on going into
the fall.”
Three of Hanson’s class-
mates — left tackle Brady
Aiello, left guard Shane
Lemieux and right tackle
Calvin Throckmorton —
also started last year, along
with senior right guard
Cameron Hunt.
A mix of veterans (Doug
Brenner, Jake Pisarcik,
Evan Voeller) and young
players (Jacob Capra, Zach
Okun, Logan Bathke) add
quality depth.
Projected depth chart:
LT — Brady Aiello, George
Moore, Logan Bathke;
LG — Shane Lemieux,
Jake Pisarcik, Evan Voeller;
C — Jake Hanson, Zach
Okun, Doug Brenner; RG
— Tyrell Crosby or Calvin
Throckmorton,
Doug
Brenner, Valentino Daltoso;
RT — Calvin Throck-
morton or Tyrell Crosby,
Jacob Capra, Sam Poutasi.
Hermiston’s
Jordan
Ramirez
looks to
throw the
ball to
first after
tagging out
Pendleton’s
Austin
Zaugg in
the Bull-
dogs’ 13-3
loss to the
Bucks on
Friday in
Pendleton.
Staff photo by E.J.
Harris
BASEBALL: Season ends for HHS
Continued from 1B
awry.
A booted grounder put
Pendleton’s Shaw Jerome
on base, and he advanced
to second when pitcher
Lukas Tolan’s third straight
pick-off attempt got past
first baseman Kaden Cald-
well.
Nick Bower was grazed
by a pitch to put two on,
and then Daniel Naughton
made the Bulldogs pay
for their mistakes when he
sliced a double to the corner
in right field to make it 2-0.
He finished the game 3 for 3
with five RBI.
“He’s getting hot right
at the right time, and
throughout the year he’s
gotten guys in,” Haguewood
said, “but it was good to see
today another guy step up.”
Pendleton added to its
lead in the third inning with
two more runs that scored
after another throwing error.
Bower hit a one-out
single on a hard grounder
that got through the left
side, then Naughton walked
to put runners on first and
second.
A hard grounder to third
base by Ryan Russell could
have been just the thing
Hermiston needed to get
out of the inning with no
damage done, but Bower
slid in front of Kody Moss
as he threw to first and
the ball skipped to the
fence allowing Bower and
Naughton to come around
to make it 4-0.
“We just wanted to keep
the hype up and get a lot of
hits,” said Naughton. “The
whole hometown crowd is
here, so you’ve got to put
out for that. We wanted
to get as many runs as we
could. … I think that’s what
helped us the most, was just
staying energized.”
Morris only allowed one
hit in the first four innings,
and finished with one earned
run allowed three hits. He
retired the Bulldogs in order
before the Bucks came up
to pad their lead with three
more runs in the bottom of
the fourth.
“You’ve just got to know
the batters, know what
pitches to throw, study that
batters,” Morris said of
the familiar opponent. “I
would say everything was
working.”
“Wyatt has always been
Staff photo by E.J. Harris
Pendleton’s Shaw Jerome is congratulated by his
teammates after scoring in the Bucks’ 13-3 win against
the Hermiston Bulldogs on Friday in Pendleton.
our kind of go-to because
he’s one of the most effective
starters for us because he
keeps a low pitch count, he
goes deep into games, and
he works very quick. He’s
ahead of hitters 0-2, 1-2,
consistently,” Haguewood
said. “His last three stars
have just been excellent,
so he’s peaking at the right
time. And he’s swinging the
bat really well.”
Nick Lani and Morris
singled on hard-hit balls to
the outfield to lead off the
bottom of the fourth, then
Jerome loaded the bags with
a bloop that found a safe
spot to land down the third-
base line.
A sacrifice fly by Bower
then a two-RBI single to
center by Naughton made it
a 7-0 game.
Hermiston finally put
some pressure on the Bucks
in the fifth when it loaded
the bases with no outs, and
was rewarded with two runs
off an error, then made it a
7-3 game in the sixth on a
sacrifice fly by Tolan.
But when Morris crushed
a 2-0 fastball over the fence
in center field for his second
home run of the season to
lead off the sixth it spelled
the beginning of the end for
the Bulldogs.
An error put Bower
on base with one out, and
he stole second then went
to third on a passed ball
before scoring a single by
Naughton. Russell and
Jared Beveridge walked to
load the bases, then Herm-
iston got the second out on
a pop-up.
The Bulldogs never got
the third, and Justin Duso
was hit by a pitch to push
the score to 10-3, then Lani
drove in two more a line
drive to left field.
Morris walked to load
the bases back up, and the
game-ending run scored
fittingly on an error on a
grounder by Caleb Cary.
“It’s a game you look
back — good pitching,
timely hitting, good defense,
that’s tough to beat,”
Hawkins said. “Better team
won today.”
The win gives the Bucks
a home game in the OSAA
play-in round, a game that
will be played next Friday
against the No. 5 team
from the Northwest Oregon
Conference, which will be
either Milwaukie or Sandy.
“You’ve got to bump
the level up,” Morris said.
“Practice is going to be
more intense, because this
next game is going to be
really intense.”
The loss ends the season
for Hermiston, which
seemed like a premature
finish for the only CRC
team to have beaten league
champs Hood River — not
once but twice.
“I’m sad for the four
seniors, but it was all or
nothing coming in and I wish
it was a lot closer a game,”
Hawkins said. “Not the way
that we wanted to end.
“I hope we learned that
we can compete with some
pretty good teams … we’ve
played some quality teams
and we’ve competed with
them. … To compete like
we did and put ourselves in
the position, I’ve got to say
the guys worked pretty hard
to do that.”
———
(6 innings)
R H E
HHS
000 021 —
3 3 5
PHS
202 306 — 13 11 2
L. Tolan, J. Ramirez (6) and S. Gritz. W.
Morris, D. Naughton (6) and R. Russell.
W — Morris. L — Naughton.
2B — D. Naughton (PHS). HR — W.
Morris (PHS).