Page 2B
SPORTS
East Oregonian
Thursday, October 5, 2017
The Arizona
Diamond-
backs cele-
brate after
the Nation-
al League
wild-card
playoff
baseball
game
against the
Colorado
Rockies,
Wednesday,
in Phoenix.
BUCKS: Team riding momentum of
two consecutive blowout victories
Continued from 1B
15. The 6-foot, 175-pound back
and his Cougars are the latest
run-heavy offensive team for the
Buckaroos to face, but unlike
Redmond and Ridgeview, there
is not trickery involved.
“Watching
fi lm,
their
offense isn’t tricky, they’re
just going to line up and run
it right at you,” Davis said.
“Our front seven is going to
be the determining factor.
We’re going to have to bow
our necks and see if we can
force a couple of punts early
because with an offense like
theirs, the clock eats up pretty
fast. So we better be get some
stops and be really effi cient on
the offensive side of the ball.”
Pendleton will take the
fi eld Friday night with some
momentum as well off of
two straight wins with an
offense that has really found
its groove. Senior quarter-
back Nick Bower has been
outstanding and effi cient ever
since his four-interception
game in the Week 1 loss to
La Grande, completing 64
percent of his passes for 865
yards and 12 touchdowns to
just three picks over the last
four weeks. The ground game
has been a big help for Bower,
taking pressure off of him and
opening up the fi eld for some
big-time throws. Pendleton ran
for a season-high 280 yards
last week against Redmond
and has piled up 422 in the last
two weeks.
A big reason for the success
has been the improvement of
the offensive line, which has
impressed Davis and the rest
of the coaches.
“The o-line has improved
dramatically from Week 1,
Week 2,” he said, “and it tells
me that the kids are putting
in the work and the buy-in
process is there. One thing
I’ve noticed about this group,
this team is they continue to
get better each week and we
haven’t had any letdowns.”
The Buckaroos will need
to fi nd a consistent balance
on offense Friday if they want
to have a chance against a
Cougars defense that likes to
run a Cover-0, stack the box
and bring lots of pressure.
Against
Hermiston,
the
Cougars held the Bulldogs to
187 total yards in the game
— 155 on the ground and 32
through the air.
“I like our matchups this
week,” Davis said. “We’re
going to have to get the ball
into our playmakers’ hands
pretty quickly. We have to
have a run game or we won’t
be able to throw because
they’ll be bringing six or seven
guys at the QB all game long.
It’s very, very important for us
to stay balanced and important
for me to be consistent in
calling the run game as well.”
Kick off is set for 7 p.m.
at the Pendleton Round-Up
arena.
————
Contact Eric at esinger@
eastoregonian.com
or
541-966-0839. Follow him on
Twitter @ByEricSinger.
DAWGS: James aims to keep up clutch play
Continued from B1
weapon the Bulldogs have not
seen before: senior running back
Conner Benz.
Ridgeview’s sixth year head
coach Andy Codding noted
before the season even started
that he is the best pure running
back since the championship
team. However, his efforts have
done little as the Ravens are
reeling from their 11th consec-
utive loss a week ago.
Benz does pose a threat to
Hermiston’s line, as the Bull-
dogs gave up 186 yards on 46
total carries against Hood River
Valley last week.
In fact, they have only held
two teams to under 100 rushing
yards this season, Lewiston (89)
and Summit (64). Even though
Hermiston came out victorious
in both of those match ups, it
will need to play disciplined
football on both sides of the ball
to keep its postseason hopes
alive.
Offensively, the Bulldogs
have tightened up over the past
few weeks and junior quarter-
back Andrew James has had
impressive outings both home
and away.
He led the team to a 34-14
victory over Summit on Sept.
22 after completing 17-of-20
passes for 256 yards and three
touchdowns. Last week, his
numbers weren’t as high but
they were just as accurate. He
fi nished 10-of-11 for 200 yards
and two scores. James hasn’t
thrown an interception since the
four he recorded in Hermiston’s
season opener, and has been just
as effective on the ground as
well.
In the Bulldogs’ Sept. 15
game against the Mountain
View Cougars, James passed
the 1,000-yard career rushing
mark and earned his 10th career
rushing touchdown.
“Going through a game
and not throwing any picks
and making completions and
moving the ball down the fi eld
that’s huge for anyone’s confi -
dence,” James said. “It’s great
to know that we can do those
things, and we can move the
ball down the fi eld, and we can
put over 30-points up.”
James will have one of
his favorite targets Friday in
senior Dayshawn Neal, who
has eclipsed 500 yards on
the season and racked up six
touchdowns on 36 receptions.
And not only will James have
his own feet to rely on but
those of senior running backs
Jonathan Hinkle and Peter Earl.
The duo combined for a total of
435 yards and fi ve scores. The
offensive effort from Hermiston
has led to some big time plays,
and big time wins.
In the Bulldogs’ two league
wins, they put up a combined 34
points, and held their opponents
to only four touchdowns. The
plan will remain the same this
week, as Hermiston looks to
distance itself from the compe-
tition.
“We’re just trying to keep
our pace like we’ve been doing
the past few weeks,” James
said. “Our offense has been
rolling the past couple of weeks
and we’re just trying to keep
that up-paced tempo and keep
the ball moving up and down
the fi eld.”
A high score in favor of
Hermiston is a reasonable
assumption to make, as
Ridgeview has given up 40 or
more points in four out of fi ve
games this season, and seven
times last year.
Kick off will be at 7 p.m. at
Ridgeview High School.
———
Contact Alexis at aman-
sanarez@eastoregonian.com or
541-564-4542. Follow her on
Twitter @almansanarez.
AP Photo/Ross D.
