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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (May 25, 2021)
A13 SPORTS East Oregonian Basketball: Continued from Page A12 Graduation gutted the roster, and when assistant coach Ryan Sams took the head coaching job at Nixy- aawii Community School, his two sons, Dakota and Greyson, went with him. “Graduating nine seniors and losing the Sams boys leaves us pretty depleted,” Pendleton coach Zach Dong said. “We are trying to find guys to fill roles. We have athletes, it’s a matter of getting them in the right places. We are in a rebuild- ing mode.” Dong was left with two returning players — senior guards Tucker Zander and Nic Sheley — but when it rains, it pours. Zander, who has signed to play baseball at Eastern Oregon University, opted not to play basketball so he could focus on summer baseball. Sophomore Payton Lambert also took the baseball route. “I can’t fault them for that,” Dong said. The Bucks open their season on May 25, hosting Crook County at 6:30 p.m. Sheley will be joined by senior Blake Swanson and junior Andy Oja from the junior varsity team. “Andy is our best player, but he clipped a hurdle in track and fell and broke his arm,” Dong said. “We don’t have him right now, but hope- fully by the last week or two of the season.” The Bucks will turn to 6-foot-4 sophomore Easton Corey to bang inside, and talented freshman Ben Jennings to add depth, along with senior Ethan Carey, juniors Jacob Devereaux and Jayden Minthorn, sophomore point guard Gauge Rueber, and Lyle Soaring Eagle, a transfer from Nixyaawii. “We are going to be young, for sure,” Dong said. “We are actually going to go for an hour (May 23), then (May 24), then throw a product out on the floor. We will see what happens.” LOCAL STANDINGS Through games played May 24 Pasco MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL 3A EASTERN OREGON LEAGUE NWAC EAST DIVISION Team Wenatchee Valley North Idaho Columbia Basin Walla Walla Spokane Big Bend Yakima Valley Treasure Valley Blue Mountain League Overall 10-1 10-1 4-1 5-1 6-3 7-3 4-4 4-6 6-7 6-7 4-5 5-7 3-4 5-4 2-7 2-7 1-8 1-8 WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL NWAC EAST DIVISION Team Big Bend Walla Walla Spokane Wenatchee Valley North Idaho Columbia Basin Treasure Valley Yakima Valley Blue Mountain League Overall 11-1 11-1 9-1 9-1 5-2 6-2 5-3 5-3 2-2 2-3 5-6 5-6 3-6 3-6 1-8 1-8 0-12 0-12 COLLEGE BASEBALL NWAC EAST DIVISION Team Spokane Yakima Valley Big Bend Columbia Basin Treasure Valley Wenatchee Valley Walla Walla Blue Mountain League Overall 22-4 29-7 23-7 23-7 16-6 17-9 14-10 18-14 9-17 9-17 6-18 6-18 4-14 4-14 4-22 4-24 COLLEGE SOFTBALL NWAC EAST DIVISION Team North Idaho Walla Walla Big Bend Columbia Basin Treasure Valley Wenatchee Valley Yakima Valley Spokane Blue Mountain League Overall 22-4 23-4 15-7 19-7 10-7 10-11 10-10 10-10 8-12 10-16 5-14 5-14 4-12 7-17 3-11 4-15 0-0 0-0 COLLEGE MEN’S SOCCER NWAC EAST DIVISION Team Blue Mountain Wenatchee Valley Columbia Basin North Idaho Spokane Treasure Valley Walla Walla League Overall 6-0-3 6-0-3 4-4-2 4-4-2 4-3-1 5-3-1 3-4-1 3-5-1 2-2-3 2-2-3 0-6-0 0-6-0 0-0-0 0-0-0 Team Burns Nyssa Vale Umatilla Riverside Irrigon 0-5 League Overall 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 2A BLUE MOUNTAIN CONFERENCE Team Heppner Weston-McEwen Pilot Rock Stanfield Grant Union Union Enterprise League Overall 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 1A BIG SKY LEAGUE Team League Overall Bickleton 0-0 0-0 Condon/Wheeler 0-0 0-0 Dufur 0-0 0-0 Echo 0-0 0-0 Horizon Christian 0-0 0-0 Ione/Arlington 0-0 0-0 Klickitat/Glenwood 0-0 0-0 Lyle/Wishram 0-0 0-0 Mitchell/Spray 0-0 0-0 Sherman 0-0 0-0 South Wasco County 0-0 0-0 Trout Lake 0-0 0-0 1A OLD OREGON LEAGUE Team Cove Elgin Griswold Imbler Joseph Nixyaawii Pine Eagle Powder Valley Wallowa League Overall 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 5A INTERMOUNTAIN CONFERENCE Team Pendleton Hood River Valley Redmond The Dalles Ridgeview Crook County League Overall 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-01 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 4A/3A MID-COLUMBIA Team Richland Kamiakin Pasco Kennewick Hermiston Hanford Southridge Chiawana Walla Walla League Overall 5-1 