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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 8, 2017)
Page 2B SPORTS East Oregonian Friday, September 8, 2017 NFL Super letdown: Chiefs rout Patriots in NFL season opener By BARRY WILNER Associated Press AP Photo/Steven Senne Kansas City Chiefs running back Kareem Hunt (27) gives a stiff arm to New England Patriots safety Duron Harmon (30) during the first half of an NFL football game, Thursday in Foxborough, Mass. FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — There were big plays all over the field. The Chiefs, not the Patriots, were making them. Alex Smith threw two long touchdown passes and rookie Kareem Hunt, after fumbling on his first NFL carry, scored three times to help Kansas City stun New England 42-27 on Thursday night in the season opener. Coming off their sensa- tional Super Bowl rally to a fifth Lombardi Trophy, Kansas City New England 42 27 the Patriots faded badly in the second half. A raucous sold-out crowd of 65,878 celebrated the unveiling of yet another championship banner, and there was plenty of talk about Tom Brady leading them to a 19-0 record. After Week 1, though, they are winless. It was the first time the Patriots lost at Gillette Stadium when leading at halftime, a span of 82 games. They were no match for the Chiefs in the last two periods. Tyreek Hill scored on a 75-yarder and Hunt put the Chiefs in front with a 78-yarder to punctuate Kansas City’s charge after trailing 17-14 at halftime. Hunt also had a 58-yard scamper and finished with 141 yards rushing and 98 receiving. Hill had 133 yards through the air, and Smith went 28 for 35 for 368 yards and four touchdowns. Brady, the 13th quarter- back to start an NFL game at age 40, didn’t look too spry. He struggled mightily in the second half and didn’t throw for a touchdown, finishing 16 for 36 for 267 yards. Patriots newcomer Mike Gillislee scored on three short runs, becoming the first player since Terrell Owens of Philadelphia in 2004 to score three touchdowns in his debut with a new team. And Kansas City aided the Patriots’ cause with 15 penalties for 139 yards. Yet, in the end, the Chiefs looked like world-beaters. UP NEXT Chiefs: Host Philadelphia on Sept. 17. Patriots: Visit New Orleans on Sept. 17. BUCKAROOS: Start league play at Hood River next Continued from 1B the next level. “You have to over-exag- gerate things to come into a match like this and create your own fire and that’s what we saw tonight.” A big reason for the Buck- aroos’ dominance Thursday was the continued solid play by senior middle Maureen Davies, who tallied eight kills and four blocks, two aces and one assist. She recorded five kills and one block in the second set alone, where Pendleton really flexed its muscles against the Tigers (3-2). In that second set, Pend- leton worked out to an early 5-3 lead before its quick offense and solid defense frazzled the Tigers, ending the set on a 20-5 run. “We’ve been working really hard and mainly focusing on starting off our play strong,” Davies said of the performance. “The setters do an awesome job of getting the ball to the hitters and the hitters are doing what we do best.” Davies has established herself as a force in the middle for Pendleton this season, the latest step in her career evolution. Davies first saw the court for Pendleton as a sophomore with obvious potential but raw talent bundled up with her 6-foot-2 frame. And over the past three seasons she has slowly transformed herself into a vital part of the Buckaroos. “Over the last few years we’ve really see her grow into her own,” Lapp said. “She’s putting her work in, she’s determined, wants to play after high school and doing what she can to make sure she’s taking herself to the next level no