Page 2B
SPORTS
East Oregonian
College World Series
OREGON STATE:
When it comes to Heimlich,
OSU teammates not talking
Continued from 1B
three regional opponents
27-3 as the No. 1 seed in
the NCAA Tournament. The
Beavers then cruised to a
two-game sweep of Vander-
bilt in super regionals.
Now comes the hard part
— finishing the job on the
college game’s grandest stage
at TD Ameritrade Park.
“It is absolutely a lot of
pressure, and it’s a different
kind of pressure than any other
experience along the way,”
said retired Hall of Fame coach
Augie Garrido, who won three
national championships at
Fullerton and two at Texas.
“They’re going to have to adapt
to the environment, and that is
a huge challenge for all teams.”
Oregon State will take
the next step toward its third
national title since 2006
without its top pitcher, Luke
Heimlich, and starting left
fielder Christian Donahue.
Heimlich did not pitch in super
regionals after it was revealed
last week that when he was a
teenager he pleaded guilty to
molesting a 6-year-old girl. He
did not accompany the team to
Omaha because he didn’t want
to be a distraction.
Coach Pat Casey announced
Friday that Donahue was
suspended for the entire CWS
for an unspecified violation of
team rules.
The Beavers have a
pitching staff that ranks No.
1 in the country with a 1.8
ERA. Jake Thompson is 14-0,
Pac-12 player of the year Nick
Madrigal is batting a team-
leading .383, and KJ Harrison
has hit three of his eight home
runs in the last five games.
“If they win it all, it’s going
to be hard for them not to be
considered No. 1 all-time,”
Baseball America editor
John Manuel said. “They
had another national seed in
their conference in Stanford.
Arizona is in their league and
was national runner-up last
year. This wasn’t a vintage
Pac-12 year, but it’s still a
strong conference. They
By ERIC OLSON
Associated Press
AP Photo/Nati Harnik
Oregon State coach Pat Casey addresses his players in
the dugout before team practice in Omaha, Neb., Fri-
day, June 16, 2017.
played good competition and
blew everyone’s doors off.”
Garrido said the Beavers
compare favorably to the
dominant Southern California
teams of the early 1970s, the
Texas teams of the mid-1970s
and early ‘80s, and his ‘95
Fullerton squad that went
57-9, won the national title
and was named the greatest
team of the 20th century by
Baseball America.
As for that 1982 Texas team
that came in 57-4, it didn’t win
the national title.
Harrison, the Oregon State
catcher, said he had heard
about the ‘82 Texas team, and
how it went 2-2 in Omaha and
failed to reach the champion-
ship game. Based on that, he
said, “greatest of all time” talk
can wait for Oregon State.
“We’re not done yet,” he
said. “Our goal is to win that
national championship.”
Things to know as the 71st
College World Series begins:
STARTING PITCHERS
Oregon State will start
Thompson (14-0) against
Fullerton’s Connor Seabold
(11-5), and LSU’s Alex Lange
(9-5) will go against Florida
State’s Tyler Holton (10-2). On
Sunday, Texas A&M will start
Corbin Martin (7-3, 3.35 ERA)
against Louisville’s Brendan
McKay (10-3, 2.34) and
Florida will send Alex Faedo
(7-2, 2.55) out against TCU’s
Jared Janczak (9-0, 1.97).
FAMILIAR FACES
Each of the eight teams
has played in the CWS at least
once since 2011, with Florida
here for the sixth time in eight
years and TCU for the fourth
straight year. Four of the teams
rank among the top 12 in
all-time appearances. Florida
State is fourth (22), Cal State
Fullerton and LSU are tied for
seventh (18), and Florida is
12th (11).
“I think this is the most
complete field I’ve seen,”
Florida coach Kevin O’Sul-
livan said. “There are no
Cinderellas.”