5-1 4-1 4-1 4-1 4-1 3-2 3-2 3-3 3-3 2-3 2-3 2-4 2-4 1-4 1-4 0-5 0-5 3A EASTERN OREGON LEAGUE COLLEGE WOMEN’S SOCCER NWAC EAST DIVISION 2A BLUE MOUNTAIN CONFERENCE League Overall 6-2-4 6-2-4 6-2-3 6-2-3 5-0-3 5-0-3 4-4-0 4-4-0 2-5-4 2-5-4 1-4-3 1-4-3 0-7-1 0-7-1 0-0-0 0-0-0 PREP BOYS BASKETBALL 5A INTERMOUNTAIN CONFERENCE Team Pendleton Hood River Valley Redmond The Dalles Ridgeview Crook County League Overall 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-01 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 4A/3A MID-COLUMBIA Team Kamiakin Walla Walla Richland Hanford Kennewick Chiawana Hermiston Southridge League Overall 5-0 5-0 4-1 4-1 4-2 4-2 3-2 3-2 3-2 3-2 3-2 3-2 1-5 1-5 1-5 1-5 Team Heppner Weston-McEwen Pilot Rock Stanfield Grant Union Union Enterprise League Overall 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 League Overall 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 1A BIG SKY LEAGUE Team League Overall Bickleton 0-0 0-0 Condon/Wheeler 0-0 0-0 Dufur 0-0 0-0 Echo 0-0 0-0 Horizon Christian 0-0 0-0 Ione/Arlington 0-0 0-0 Klickitat/Glenwood 0-0 0-0 Lyle/Wishram 0-0 0-0 Mitchell/Spray 0-0 0-0 Sherman 0-0 0-0 South Wasco County 0-0 0-0 Trout Lake 0-0 0-0 1A OLD OREGON LEAGUE Team Cove Elgin Griswold Imbler Joseph Nixyaawii Pine Eagle Powder Valley Wallowa League Overall 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 ON THE SLATE Schedule subject to change TUESDAY, MAY 25 Prep boys basketball Crook County at Pendleton, 6:30 p.m. Umatilla at Stanfield, 7:30 p.m. Pilot Rock at Riverside, 7:30 p.m. Irrigon at Heppner, 7:30 p.m. McLoughlin at Weston-McEwen, 7:30 p.m. Cove at Griswold, 6 p.m. Prep girls basketball Pendleton at Crook County, 7 p.m. McLoughlin at Weston-McEwen, 6 p.m. Irrigon at Heppner, 6 p.m. Pilot Rock at Riverside, 6 p.m. McLoughlin at Weston-McEwen, 6 p.m. Prep bowling Kennewick at Hermiston, 3:30 p.m. College men’s basketball Mission: The A’s are also to visit Las Vegas Continued from Page A12 Are the A’s actually seri- ous about moving? Meaning, is this a bluff? That’s become the question to ask. Because it may very well prove that we’re all being used here. Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf said she’s commit- ting to keeping the A’s. The city council is expected to review another stadium proposal in July. But the A’s are apparently discouraged enough with the landscape to stop privately talking and begin taking sight-see- ing road trips. Las Vegas will likely offer to build the A’s a new stadium. It will throw financial incentives at the baseball club, find inves- tors willing to partner on the real estate, and attempt to add the A’s to its grow- ing stable of professional sports offerings. Goodman will be the project manager, because at this point she’s essentially the entire A’s to Las Vegas pitch. Portland has some disadvantages it needs to shore up. Ones I’ve written about that need more careful examina- tion. Our downtown needs a massive and immediate clean-up effort. Our city and state politicians also need to study the “Good- man Effect” in Vegas and ask whether we’d be inter- ested in adding a multi-bil- lion-dollar entity to our region. The A’s to Port- land would bring massive construction, real estate development, housing, infrastructure, jobs and tax revenue. If the MLB franchise really is on the move, this feels like a Portland vs. Las Vegas battle. Right now, because of the aforemen- tioned issues, I’d probably make Portland a six-point underdog. But that’s some- thing our city could easily overcome with adjust- ments. It would require going all-in along with the smart, well-funded effort already underway. We’d Portland Diamond Project/Contributed Rendering The Portland Diamond Project released new renderings of their proposed MLB stadium. also need a distinct and noticeable pivot from city and state leadership. The Portland Diamond Project has some preferred stadium sites, owns ball- park renderings, and already has an estimated $2 billion-plus in financial commitments. The group has solid momentum and has positioned itself as either a relocation or expan- sion candidate. (The more I think about it, maybe the line should only be Port- land +3?) Team Goodman’s “Pleasure Island” pitch will be difficult to resist at first