E AST O REGONIAN
THURSDAY, JUNE 24, 2021
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A8
A RUN FOR TOKYO
Enterprise High
and Western
Oregon University
standout goes to
Olympic trials
Cindy Potter/Eastern Oregon University, File
Megan Bunn competes for the Eastern Oregon
University Mountaineers during a 2019 match.
By RONALD BOND
Wallowa County Chieftain
Bunn takes
over Hermiston
volleyball
E
NTERPRISE — David
Ribich is set to make a run
for the 2021 Olympics.
The former Enterprise
High School and West-
ern Oregon University standout will
compete at the U.S. Olympic Trials
inside Eugene’s Hayward Field, vying
to earn one of three spots in the men’s
1,500-meter run to the Summer Olympic
Games, which start next month in Tokyo.
The trials started June 18 and run
through June 27. Ribich takes to the track
for the fi rst time Thursday, June 24, in
the fi rst round of the 1,500.
Competing in the trials has been a
lifelong goal for Ribich, and he knows
garnering one of those coveted top three
spots will be a challenge.
“It’s going to be one of the hard-
est teams to make for Tokyo,” he said,
speaking of a fi eld that includes Matthew
Centrowitz, the reigning Olympic cham-
pion in the 1,500. “Going into that race,
it’ll be a tall order.”
Ribich enters the trials as an under-
dog, and as such, feels no pressure.
“I approach it just like that,” he said
of the dark horse role. “Try not to make
it a bigger deal than it is. … Taking it one
moment at a time and letting myself be
present in that race is what it’s about.”
He is ranked 28th out of 30 competi-
tors in the 1,500 with a qualifying time
of 3:37.44. He said, though, that time
was from June 2019, and since then, he
has been keeping up with some of the
top-seeded runners in the race, including
his Brooks Beasts Track Club teammate
Henry Wynne.
“I’ve been working closely with him
the last four months,” Ribich said of
Wynne.
Wynne has the third-best qualifying
time at 3:34.08, and Ribich said in train-
ing, “We’re not separated by more than
a few decimals.”
Centrowitz has the top qualifying
time at 3:32.81. His winning time in 2016
was 3:50.00.
Competitors will have to make it
through two rounds of the race just to
reach the 1,500 fi nal. The semifi nal race
is June 25, and the fi nal is June 27. Of the
30 initial runners, 24 will reach the semi-
fi nals, but the fi eld will be cut in half to
12 for the fi nal race.
“First round is pretty much stay clear
of contact (with other runners),” he said,
calling the semifi nal race much more
“cutthroat.”
He also plans to adopt a game plan
that allowed him to run a personal best
in the 5,000 at the Portland Track Festi-
val last month and come within about a
second of reaching the trials in that race.
“I’ve had race plans going into races,
and more often than not I’ve failed them,”
he said. “My race plan (last month) was
to run through the race and respond on
instinct.”
ON THE SLATE
Thursday, June 24
Prep boys basketball
1A state tournament: Nixyaawii
Coach was a two-time
NAIA All-American at
Eastern Oregon University
By ANNIE FOWLER
East Oregonian
Jenny Reinheardt/Contributed Photo
David Ribich, shown competing at the Portland Track Festival in May, runs his fi rst
race in the Olympic Trials at Eugene’s Hayward Field Thursday, June 24, 2021.
ON TELEVISION
NBC and NBCSN are televising the Olympic Track and Field Trials. NBCSN has
coverage from 6-9 p.m. Thursday, June 24, and 2-5 p.m. June 25. NBC’s coverage is
6-8 p.m. June 26 and 4-5:30 June 27.
Ribich races at 6:04 p.m. June 24, at 4:05 p.m. June 25 if he reaches the semifi nals,
and at 5:10 p.m. June 27 if he reaches the fi nals.
He said he won’t be trailing any
specific runners, but instead will be
looking for a key moment in the race —
maybe “an opening or gap that needs to
be fi lled, or a moment where it’s time for
me to take the lead.”
“If I can be on in that moment, I think
I could have a pretty deadly maneuver to
put myself in position,” he said, saying he
needs to be hunting for that opportunity.
Ribich said it is “tough to say” what
impact the coronavirus pandemic had
on his training. On one hand, he was
reaching a spike in his training program
where most athletes under his coach take
off . On the other hand, the shutdown
vs. TBD; Ione/Arlington vs. TBD
Prep girls basketball
1A state tournament: Nixyaawii
vs. TBD
enabled him to focus on his health. He
had a platelet-rich plasma injection done
on his Achilles tendon to help heal some
damage from wear and tear. For a while
after he wasn’t running, and instead
spent more time working on an ellipti-
cal or swimming. He added the year was
“needed.”
