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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 20, 2018)
E AST O REGONIAN THURSDAY, DECEMBER 20, 2018 FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @EOSPORTS | FACEBOOK.COM/EOSPORTS B1 Hermiston’s Wilson signs to run track at EWU By ANNIE FOWLER East Oregonian The fi rst time Hermis- ton track coach Emilee Strot saw Madi Wilson run, she knew the girl had a future in the sport. Wednesday, Wilson proved her coach right, sign- ing a letter of intent to run track at Eastern Washington University. “She is a really special kid,” Strot said. “This is a big deal. High school ath- letes want to go D-I, and they have a high level of compe- tition and a great team.” For Wilson, she said Eastern was a great fi t for her when she went for her offi cial visit. “My fi rst instinct was, this is amazing,” she said. “I felt at home. I loved it.” Wilson said her scholar- ship will cover tuition and books. If she shows marked improvement over the years, the scholarship will increase. At EWU, Wilson will put her talents to use in the hep- tathlon. She did a couple this past summer, and knows she needs to improve in the shot put and javelin. Wilson, who runs the 100 and 300 hurdle events, and legs on the 4x100 and 4x400 relay teams, started running track in elementary school. “The high school kids put on a meet for kids 4 years old through fi fth grade,” she said. “I did that for as long as I can remember. The 400 was my baby. Running track was my sport.” She also got a boost from her parents. Her dad BJ played football and was a decathlete at Central Wash- ington University, while her mom, Crystal, played bas- ketball at Lower Columbia Community College, then continued at CWU, where she also competed in track. Strot got her fi rst look at Wilson when she was a freshman. With basketball season running long, Wilson only had a couple of prac- tices before she hit the track. “I didn’t know who she was, and she missed the fi rst couple of weeks of training,” Strot said. “We brought her to a meet and my jaw dropped. We put her in a JV race and she crushed it. I knew she would do great things.” And she has. She has gone to state every year since she was a freshman, picking up her fi rst medal in the 4x400 relay, where the Bulldogs placed eighth. She also went in the 100 hurdles, but did not place. As a sophomore, she was second at state in the 100 hurdles, sixth in the 300 hur- dles, and the 4x400 relay team fi nished second. Last year, she was second at state in the 100 hurdles in Staff photo by Annie Fowler See Signing, Page B2 Hermiston’s Madi Wilson signed a letter of intent Wednesday to run track at Eastern Washington University. Blazers down the Grizzlies By ANNE M. PETERSON Associated Press PORTLAND — Damian Lillard had 24 points, includ- ing 15 in the third quar- ter, and the Portland Trail Blazers handed the Mem- phis Grizzlies their fourth straight loss with a 99-92 victory on Wednesday night. Portland’s bench was key, outscoring the Grizzlies’ reserves 44-14 for the team’s third straight win. Meyers Leonard had 12 points and eight rebounds. Portland went on an 11-0 run to start the fourth quar- ter and stretched its lead to 85-71 on Zach Collins’ layup and Seth Curry’s 3-pointer. The Blazers led by as many as 16 points in the period. Memphis closed within 99-92 after Marc Gasol’s free throws with 45.5 sec- onds left, but couldn’t catch up. The Grizzlies were led by Mike Conley with 23 points. Memphis was coming off a 110-93 loss Monday at the Golden State Warriors, the fi rst of a four-game road swing. Grizzlies coach J.B. Bick- erstaff said before the game that center Joakim Noah would not play because of an Achilles injury. But Con- ley, who missed the game against the Warriors because of hamstring soreness, started. The Grizzlies got off to a fast start, going up 17-8 at the start and capitalizing By TIM BOOTH Associated Press RENTON, Wash. — Outside of middle linebacker Bobby Wagner, no one on the Seattle Seahawks defense has proven more valuable this season than safety Bradley McDougald. And just in time for a visit from the leading passer in the NFL, the Seahawks aren’t sure if McDou- gald will be able to play Sunday against Kansas City. NFL Seattle Kansas City Seahawks Chiefs (8-6) (11-3) Sunday, 5:20 p.m., at Cen- tury Link Field, Seattle TV: NBC See Blazers, Page B2 NBA Blazers Grizzlies 99 92 Seahawks uncertain about McDougald, O-line as Chiefs loom AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer Portland Trail Blazers guard CJ McCollum, front, dribbles past Memphis Grizzlies forward Kyle Anderson during the fi rst half of an NBA basketball game in Portland on Wednesday. McDougald’s knee injury is one of several that could change Seat- tle’s lineup for a Week 16 matchup where a victory and some help from others could clinch an NFC wild-card berth for the Seahawks. McDougald has been dealing with a patellar tendon injury that fl ared up during the fi rst half last week against San Francisco and forced him to become a spectator for the vast majority of the loss to the 49ers. Seattle coach Pete Car- roll said McDougald is away from the team for a few days getting additional treatment on his knee and is expected back by the end of the week. But when asked if he thought McDougald would be able to play against Patrick Mahomes and the NFL’s top passing offense, Car- roll could only say, “possibly.” If McDougald can’t play against See Injuries, Page B2 SPORTS SHORTS Little League star Mo’ne Davis to play softball at Hampton PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Mo’ne Davis, the fi rst female pitcher to win a Little League World Series game, will attend Hampton University and play softball. At 13, Davis delivered her 70-mph fastballs for Philadel- phia’s Taney Youth Baseball Association during the 2014 LLWS and became a national celebrity. She appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated and was named AP Female Athlete of the Year. Davis played softball, basketball and soccer at Springside Chestnut Hill Academy in Philadelphia. Hampton coach Angela Nicholson told the Daily Press of Newport News, Virginia, that Davis will play middle infi elder and major in journalism and communications. Her parents told the Philadelphia Tribune on Tuesday that she chose Hampton over fi ve other schools because of its com- munications program. In this Aug. 19, 2018, fi le photo, Philadelphia Phillies fan Mo’ne Davis, center, who threw a shutout against Tennessee while competing in the 2014 Little League World Series tournament, talks with members of this year’s team from Panama AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File