DAYCARE
TO
AGGIELAND
Texas A&M freshman
designated hitter Logan Foster
ended up an Aggie even
though he grew up in Lincoln,
50 miles from Omaha. Foster’s
first contact with coach Rob
Childress came in the late
1990s, when Childress was an
assistant at Nebraska.
“I’ve known him since he
was 1 year old,” Childress said.
“He went to daycare with my
daughter. He kept coming to
camps once we went to Texas
A&M, and once he made
the decision to be an Aggie I
told him, ‘I’m not putting the
pacifier back in your mouth
anymore. You’re going to have
to do it yourself.’”
AWARDS: Highlights to air Tuesday
Continued from 1B
ment for her as well.”
The event will begin at 7
p.m. and a live webcast will
be available at OregonSport-
sAwards.com. A highlight
show will be televised by
CSNNW on Tuesday at 7 p.m.
Greb is up for Female Prep
Golfer of the Year, and the
two other finalists are Ellie
Slama of South Salem and
Victoria Gailey of Tigard.
“I’ve played with both of
the girls a lot and it’s a great
accomplishment for all three
of us,” she said, adding she’d
of course be flattered to win.
“It would be a great accom-
plishment, over the whole
four years of high school and
growing up playing golf, and
it would definitely be a good
wrap for everything. It would
definitely feel great.”
Richards, who broke
the Pendleton High School
strikeout record with 229 as a
junior, is up for Prep Softball
Player of the Year. The other
finalists are Lauren Burke of
Marist Catholic and McKenna
Armantrout of Henley.
“I heard about it from our
athletic director and I was
pretty surprised, I didn’t really
know much about it,” he said.
“I’ve kind of researched it
and it seems like a really
good event, I’m excited for it.
I’ll already be down there for
softball, so we’re just going
to head down there.”
Former Buckaroo Alexis
Morrison was a finalist in
2016, and Mac-Hi’s Collette
Robert won the award in 2015.
———
Oregon Sports Awards
Finalists
Johnny Carpenter Prep Athlete of the
Year
Female
(6A-5A)
Evina Westbrook, South Salem
Jamie Stone, Centennial
Olivia Brooks, Summit
(4A-1A)
Baylee Touey, North Valley
Hawley Harrer, Sister
Kendra Murphy, North Lake
Male
(6A-5A)
Andrew Monroe, Crater
Layne Van Anrooy, Roseburg
Tim Tawa, West Linn
(4A-1A)
Bishop Mitchell, Kennedy
Blake Sentman, Cottage Grove
Hunter Knox, Harrisburg
Prep Football Player of the Year
Elijah Molden, West Linn
Tim Tawa, West Linn
Marlon Tuipulotu, Central
Staff photo by Kathy Aney
In this file photo from May 26, 2017, Pendleton pitcher
Lauren Richards catches a pop fly during a state playoff
game against Hood River at Steve Cary Field. Pendle-
ton won 4-2.