Now?
“I’ve never felt more like myself, and
never felt more confi dent,” he said.
And while he may be an underdog, he
is optimistic of his chances to run for a
spot in Tokyo.
“My coaches, myself and my family
believe that is a possibility,” he said.
Friday, June 25
No events scheduled
Saturday, June 26
Prep wrestling
Riverside at 3A state tourna-
ment, Redmond
Heppner, Echo/Stanfi eld at 2A
state tournament, Sweet Home
HERMISTON — When it
comes to volleyball, Megan
Bunn has found success at every
level.
Hermiston High School is
keen that winning attitude will
continue as the Bulldogs’ new
Bunn
coach.
“Coach Bunn has been
successful in volleyball everywhere she has been,”
Hermiston Athletic Director Larry Usher said.
“We are confi dent she will bring that competitive
spirit to the Dawg House every day.”
Bunn, 23, will replace Becky Wadekamper,
who recently stepped down after one season.
“Becky had gotten ahold of me,” Bunn said.
“I think she was looking for some knowledge-
able coaches to take on and be a part of the staff . I
didn’t think she was trying to recruit me as a head
coach. It was kind of a last-minute decision for her.
Life happens. She let me know it was open and she
recommended that I apply. I guess she saw some
potential in me.”
A 6-foot outside hitter, Bunn was standout
at Eastern Oregon University, where she was a
two-time NAIA All-American, and an assistant
coach for the Mountaineers, who are a frequent
participant at the NAIA Tournament.
While at Eastern, Bunn compiled 1,331 kills,
the second most in program history. She also had
1,011 digs to become the fi rst player in program
history with at least 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs. She
ranks sixth on the all-time digs list.
Her senior year, she was named to the NAIA
Volleyball National All-Tournament team after
posting three consecutive matches of 20 or more
kills.
At the 2019 NAIA Tournament, she broke the
EOU record for most kills in a match with 32 in
a loss to Lindsey Wilson. She fi nished the season
with 455 kills and 410 digs, making her a threat
no matter where she was on the fl oor.
“I’ve defi nitely had a lot of experience,” Bunn
said. “I have seen a lot of things, I have been
through a lot as a player, and I have grown through
that. I have had success, but that has been because
of the coaches I have had. Taking over a program,
I hope I can do as good a job as my coaches.”
A 2016 graduate of Banks High School, Bunn
was a four-time fi rst-team all-conference selec-
tion in the Cowapa League. She led the Braves to
the state title her senior year and was named the
Oregon 4A Player of the Year.
“I am young, and it’s a big responsibility to take
on,” said Bunn, who also will teach fi fth grade at
Desert View Elementary School. “It’s more about
getting the girls excited about the game and shar-
ing my passion for the game. I’m hoping to bring
a fresh mindset to the game. I am very excited to
start this program. A big reason I wanted to take
the job is I have heard some really good things
about the community. They have great support
from everyone.”
SPORTS SHORT
Hammon, D’Antoni, Billups to receive
2nd interviews for Trail Blazers job
By AARON FENTRESS
The Oregonian
PORTLAND — Brooklyn
assistant coach Mike D’An-
toni is among the fi nalists to
replace Terry Stotts as the Port-
land Trail Blazers’ next coach
and is scheduled to interview
for a second time, according to
a report from ESPN’s Adrian
Wojnarowski.
San Antonio assistant
Becky Hammon became
the fi rst woman to be named
a finalist for an NBA head
coaching position and, accord-
ing to Wojnarowski, the
former WNBA All-Star held
her second interview with the
Blazers on Monday.
Hammon has spent the past
seven seasons with the Spurs.
Also set to receive a second
interview is Los Angeles
Clippers assistant Chuancey
Billups, who reportedly is also
a fi nalist for the vacant coach-
ing position in Boston.
Other candidates that
reportedly have interviewed
for the Portland job are South
Carolina coach Dawn Staley
and Spurs vice president of
basketball operations Brent
Barry.
The Blazers and coach Terry
Stotts agreed to part ways after
nine seasons on June. 4.
San Antonio
head coach
Gregg
Popovich,
left, talks with
assistant coach
Becky Hammon,
right, during
the second
half of against
Orlando on
Friday, March
12, 2021.
Eric Gay/
The Associated
Press, File