SPORTS
Thursday, September 7, 2017
East Oregonian
Page 3B
College, pro teams bow to Irma’s potential impact
By TIM REYNOLDS
Associated Press
CORAL GABLES, Fla.
— The Miami Hurricanes
decided to take the weekend
off, the Miami Dolphins were
given the weekend off, and
many other teams around the
state of Florida kept a very
cautious eye Wednesday on
powerful and destructive
Hurricane Irma as it churned
across the Atlantic on a path
toward the U.S.
No. 16 Miami canceled
its game at Arkansas State,
in part out of concern that the
Hurricanes may get stranded
away from home if the
storm strikes South Florida.
The Dolphins and Tampa
Bay Buccaneers, who were
scheduled to play a Miami
home game Sunday, now
will get the opening week of
the NFL year off and won’t
meet until Nov. 19.
No. 10 Florida State and
No. 22 Florida moved up
their Saturday home games to
midday starts, out of caution.
A slew of other events were
either canceled or resched-
uled, all in deference to the
storm that forecasters believe
may start affecting the state
by Saturday — possibly as a
direct hit.
“This is about what’s best
for our students, coaching
staff and their families,”
Miami athletic director Blake
James said, after telling
Arkansas State about the
AP Photo/Alan Diaz
Motorists head north of Tavernier, Fla., on US 1, in anticipation of Hurricane Irma,
Wednesday. Keys officials announced a mandatory evacuation Wednesday for vis-
itors, with residents being told to leave the next day.
decision that wasn’t exactly
warmly received. “We’re
not confident that we were
going to get back after the
game and we weren’t going
to leave our players stranded
somewhere. There’s bigger
things than football.”
Arkansas State athletic
director Terry Mohajir said
his team offered several
options to Miami, including
moving the game to Friday
night.
“Ultimately, the Miami
administration made the
decision not to travel,”
Mohajir said.
Florida International is
hitting the road, now set
to play Alcorn State on
Friday night at Birmingham,
Alabama. That game was
originally set to be FIU’s
home opener (and first home
game under Butch Davis) on
Saturday, but Irma forced the
switch to a neutral site.
FIU taking about 70 other
student-athletes from seven
different teams on the trip to
the UAB as well, relocating
them all in the interest of
safety.
Forecasters aren’t certain
what Irma will do to Florida.
Forecasts have been fluc-
tuating for the past several
days and likely will continue
to do so as the storm that has
been packing 185 mph winds
gets closer to the peninsula.
Vacationers — and in some
cases, residents of vulnerable
areas — have been urged to
evacuate the Florida Keys
BENNETT: Spoke briefly about incident
in a press briefing on Wednesday
Continued from 1B
gunfire to the sharp sound
of velvet rope stands being
knocked to a tile floor.
Bennett, during a brief
appearance Wednesday at the
Seahawks’ practice facility
in Renton, Washington,
described the incident as
“traumatic” but declined to
go into specifics about it.
“It’s a traumatic experi-
ence for me, my family and it
sucks that the country that we
live in now sometimes you
get profiled for the color of
your skin,” Bennett said. “Do
I think every police officer is
bad? No, I don’t believe that.
Do I believe there are some
people out there that judge
people by the color of their
skin? I do believe that.”
“I’m just trying to focus
on the game, focus on the
task at hand and let every-
thing take care of itself,”
Bennett said. “But like I said
this is a tragic situation for
me, I hate to be up here at
this moment. There is a lot
of people who experienced
what I experienced at that
point, at that moment and
they’re not here to tell their
story.”
Bennett,
a
6-foot-4
defensive end who has been
a leader of the national
anthem protests started by
former 49ers quarterback
Colin Kaepernick , said he
was among several hundred
people running away.
In his Twitter message,
Bennett said he was hand-
cuffed face-down on the
ground after an officer held
a gun to his head saying he
would blow his head off if he
moved.
“All I could think of was
‘I’m going to die for no other
reason than I am black and
my skin color is somehow
a threat,’” he wrote. He said
he thought of his wife and
children.
Bennett said he was
taken to the back of a police
car “until they apparently
realized I was not a thug,
common
criminal
or
ordinary black man but
Michael Bennett a famous
professional football player.”
He was released without
charges.
Las Vegas police Officer
Jacinto Rivera said police
were checking for casino and
police body camera video
and written reports. He said
the department couldn’t
immediately verify Bennett’s
account or identify the offi-
cers involved.
A video posted by celeb-
rity news site TMZ shows
a view from a balcony as a
police officer kneels on the
back of a man who looks like
Bennett. Protests are heard,
including, “I wasn’t doing
nothing,” and, “I was here
with my friends. They told
us to get out and everybody
ran.”
