B2
SPORTS
East Oregonian
Riverside: ‘Out of all
my years in high school,
this one was different’
Continued from Page B1
“Out of all my years of
playing soccer at Riverside,
I never got any all-league
selections until this year,”
Edwin Pacheco said. “This
year, I got a First Team
(Eastern Oregon League
selection), and now this. I
guess hard work does pay
off.”
And that hard work
showed on the field through-
out the year. The Pirates
held a perfect 10-0 record
in the regular season that
earned them a 3A/2A/1A
Special District 6 title for
the fifth year in a row. They
fell in a heartbreaking 3-2
loss to Oregon Episcopal in
the state quarterfinals.
Teammates
Gerardo
Lopez, Ulyses Lopez, Cris-
tian Rea, and Jose Torres
also represent Riverside
on the All-EO First Team.
Umatilla’s Jefri Coria,
Alexis Ruiz, Carlos Mejia,
Cesar de la Cruz, and Cris-
tian Alaniz, Irrigon’s Brad-
ley Abercrombie and Mar-
cos Rangel, and Pendleton’s
Jon Lopez were also named
as selections.
The Riverside girls
squad also went without a
loss in league action, fin-
ishing with a 7-0-1 EOL
record. A 5-0 loss to Catlin
Gabel in the state quarter-
finals snapped a four-match
win streak for the team
to end their most recent
season.
Neftali Pacheco, a for-
ward, is joined by team-
mates Marisol Pacheco,
Cinthya
Diaz,
Yazeli
Ayala, Jaylene Altami-
rano, and Bianca Avalos on
the All-EO First Team list.
Umatilla’s Patty Burres,
Taylor Durfey and Lizzy
Burres, Irrigon’s Caren
Cardenas,
Hermiston’s
Lanie Gomez and Cyd-
ney Lind, and Pendleton’s
Reilly Lovercheck also fill
out the team.
“On the field, I just for-
get about everything else,”
said Neftali Pacheco, 17.
“I just play. I have a con-
nection with the sport.
This feels really good. I’ve
definitely gotten better
throughout the years.”
Commanding
the crew
For his last year with the
Pirates, Edwin Pacheco, a
defender, finished the sea-
son with eight goals and
12 assists. Along with his
all-league first team selec-
tion, he was also named
a first-team player on the
3A/2A/1A all-state list.
“He’s a leader,” Riv-
erside boys head coach
Jose Duenas said. “From
the get-go, he saw the big-
ger picture. It was really
amazing to have him on the
team.”
Duenas, a first-year head
coach for the Pirates, was
named the All-EO Coach
of the Year.
“We went through a
big transition at the begin-
ning of the season,” Duenas
said. “It was rough. We got
our rude awakening out of
the way early on. We were
able to move forth. Having
support from my brother
(assistant coach Edgar
Duenas) was a big help.
He supported me in every
decision.”
Neftali Pacheco’s ver-
satility on the field for her
final season with the Pirates
netted her 12 goals and 10
assists.
“It’s always nice to have
a player that can adjust,”
Riverside girls head coach
Carlos Velasco said. “We
can move her to center mid,
left and right mid, forward
— anywhere. She is easy to
coach because she’s always
up for the challenge. She
was willing to try and do
her best in every position.”
Velasco shares the
All-EO Coach of the Year
honor with Duenas to finish
off his seventh season at the
Pirates’ helm.
“We are growing as a
team,” Velasco said. “When
I made the move to coach
the girls team seven years
ago, we were a losing team.
Now, we’re competing in
the second round of state.
We are making moves in
the right direction.”
Fighting through
the pain
Despite what his senior-
year accomplishments may
suggest, Edwin Pacheco
only has three years of
experience on the River-
side varsity boys team.
He joined the Pirates as a
freshman, making the ros-
ter alongside four of his
older cousins — Kevin
Madrigal, Miseal Madri-
gal, Alexis Cambero, and
David Araiza.
“It was actually kind of
scary,” he said. “Everyone
was older than me. I was
at the bottom of the food
chain.”