Franklin
DBACKS: Goldschmidt’s home
run snapped a 0-for-17 slump
Continued from 1B
“That’s one of the best games I’ve
ever been a part of, if not the best,”
Goldschmidt said.
Arizona moved on to a best-of-
fi ve Division Series against the NL
West champion Dodgers, a team the
Diamondbacks beat the last six times
they played. Game 1 is Friday night in
Los Angeles.
“It’s what we’ve done the whole
year: We respond,” Bradley said. “This
group is special and I’m just happy to
be moving on.”
Arizona became the fi rst team with
four triples in a postseason game since
the Boston Americans (now Red Sox)
twice hit fi ve during the fi rst World
Series back in 1903 against Pittsburgh.
It was that kind of crazy night in the
desert as the two NL West foes slugged
it out. Daniel Descalso also homered
for the Diamondbacks, and Ketel Marte
tripled twice.
“We know how tough these guys are.
We play ‘em all the time,” Goldschmidt
said. “Every time we scored, we just
said, ‘We’ve got to get more, we’ve got
to get more.’”
Bradley, a spirited setup man who
was recruited to play quarterback at
Oklahoma, went 1 for 4 at the plate this
season to raise his career batting average
to .098. With two outs in the seventh, he
drove a 3-1 pitch from Pat Neshek to
deep left-center to give Arizona an 8-5
cushion. It was his fi rst extra-base in the
majors and the fi rst triple by a reliever
in postseason history.
Already a fan favorite for his bushy
beard and high-energy work in the late
innings, Bradley regrouped from the
two solo homers he gave up to get the
fi nal two outs of the eighth with the
Diamondbacks clinging to a one-run
lead.
Fernando Rodney allowed a run
in the ninth before closing it out as
Arizona won in its fi rst playoff game
since 2011.
Jake Lamb tied a Diamondbacks
postseason record with four hits, all
singles, and scored three times.
Jonathan Lucroy doubled twice,
scored two runs and drove in one for the
Rockies in their fi rst playoff appearance
since 2009.
Marte, who came to Arizona with
pitcher Taijuan Walker from Seattle
for Jean Segura in an offseason deal,
became the fi rst player to triple twice
in a postseason game since Mariano
Duncan did it for Philadelphia against
Atlanta in the 1993 NL Championship
Series.
Goldschmidt, in an 0-for-17 slump
to end the regular season, hit the fi rst
pitch he saw from ineffective starter
Jon Gray into the left-fi eld seats for a
three-run shot.
Greinke blanked the Rockies on
one hit through three innings but never
made it through the fourth.
Colorado, known for its power at the
plate, got back into it with small ball —
fi ve hits, four of them singles. Lucroy’s
two-out RBI double followed by pinch-
hitter Alexi Amarista’s run-scoring
single made it 6-4, and Greinke was
fi nished. He allowed four runs and six
hits in 4 2/3 innings.
Left-hander Robbie Ray, a 15-game
winner during the regular season, came
on for his fi rst relief appearance in three
years and threw two shutout innings
before giving up a leadoff double to
Lucroy just below the home run line
in straightaway center in the seventh.
Lucroy went to third on a wild pitch
before Ray fanned Ian Desmond.
Arizona manager Torey Lovullo
replaced Ray with another lefty,
ex-Rockies pitcher Jorge De La Rosa,
to face NL batting champion Charlie
Blackmon, who put down a bunt that
brought Lucroy home and cut the lead
6-5.
The 25-year-old Gray was 4-0 with a
2.11 ERA in his previous fi ve starts, but
the Diamondbacks were up 3-0 on him
before a good share of the 48,803 in the
stands settled into their seats. He lasted
just 1 1/3 innings.
PIGSKIN
PICKERS
Week 5
Overall:
Last Week:
Hermiston at Ridgeview
Mt. View at Pendleton
WMHS at Stanfi eld
Riverside at Umatilla
Miami at FSU
WSU at Oregon
Boise State at BYU
Seahawks at Rams
Chiefs at Texans
Vikings at Bears
Ron
Gibbs
Eric
Singer
Zachary
Orem
Mike
Appleton
Jodi
Bloomberg
Clint
Shoemake
John
Airoldi
Weston
Putman
Brandon
Case
Alexis
Mansanarez
34-6
9-1
Hermiston
Mt. View
WMHS
Umatilla
Miami
WSU
Boise State
Rams
Chiefs
Vikings
33-7
10-0
Hermiston
Mt. View
Stanfi eld
Umatilla
Miami
WSU
Boise State
Rams
Chiefs
Vikings
32-8
10-0
Hermiston
Mt. View
WMHS
Umatilla
Miami
WSU
Boise State
Rams
Texans
Vikings
30-10
7-3
Hermiston
Mt. View
WMHS
Umatilla
Miami
WSU
Boise State
Rams
Texans
Vikings
30-10
8-2
Hermiston
Mt. View
WMHS
Umatilla
Miami
WSU
Boise State
Rams
Chiefs
Bears
30-10
8-2
Hermiston
Mt. View
Stanfi eld
Umatilla
Miami
WSU
Boise State
Rams
Chiefs
Vikings
30-10
9-1
Hermiston
Mt. View
Stanfi eld
Umatilla
Miami
WSU
Boise State
Rams
Chiefs
Bears
28-12
7-3
Hermiston
Pendleton
WMHS
Riverside
Florida State
WSU
Boise State
Seahawks
Chiefs
Vikings
25-15
8-2
Ridgeview
Pendleton
Stanfi eld
Umatilla
Miami
Oregon
Boise State
Seahawks
Chiefs
Vikings
23-17
7-3
Hermiston
Mt. View
Stanfi eld
Riverside
Florida State
WSU
BYU
Seahawks
Chiefs
Vikings
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