B2
SPORTS
East Oregonian
Saturday, January 9, 2021
Donald, Kelce unanimous AP All-Pros; Rodgers, Henry chosen
By BARRY WILNER
AP Pro Football Writer
NEW YORK — Dynamic
defensive star Aaron Donald
and unstoppable tight end
Travis Kelce were unani-
mous choices Friday, Jan.
8, for The Associated Press
NFL All-Pro Team.
Green Bay quarterback
Aaron Rodgers was selected
for the third time, finish-
ing ahead of Kansas City’s
Patrick Mahomes in voting
from a nationwide panel of
50 media members who regu-
larly cover the league. Last
season’s Super Bowl MVP
shared second-team honors
with Josh Allen of Buffalo.
Tennessee running back
Derrick Henry, who ran for
2,027 yards to win his second
consecutive rushing title, was
named All-Pro for the first
time after leading the AFC
South champion Titans to
their first division title in 12
years.
“Very consistent, very
durable, very impressive,”
coach Mike Vrabel said of the
NFL’s first winner of back-to-
back rushing titles since Hall
of Famer LaDainian Tomlin-
son in 2006-07.
Donald, who has helped
the Los Angeles Rams to
the top-ranked defense in
the NFL, earned his sixth
All-Pro selection. It was
the third for Kansas City’s
record-setting Kelce.
“I think the best display of
greatness is making people
around you better,” Rams
coach Sean McVay said of
Donald. “And that’s exactly
what he does, by the way he
influences them every single
week.”
Mahomes lauded Kelce
for the way he approaches
his job.
Stephen Brashear/Associated Press, File
Los Angeles Rams defensive lineman Aaron Donald sacks Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson during the second
half of an NFL football game in Seattle on Dec. 27, 2020. Donald was selected on Friday, Jan. 8, 2021, to The Associated Press
All-Pro Team.
“For a guy to have that
much talent, work that hard
and be able to learn really
every single day like that,
that’s what makes him
so special on the field,”
Mahomes said.
Joining Donald and Kelce
were 15 players returning to
the squad, and 14 newcom-
ers. Seattle linebacker Bobby
Wagner also made his sixth
squad.
“The marvelous durabil-
ity that he’s demonstrated
for middle linebacker after
all these years is just off the
charts,” Seahawks coach Pete
Almost home: No. 1
Stanford women top
No. 11 Oregon 70-63
By JANIE MCCAULEY
Associated Press
SANTA CRUZ, Calif.
— Down three key players
who are quarantined and
road weary, No. 1 Stanford
needed every defensive stop
down the stretch.
Haley Jones returned to
her hometown and had 18
points and six rebounds, and
No. 1 Stanford beat No. 11
Oregon 70-63 on Friday, Jan.
8. The Cardinal were play-
ing in Northern California
for the first time in nearly a
month.
Francesca Belibi’s three-
point play with 17 seconds
remaining in the third capped
a second decisive 9-0 run that
period by the short-handed
Cardinal (10-0, 7-0 Pac-12).
“It just meant a lot to me
and the team,” senior Anna
Wilson said. “It’s amazing
to be down three people —
three important people, too,
whether it’s a leader, a scorer,
a 3-point shooter, rebounder
— to not have those big
pieces and understand that
our team is playing for them
and just how close our team
is.”
The game was played at
Kaiser Permanente Arena,
home of the Golden State
Warriors’ G League affiliate.
Stanford played in Northern
California for the first time
since a win at rival California
in Berkeley on Dec. 13, 2020,
and the Cardinal haven’t
been able to play or practice
on campus since Santa Clara
County’s restrictions on
sports came down Nov. 28,
2020, and the team left town
Dec. 2, 2020.
Stanford’s run span-
ning the final two quarters
reached 13-0 before Sydney
Parrish’s three-point play at
7:48 of the fourth. Parrish
finished with 14 points.
Oregon (8-2, 6-2) lost
again after it fell out of the
top-10 with a home defeat
to UCLA that ended the
Ducks’ nation’s best 27-game
winning streak. The Ducks
had won the past three with
Stanford but have never
beaten a top-ranked team.
Maddie Scherr swished
a long 3 at the first-quarter
buzzer for a 20-16 Oregon
lead, and the Cardinal trailed
at halftime for the first time
all season, down 33-32.
The Ducks lost for just the
second time in the last seven
meetings in the series after
beating the Cardinal three
times in 2019-20 — includ-
ing an 89-56 rout in the
Pac-12 tournament title game
— but Oregon has never won
four in a row against Stan-
ford.
“I’m disappointed, quite
frankly,” Oregon coach
Kelly Graves said. “I’m
proud of the players for how
we continued to battle. But
I’m disappointed we lost
the game. We’ve won this
conference three times in a
row. We expect to win.”
