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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 1, 2018)
SPORTS SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2018 BEAVERS AND DUCKS BEGIN SEASON 2B 1B FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @EOSPORTS Adventure of a lifetime HERMISTON By ERIC SINGER East Oregonian slight lead after a touchdown and a successful one-point conversion. Echo’s lead didn’t last long, how- On August 5, 2014, I walked up to the brick building on Southeast Byers Avenue that houses the East Oregonian and entered through the front dou- ble glass doors, feeling nervous and excited to begin my first day of my first post-college job as a sports reporter. At the end of the night, I walked back Eric to my room at Singer the then-How- Comment ard John- son hotel and sat on the old, lumpy mattress while watching “SportsCenter” on ESPN on an old 32-inch tube television, wondering if I had made a mistake in uprooting my life to rural Oregon. I was more than 2,000 miles away from home with no family, no friends and no fiancée by my side. But now I know it was not a mistake. Over the past three years I covered some of the best prep athletes this state has to offer on a regular basis. I had the oppor- tunity to cover three state cham- pionship winners, from Hep- pner’s complete dominance during the 2015 football season, to Hermiston football’s historic win its OSAA Farewell Tour in 2017, to Pendleton continu- ing its softball dynasty this past spring. And I covered four more championship games with Stan- field’s football and boys basket- ball team coming up just short in 2016-17, and Pilot Rock soft- ball and baseball making its town proud this past spring. Sometimes I had to leave my comfort zone — and my com- fortable clothes — to cover and attend rodeos for the first time. And though I was not thrilled about dressing up like a cow- boy for a week of the Pendleton Round-Up or the Farm-City Pro Rodeo, I’ve actually come to enjoy rodeos — mainly because cowboys and cowgirls are some of the most interesting people you’ll ever meet, filled with some of the best stories you’ll ever hear. I even was lucky enough to have the opportunity to spend an hour with College Football Hall of Famer, Pro Football Hall of Famer and one of the greatest Dallas Cowboys to ever play, Bob Lilly, which turned into a story that became my favorite of my tenure. And outside of the job, mov- ing to Oregon allowed me see some of the most beautiful scen- ery this country has to offer. I’m still in awe of the Columbia River Gorge and Mount Hood every time I take trips to Port- land. Wallowa Lake and the town of Joseph quickly became a favorite of mine, especially in the summertime, when a dip in the cool lake is quite refresh- ing. I got an up-close look at the giant Mount Rainier, and a road trip in the summer of 2017 to Bend and Crater Lake taught me a lot about the volcanic his- tory of in the Northwest. All of those experiences are what made it so hard to decide See ECHO/3B See ADVENTURE/3B Staff photo by E.J. Harris Hermiston’s Daniel Faaeteete rushes the ball up field through a hole in the Pasco defense in the Dawgs’ 45-0 win against the Bulldogs . Welcome to the MCC Hermiston thumps Pasco 45-0 in its Mid- Columbia Conference debut at home PREP FOOTBALL By ANNIE FOWLER Special to the East Oregonian HERMISTON – The Hermis- ton Bulldogs wasted no time in announcing their presence in the Mid-Columbia Conference. Wyatt Noland ran for four touchdowns and 255 yards, and Cash Campbell had four quarter- back sacks as Hermiston pounced on Pasco 45-0 on Friday night at Kennison Field. “We wanted to come out with a bang coming off a state champion- ship,” Noland said. “We wanted to show we still had it.” While the scoreboard looked Staff photo by E.J. Harris Hermiston quarterback Andrew James eyes Pasco’s Nathan Aguirre (30) while rushing the ball up field on Friday in Hermiston. mighty pretty, Hermiston (1-0) coach David Faaeteete said there still is much work to do. “From a winning standpoint, it’s good to get a win and get off on the right foot in the WIAA,” he Hermiston Pasco 45 0 said. “We played in spurts, not like I wanted. But those are all things that can be fixed.” Hermiston has a week to sharpen its game. It plays at defending Class 4A state champion Richland next Friday. Noland, who took last sea- son off, showed no rust in the first half, scoring twice as Hermiston stormed out to a 21-0 lead at the half. One of his touchdowns was an 80-yard run right up the middle See BULLDOGS/3B Hornets sting Cougars in six-man football debut By BRETT KANE East Oregonian Friday night marked the first six-man football played in Oregon since 1948, and it made a heated return. Opening with a coin toss deliv- ered by Kaye McAtee, who played in Echo’s last six-man game in 1948, the reduced number of play- ers on the field resulted in a fast- paced match between the Echo Cougars and Harper Hornets. The Hornets emerged victorious with a final score of 38-13. Harper running back Corbin Palmer started the night off strong, rushing the ball 27 yards to the 14-yard line. Chris Williams com- pleted the run and put his team on the scoreboard first with 8:33 left on the clock. Echo quarterback Devan Craig PREP FOOTBALL Harper Echo 38 13 and running back Mason Smith shone bright on the field, making several strong attempts to score against Harper. Smith rushed for 21 yards, and Craig gained 30 yards in one play. He was also able to run the ball 37 yards, nearly scoring, but received a penalty for stepping out of bounds. Craig suffered a minor elbow injury in the second quarter, sitting out for several minutes to recu- perate. Meanwhile, Smith scored the Cougars’ first touchdown after Staff photo by Kathy Aney Devan Craig (2) carries the ball during Friday’s game against the Harper Hornets. rushing for 21 yards and scoring on the next play. Palmer scored the Hornets’ next touchdown, only for Craig to return to the field to give Echo a Sports shorts Serena wins easy over Venus in U.S. Open rout NEW YORK (AP) — Serena Williams kept booming big shots for winners, never allowing herself to feel sorry for the overmatched player on the other side. So what if it happened to be her big sister? The Williams sisters, long ago in careers that have spanned 20 years and 30 meetings as profes- sionals, learned they had to view each other only as opponents — and in Serena’s eyes, Venus is the best one she’s ever played. THIS DATE IN SPORTS LA Rams, Aaron Donald agree to record contract, $87 M guaranteed LOS ANGELES — All-Pro defen- sive tackle Aaron Donald agreed to a massive new contract with the Los Angeles Rams on Friday, ending his second consecutive preseason holdout as the highest-paid defensive player in NFL history. The Rams announced a new six- year deal through 2024 for Donald, the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year. ESPN and the NFL Network reported the new deal is worth $135 million over six years, with a $40 mil- lion signing bonus and $87 million guaranteed. Donald is already under contract this season for $6.89 million in the final year of his rookie deal. Donald was chosen for the Pro Bowl after each of his four NFL sea- sons. The 27-year-old Pitt product is the centerpiece of the Rams’ defense. 1977 — Renee Richards, the 43-year-old transsexual who fought for more than a year for the right to play in the women’s sin- gles of a major tennis champion- ship, is beaten in the first round by Virginia Wade, 6-1, 6-4. Tracy Austin, at the age of 14 years, eight months, 20 days, becomes the youngest player to play in the U.S. Open, defeating Heidi Eisterleh- ner, 3-6, 6-3, 6-1, in the first round. Austin’s mark is broken in 1979 by 14-year-old Kathy Horvath. Contact us at 541-966-0838 or sports@eastoregonian.com
