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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 22, 2017)
SPORTS FRIDAY, DECEMBER 22, 2017 1B FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @EOSPORTS PENDLETON College Athletics Oregon to contest NCAA allegations Violations reported in men’s and women’s basketball, track and fi eld teams By STEVE MIMS The Register-Guard Staff photo by E.J. Harris Pendleton’s Denisa Senkerikova (8) jockeys for position with Hermiston’s Hannah Thompson in the Bucks’ 3-0 loss to the Bulldogs on Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2017, in Pendleton. Pendleton’s shining star Exchange student from Czech Republic dazzled on the pitch, voted CRC Player of the Year and 5A fi rst team all-state By ERIC SINGER East Oregonian The 2017 season was another tough one for the Pendleton girls soccer team. The Buckaroos put together a 1-10-2 overall record, went 0-6 in the Columbia River Conference, and were outscored 53-15 as the school continues to develop and build up its program. However, there were a few bright spots to watch on the fi eld, one of those being a small, blonde forward wearing the No. 8 on her jersey — a girl by the name of Denisa Senker- ikova. A junior foreign exchange student from Czech Republic, Senkerikova dazzled her way around opponents this season, as she led the Buckaroos in goals and assists. “It was fun,” Senkerikova said in an interview, describing her season in the United States. “New girls, and new team and I just like playing soccer.” Senkerikova, 17, hails from the town of Uhersky Brod in the southeastern Czech Republic, with a population similar to Pendleton’s. She has an older sister, Dominika, who was also an exchange student at Ione Community Charter School in 2011, when she starred on the Cardinals’ volleyball team that went 23-0 to win the Class 1A state championship. Now Dominika plays volleyball at Division-II school Chadron State College in Chadron, Nebraska. Those experiences in the US shared to her by her sister only made Denisa want to study in the US as well. Senkerikova has played soccer since she was very young, following in the footsteps of her grandfather and her father, Pavel, who played before her and taught her the art of the game. In the Czech Republic, there are not See STAR/2B Denisa Sen- kerikova pos- es with her various all-Co- lumbia River Conference and Oregon Class 5A all- state awards recently in Pendleton. Senkerikova, 17, is a foreign exchange student from the Czech Republic. Photo courtesy of Charity Boyer EUGENE (AP) — The University of Oregon athletic department has admitted seven rules violations to the NCAA, but will contest the severity of the response from the governing body of college athletics. Oregon self-reported three violations in men’s basketball, two in women’s basketball and one apiece in track and fi eld and football. The NCAA Committee on Infractions labeled each of them as Level II violations, indicating “a signifi cant breach of conduct,” and Oregon offi cials say they will dispute each case with the exception of the recruiting violation in football. Oregon received a Notice of Allegations on Monday and has 90 days to respond to the committee. Athletic department offi cials are expected to meet with the infractions committee at a later date and any penalties will be announced following that meeting. “After careful review of the notice, the UO acknowledges that infractions occurred and takes responsibility for the actions of the involved staff members,” the school responded in a statement. “The university, however, disagrees with the level of infraction that NCAA enforcement staff has assigned to some of the charges as well as with the decision to level charges against two of our head coaches. In those instances, the facts do not support the enforcement staff’s position nor does NCAA case precedent, and we plan to defend the university, our faculty and our head coaches.” Oregon basketball coaches Kelly Graves and Dana Altman are both listed as responsible for the violations in their programs. See OREGON/2B NFL Zeke’s return a major test for struggling Seahawks By TIM BOOTH Associated Press RENTON, Wash. — Seattle’s Michael Bennett was clearly paying attention when news started circulating of the workouts Ezekiel Elliott was