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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 21, 2020)
E AST O REGONIAN FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2020 FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @EOSPORTS | FACEBOOK.COM/EOSPORTS B1 Challenge of Champions Tour to make its Pendleton debut on Saturday By BRETT KANE East Oregonian PENDLETON — Local rodeo fans have the chance to witness bull riding action well ahead of the Pendleton Round-Up for the fi rst time this year. The Challenge of Champi- ons Tour, a 19-date, fi ve-state tour of the western region of the United States, is making its way to Pendleton for its inau- gural year on Saturday. The strictly bull riding event, now in its 11th year, will feature rookies and seasoned riders alike. Held at the Pavilion at the Round-Up Grounds behind the Happy Canyon Arena, all pro- ceeds will benefi t the Buckaroo Rodeo Bible Camp. Entry costs $15 per person, and children aged fi ve and under are admit- ted free. Event parking is $2. Parking proceeds will ben- efi t the Pendleton High School FFA. “We have the top guys from the Northwest joining us,” Buckaroo Rodeo Bible Camp President Joe Meling said, “including some up-and-com- See Champions, Page B2 LET’S TALK SPORTS Something special about small-school basketball T By ANNIE FOWLER East Oregonian here is nothing like small-school basketball. Gyms packed to the rafters with fans. State championship boards proudly hung on the walls. Trophies on dis- play in the lobby, and A NNIE some of the tastiest pop- F OWLER corn in three counties. COMMENT This was my world, in what seems a world ago. Long bus rides (boys and girls together), complete with homemade sandwiches, cook- ies and milk on the trip home. More nights than not, the bus did not warm up until we were halfway home. There were no cellphones or iPods. We had actual conversations with our teammates. I played in Helix during the heyday of girls basketball in the early 1980s. We played in the Big Sky Conference with Echo, Arlington, Ione, Wheeler, Con- don, Dufur and Cascade Locks. Our district tournament was in Umatilla, and a trip to Dairy Queen just down the hill from the school was a treat. Echo was our bitter rival. They beat us out for a state berth in 1981. Back then, we were Class B, and it was a four-team state bracket. You had to work your ass off for a trip to Baker City. In 1982, we beat Echo for our fi rst trip to state, winning it all. We did the same in 1983 (now an 8-team bracket), beating Days Creek 53-47 in four overtimes for the trophy. Baker City was a magical place for us small-town kids. The gym was 10 times larger than any we had played in all season. The view from the team bench was that of a sea of green and white, as nearly every person in town made the trip to support us. Our championships belonged to the com- munity as much as they did to us. Both years we went to state, we had a team host who would wash our uniforms and such after each game, and leave us treats in the locker room. In 1983, we were sponsored by one of the fl ower shops in town. We arrived at the gym to corsages and balloons. After we won the title, we each received a rose. A drive through downtown Baker City featured businesses with their windows adorned with the teams they were sponsor- ing. The fl ower shop (I don’t know if I ever knew the name) had “Good Luck Grizzlies” painted on its window, with a bear dribbling a basketball, and a lot of fl owers. There were no cellphones to take pic- tures. I don’t know if any of our parents thought to take one, but I can still see it. I inquired this week if team hosts are still a thing at the (now) 1A state tournament. I was told no, but that they are trying to bring the program back. As the 2A and 1A teams begin their dis- trict tournaments this week, in hopes of securing a trip to state, I hope the players stop and realize how fortunate they are. They have the undying support of their community, which you don’t get at a large school. You get to play the game you love, because if everyone doesn’t play, no one gets to play. Over the next couple of weeks, please put down your cellphones (unless you are tak- ing photos), remove your ear buds and make some memories. Photo courtesy of the Pendleton Round-Up The Challenge of Champions bull riding event will make its inaugural stop in Pend- leton on Saturday. The competition will take place at the Pavilion at the Pendleton Round-Up Grounds. UMATILLA RIVER FLOODING Resurrecting a local landmark Staff photo by Ben Lonergan A baseball rests in the mud at Bob White Field in Pendleton on Thursday afternoon. The fi eld was inundated with fl oodwater fol- lowing the Feb. 6, 2020, fl ooding of the Umatilla River. Pendleton’s Babe Ruth program and school district assess the flood damages done to Bob White Field By BRETT KANE East Oregonian P ENDLETON — Pendleton head baseball coach TJ Hague- wood remembers leaving Bob White Field on the evening of Feb. 6, just before the fl oods began. Little did he expect that moments later, the fi eld that his team of Buckaroos called their home, just like so many teams before them, would be completely underwater. “We left the fi eld at about 5:30 p.m.,” he recalled. “We saw the river rising. The water had barely made it into the right fi eld, so I wasn’t concerned at the time. I’ve lived here my whole life. It sneaked up on everybody.” The fl ooding caused signifi cant dam- age to the turf, the concession stand and everything within, the right fi eld fence, and the equipment garage. The damage Staff photo by Ben Lonergan Mud covers the infi eld at Bob White Field in Pendleton on Thursday afternoon after it was inundated with fl oodwater from the Feb. 6,2020, Umatilla River fl oods. left the Bucks baseball team, the Pendle- ton Babe Ruth program, and local sum- mer ball teams without a home fi eld, forcing the Babe Ruth committee to search for a replacement for the upcom- ing season. “The important thing for people to know is, there still will be a Babe Ruth season,” said Bob Field, president of the Pendleton Babe Ruth program. “It’s See Landmark, Page B2 PREP ROUNDUP Pioneers fall to La Grande in GOL district semifi nals By RONALD BOND EO Media Group LA GRANDE — Camryn Coll- man scored 13 straight La Grande points during a four-minute stretch that helped her team break open their game with the visiting Mac-Hi Pioneers, as they topped Mac-Hi 52-29 on Thursday in the semifi nals of the Greater Oregon League district tournament. Collman, who fi nished with 26 points, had 19 in the fi rst half, and her individual point spurt helped the Tigers take a 31-15 halftime lead. She added a putback in the third quarter that put the Tigers ahead by 21 with 3:25 to play in the third, and the Pioneers got no closer the rest of the way. Daniela Angel scored 15 points See Pioneers, Page B2 EO Media Group Photo/Ronald Bond Mac-Hi’s Daniela Angel (5) blocks a shot by La Grande’s Ella Dunlap during Thursday’s semifi nal game of the Greater Oregon League district tournament in La Grande. The Tigers defeated the Pioneers 52-29 on Thursday.