matter what.” Davies has made a notice- able stride from her junior season to now, which she said she owes to simply more time on the court. “I played in the offseason on a traveling team during the winter and the spring,” she said, “and kept my skills going and I think that’s helped a lot. I think it’s been working out for us, too.” The senior played an important role for her team in the third set on Thursday, as La Grande had worked out of an early 5-0 hole to tie the game at 8-8. Davies was on the bench for the early part of the set, but rotated back on and helped steady the team. The teams traded points back-and-forth for a bit before Pendleton took a 12-11 lead on a kill by Jaiden Lemberger and they never looked back from there. It was really the only hiccup for the Buckaroos on a night where they didn’t show many flaws. “We saw that in practice yesterday bleeding through a bit,” Lapp said. “When we got the timeout there, I said ‘You know, we have to win in LACY: Contemplating a “Lambeau Leap” if he scores Continued from 1B start to the season before the ankle injury. Lacy rushed for 360 yards in five games and had a career-best 5.1 yards per attempt. The Seahawks added weight clauses to his contract, which he’s apparently cleared at every check point. Lacy gained 51 yards on 14 carries in limited action during the preseason. “He’s ready. He’s had a great run with us getting to this point. He’s done everything we have asked of him, for weeks and weeks now,” head coach Pete Carroll said. “We’ve seen him for years. We know what kind of player he is, so he’s had enough glimpses of the look in preseason that you can see him get to rumbling with the football. We’re fired up about him playing and he’s ready for a full load.” Lacy said he’s spent the last few days contemplating whether he would attempt a “Lambeau Leap” if he managed to find the end zone against his former team. “Part of me wants to but I don’t want to get pushed down,” Lacy said. “I don’t know how the crowd will react to that. Maybe I can find a small patch of Seahawks fans and do it there, but I’ve thought about it.” Ultimately, he’s looking forward to getting on the field again and facing his former teammates. “It’s just a real historic place and the fans take pride in making it as loud and as uncomfortable as they can,” Lacy said. “For me, it’s going to be the first time being on the opposite side of that. I’ll get to see how it is from the other side.” three, not in two and we have to continue working hard.’ We looked like we were getting tired, getting slow but we had to push through it and make sure we are taking that next step, and we did.” Behind Davies on offense, Lemberger and Elisabeth House each tallied two kills apiece while Elli Nirschl, Kalan McGlothan and Rylee Gentner each had one. McGlothan also tied Davies for the team lead in blocks with four. Also, Lauren Richards had a team-high 12 assists and Kirah McGlothan led with four digs. UP NEXT Pendleton will open up league play on Tuesday, hitting the road to play the defending CRC champion Hood River at 6:30 p.m. ———— Contact Eric at esinger@ eastoregonian.com or 541-966-0839. Follow him on Twitter @ByEricSinger. Staff photo by Kathy Aney Ellen Nirsch (3), of Pendleton, plays the net Thursday during a non-league game against La Grande. PREPS: TigerScots drop road match Continued from 1B Sept. 14 at Umatilla at 6 p.m. HELIX 3, RIVERSIDE 0 — At Helix, the Grizzlies made quick work of the of the Riverside Pirates by winning 25-8, 25-6 and 25-7 on Thursday night. Charmayne Bennett was the standout performer for Helix, going a perfect 30-30 from the serving line with six aces. Helix will next play on Saturday morning in its tournament. DAYTON (WA) 3, WESTON- MCEWEN 2 — At Dayton, Washington, the