doing to stay in shape during his suspen- sion. “He defi nitely going to have fresh legs,” Bennett said on Thursday. “I’ve seen the pictures. He looks like he’s been working out every single day on the beach. I know he’s ready to go out there and run.” Healthy, motivated and still with playoff aspirations, Elliott will make his return on Sunday against the Seahawks, and the timing could not be worse for Week 16 Seattle Dallas Seahawks Cowboys (8-6) (8-6) • Sunday, 1:05 p.m. (TV: FOX) • at AT&T Stadium, Arlington, TX Seattle. They are battered by injuries on defense, fatigued from a long season that has seen their defensive line wear down and have no room for error needing wins in their fi nal two games to have any playoff hopes. Those factors don’t even take into account some fundamental problems that have plagued the Seahawks the past two weeks and allowed the Jaguars and Rams to run wild. “We made some misses in some reads and some things that could be a lot sharper, and it just leads to the easy yardage for them,” Seattle coach Pete Carroll said. “Good running backs take advantage of that.” While Leonard Fournette and Todd Gurley are outstanding running backs that took advantage of their opportu- nities against Seattle, a heathy, rested Elliott is not what the Seahawks wanted to see with their season on the line. The Seahawks problems fi rst surfaced in the second half against Jacksonville after Bobby Wagner and See SEAHAWKS/2B AP Photo/Stephen Brashear, File In this Aug. 25, 2016, fi le photo, Dallas Cowboys run- ning back Ezekiel Elliott (21) rushes against the Seat- tle Seahawks in a preseason game in Seattle. The Se- ahawks play against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday. The winning team is still in the NFC wild-card race. The loser isn’t. Sports shorts LeBron, Cavs win 12th straight at home No. 10 Oregon defeats No. 19 Texas A&M again, 84-62 CLEVELAND (AP) — LeBron James scored 34 points, Kevin Love added 27 and the Cleveland Cavaliers won their 12th straight home game, 115-112 over the Chicago Bulls on Thursday night as injured point guard Isaiah Thomas moved even closer to his return. James had 11 points in the fourth quarter and dropped a pair of free throws with 11.1 seconds left as the Cavs won for the 19th time in 21 games and ended James Chicago’s seven-game winning streak. With Cleveland’s Jae Crowder guarding him closely, Chicago’s Denzel Valentine was short with a tying 3-pointer in the fi nal second. Dwyane Wade had three steals and two blocks in the fourth quarter for Cleveland, which improved to 3-0 against the Bulls this season. LAS VEGAS (AP) — Maite Cazorla scored 26 points, Sabrina Ionescu added 25, and No. 10 Oregon beat No. 19 Texas A&M 84-62 on Thursday in the Duel in the Desert. It was the second time the teams played this season. The Ducks won at Texas A&M, 83-68, on Nov. 16 in the the Preseason Women’s NIT. Ruthy Hebard had 10 points and eight rebounds for the Ducks, who played their third straight SEC opponent after losing at No. 5 Mississippi State and beating Mississippi. Oregon (10-2) came into the tournament ranked third in the nation in offense, averaging 89.6 points. The Ducks, who ranked sixth in the NCAA in fi eld goal shooting at 51.5 percent, made 27 of 50 shots (54 percent), including 12 of 24 from 3-point range. Danni Williams led the Aggies with 22 points. “Jan. 9, 1989.” — Michael Beasley The Knicks’ forward said after he was asked when he knew he had the hot hand. Beasley started heating up in the third quarter, and he really poured it on the fourth to carry the New York Knicks past the Boston Celtics 102-93. Beasley fi nished with 32 points. THIS DATE IN SPORTS 1894 — The United States Golf Association is founded, becoming the governing body for the game in the country. 1996 — Brett Hull becomes the 24th player in NHL history to score 500 goals, with a hat trick in the St. Louis Blues’ 7-4 win over the Los Angeles Kings. 2003 — Brett Favre passes for 399 yards and four touchdowns a day after his father dies, moving into second place in NFL history for career TD passes while leading the Green Bay Packers to a 41-7 victory over the Oakland Raiders. Favre passes Fran Tarkenton on the NFL’s career list with his 343rd career TD throw. Contact us at 541-966-0838 or sports@eastoregonian.com