Male
Cameron Autencio, McMinnville
Johnny Rodas-Hills, Lakeridge
Paul Seydel, Lakeridge
Male
Andrew Monroe, Crater
Braden Lenzy, Tigard
Henry Mong, Franklin
Prep Cross Country Runner of the Year
Female
Ember Stratton, Sunset
Kelly Makin, Sunset
Olivia Brooks, Summit
Male
Ahmed Muhumed, West Salem
Andrew Monroe, Crater
Joshua Schumacher, Jesuit
Prep Softball Player of the Year
Lauren Burke, Marist
McKenna Armantrout, Henley
Lauren Richards, Pendleton
Prep Basketball Player of the Year
Female
Aleah Goodman, La Salle
Bendu Yeaney, St. Mary’s
Evina Westbrook, South Salem
Male
Elijah Gonzales, Clackamas
Geno West, Jefferson
Zach Reichle, Wilsonville
Prep Lacrosse Player of the Year
Female
Lauren Gilbert, Lake Oswego
Emily Steele, Jesuit
Catherine Lawliss, Oregon Episcopal
Male
Tucker Dordevic, Jesuit
Alex Slusher, Oregon Episcopal
Sam Handley, Jesuit
Prep Swimmer of the Year
Female
Caitlyn Wilson, Southridge
Emily Cook, Jesuit
Jamie Stone, Centennial
Male
Casey McEuen, Lebanon
Tristan James, Springfield
Van Mathias, Beaverton
Slats Gill Sportsperson of the Year
Dana Altman, UO Men’s Basketball
Pat Casey, OSU Baseball
Scott Rueck, OSU Women’s Basketball
Prep Wrestler of the Year
Brian Barnes, McMinnville
Lane Stigall, North Marion
Layne Van Anrooy, Roseburg
Prep Golfer of the Year
Female
Ellie Slama, South Salem
Haley Greb, Pendleton
Victoria Gailey, Tigard
Male
Craig Ronne, Klamath Union
Isaac Buerger, Ridgeview
Samuel Pyon, Clackamas
Prep Volleyball Player of the Year
Hawley Harrer, Sister
Kathryn Decker, Jesuit
Maddie Batiste, Central Catholic
Prep Tennis Player of the Year
Female
Anna Kern, Corvallis
Elizabeth Stevens, Tigard
Serim Jin, Sunset
Male
Andrew Finkelman, Grant
Carter Quigley, Summit
Peter Murphy, Jesuit
Prep Soccer Player of the Year
Female
Camille Weaver, Summit
Kaillen Fried, Sherwood
Lindsay Howard, Sherwood
Prep Track & Field Athlete of the Year
Female
Camille Weaver, Summit
Deshae Wise, Grants Pass
Olivia Brooks, Summit
Saturday, June 17, 2017
Prep Baseball Player of the Year
Caden Hennessy, Clackamas
Brock Townsend, Churchill
Tim Tawa, West Linn
Ad Rutschman Small College Athlete
of the Year
Female
Ayisat Afolabi, Lewis & Clark Basketball
Tara Moates, OIT Softball
Ella Riddle, Linfield Tennis
Janelle Ferlan, OIT Golf
Male
Sam Riddle, Linfield Football
Joel Yellow Owl, OIT Basketball
Scott Hilpert, Linfield Baseball
Bill Hayward Amateur Athlete of the
Year
Female
Raevyn Rogers, UO Track & Field
Sydney Wiese, OSU Basketball
Kaytianna McMillan, OSU Gymnastics
Male
Nick Madrigal, OSU Baseball
Edward Cheserek, UO Cross Country,
Track & Field
Dillon Brooks, UO Basketball
Harry Glickman Professional Athlete
of the Year
Female
Mariel Zagunis, USA Fencing
Tobin Heath, Portland Thorns
Brianne Theisen-Eaton, Oregon Track
Club Elite
Male
Damian Lillard, Portland Trail Blazers
Ashton Eaton, USATF
Ryan Crouser, USATF
OMAHA, Neb. —
Oregon State players were
happy to answer any ques-
tions about the baseball part
of the College World Series.
The topic of Luke Heimlich
was a non-starter.
Heimlich, the Pac-12
pitcher of the year,
announced Thursday he
would not accompany
the Beavers to Omaha
because he didn’t want to
be a distraction. Last week
it was revealed that when
Heimlich was a teenager he
pleaded guilty to molesting
a 6-year-old girl. He did not
pitch in the Beavers’ super
regional against Vanderbilt.
Coach Pat Casey said
Heimlich made the decision
to stay home on his own; if
Heimlich had wanted to, he
would have been allowed
to travel to Omaha with the
team. Oregon State, the No.
1 seed in the NCAA tour-
nament, opens the CWS on
Saturday against Cal State
Fullerton.
Players gushed over the
opportunity to play for a
national championship and
the success they’ve enjoyed
this season. At 54-4, the
Beavers have the fewest
losses of any team entering
a CWS since Texas came in
57-4 in 1982.