Bennett’s
attorney,
John Burris in Oakland,
California, confirmed the
words were Bennett’s. The
attorney said he believed the
30-second video clip showed
some of how his client was
treated.
“We think there was an
unlawful detention and the
use of excessive force, with a
gun put to his head,” Burris
told The Associated Press.
“He was just in the crowd. He
doesn’t drink or do drugs. He
wasn’t in a fight. He wasn’t
resisting. He did nothing
more or less than anyone in
the crowd.”
Burris said Bennett waited
to make public his account of
and parts of Miami-Dade and
Broward counties.
It’s the uncertainty that
has teams guessing, and the
Hurricanes said if they were
going to err they would do so
on the side of safety.
“We made the collective
decision that we simply
cannot put our student-ath-
letes, coaches and staff in
danger traveling to and from
contests,” James said.
All Hurricanes teams
scheduled to play this
weekend, home and away,
have seen those contests
canceled.
Florida State and Florida
were both going to play
night games as their home
openers this weekend, with
the Seminoles facing Loui-
siana-Monroe and the Gators
playing host to Northern
Colorado.
“It won’t affect us until
much later in the week,”
Seminoles coach Jimbo
Fisher said. “They’re just
trying to get it for some of
the families to be able to
get in and get out of here. ...
There’s a lot of things that are
very important, and a game
is very important, but also
people’s lives and things like
that are, too.”
No. 21 South Florida’s
game at Connecticut on
Saturday will be played
earlier than planned, with a
10:30 a.m. kickoff. Florida
Atlantic’s trip to No. 9
Wisconsin for a Saturday
game is on — but there are
contingencies for the team to
stay longer if the Owls can’t
get home Saturday night as
scheduled.
In other Irma-related
sports news Wednesday:
— The Florida Panthers
chartered a plane to take
about 90 people — players,
staff, coaches and families
— and 20 pets to Boston and
out of Irma’s path on Friday.
Panthers CEO Matthew
Caldwell said the team
originally chartered a smaller
plane, then upgraded when
more seats were needed. The
team is planning to stay in
the Boston area through at
least the weekend, depending
on what Irma does.
— Gulfstream Park in
Hallandale Beach, Florida
(about 20 miles north of
downtown Miami) called off
its racing cards for Thursday,
Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Track officials are tentatively
hoping to resume racing on
Wednesday, Sept. 13.
— A four-team tourna-
ment for NHL prospects in
Estero, Florida (on the south-
west corner of the state) was
called off. The tournament
was to include Florida, the
Washington Capitals, Tampa
Bay Lightning and Nashville
Predators. Later Wednesday,
Tampa Bay and Nashville
decided to have their rookie
teams play in a three-game
series that will start Sunday
in Nashville.
— Florida Gulf Coast’s
men’s soccer team canceled
its Sunday home opener
against VCU, and is keeping
its men’s golf, women’s golf,
men’s cross country and
women’s cross country teams
home from competitions
scheduled for this weekend.
— The University of
South Florida, in Tampa,
canceled a Thursday home
women’s soccer match
against Mississippi State, and
a volleyball tournament that
was to include USF, Florida
Atlantic, Oral Roberts and
Bethune-Cookman
on
Friday and Saturday. USF’s
women’s soccer game at
Florida on Sunday has also
been called off.
SCOREBOARD
Local slate
the incident until after Burris
contacted Las Vegas police
last week by letter and email,
seeking police records of
Bennett’s detention.
McMahill said he had no
knowledge of any letter or
email last week from Bennett
or Burris.
Bennett’s
brother,
Martellus Bennett, who plays
for the Green Bay Packers,
posted an Instagram account
of a telephone call he said he
got from Michael Bennett.
He said he heard fear in his
brother’s voice.
“The emotion and the
thought of almost losing you
because of the way you look
left me in one of the saddest
places ever,” Martellus
Bennett said.
Michael Bennett has been
one of the most outspoken
pro athletes on numerous
social issues. Last month, he
held a benefit for the family
of a pregnant black woman
who was fatally shot by two
white Seattle police officers
in June. Police said the
woman threatened the offi-
cers with at least one knife
after calling 911 to report that
someone had broken into her
apartment and stolen video-
game consoles.
Advocates on Wednesday
cited Bennett’s treatment
by police as an illustration
of troubled race relations in
America.
Patrisse
Cullors,
a
co-founder of the Black
Lives Matter advocacy
group, called it “a testament
to the police violence
targeting black people in the
United States.”
Cullors endorsed an
online petition calling for
Las Vegas police to release
information about what she
called an assault on Bennett.
COLLEGE MEN’S SOCCER
Friday
Blue Mountain vs. North Idaho, 4:15 p.m.
Saturday
Blue Mountain vs. Spokane, 2:15 p.m.