Weston-McEwen TigerScots dropped a tough match on the road Thursday night, losing to Dayton 25-19, 27-29, 15-25, 25-14, 4-15. “We love to play Dayton, they’re a great team and always a great match,” Weston-McEwen coach Shawn White said. “It was good for us to have, we got pushed hard and did some good things, we just need to do some good things more often. “It was just a good, hard-fought match.” Alyssa Finifrock led Weston- McEwen (7-3) with 12 kills, Hailey Weaver had 11 and Maddi Muilen- burg had seven. Also having strong games were Bryce Thul (25 assists, 9 aces), Chelsea Quaempts (14 digs, 4 aces), Tyree Burke (3 kills, 4 blocks), and Finifrock also added five blocks and four aces. Weston-McEwen next plays in the Les Schawb Invitational in Reedsport on Saturday, matching up with North Douglas first at 10 a.m. MAC-HI SPLITS MATCHES — At Milton-Freewater, the Mac-Hi Pioneers defeated Elgin 3-1 and lost to Waitsburg (WA) 3-0 in a tri-match on Thursday night. Against Elgin, Mac-Hi (1-4) dropped the first set 25-22 before rallying to win the final three 25-20, 25-22 and 25-22. Britany Wells had a solid game with eight digs, six aces and five kills, while Anney Banek had 17 assists, five aces and three kills. “I was so proud of how hard they fought for the win,” Mac-Hi coach Amanda Nelson said. “Each (set) they left it all on the court.” Then against Waitsburg, Mac-Hi fell 25-14, 25-23, and 25-10. Jadie Jackson led the Pioneers with three kills, two aces and one block, and Elizabeth Johnson had two aces and two kills. Mac-Hi next plays in the Helix Tournament on Saturday. ———— Coaches can report game scores and statistics by calling 1-800-522-0255 or emailing sports@eastoregonian.com. BEAVERS: Freshman safety Morris impressed against Vikings with six tackles Continued from 1B “The D-line’s been squared away. They’re hitting their gaps and coming off the ball,” Clune said. “The ‘backers have been squared away, they’ve been hitting their areas and doing what they’re supposed to do. The DBs are on the right page communicating. “In here it’s one thing and on Saturday it’s another thing. They’ve got to do it on game day.” Clune said he wasn’t sure why it has taken the defense until the third game of the season to get squared away. “Kids are kids and we’re doing everything we can as coaches to get them right and as coaches we’re trying to get right, we’re trying to do everything we can,” Clune said. “And they’ll get it, coaches have just got to get them right.” YOUTH MOVE- MENT: A few freshmen saw action against Portland State and performed well for the Beavers. Safety David Morris had six total tackles, one for a 10-yard loss. Outside linebacker Kee Whetzel had four tackles and linebacker Kesi Ah-Hoy had six tackles with one for loss. “Tremendous athletes and the mental side of the game is coming around for them finally,” Clune said. “I think they’re finally seeing it and the game’s slowing down a bit. “David showed some good things and there are things he can fix. Kesi showed some good things and there was a couple things that maybe you guys don’t see on film, but he can get fixed. Kee’s doing a great job. He’s doing a great job special teams-wise and he’s ready to prove it on Saturday.” WILLIS WORKING INSIDE: Linebacker Jona- than Willis has been getting reps on the inside. Willis began the season as an outside linebacker after playing inside last season. “Every Sunday we’re trying to find the best 11 and then the best 11 against the squad that we’re going to face,” Clune said. “He’s had a great first two games and so his role is going to expand.” HUNGALU’S IMPACT: Inside linebacker Manase Hungalu may be playing but is not 100 percent healthy and was held to fewer snaps against Portland State. Nevertheless, Hungalu led OSU with nine tackles, with two for loss, and an interception return for a touchdown. “Manase only played 43 plays but he was in on about 11 tackles, and that was a tremendous production rate for just 43 plays,” Clune said. “Maybe he didn’t play 60 reps like normal but he was (more productive) than in the first two games.” SCOREBOARD Local slate PREP FOOTBALL 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. PREP VOLLEYBALL 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. 