Questions to a half-dozen
players about Heimlich
and his absence were
deflected with no comment
or responses about how the
team is close-knit and how it
approaches games “one game
at a time, one pitch at a time.”
KJ Harrison, without
mentioning
Heimlich,
generally addressed the
cloud over the program.
“You just get stronger
from it ... We’re looking
to play this weekend and
we’re looking at our next
opponent and we keep a
very good team aspect in
here,” Harrison said.
Ron Prettyman, NCAA
managing director of cham-
pionships and alliances,
said in an interview with
The Associated Press that
the NCAA had no input on
whether Heimlich should
participate or be with the
team in Omaha.
Prettyman said he knew of
no discussions at the NCAA
level since Heimlich’s sex
offender status came to light
about instituting a policy
that would bar an athlete
who has a felony record
from participating. Those
decisions, he said, are left up
to the school.
Asked if it was best for
the CWS that Heimlich
stayed away, Prettyman
said, “There are pros and
cons. My heart goes out to
the victim but also to the
young man who is paying
severe consequences for a
bad action. I really don’t
have a strong opinion about
it — not that it made it easier
or harder or anything else.
We allowed the situation
to run its course and we’re
here to support Oregon
State in the process.”
Casey said his players
have dealt with the situation
as well as could be expected.
“I really haven’t talked a
whole lot about it,” he said.
“Our guys are very tight-
knit group of guys. They’ve
handled it with class. You
prepare for distractions. I
tell guys at the beginning of
the season every year that
one of the toughest things
you have to do if you win is
block out distractions. They
can come from anywhere.”
Details about the moles-
tation were revealed last
week in a story published by
The Oregonian/OregonLive.
In an editorial accompa-
nying the article, the news-
paper said it learned about
Heimlich’s 2012 conviction
in Washington state after
running a background check
that it routinely does for
in-depth profiles.
Heimlich was the team’s
top pitcher, with an 11-1
record and nation-best
0.76 ERA. He had been
projected to be an early
round pick in Major League
Baseball’s draft, which
ended Wednesday without
him being selected.
Prosecutors in Wash-
ington state initially charged
Heimlich with two counts
of molestation for abuse that
began when the girl was 4,
The Oregonian said. He
ultimately pleaded guilty to
one count of molestation in
2011, a period during which
he was 15. Prosecutors
dismissed the other charge.
MOORE: Program needs to grow
Continued from 1B
nothing but good things
about Hermiston baseball
and the opportunity to come
in and enjoy the success that
they’ve built and expand on
that is exciting.”
Moore’s baseball back-
ground is pretty extensive,
starting with a successful
high school career with the
Buckaroos that landed him
a chance to play college
baseball and eventually two
seasons playing professional
baseball in the Independent
Frontier League before
coming back to Pendleton.
From there, Moore spent
two summers coaching
Pendleton Legion baseball
from 2000-2001 for the
then-Dave’s Chevron team
with current Pendleton
assistant Travis Zander
before landing a teaching
job in the Parma School
District. His last two
seasons in Idaho he spent
assisting the Fruitland High
team that won back-to-back
state championships.
Hermiston
athletic
director Larry Usher said on
Friday that Moore’s base-
ball coaching background,
along with experience in
coaching football and golf.
was a perfect fit for what the
school was looking for.
“He comes from a great
baseball pedigree and has
had success everywhere
he’s been,” said Usher. “One
thing good coaches should
do is learn the most they can
from competitive programs
and I’m humble enough to
admit that Pendleton base-
ball has been fantastic and
that’s where he started, and
then what he did in Parma
spoke volumes to us.”
Moore inherits a Bulldog
program that finished 10-15
overall this past season and
4-8 in the Columbia River
Conference, just missing out
on a postseason spot. The
Bulldogs do return some
experienced pieces, though,
as five positional starters
and all three starting pitchers
will return to the field.
