E AST O REGONIAN SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2020 FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @EOSPORTS | FACEBOOK.COM/EOSPORTS B1 Zander signs with Eastern Oregon University Pendleton grad offers Mounties some versatility By ANNIE FOWLER For the East Oregonian PENDLETON — Tucker Zan- der has not played a high school baseball game since Pendleton lost to Central in the 2019 5A state championship game. He was a sophomore. With the help of video, a short- ened summer season, and discus- sions with area coaches, Eastern Oregon University baseball coach Mike McInerney said he was confi - East Oregonian, File Pendleton’s Tucker Zander slides into home plate on a passed ball in the Bucks’ 5-0 win over North Eugene in 2018. dent in signing Zander on Nov. 9 to play for the Mountaineers. “It’s a bit of a leap of faith,” McInerney said. “I saw him play when he was younger, and some this past summer.” The 5-foot-8, 160-pound Zander offers the Mountaineers versatility. The right-handed pitcher also can play every infi eld position. “It’s exciting,” Zander said. “I went up there a few weeks ago. I think this program will be a great fi t for me. The coach there is pretty good. He was the pitching coach at Western Oregon (University).” The coronavirus pandemic wiped out Zander’s junior year, but he and his Pendleton teammates are hoping to get in their senior season come spring. “It’s been a while since I had Bucks across my jersey,” Zander said. “It’s kind of sad, but it is what it is. We were really lucky to play summer ball.” Zander was invited to play in a showcase in September in Medford, where he played for Team Oregon State. He played several positions, allowing him to display his skills. “It was a pretty cool event,” Zander said. “I played really well. I made myself a valuable prospect.” While Zander’s versatility is a plus, McInerney said it has not been decided what position he will play. “That will be his decision,” See Zander, Page B2 Rams eye chance to catch Seahawks with passing By GREG BEACHAM Associated Press for Bolen when she won the Morgan World Champion Carriage Driving. “There is a lot of tradition,” Bolen said. “Depending on the carriage, certain items are required, and there are requirements of what you have to wear. The devil is in the details. You are judged on equitation and how well the horse performs. It was all horse. He was awesome.” In the Carriage Driving, Bolen had a seat on the back of her carriage, which required a passenger. Bolen’s was groom Sibbea Browning of Hermiston. In the Morgan World Champion Dres- sage Training Level Open, Bolen rode 4-year-old chestnut gelding Sutton Terra Cotta to victory. “We rode in a couple of small shows when he was a 3-year-old,” Bolen said. “He hadn’t shown in a year and a half. He was super happy to do something.” Terra Cotta won two of three qualifying rounds, and tied for fi rst in the third. “Liz bred both horses, so this is even more special for her,” Bolen said. INGLEWOOD, Calif. — The chance to play against the NFL’s worst pass defense should be a golden opportunity for Jared Goff and Sean McVay to get the Los Angeles Rams back into top form after a few stumbling weeks. It’s not that simple for the quarterback or his head coach. That woeful pass defense belongs to the Seattle Seahawks (6-2), who still lead the NFC West and always present far more problems than opportunities. There’s also the matter of Russell Wil- son, who has proven he can cause trouble for the Rams (5-3) no matter how many points Los Angeles puts up Sunday, Nov. 15. “We’ve always really seemed to have really close games,” Goff said of meetings with the Seahawks. “It’s really been one- score, last-drive, last-play type of games with them always, every year. They’re a great team. It’s always a good game, and always exciting.” Indeed, fi ve of the teams’ eight meet- ings in Goff’s career have been decided by six points or fewer. This matchup car- ries particular importance after the sud- den tightening of the division race, with the Rams watching on their bye week while Seattle, Arizona and San Francisco all lost. Goff struggled in the Rams’ last game, going 35 for 61 with four turnovers while Los Angeles scored only 17 points in los- ing to Miami. A week later, the Seahawks’ woes in pass defense were amplifi ed when Buffa- lo’s Josh Allen passed for 415 yards and led the Bills to 44 points in their win. “We’re still trying to get it together,” Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said of his defense. “We haven’t played like we want to. We played winning football, but it’s not playing the style that we’d like to play. I feel like our best ball is ahead of us.” Goff has thrown for at least 290 yards in each of the Rams’ last four games against Seattle, and Los Angeles has won three of them. The Seahawks’ top two cor- nerbacks, Shaquill Griffi n and Quinton Dunbar, are slowed by injuries and might not play on Nov. 15. Everything seems set up for Goff, Rob- ert Woods and childhood Seahawks fan Cooper Kupp to reclaim their passing game’s mojo. See Memories, Page B2 See Seahawks, Page B2 Dallas Bolen/Contributed Photo Sutton Remembrance GCH, driven by Dallas Bolen of Hermiston, won the Morgan World Champion Carriage Driving in Oklahoma City, Okla. Sibbea Browning, seated at rear, is the groom. ‘You can’t put a price on memories’ Hermiston’s Dallas Bolen claims three championship ribbons at Grand National & World Championship Morgan Horse Show By ANNIE FOWLER For the East Oregonian H ERMISTON — Presentation is everything, from the groom- ing of the horse to the length of the rider’s pants. The smallest detail could mean the difference between a world championship and a long ride home. Hermiston’s Dallas Bolen was on point at the Grand National & World Championship Morgan Horse Show from Oct. 10-17 at State Fair Park in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, bringing home three championship ribbons. “It was so exciting,” said Bolen, a 1999 Hermiston graduate. “I’ve been going for about 25 years. I’ve won qualifying rounds before, but this is the fi rst time I have won a championship.” While Bolen, 39, owns her own Mor- gan horses, the two horses she rode and drove to victory in Oklahoma belong to Louis and Liz Goldmann of Benton City, Washington. “Liz is a longtime client of mine,” Bolen said. “She is 74, so she doesn’t ride anymore.” Goldmann still likes to drive the car- riages. She owns the two that were used at nationals, and drove in qualifying rounds of the National Champion Double Jeopardy Carriage Obstacle, but Bolen drove in the fi nals. Pulling the carriage was 13-year-old bay gelding Sutton Remembrance GCH. “We have been trying to win this since he was 6 years old,” Bolen said. “Some- times, it’s the year or the judge. This is the highest ribbon you can win. It’s the creme de la creme for him.” Remembrance also pulled the carriage SPORTS SHORT UCLA picked to win Pac-12 in preseason poll Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO — UCLA is the preseason pick to win the Pac-12 for the fi rst time since 2011-12. The Bruins, ranked No. 20 in The Associated Press preseason poll, received nine fi rst-place votes and 251 points on Thurs- day, Nov. 12, from a panel of 23 media members who cover the league. No. 18 Arizona State was second with 246 points and fi ve fi rst-place votes. No. 22 Oregon, the defending conference regu- lar-season champion, had seven fi rst-place votes and 241 points. Stanford fi nished fourth with one fi rst-place vote and 209 points. The Bruins had a shaky start in their fi rst season under coach Mick Cronin in 2019-20, but fi n- ished strong to be in position for an NCAA Tournament berth before the season was canceled due to the coronavirus pan- demic. UCLA has several play- ers back from that team, includ- ing All-Pac-12 guard Chris Smith. Arizona State got a boost with the return of guards Remy Mar- tin and Alonzo Verge Jr., and coach Bobby Hurley brought in a stellar recruiting class headed by guard Josh Christopher. In this Feb. 13, 2020, fi le photo, UCLA coach Mick Cronin argues a call during the second half of the team’s NCAA college basketball game against Washington State in Los Angeles. Marcio Jose Sanchez/ Associated Press, File