PREP FOOTBALL
Thursday
Pendleton (JV) at Irrigon, 7 p.m.
Friday
Umatilla at Rainier, 6 p.m.
Horizon Christian at Arlington, 6 p.m.
Lewiston (ID) at Hermiston, 7 p.m.
Putnam at Pendleton, 7 p.m.
DeSales (WA) at Mac-Hi, 7 p.m.
Union at Riverside, 7 p.m.
Weston-McEwen at Imbler, 7 p.m.
Heppner at Grant Union, 7 p.m.
Stanfield at Cascade (WA), 7 p.m.
Pilot Rock at Echo, 7 p.m.
COLLEGE WOMEN’S SOCCER
Friday
Blue Mountain vs. North Idaho, 2 p.m.
Eastern Oregon at Puget Sound, 2 p.m.
Saturday
Blue Mountain vs. Spokane, Noon
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Saturday
Eastern Oregon vs. Montana-Western,
1 p.m.
PREP VOLLEYBALL
Thursday
Riverside at Helix, 4 p.m.
Elgin at Mac-Hi, 4 p.m.
Weston-McEwen at Dayton (WA), 5 p.m.
Condon/Wheeler vs. Mitchell/Spray (at
Mitchell), 5 p.m.
Cove at Nixyaawii, 5 p.m.
Stanfield at Umatilla, 5:30 p.m.
Riverside vs. Pilot Rock (at Helix), 5:30
p.m.
Pilot Rock at Helix, 5:30 p.m.
La Grande at Pendleton, 6:30 p.m.
Friday
Irrigon at Ione, 1 p.m.
Echo vs. Irrigon (at Ione), 3 p.m.
Echo at Ione, 5 p.m.
Enterprise at Pilot Rock, 5 p.m.
Saturday
Irrigon at Waitsburg (WA) tournament,
8:30 a.m.
Ione vs. Condon/Wheeler (at Condon),
9 a.m.
Helix, Umatilla, Mac-Hi, at Helix Tourna-
ment, 9 a.m.
Weston-McEwen at Reedsport Invite,
9 a.m.
Wallowa at Echo, 10 a.m.
Union vs. Ione (at Condon), 11 a.m.
Pilot Rock vs. Condon/Wheeler (at
Condon), Noon
Joseph at Nixyaawii, 1 p.m.
Pilot Rock vs. Ione (at Condon), 2 p.m.
Pasco (WA) at Hermiston, 3:45 p.m.
Pine Eagle at Echo, 3 p.m.
Union vs. Condon/Wheeler (at Condon),
3 p.m.
Ione vs. Heppner (at Condon), 4 p.m.
Enterprise at Stanfield, 4 p.m.
Heppner vs. Condon/Wheeler (at Con-
don), 6 p.m.
Arizona 3, L.A. Dodgers 1
St. Louis 3, San Diego 1
Thursday’s Games
Chicago Cubs (Lester 9-7) at Pittsburgh
(Taillon 7-5), 4:05 p.m.
Philadelphia (Nola 10-10) at Washington
(Roark 11-9), 4:05 p.m.
Cincinnati (Mahle 0-1) at N.Y. Mets
(Harvey 4-4), 4:10 p.m.
Miami (Straily 9-8) at Atlanta (Newcomb
2-8), 4:35 p.m.
St. Louis (Lynn 10-6) at San Diego (Rich-
ard 6-13), 6:10 p.m.
Colorado (Gray 6-4) at L.A. Dodgers
(Kershaw 16-2), 7:10 p.m.
Baseball
MLB
AMERICAN LEAGUE
East Division
W
L Pct GB
Boston
79 61 .564 —
New York
74 64 .536
4
Baltimore
71 68 .511 7½
Tampa Bay
70 71 .496 9½
Toronto
64 76 .457 15
Central Division
W
L Pct GB
Cleveland
83 56 .597 —
Minnesota
72 67 .518 11
Kansas City
69 69 .500 13½
Detroit
59 80 .424 24
Chicago
54 84 .391 28½
West Division
W
L Pct GB
Houston
86 53 .619 —
Los Angeles
72 68 .514 14½
Texas
70 69 .504 16
Seattle
69 71 .493 17½
Oakland
59 80 .424 27
———
Wednesday’s Games
N.Y. Yankees at Baltimore, ppd.
Minnesota 10, Tampa Bay 6
Texas 12, Atlanta 8, 1st game
Oakland 3, L.A. Angels 1
Boston 6, Toronto 1
Kansas City 13, Detroit 2
Atlanta 5, Texas 4, 2nd game
Cleveland 5, Chicago White Sox 1
Houston 5, Seattle 3
Thursday’s Games
N.Y. Yankees (TBD) at Baltimore (TBD),
10:35 a.m.