But Hermiston has
just one more season to
leave a lasting mark on the
OSAA and the four-team
CRC before it moves to
the tougher Mid-Columbia
Conference and the WIAA
starting in 2018-19. Usher
admitted that the move to
the WIAA was a reason
for the district going in
a different direction and
outside of the program to try
and jump-start the stagnant
program.
“We don’t want to go up
there and not have a good
showing,” Usher said. “We
think Kevin brings a bit of
fire and will bring some
charisma to the high school
program.”
Along with revamping
the high school program,
Moore will be tasked with
helping the development of
Hermiston’s Little League
and middle school programs
to help funnel more kids
into the high school level
and make things more
competitive amongst the
kids. Moore believes that he
way to start is perhaps easier
said than done.
“My opinion is winning
brings along a lot of interest
from kids,” he said. “If
you’re winning, kids want to
be a part of the program and
will come out. I’m a firm
believer of teaching kids
how to play hard and how
to play right and get kids to
believe in themselves.
“If you treat kids with
respect and get them in the
right direction and get them
believing that they’re going
to be better then their oppo-
nent, then we can start to
build a highly competitive
program.”
RODEO: Top 12 advance to final round
Continued from 1B
the action would have a
different feel depending
on where they were in the
standings.
Espeland was the only
one of the three that would
be competing, and he needed
at least 66 points in his final
ride to get into the 12th and
final spot in the short-go. But
that was the score he needed
at the start of the round, and
based on the night’s action
he likely needed to score
much closer to the 72 he
had in the first round to earn
another ride in Casper.
Results were not avail-
able by the East Oregonian
press deadline.
While Espeland was
riding with his season on
the line, Hermiston graduate
Preston Pederson would
be closely monitoring the
tie-down action after he
entered the night in the ninth
spot in the aggregate with
39.5 on three, and while
Pederson was sweating it
out, Williams would be able
to rest easy with her third-
place standing making her a
lock for her second-straight
CNFR short-go.
Espeland wouldn’t be
the only BMCC competitor
in action on Friday, though,
and Chaise Robbins and
Cole White competed in
team roping while Quincy
Pendergrass went in barrel
racing and breakaway
roping.
Robbins and White
missed both of their first
two steers, and were just
be going for round points.
Pendergrass was in the same
boat in each of her events,
and had 31.16 on two in
barrel racing and 3.2 on one
in breakaway.
In Thursday night’s
action,
Williams
and
Quinton Nyman had a no
score in team roping and
finished their week with
27.4 on two. Williams also
competed in goat tying
where she had an 8.0 that
moved her into 22nd overall
with 22.7 on three. Calvin
Shaffer had a no score in
saddle bronc and finished
with 68.5 points on one.
Event leaders going
into Friday’s action were:
Logan Cook of Panola
Junior College in saddle
bronc, 210.5 on three;
Lane McGehee of Sam
Houston State in bareback,
234.5 on three; Riger Piva
of Montana-Western, 157
on two; Reid Zapalac of
Tarleton State in tie-down,
27.9 on three; Denver Berry
of SE Oklahoma State in
steer wrestling, 15.9 on
three; Wesley Thorp/Cole
Wheeler of Texas Tech in
team roping, 24.4 on three;
Leia Pluemer of UNLV in
barrel racing, 43.45 on three;
Loni Lester of Sam Houston
State in breakaway roping,
8.2 on three; Makayla Boots
of Idaho State in goat tying,
19.4 on three.
In the men’s all-around,
Marcus Theriot of East
Mississippi
Community
College led Cole Frey
of McNeese State by 25
points, and in the women’s
all-around, KL Spratt of Sam
Houston State led Samantha
Jorgenson of Black Hills
State by 30 points.
Panhandle State led the
men’s teams, 75 points
ahead of Sam Houston State
with BMCC in 47th.
Sam Houston State held
the women’s team lead by
100 points over Tarleton
State with BMCC in 17th.
The top 12 contestants/
teams in each event will
advance to the champion-
ship round on Saturday.