As a freshman, the
pressure of performing at
a higher level with older,
more experienced play-
ers got the best of him. He
opted to not to rejoin the
team for his sophomore
year.
“I was like, ‘OK, I’m
not good,’” Edwin Pacheco
said. “I was scared. I didn’t
want to let the team down.
And I wouldn’t get any
playing time. I tried, but I
sucked. The season ended,
and I told myself, ‘They
don’t need me. They don’t
like me.’ I was hiding
from everyone. The coach
begged me to join. I heard
the team was doing really
good during my sopho-
more year, and I felt so
much regret. I was being
selfish.”
He wouldn’t let his fears
get the best of him again.
Despite a back injury suf-
fered at a practice that hin-
dered some of his junior
season, he found him-
self back with the Pirates.
He sees his senior year as
the most successful of his
career.
“I didn’t get hurt at all,”
he said of his senior year.
“I put in a lot of work. I’m
proud of what I did. Out of
all my years in high school,
this one was different.”
Fear of joining a more
experienced soccer squad
also posed a threat to Nef-
tali Pacheco when she was
a freshman. Her mother,
Alejandra, coached her
youth soccer teams before
she made the transition to
Riverside, where she had
to play under a new coach,
and a whole new team.
“I was scared of playing
with girls that I didn’t grow
up with,” she said. “But
they were all nice. They
encouraged me. My fresh-
man year was the first year
(our program) ever won a
district championship.”
And she has helped
her team to a district title
every year since, including
her senior season, despite
a muscle injury suffered
early on. As a captain, Nef-
tali Pacheco recognizes
that a solid team chemistry
plays an important part in
any successful season.
“We know each other
and how we play,” she said
of her team. “We know
what our strengths and
weaknesses are. You build a
bond with your teammates.
That helps on the field.”
Moving beyond the
life as Pirates
Now that their tenures
as Pirates soccer stars have
officially come to a close,
Edwin Pacheco will be
taking an internship with
the Port of Morrow after
graduation.
“I really want to keep
playing soccer,” he said. “I
don’t like the idea of not
playing soccer. I wouldn’t
want all of my hard work to
go to waste.”
Neftali Pacheco has
already received offers
from a number of com-
munity colleges, including
Blue Mountain, Colum-
bia Basin, and Portland.
She will pursue a degree in
kinesiology after graduat-
ing from Riverside.
“I always gave it my
all,” she said. “I got better
throughout every year. I
improved myself. My team
accomplished so much.”
Thursday, December 26, 2019
Sooners count on experience,
speed to handle LSU’s offense
By GEORGE HENRY
Associated Press
ATLANTA — Okla-
homa linebacker Kenneth
Murray knows the Soon-
ers’ defense is preparing for
its toughest challenge of the
season and believes experi-
ence on the national stage
will be a big factor.
No. 1 LSU (13-0) enters
the College Football Play-
off semifinal in Satur-
day’s Peach Bowl lead-
ing the nation in yards per
game and red-zone produc-
tion. The Tigers are the first
Southeastern Conference
team with a 4,000-yard
passer — Heisman Trophy
winner Joe Burrow — a
1,200-yard rusher and two
1,000-yard receivers.
Murray is confident,
though, that No. 4 Okla-
homa (12-1) has plenty of
momentum as the Big 12
champion, and the Sooners
are familiar with this set-
ting after making it to foot-
ball’s final four for the third
straight year and the fourth
time in five seasons.
“I think it’s going to be
extremely critical for us to
use that experience to our
advantage for this game,”
Murray said. “I think we’ve
been in a lot of big games as
a group, and I think it’s just
going to be extremely criti-
cal for us to just stay true to
us and understand that if we
AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki, File
In this Saturday, Nov. 23, 2019, file photo, Oklahoma line-
backer Kenneth Murray (9) celebrates a tackle during an
NCAA college football game against TCU in Norman, Okla.
just do our jobs, our jobs are
enough to get done what we
want to get done.”