Cleveland (Kluber 14-4) at Chicago White
Sox (Rodon 2-5), 5:10 p.m.
Minnesota (Gibson 9-10) at Kansas City
(Gaviglio 3-5), 5:15 p.m.
PREP BOYS SOCCER
Thursday
Pendleton at Sandy, 4 p.m.
Irrigon at Hermiston (JV2), 4:30 p.m.
Umatilla at Columbia Christian, 4:15 p.m.
Saturday
Catlin Gabel at Riverside, 1 p.m.
Putnam at Hermiston, 1:45 p.m.
Banks vs. Mac-Hi (at The Dalles), 5 p.m.
NATIONAL LEAGUE
East Division
W
L Pct GB
Washington
85 54 .612 —
Miami
67 72 .482 18
Atlanta
61 77 .442 23½
New York
60 79 .432 25
Philadelphia
53 86 .381 32
Central Division
W
L Pct GB
Chicago
76 63 .547 —
St. Louis
72 67 .518
4
Milwaukee
72 68 .514 4½
Pittsburgh
67 73 .479 9½
Cincinnati
61 79 .436 15½
West Division
W
L Pct GB
Los Angeles
92 47 .662 —
Arizona
82 58 .586 10½
Colorado
74 65 .532 18
San Diego
62 78 .443 30½
San Francisco
55 87 .387 38½
———
Wednesday’s Games
Cincinnati 7, Milwaukee 1
Texas 12, Atlanta 8, 1st game
Chicago Cubs 1, Pittsburgh 0
N.Y. Mets 6, Philadelphia 3, 6 innings
Washington 8, Miami 1
Atlanta 5, Texas 4, 2nd game
San Francisco 11, Colorado 3
PREP GIRLS SOCCER
Thursday
Riverside at La Grande, 4 p.m.
Umatilla at Portland Christian, 6:15 p.m.
Irrigon at Hermiston (JV), 4:30 p.m.
Sandy at Pendleton, 6 p.m.
Saturday
Banks vs. Mac-Hi (at The Dalles), 11 a.m.
Putnam at Hermiston, Noon
Portland Christian at Riverside, 1 p.m.
PREP CROSS COUNTRY
Saturday
Hermiston, Mac-Hi, Heppner, Helix,
Weston-McEwen, Umatilla, Stanfield at
Runner’s Soul XC Fest (Hermiston), 10
a.m.
COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
Thursday
Blue Mountain at George Fox University,
7 p.m.
Friday
Blue Mountain vs. Umpqua (at Clacka-
mas CC), 2:30 p.m.
Wild Card Standings
AMERICAN LEAGUE
W
New York
74
Minnesota
72
Los Angeles
72
Baltimore
71
Texas
70
Kansas City
69
Tampa Bay
70
Seattle
69
L
64
67
68
68
69
69
71
71
Pct GB
.536 +2½
.518 —
.514
½
.511
1
.504
2
.500 2½
.496
3
.493 3½
NATIONAL LEAGUE
W
Arizona
82
Colorado
74
St. Louis
72
Milwaukee
72
L
58
65
67
68
Pct GB
.586 +7½
.532 —
.518
2
.514 2½
MiLB
Northwest League Playoffs
Division Finals
Series best-of-3
Wednesday’s Games
Eugene 3, Hillsboro 2
Vancouver 2, Spokane 1
Thursday’s Games
Eugene at Hillsboro, 7:05 p.m.
Spokane at Vancouver, 7:05 p.m.
Basketball
WNBA
Playoff Glance
First Round
Wednesday
Washington 86, Dallas 76
Phoenix 79, Seattle 69
Second Round
Winner advances
Sunday
Phoenix at Connecticut, Noon (ESPN2)
Washington at New York, 2 p.m. (ESPN2)
Tennis
U.S. Open
Wednesday
At USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis
Center, New York
Arthur Ashe Stadium
Men’s Singles
Quarterfinal
Rafael Nadal (1), Spain, def. Andrey
Rublev, Russia, 6-1, 6-2, 6-2.
Juan Martin del Potro (24), Argentina,
def. Roger Federer (3), Switzerland, 7-5,
3-6, 7-6 (8), 6-4.
Women’s Singles
Quarterfinal
CoCo Vandeweghe (20), United States,
def. Karolina Pliskova (1), Czech Republic,
7-6 (4), 6-3.
Madison Keys (15), United States, def.
Kaia Kanepi, Estonia, 6-3, 6-3.
Football
NFL Week 1
Thursday’s Game
Kansas City Chiefs at New England, 5:30
p.m. (TV: NBC)
Soccer
MLS
Wednesday’s Game
New York City FC 1, Sporting K.C. 0
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