Oregon junior transfer
Taylor Mikesell was held to
six points on 3-for-12 shoot-
ing and missed all three of
her 3-point attempts.
Jo n e s , t h e Pa c -12
rebounding leader, also had
two of her team’s six steals.
Senior point guard Kiana
Williams struggled with her
shot to finish 3 of 13 for 13
points, missing all six from
deep, but converted 8 of 9
free throws.
Wilson added 11 points
and nine rebounds for the
Cardinal, who committed 17
turnovers.
“That was the thing I
was most disappointed
about. We were too careless
with the ball,” coach Tara
VanDerveer said.
Short-handed
Stanford announced it
was without three play-
ers because of COVID-19
protocols and contact tracing
following the Sunday, Jan. 3,
game at Arizona State.
Guards Lexie Hull and
Hannah Jump and forward
Alyssa Jerome were the three
not on the bench or the court.
The hope is they will return
for practice next week and
game next Friday, Jan 15, at
Utah.
“They’re doing very
well,” VanDerveer said.
The Cardinal will remain
in Santa Cruz through a prac-
tice Sunday, Jan 10, then stay
in San Mateo before depart-
ing Wednesday, Jan 13, for
Salt Lake City.
Carroll said.
Kansas City receiver
Tyreek Hill is now a three-
time All-Pro along with
Rodgers, among the favorites
to win MVP after guiding the
Packers (13-3) to the top seed
in the NFC.
Joining Henry as first-
time choices among skill
players were Buffalo wide-
out Stefon Diggs, who led
the NFL in catches and
yards receiving, and Rodg-
ers’ favorite target, Davante
Adams.
“For me, honestly, I think
it’s just been finding differ-
ent small things that I can get
better at,” Adams says. “I feel
like I’m a pretty complete
receiver. ... It’s just fine-tun-
ing the things I do well and
just figuring out a way to do
them even better.”
Diggs was traded by
Minnesota to Buffalo in the
offseason and made a huge
impact as the Bills won their
first AFC East title in 25
years.
“For me, it was just in
whatever situation I was
going to be put in or chosen
in, I was just going to
embrace,” said Diggs, who
finished the regular season
with 127 catches for 1,535
yards and eight touchdowns.
The Packers and Colts led
all teams with four All-Pros
apiece. Green Bay left tackle
David Bakhtiari, who is out
for the playoffs after injur-
ing a knee in practice during
the final week of the regular
season, made it for the second
time. Center Corey Linsley
was a first-time selection.
Indianapolis has interior
lineman DeForest Buckner
and linebacker Darius Leon-
ard on the defense, left guard
Quenton Nelson on offense,
and George Odum as the
special teamer. Nelson is a
three-time All-Pro, Leon-
ard a double selection, while
Buckner and Odum made it
for the first time.
Rounding out the offense
were Cleveland right tackle
Jack Conklin (second selec-
tion), and Washington right
guard Brandon Scherff (first).
Also on defense were
edge rushers T.J. Watt, the
NFL’s sacks leader for Pitts-
burgh who is on his second
All-Pro Team, and newcomer
Myles Garrett of Cleveland;
San Francisco linebacker
Fred Warner (first selec-
tion); cornerbacks Xavien
Howard (first) of Miami, the
league’s interception leader,
and Jalen Ramsey (second)
of the Rams; and safeties
Tyrann Mathieu (third) of
Kansas City, Minkah Fitzpat-
rick of Pittsburgh and Budda
Baker of Arizona, both for
the second time. There was
a tie between Fitzpatrick and
Baker for the second safety
spot.
The long snapper posi-
tion is new to the All-Pro
Team in 2020, and Balti-
more’s Morgan Cox was the
choice. Chicago kick returner
Cordarrelle Patterson made it
for the fourth time. The rest
of the special teams positions
were newcomers: Miami
kicker Jason Sanders, New
England punter Jake Bailey
and punt returner Gunner
Olszewski.
Repeaters from 2019 were
Donald, Wagner, Nelson,
Watt, Fitzpatrick, Mathieu
and Patterson.
In all, 18 players represent
the AFC, which is considered
the stronger conference this
season, and 11 for the NFC.
Exactly half of the 32 clubs
have a 2020 All-Pro.
Signing: Nichols currently has a 4.0 GPA
Continued from Page B1
Conference play.
Heppner lost in the first
round of the state playoffs
to eventual state champion
Kennedy.
As the basketball season
came to a close, the COVID-
19 pandemic shut down
schools and sports. It was
supposed to be for two weeks.
“In March, we were still
training like we were going to
have a season,” Nichols said.
“Then it was gone. I kept
running. I took a little time
off, then started preparing for
cross-country.”