LSU’s offensive line is
arguably the nation’s best,
but if the Tigers have an
occasional weakness up
front, it’s in pass protection.
LSU ranks 77th in average
sacks allowed, and Burrow
went down 28 times after
getting sacked 35 times last
season.
But Oklahoma must
knock off the Tigers without
two of its top players. Sacks
leader Ronnie Perkins is
suspended for the game,
and strong safety Delarrin
Turner-Yell, second on the
team in tackles, broke his
collarbone in practice last
week. Then there is start-
ing nickel back Brendan
Radley-Hiles, whose sta-
tus is uncertain with a head
injury.
The Sooners are no
stranger to overcoming
injuries this season.
Senior end Kenneth
Mann was lost for the sea-
son against Iowa State early
last month. Defensive back
Tre Norwood has missed
the entire year. Linebacker
Jon-Michael Terry started
six games before he went
down, and linebacker Caleb
Kelly missed the first 10.
Still, replacing Perkins
will be tought. His primary
backup, Marcus Stripling,
has one sack in 13 games,
so one possible replace-
ment could be Jalen Red-
mond, who shares a tackle
spot with LaRon Stokes but
played end last season. His
5.5 sacks this year are sec-
ond on the team, and he had
1.5 in the Big 12 champion-
ship victory over Baylor.
First-year
defensive
coordinator Alex Grinch
has grown accustomed to
filling in the gaps, so he
expects other players to step
up and play well.
“It’s kind of been part of
our story in 2019,” Grinch
said of the injuries. “But we
stick to what we do defen-
sively. We feel like what
we ask these guys to do
on a week-to-week basis,
regardless of opponent, puts
them in the situation to be
successful.”
The setbacks have ham-
pered the Sooners, but LSU
offensive coordinator Steve
Ensminger still sees plenty
of talent on the opposing
side.
“This might be the fast-
est defense we face,” Ens-
minger said. “They can run.
Their defensive line can
run, their linebackers can
run, their secondary can
run. They present problems
with their speed. And so it’s
protection first. You got to
be able to run the football
against this team. Nobody
has. You put up explosive
runs on tape, and they’re not
very many of them, so it’s
got to be a good mixture.”
ESPN college football reporter Edward Aschoff dies at 34
Associated Press
BRISTOL, Conn. —
ESPN
college
football
reporter Edward Aschoff,
known for his outgoing and
friendly personality, dapper
dress and great love of sports,
has died. He was 34.
The
sports
network
announced Aschoff died
Tuesday after a brief illness.
“We are very sorry to
have to share the devastating
news of the tragic passing of
friend and ESPN colleague
Edward Aschoff,” ESPN said
in a statement. “He died ear-
lier today, his 34th birth-
day. Our thoughts are with
his loved ones, including
his fiancee,
Katy.”
A s c h of f
joined ESPN
in 2011 as
part of the
SEC
blog
Aschoff
network,
which cov-
ers the NCAA Southeast-
ern Conference. During the
past three seasons, Aschoff
reported from college cam-
puses across the U.S. for
ESPN.com,
SportsCenter,
SEC Network and ESPN
radio, ESPN reported. He
was both a television and
radio sideline reporter during
games.
A native of Oxford, Mis-
sissippi, and a 2008 graduate
of the University of Florida,
Aschoff previously covered
recruiting and Florida foot-
ball for The Gainesville Sun.
In a Dec. 2 Instagram
post, Aschoff indicated that
he had contracted pneumo-
nia. He wrote: “Covering
#TheGame was a lot of fun.
Getting pneumonia ... not so
much. But, hey, I’m a hockey
player.”
Clay Helton, head coach
at the University of Southern
California, opened his news
conference on Tuesday with
condolences for Aschoff’s
family, ESPN reported.
“Very, very sad,” Helton
said. “Very surprising. Wish
nothing but the best for his
family. Our condolences go
out. He was nothing but first
class to this organization and
always to me. Ed, you’ll be
missed.”
Aschoff covered some
polarizing aspects of college
football during his career.