glance, but if I’m the Oakland A’s I’m tired of being treated like a second- class franchise. The A’s have to ask themselves where they’d rank among the enter- tainment offerings if they moved to Las Vegas. Not in front of the NHL’s Golden Knights or the NFL’s Raiders. They’d again be second-tier. Probably just after the Knights/Raiders and somewhere just above the Blue Man Group and UNLV athletics. Also, they’d be playing games when it’s 114 degrees outside. In Oregon, the A’s would be the summer headliner. MLB’s regular season works nicely in contrast to the Trail Blazers’ (Octo- ber to April) NBA regular season. Baseball isn’t likely to cannibalize the success of the Timbers and Thorns, either. There’s a finite amount of local corporate sponsorship dollars but we’re essentially the most underserved sports market in the country. It should be noted that there’s a difference between event “attendees” in Las Vegas and “fans” in Port- land at play here. The A’s might draw a crowd in Vegas. But they’d get a fan base in Portland. I’m not sure the fact finding visit will capture how much untapped enthusiasm there is in Oregon for another major league sport. Also, the potential TV rights contract for market No. 21 (PDX) would be stand to be more lucra- tive than No. 39 (LAS). Currently, six MLB clubs claim Las Vegas in their broadcast “territory” rights. That will be a head- ache to unravel. Only the Seattle Mariners — three hours away by car — currently claim Portland. I have to think families from Eugene, Corvallis, Bend and other parts of the state would make regu- lar outings to downtown Portland to catch a week- end A’s series. They’d stay in hotels, visit restaurants and help revitalize the city. But I’m getting ahead of myself now. We’ll remain underdogs until the city is cleaned up and the politi- cians actively support MLB to PDX. The news here is that the A’s are coming to Portland to kick the tires. They’ll visit with the Portland Diamond Project partners and probably get an aerial tour of the city. There’s no more strategic way to see the Portland right now. The wonderful potential of our city, now a sleeping giant, has to be part of the pitch. The A’s are going to visit Las Vegas this week. I hope they have a nice trip, see a show, and think about whether they’d matter much amid the noise. It’s a growing city with great night life and memorable pool parties. But no way is Las Vegas the best place for the A’s franchise. Not as long as Portland is in play. ——— John Canzano is a columnist with The Orego- nian. for the 100 meters. “That girl has been wait- ing and dreaming for a big jump,” Strot said. “It was something she and I knew was coming. I’m glad she got to go out on a high note.” Young was the only Hermiston girl on the first team, but Bailey Young was a second-team pick for the shot put (41-10¾). There also were several athletes sprin- kled throughout the honor- able mention team. “Two years ago, it was a rough year,” Strot said of the Bulldogs’ first year in the MCC. “We had two make all conference. This year, when I saw the list, we had boys and girls all over the place. It’s a testament to the kids, our program and the work they have put in. It was excit- ing to see.” Walla Walla senior Ella Nelson, who has signed to run at University of Oregon, was named the Track Athlete of the Year, while Hanford junior Katelynn Gelston was the Field Athlete of the Year. PREP GIRLS BASKETBALL Team Burns Nyssa Vale Umatilla Riverside Irrigon Team Walla Walla Columbia Basin Spokane Blue Mountain Yakima Valley North Idaho Treasure Valley Wenatchee Valley 0-0 Tuesday, May 25, 2021 Blue Mountain at Treasure Valley, 6:30 p.m. College women’s basketball Blue Mountain at Treasure Valley, 4:30 p.m. WEDNESDAY, MAY 26 Prep boys basketball Nixyaawii at Powder Valley, 7 p.m. Grant Union at Heppner, 7:30 p.m. Dufur at Echo, 7:30 p.m. Umatilla JV at Griswold, 6 p.m. Prep girls basketball Nixyaawii at Union, 5 p.m. Grant Union at Heppner, 6 p.m. Prep wrestling Hermiston at Southridge, 5 p.m. Prep lacrosse Chiawana at Hermiston, 7 p.m. Track: Continued from Page A12 including the MCC title, where her leap of 18-1 broke the school record of 17-10½, set by Mariah Delepierre in 2011. Young also was an honorable mention pick