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. 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 Clackamas CC), 2:30 p.m. COLLEGE MEN’S SOCCER Friday Blue Mountain vs. North Idaho, 4:15 p.m. Saturday Blue Mountain vs. Spokane, 2:15 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 Eastern Oregon at Pacific Lutheran (Taco- ma, Wash.), 2 p.m. COLLEGE FOOTBALL Saturday Eastern Oregon vs. Montana-Western, 1 p.m. Baseball MLB AMERICAN LEAGUE East Division W L Pct GB Boston 79 61 .564 — New York 75 64 .540 3½ Baltimore 71 69 .507 8 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 ——— Thursday’s Games N.Y. Yankees 9, Baltimore 1 Cleveland 11, Chicago White Sox 2 Minnesota 4, Kansas City 2 Friday’s Games Detroit (Farmer 3-2) at Toronto (Stroman 11-6), 7:07 p.m. Baltimore (Miley 8-11) at Cleveland (Clevinger 8-5), 7:10 p.m. Tampa Bay (Archer 9-8) at Boston (Pomer- anz 14-5), 7:10 p.m. N.Y. Yankees (Tanaka 11-10) at Texas (Perez 11-10), 8:05 p.m. San Francisco (Moore 4-13) at Chicago White Sox (Giolito 2-1), 8:10 p.m. Minnesota (Santana 14-7) at Kansas City (Kennedy 4-10), 8:15 p.m. Houston (McHugh 2-2) at Oakland (Cotton 7-10), 10:05 p.m. L.A. Angels (Nolasco 6-12) at Seattle (Leake 8-12), 10:10 p.m. NATIONAL LEAGUE East Division W L Pct Washington 85 54 .612 Miami 67 73 .482 Atlanta 62 77 .446 New York 60 79 .432 Philadelphia 53 86 .381 Central Division W L Pct Chicago 76 63 .547 St. Louis 72 67 .518 Milwaukee 72 68 .514 Pittsburgh 67 73 .479 Cincinnati 61 79 .436 West Division W L Pct Los Angeles 92 48 .657 Arizona 82 58 .586 Colorado 75 65 .536 San Diego 62 78 .443 San Francisco 55 87 .387 ——— Thursday’s Games Chicago Cubs 8, Pittsburgh 2 GB — 19 23½ 25 32 Washington 4, Philadelphia 3 N.Y. Mets 7, Cincinnati 2 Atlanta 6, Miami 5 San Diego 3, St. Louis 0 Colorado 9, L.A. Dodgers 1 Friday’s Games Philadelphia (Thompson 1-1) at Washing- ton (Scherzer 13-5), 7:05 p.m. Cincinnati (TBD) at N.Y. Mets (Lugo 5-4), 7:10 p.m. Miami (Urena 12-6) at Atlanta (Foltyne- wicz 10-11), 7:35 p.m. Milwaukee (Nelson 11-6) at Chicago Cubs (Lackey 11-10), 8:05 p.m. San Francisco (Moore 4-13) at Chicago White Sox (Giolito 2-1), 8:10 p.m. Pittsburgh (Williams 6-7) at St. Louis (Weaver 4-1), 8:15 p.m. San Diego (Chacin 12-10) at Arizona (Corbin 13-11), 9:40 p.m. Colorado (Marquez 10-6) at L.A. Dodgers (Darvish 8-11), 10:10 p.m. GB — 4 4½ 9½ 15½ Wild Card Standings AMERICAN LEAGUE W New York 75 Minnesota 73 Los Angeles 72 Baltimore 71 Texas 70 Tampa Bay 70 Kansas City 69 Seattle 69 L 64 67 68 69 69 71 70 71 Pct GB .540 +2½ .521 — .514 1 .507 2 .504 2½ .496 3½ .496 3½ .493 4 GB — 10½ 17 30½ 38½ NATIONAL LEAGUE W Arizona 82 Colorado 74 Milwaukee 72 St. Louis 72 L 58 65 68 68 Pct GB .586 +7½ .532 — .514 2½ .514 2½ MiLB Northwest League Playoffs Division Finals Series best-of-3 Thursday’s Games Eugene 10, Hillsboro 4 Vancouver 2, Spokane 1 Friday’s Games Spokane at Vancouver, 7:05 p.m. Eugene at Hillsboro, 7:05 p.m. Basketball WNBA Playoff Glance 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 Women’s Singles Semifinal Sloane Stephens, United States, def. Venus Williams (9), United States, 6-1, 0-6, 7-5. Madison Keys (15), United States def. CoCo Vandeweghe (20), United States 1-6, 7-6 (5), 7-5 Football NFL Week 1 Thursday’s Game Kansas City 42, New England 27