He and fellow ESPN reporter
Adam Rittenberg won first
place in 2016 for enterprise
writing in the Football Writ-
ers Association of America’s
contest for their look at the
role of race in college football.
“Ed was one of the smart-
est, brightest reporters I’ve
ever had the pleasure of work-
ing with,” ESPN executive
editor Lauren Reynolds said.
SCOREBOARD
LOCAL SLATE
FRIDAY, DEC. 27
Boys basketball
Enterprise at Nixyaawii, 6:30 p.m.
Kiona-Benton at Riverside, TBD
Mac-Hi Tournament
Umatilla vs. Mac-Hi, 10:30 a.m.
Irrigon vs. Dayton/Waitsburg, 1:30 p.m.
Liberty Christian vs. Mac-Hi, 7:30 p.m.
Stanfield at Mac-Hi Tournament, TBD
Echo Bouncin’ Cancer Tournament
Ione/Arlington vs. Helix, 11:30 a.m.
Pilot Rock vs. Pine Eagle, 2:30 p.m.
Echo vs. Wallowa, 5:30 p.m.
Girls basketball
Enterprise at Nixyaawii, 5 p.m.
Kiona-Benton at Riverside, TBD
Mac-Hi Tournament
Irrigon vs. Dayton/Waitsburg, noon
Umatilla vs. Mac-Hi, 6 p.m.
Stanfield at Mac-Hi Tournament, TBD
Echo Bouncin’ Cancer Tournament
Ione/Arlington vs. Helix, 10 a.m.
Pilot Rock vs. Pine Eagle, 1 p.m.
Wallowa at Echo, 4 p.m.
Girls wrestling
Hermiston at Hanford, 9 a.m.
SATURDAY, DEC. 28
Boys basketball
Union at Nixyaawii, 3:30 p.m.
Pendleton at Holiday Hoops Classic (at
Summit/Mountain View), TBD
Mac-Hi Tournament
Umatilla vs. Liberty Christian, 3 p.m.
Mac-Hi vs. Tri-Cities Prep, 7:30 p.m.
Echo Bouncin’ Cancer Tournament
Ione/Arlington vs. Wallowa, 11:30 a.m.
Helix vs. Pilot Rock, 2:30 p.m.
Echo vs. Pine Eagle, 6 p.m.
Girls basketball
Union at Nixyaawii, 2 p.m.
Columbia-Burbank at Riverside, 4 p.m.
Mac-Hi Tournament
Tri-Cities Prep at Mac-Hi, 6 p.m.
Umatilla, Stanfield at Mac-Hi Tourna-
ment, TBD
Echo Bouncin’ Cancer Tournament
Ione/Arlington vs. Wallowa, 10 a.m.
Helix vs. Pilot Rock, 1 p.m.
Echo vs. Pine Eagle, 4:30 p.m.
Boys wrestling
Hermiston at Royal City, 10 a.m.
2019-20 BOWL GAMES
FRIDAY, DEC. 20
Bahamas Bowl
Nassau
Buffalo 31, Charlotte 9
Frisco (Texas) Bowl
Kent State 51, Utah State 41
SATURDAY, DEC. 21
Celebration Bowl
At Atlanta
NC A&T 64, Alcorn State 44
New Mexico Bowl
Albuquerque
San Diego State 48, Central Michigan 11
Cure Bowl
Orlando, Fla.
Liberty 23, Georgia Southern 16
Boca Raton (Fla.) Bowl
FAU 52, SMU 28
Camellia Bowl
Montgomery, Ala.
Arkansas State 34, FIU 26
Las Vegas Bowl
Washington 38, Boise State 7
New Orleans Bowl
Appalachian State 31, UAB 17
MONDAY, DEC. 23
Gasparilla Bowl
At Tampa, Fla.
UCF 48, Marshall 25
TUESDAY, DEC. 24
Hawaii Bowl
Honolulu
Hawaii 38, BYU 34
THURSDAY, DEC. 26
Independence Bowl
Shreveport, La.
