SPORTS
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 21, 2018
1B
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PENDLETON
Prep Roundup
‘A good day for softball’ Thieme
Pend-
leton’s
Kila Sol-
oman
gives
Coach
Tim
Cary a
fistbump
at third
base
after
hitting
a solo
home
run
during
the
fourth
inning of
Tues-
day’s
game
against
La
Grande.
Staff photo by
Kathy Aney
homers,
leads
Rockets
to win
Thieme’s grand
slam highlights
16-run inning
East Oregonian
PILOT ROCK — Levi Thieme
had a standout game on Tuesday
as he recorded three hits, a grand
slam home run and six total
RBI to lead
Baseball the Rockets
to a 20-9
victory over
the
visiting
Heppner
H e p p n e r
Mustangs.
Both teams
were
held
scoreless in the
first inning, but
Pilot Rock
then Heppner
struck
first
with
seven
runs in the top
of the second, highlighted by a
three-run home run off the bat of
Beau Wolters.
The
Mustangs’ pitching
was no match for the Rockets’
offense in the second though, as
Pilot Rock (3-0) answered with
a whopping 16-run inning — 14
of which came with two outs. In
the frame, 20 batters came to the
plate, with the Rockets working
six walks and earning nine hits.
Levi Thieme headlined the inning
with his grand slam late in the
inning to make it a 15-7 game.
Chris Weinke also homered in
the game for the Rockets, hitting
a two-run shot to center in the
bottom of the fifth to make it a
20-9 game, enabling the 10-run
rule to end the game.
In all, five Rockets had
multi-hit games and Thieme and
Ty Dick led the way with three
apiece. Dick also added five RBI
and Chris Weinke had four.
Payton Lehman led the
See PREP ROUNDUP/3B
9
20
Pendleton cranks three home runs, scores 12 in home-opening win
By ERIC SINGER
East Oregonian
Pendleton
softball
players
slap the
batting
helmet
of Aspen
Garton
at home
plate after
she hit a
home run
early in
Tuesday’s
game
against La
Grande.
Softball
PENDLETON
—
After
starting the season with two
games on the road, the Pendleton
softball team was happy to finally
play in front of its home crowd
on its home Steve Cary Field on
Tuesday against La Grande. It
was a perfect day for the Buck-
aroos’ home opener, too, as the
clouds gave way to show a bright
sunshine and a rich, blue sky.
And as good as the Buckaroos
felt being home, they played just
as good, too. Pendleton cranked
out six extra-base hits, 11 hits
total and 12 runs as it thumped
La Grande 12-2 in a non-league
contest.
“Home opener is a great day,”
said Pendleton second baseman
Staff photo by
Kathy Aney
La Grande
Pendleton
2
12
Aspen Garton. “It’s warm outside,
the first day of spring, just a good
day for softball.”
Garton finished the day as the
Buckaroos’ top hitter, going 2 for
3 with a pair of home runs and
three RBI. Her first was of the
two-run variety, a sky-high blast
over the right-center field fence
in the first inning and the second
was a solo blast that she sent over
the left field fence in the second
inning. “I guess it was my turn
today,” Garton joked.
See PENDLETON/2B
Pro Basketball
Rockets snap Trail Blazers’ win streak
By ANNE M. PETERSON
Associated Press
PORTLAND — James Harden
scored 42 points and the Houston
Rockets snapped the Portland Trail
Blazers’ 13-game winning streak
with a 115-111 victory on Tuesday
night.
Portland’s winning streak was
tied for the second-longest in fran-
chise history. The team also won 13
consecutive games in 2007.
Chris Paul added 22 points for
the Rockets, who have won six
straight and 23 of their last 24 and
have the best record in the NBA.
Al-Farouq Aminu had 22 points,
NBA
Houston
Portland
115
111
including six 3-pointers, for Port-
land. The Blazers had also won nine
straight at the Moda Center.
Harden and Trevor Ariza each
hit 3-pointers to stretch Houston’s
lead to 110-102. Harden added
another 3-pointer with 1:55 left and
it seemed Portland was out of it.
But the Blazers rallied with a
9-0 run, capped by CJ McCollum’s
floater with 28 seconds left to pull
within 113-111.
Paul went to the line with 1.3
seconds left and made both shots.
After a timeout, Lillard tried a
3-pointer but it missed.
Jusuf Nurkic finished with 21
points and 11 rebounds for Portland,
while Lillard had 20 points. Neither
Lillard nor backcourt mate McCo-
llum hit a 3-pointer in the game.
Aminu had four 3-pointers in the
opening quarter and finished with
16 points to lead all scorers. Harden
had 14 for the Rockets, who trailed
31-27 going into the second.
See BLAZERS/2B
AP Photo/Steve Dykes
Houston Rockets guard James Harden drives to the basket on
Portland Trail Blazers center Jusuf Nurkic during Tuesday’s game
in Portland. Harden scored a game-high 42 points in the win.
Sports shorts
Dodgers’ Turner to avoid wrist
surgery, still out indefinitely
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Los Angeles
third baseman Justin Turner’s broken left wrist
is expected to heal without surgery, according to
Los Angeles manager Dave Roberts.
Turner was hurt Monday when
hit by a pitch from Oakland’s
Kendall Graveman.
Turner arrived at the Dodgers
spring training facility with a cast
over his wrist Tuesday morning
and was scheduled to see a hand
specialist for an estimate of the
Turner
time he could miss.
Turner hit .322 with 21 homers and 71 RBIs
last year and was a first-time All-Star. He had
14 RBIs in the postseason.
The Dodgers appear poised to move Logan
Forsythe from second base to third in Turner’s
absence and have Enrique Hernandez and
Chase Utley share time at second.
“There are some people
that are cut from a
different cloth and built
from different things and
I think I’m one of those
people. I look forward
to showing people that
you can come back
better from things. ... I
look forward to coming
back better than ever.
— Richard Sherman
The newest San Francisco 49er
said in his introductory press
conference Tuesday. Sherman
was released from the Seattle
Seahawks on Mar. 10.
NCAA women’s tournament
attendance highest since 2008
NEW YORK (AP) — Attendance for
the first two rounds of the women’s NCAA
Tournament is the highest in a decade, with an
average of 5,067 fans taking in
the first 48 games.
Defending champion South
Carolina led the way with
11,085 fans in the Gamecocks’
opening-round win. SEC rival
Mississippi State followed with
10,211 in the opener on its home court.
NCAA basketball officials are hoping
for more strong numbers at the regionals
this weekend in Albany, New York; Kansas
City, Missouri; Spokane, Washington; and
Lexington, Kentucky. Albany has already sold
nearly 7,600 tickets.
Last season’s regionals were at a 20-year
low for attendance.
The Final Four is in Columbus, Ohio.
THIS DATE IN SPORTS
1893 — The first women’s
collegiate basketball game is
played at Smith College in
Northampton, Massachusetts.
In this game, each basket is
worth 1 point and the freshman
class beats the sophomore
class 5-4. The game takes place
behind locked doors and men
are prohibited from watching.
2008 — For the first time,
four NCAA men’s basketball
tournament
first-round
games at the same site on the
same day are being classified
as upsets. Two No. 12 seeds
Western Kentucky and Villa-
nova, and No. 13s San Diego
and Siena win first-round
games in Tampa, Fla.
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