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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (July 23, 2019)
E AST O REGONIAN Tuesday, July 23, 2019 FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @EOSPORTS | FACEBOOK.COM/EOSPORTS Pendleton’s Sorey third in tie-down at NHSFR His hot run in the finals moved him from eighth to third By ANNIE FOWLER East Oregonian ROCK sPRINGs, Wyo. — Trent sorey hasn’t had much time to enjoy his recent performance at the National High school Finals Rodeo. He arrived home late sun- day night and was out in the field for wheat harvest early Monday morning. “It’s all part of it,” sorey said. “It’s what I grew up doing — rodeoing and farming.” The recent Pendleton High School grad finished third over- all saturday in the tie-down rop- ing event with a time of 27.76 sec- onds on three runs. There were 135 competitors in the event. “you can always do better,” he said. “Third is third, not first. It makes you want to do better. I’m blessed to be able to do what I do, and what I did.” A four-time qualifier for nationals, this was the first time Sorey made the finals. “I knew if I was anywhere in the top 10, that I would have a chance,” he said. sorey, 19, was eighth going into the short go (finals) Saturday. The top 20 competitors in each event advance to the finals. sorey roped his calf in 8.45 seconds in the finals to finish fifth in the round, but his time moved him up the leaderboard to third. By BRETT KANE East Oregonian Staff photo by Kathy Aney Isaac Corey, of Hermiston, goes up for a shot during Saturday’s Takin’ it to the Streets 3-on-3 basketball tournament in Hermiston. Pendleton. “I love it,” Grogan said of Takin’ it to the streets. “It’s less structured. you’re free to do what you want, and you get to play basketball with your best friends.” Grogan’s team was born out of a former rivalry. He met Ramirez in a previous Takin’ it to the streets tournament years ago, where they played on opposing teams. This year was their first on the same side. “That’s how we got to know each other,” Grogan said. “This is a great group of guys.” a premier player on the Tim- berwolves’ roster, Grogan, a Stanfield native, played his first game in the tournament when he was in third grade. He’s been coming back ever since. Fans, family, and friends filled the bleachers to watch Purosho compete. 9-10-11 LITTLE LEAGUE Hermiston Little League ousted from state tourney By ANNIE FOWLER East Oregonian See Rodeo, Page A9 HERMISTON TAKES TO THE STREETS HeRMIsTON — For the 14th year in a row, Hermiston proved that basketball brings people together. Over the course of satur- day and sunday, more than 145 teams from around the region flocked to downtown Hermis- ton to participate in the annual Takin’ it to the streets 3-on-3 tournament. Teams, comprised of athletes anywhere from the fifth grade and upward, braved the sizzling summer heat to showcase their passion for the sport. “Our community has always been supportive of us,” orga- nizer Juan Rodriguez said. “you can see all of our local sponsors on the backboards. We couldn’t have done this without them.” alongside the various teams were groups of volunteers — many of whom were members of Hermiston High school’s boys and girls varsity basket- ball programs. Money raised from the weekend-long contest helped support their upcoming seasons. “They’re also doing it because they want to promote basketball,” Rodriguez added. although players from Wash- ington, Idaho, and central Ore- gon took to Main Street to flaunt their basketball skills, several local teams made appearances to represent their hometowns. among those teams was Purosho, led by Blue Moun- tain Community College’s own dylan Grogan, who, with the help of teammates deon davis, Jerry Ramirez and Quinton Raynor, opened saturday morn- ing with a 20-14 victory against drive Home safe on the center court’s red les schwab mat. Grogan, 20, noted the dif- ference between summer bas- ketball and the hours he’s put in on the Timberwolves’ court in A8 After his team’s first win, Purosho still had two more games left to play on satur- day alone. The team withstood the heat and ended up winning championships in the Men’s Rec and Men’s Open divisions. Purosho wasn’t the only team who have made Takin’ it to the streets an annual tradition — Tyler Winklebleck, Tyson Nay- See Basketball, Page A9 KlaMaTH Falls — Herm- iston little league’s run at the 9-10-11-year-old state tournament was a bit shorter than it would have liked. Bend North rallied from early deficits of 5-0 and 9-8 to hand Hermiston a 15-9 loss Monday night in a loser-out game. “all the teams are good,” coach Justin simmons said. “It’s whoever shows up and the ball falls your way.” After a scoreless first inning, Hermiston put five runs on the scoreboard in the bottom of the sec- ond inning. Bend came back with four runs of its own in the third, then took an 8-5 lead in the top of the fourth inning. Hermiston, the district 3 cham- pion, took the lead back in the bot- tom of the fourth with a four-run outburst. It was all Bend from there, which scored seven runs over the final two innings. Hermiston outhit Bend 12-10, but committed seven errors on the night. Camden Venoy went 4-for-5 with a triple and four RBIs for Hermis- ton, while lane simmons and Bar- rett stanek each hit a double. Hermiston opened the state tournament with a 20-2, four-in- ning victory saturday over south- east Portland. Brody Woodard and Wyatt larson each pitched two innings for Hermiston, combining on a five-hitter with four strikeouts and just two walks. “We came out ready to play,” simmons said. “They decided they would go for it.” Hermiston led 8-1 after the first inning, 11-2 after two, and 15-2 after three. Offensively, Hermiston had 14 hits — all singles — and took advantage of 11 walks. stanek had three hits and three RBIs for Hermiston, while Venoy, evan Hays, and Hunter link each had two hits. Cougar Philippi also drove in three runs. lake Oswego was a differ- ent obstacle on sunday. The Port- land-area team handed Hermiston a 15-1 loss. “lake Oswego is a really good team,” simmons said. “They are the best team we have seen all season.” Hermiston trailed just 2-1 after three innings, but a couple of errors See Baseball, Page A9 Thunder in the Blues Staff photo by Kathy Aney Staff photo by Kathy Aney A motocross racer takes a burst of speed on a straight stretch Saturday during the the Thunder in the Blues American Motocross Association Short Track event at the Pendleton Round-Up Arena. Organizers billed the event as the first motorcycle event at the Round-Up since 1940. Two motocross riders race around the dirt track Saturday during the the Thunder in the Blues American Motocross Association Short Track event at the Pendleton Round-Up Arena. Organizers billed the event as the first motorcycle event at the arena since 1940.