Miami (6-6) vs. Louisiana Tech (9-3),
1 p.m. (ESPN)
Quick Lane Bowl
Detroit
Pittsburgh (7-5) vs. Eastern Michigan
(6-6), 5 p.m. (ESPN)
FRIDAY, DEC. 27
Military Bowl
Annapolis, Md.
North Carolina (6-6) vs. Temple (8-4),
Noon (ESPN)
Pinstripe Bowl
New York
Wake Forest (8-4) vs. Michigan State
(6-6), 12:20 p.m. (ESPN)
Texas Bowl
Houston
Oklahoma State (8-4) vs. Texas A&M
(7-5), 3:45 p.m. (ESPN)
Holiday Bowl
San Diego
Iowa (9-3) vs. Southern Cal (8-4), 5 p.m.
(FS1)
Cheez-It Bowl
Phoenix
Air Force (10-2) vs. Washington State
(6-6), 7:15 p.m. (ESPN)
SATURDAY, DEC. 28
Camping World Bowl
Orlando, Fla.
Notre Dame (10-2) vs. Iowa State (7-5),
Noon (ABC)
Cotton Bowl Classic
Arlington, Texas
Penn State (10-2) vs. Memphis (12-1),
Noon (ESPN)
Peach Bowl
Atlanta
CFP Semifinal, LSU (13-0) vs. Oklahoma
(12-1), 1 p.m. (ESPN)
Fiesta Bowl
Glendale, Ariz.
CFP Semifinal, Ohio State (13-0) vs. Clem-
son (13-0), 5 p.m. (ESPN)
MONDAY, DEC. 30
SERVPRO First Responder Bowl
Dallas
Western Kentucky (8-4) vs. Western
Michigan (7-5), 9:30 a.m. (ESPN)
Music City Bowl
Nashville, Tenn.
Mississippi State (6-6) vs. Louisville (7-5),
1 p.m. (ESPN)
Redbox Bowl
Santa Clara, Calif.
Illinois (6-6) vs. California (7-5), 1 p.m.
(FOX)
Orange Bowl
Miami Gardens, Fla.
Florida (10-2) vs. Virginia (9-4), 5 p.m. (ESPN)
TUESDAY, DEC. 31
SATURDAY, JAN. 25
Belk Bowl
Charlotte, N.C.
Kentucky (7-5) vs. Virginia Tech (8-4),
Noon (ESPN)
Sun Bowl
El Paso, Texas
Florida State (6-6) vs. Arizona State (7-5),
11 a.m. (CBS)
Liberty Bowl
Memphis, Tenn.
Kansas State (8-4) vs. Navy (10-2),
12:45 p.m. (ESPN)
Arizona Bowl
Tucson, Ariz.
Wyoming (7-5) vs. Georgia State (7-5),
1:30 p.m. (CBSSN)
Alamo Bowl
San Antonio
Texas (7-5) vs. Utah (11-2), 4:30 p.m.
(ESPN)
Senior Bowl
At Mobile, Ala.
North vs. South, 11:30 a.m.
WEDNESDAY, JAN. 1
Citrus Bowl
Orlando, Fla.
Michigan (9-3) vs. Alabama (10-2),
10 a.m. (ABC)
Outback Bowl
Tampa, Fla.
Minnesota (10-2) vs. Auburn (9-3),
10 a.m. (ESPN)
Rose Bowl
Pasadena, Calif.
Oregon (11-2) vs. Wisconsin (10-3), 2 p.m.
(ESPN)
Sugar Bowl
New Orleans
Georgia (11-2) vs. Baylor (11-2), 5:45 p.m.
(ESPN)
THURSDAY, JAN. 2
Birmingham (Ala.) Bowl
Cincinnati (10-3) vs. Boston College (6-6),
12 p.m. (ESPN)
Gator Bowl
Jacksonville, Fla.
Indiana (8-4) vs. Tennessee (7-5), 4 p.m.