In October, Nichols
competed in a race in Tilla-
mook for her club team.
Each heat consisted only of
runners from each club, boys
and girls combined.
“It was kind of odd,”
Nichols said.
Nichols took another
break until December, but
instead of hitting the road, it
was the treadmill because of
the weather.
Hunter will be her team-
mate at EOU, but at home,
Nichols said running with
her brother is not much of an
option.
“I’m not in shape like
him,” she said. “He will run
CCC:
Continued from Page B1
but this is far from his focus.
He is excited by what he sees
on the horizon for the CCC in
the short term and long term.
He is hopeful, for exam-
ple, that men’s and women’s
basketball will be able to start
up in March or April.
Cashell also said he feels
optimistic about the outlook
for CCC’s baseball program,
especially because Eastern
Oregon University reinstated
its program after cutting it
in 2005 because of finan-
cial problems. The addition
means the CCC will have
a six-team baseball league
when collegiate action begins
again. The presence of a
CCC baseball league, which
requires a minimum of six
members, will give teams the
opportunity to win an auto-
matic post-season playoff
berth, Cashell said.
Previously the schools
Gresham, but not in college.
Nichols said running with
her dad is worse than with
her older brother.
“My dad runs those crazy
ultra-marathon 100-mile
races,” she said.
Finding the good
20 miles.”
Her parents, Russ and
Toni Nichols, coach the
Heppner cross-country and
track teams. They both ran
at Centennial High School in
Nichols has a 4.0 GPA and
will graduate in the spring
with about 50 college cred-
its. She would like to major
in molecular biology.
“I’ve thought about being
a doctor or a (physician assis-
tant),” she said. “There is less
schooling being a PA.”
When school and running
aren’t consuming her time,
Nichols has been putting her
energy into DIY projects.
“I have school from 8 a.m.
to noon and I really can’t
hang out with friends,” she
said. “I’ve redone my room
five times, but I like to refur-
bish furniture. I’m teaching
myself.”
Hunter has been the recip-
ient of one of her creations.
“When my brother moved
into his house in La Grande,
he needed a table,” Nichols
said. “A lady in Heppner had
a free one and I redid it. It’s
getting plenty of use from
dinner, card tournaments and
pingpong.”
with baseball in the CCC
were part of an NAIA West
division. It was composed
of teams from the CCC and
the Frontier Conference and
offered no automatic bids for
NAIA post-season play to
teams based on their records.
Cashell also said he is
enthusiastic about the possi-
ble addition of CCC lacrosse
leagues for men and women in
the near future. Five schools
in the CCC have added or will
be adding the sport, includ-
ing EOU, which launched a
women’s lacrosse program
in 2019. Eastern’s team was
scheduled to begin play in
2021 before the COVID-19
pandemic hit.
“We are paying close
attention to men’s and
women’s lacrosse. It is trend-
ing in the right direction, so
we may be adding it in the
future,” he said.
Cashell served as the
athletic director for the
University of Montana West-
ern before coming to Eastern
in 2001. He said experience
as an athletic director is
vital preparation for becom-
ing a commissioner. He said
the positions are involved
in many of the same tasks,
including scheduling. Cashell
— who was named the CCC’s
athletic director of the year for
2007-08 and 2009-10 — said
he enjoys taking on the chal-
lenges this work poses.
“I’m pretty organized.
Attention to detail comes
naturally,” he explained.
He said as CCC commis-
sioner he works with just
about everybody who comes
into contact with athletics at
the college and university
level, including sports infor-
mation directors, presidents
and registrars, just as he did
as an athletic director.
“The difference is now
I’m working with 23 schools
instead of one,” he said.
Cashell said he finds
his job fulfilling because it
gives him the opportunity to
provide meaningful opportu-
nities for student athletes.
“This is my passion,”
he said
This passion ties in with
the philosophy of the NAIA,
which focuses on developing
and providing opportunities
for the student athletes, which
drew Cashell to the collegiate
athletic organization years
ago.
“I am an NAIA guy and
will always continue to be
one,” Cashell said.
He said it is easier to work
in Corvallis as CCC commis-
sioner because he is closer to
more member schools and
transportation hubs, including
airports. His wife, Heather,
who previously worked at
EOU, is now the executive
assistant for Oregon State
University’s general counsel,
and their daughter, Elizabeth,
is a junior at Oregon State.
Cashell said he and his
family members always will
have a warm place in their
hearts for La Grande.
“We love La Grande,” he
said. “It is a wonderful place
and is filled with wonderful
people.”
Kathy Aney/East Oregonian, File
Madelyn Nichols nears the finish line of the 2019 3A/2A/1A
girls district cross-country championships at Community
Park in Pendleton in November 2019.