(ESPN)
SUNDAY, JAN. 26
Hula Bowl
At Honolulu
10:30 p.m.
NFL STANDINGS
AMERICAN CONFERENCE
East
y-New England
x-Buffalo
N.Y. Jets
Miami
South
y-Houston
Tennessee
Indianapolis
Jacksonville
W
12
10
6
4
W
10
8
7
5
L
3
5
9
11
L
5
7
8
10
T
0
0
0
0
T
0
0
0
0
Pct
.800
.667
.400
.267
Pct
.667
.533
.467
.333
PF
396
308
263
279
PF
364
367
341
262
PA
198
246
353
470
PA
350
317
335
377
North
y-Baltimore
Pittsburgh
Cleveland
Cincinnati
W
13
8
6
1
L
2
7
9
14
T
0
0
0
0
Pct
.867
.533
.400
.067
PF
503
279
312
246
PA
272
275
360
397
West
y-Kansas City
Oakland
Denver
L.A. Chargers
W
11
7
6
5
L
4
8
9
10
T
0
0
0
0
Pct
.733
.467
.400
.333
PF
420
298
266
316
PA
287
403
301
314
PF
351
387
324
250
PA
337
305
417
388
South
W L T Pct PF
y-New Orleans 12 3 0 .800 416
Tampa Bay
7 8 0 .467 436
Atlanta
6 9 0 .400 353
Carolina
5 10 0 .333 330
PA
331
421
377
428
North
y-Green Bay
x-Minnesota
Chicago
Detroit
NATIONAL CONFERENCE
East
Phila.
Dallas
N.Y. Giants
Washington
W
8
7
4
3
Pct
.533
.467
.267
.200
Pct
.800
.667
.467
.233
PF
353
388
259
321
PA
293
282
279
400
Armed Forces Bowl
Fort Worth, Texas
Southern Miss (7-5) vs. Tulane (6-6),
8:30 a.m. (ESPN)
West
W L T
x-San Francisco 12 3 0
x-Seattle
11 4 0
L.A. Rams
8 7 0
Arizona
5 9 1
x-clinched playoff spot
y-clinched division
Pct
.800
.733
.533
.367
PF
453
384
363
337
PA
289
372
340
411
MONDAY, JAN. 6
———
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl
Boise
Ohio (6-6) vs. Nevada (7-5), 12:30 p.m.
(ESPN)
SATURDAY, JAN. 4
Lendingtree Bowl
Mobile, Ala.
Miami (Ohio) (8-5) vs. Louisiana-Lafay-
ette (10-3), 4:30 p.m. (ESPN)
MONDAY, JAN. 13
College Football Championship
New Orleans
Fiesta Bowl winner vs. Peach Bowl win-
ner, 5 p.m. (ESPN)
SATURDAY, JAN. 18
East-West Shrine Classic
At St. Petersburg, Fla.
East vs. West, 12 p.m. (NFL)
NFLPA Collegiate Bowl
At Pasadena, Calif.
American vs. National, 2 p.m. (FS1)
L
3
5
8
11
T
0
0
0
0
T
0
0
0
1
FRIDAY, JAN. 3
W
12
10
7
3
L
7
8
11
12
Sunday’s Games
Chicago at Minnesota, 10 a.m.
Atlanta at Tampa Bay, 10 a.m.
Miami at New England, 10 a.m.
Green Bay at Detroit, 10 a.m.
Cleveland at Cincinnati, 10 a.m.
L.A. Chargers at Kansas City, 10 a.m.
N.Y. Jets at Buffalo, 10 a.m.
New Orleans at Carolina, 10 a.m.
Oakland at Denver, 1:25 p.m.
Tennessee at Houston, 1:25 p.m.
Washington at Dallas, 1:25 p.m.
Indianapolis at Jacksonville, 1:25 p.m.
Phila. at N.Y. Giants, 1:25 p.m.
Pittsburgh at Baltimore, 1:25 p.m.
Arizona at L.A. Rams, 1:25 p.m.
San Francisco at Seattle, 5:20 p.m.