E AST O REGONIAN
SATURDAY, AUGUST 28, 2021
FOLLOW US ON
TWITTER @EOSPORTS |
FACEBOOK.COM/EOSPORTS
B1
Bucks able
to pick up a
Week 1 game
Pendleton will play at
Southridge on Sept. 3
By ANNIE FOWLER
East Oregonian
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
Weston-McEwen’s Genevieve Robinson (10) hits the ball Thursday, Aug. 26, 2021, during a four-set win over Dufur to open the season for the
TigerScots.
2A BMC CONTINUES
TO SHOW STRENGTH
Heppner, Stanfi eld,
W-M are formidable
volleyball programs
By ANNIE FOWLER
East Oregonian
ATHENA — After open-
ing matches Thursday, Aug. 26,
it’s not hard to see that the Blue
Mountain Conference is as strong
as it’s ever been.
Heppner, Stanf ield and
Weston-McEwen all won.
It’s that parity in the league
that makes each team better year
in and year out.
“We are definitely not the
favorite coming in,” W-M coach
Shawn White said. “Last year,
Union was as good as any 2A
team in the state. They did grad-
uate several good hitters, but they
will still be tough. Stanfi eld, real-
istically, is the team to beat. We
are going to give it a good shot.”
Tigers coach Blain Ganvoa
appreciates the kind words, but
after beating Irrigon 3-1 on Aug.
26, he said there still is work to
be done.
“He is being nice,” Ganvoa
said of White’s remark. “W-M is
always formidable. We haven’t
had the success consistently to
put us in that top tier, but we will
be there sooner than later. We still
have a long way to go and have
the girls keep it in perspective.
That comes with getting better
with every match, fi nding the
joy in every game and compet-
ing with each other.”
Heppner, who dominated with
Sydney Wilson in the lineup for
four years, is now without the
all-round threat after she gradu-
ated in the spring. The Mustangs
still were able to make quick
work of Riverside in their opener,
but once conference play rolls
around, the competition will be
fi erce.
The TigerScots have 35 play-
ers out this year, led by senior
setter Charli King. Setter is a
loose term for King, who also hits
and digs up every ball within a
country mile.
“We are going to ask a lot of
Charli this year with setting, as
well as hitting,” White said. “She
does a lot of good things for us.
Addie (Perkins) is coming along
and she will take some of the
sets this year so we can get some
swings out of Charli. She will be
a good setter. I wouldn’t have her
on varsity if she wasn’t.”
The TigerScots also have a
solid middle in 6-foot-1 junior
Genevieve Robinson.
“This is the fi rst time I have
ever had a player over 6 feet,”
White said. “She is working into
it; she will have a really good
year. She only started playing as a
freshman, then the whole COVID
thing hit. She has been learning
really fast. I’m really happy with
where she is.”
W-M has a few more non
league matches on the schedule
before heading into conference
play Sept. 16, hosting Pilot Rock.
“They are working hard,”
White said. “We just have to keep
our nose to the grindstone. I’m
very pleased with the group I’ve
got.”
One day at a time
Pendleton opens its season
Aug. 28, at the Lewiston Tour-
nament.
While early tournaments help
coaches gauge what they need to
work on, Bucks coach Amanda
Lapp will be happy to get out of
Lewiston with a couple of wins.
“I haven’t had them all
together yet,” Lapp said of her
team. “The first day we were
going to practice together, we
had a younger player test posi-
tive (for COVID-19), so we all
got shut down. We are taking four
varsity players to Lewiston. The
JV kids that I do have are fresh-
men. They have never played in a
high school match before. When
you throw them in a match, it’s a
learning experience. It will help
them during the season.”
Seniors Chloe Taber, Muriel
Hoisington and Nora Yoshioka,
along with junior Elsie Zaugg,
are the four returning players that
Lapp will have this weekend.
When the Bucks are at full
strength, they will have fi ve play-
ers who are 5-10 or taller.
“We have a tall group of girls
this year, which is really nice,”
Lapp said. “We don’t get that too
often. They meshed really nice
the fi rst couple of days we had
them. We were able to sit down
and go through some season
goals. If they put their heads
together, they can get it done.”
The Bucks will be without
senior hitter Daisy Jenness this
season, who is recovering from
a knee injury suff ered in basket-
ball.
“She is going really well,”
Lapp said. “She has physical ther-
apy every day. She is able to walk
on it. I’m bummed out that she
can’t play this season, but she will
be there with us.”
PENDLETON — The Pendleton
football team had its season opener,
Sept. 2, at La Grande canceled because
of COVID-19 precautions. But the
Bucks were able to pick up another
game.
Pendleton Athletic Director Mike
Somnis was notifi ed Monday, Aug. 23,
by La Grande Athletic Director Darren
Goodman they had players who tested
positive before practice started.
With just two weeks before their
game, there wasn’t enough time for
the mandatory quarantine and the
required number of practices in pads
for the Tigers.
“We are just taking precautions in
bringing them back properly,” Good-
man said. “We didn’t want to put
people in situations they weren’t ready
for.”
The Bucks were able to schedule a
non-league game at 7 p.m. on Sept. 3
at Southridge, which plays in the 6A-2
Metro League.
“The way the last year and a half
has gone, everyone is excited to have
a Week 1 game,” Somnis said. “Our
coaches and kids are looking forward
to that Friday night experience.”
As soon as Somnis found out they
would need a game, he posted on the
OSAA site of teams looking for games.
“We put out some feelers that we
were looking for a game,” Somnis said.
“When Southridge came available,
they jumped on it and reached out. It
was a good opportunity for us. Football
is one of those sports where you don’t
want to have a bye week. It’s big to get
a game like this.”
The Skyhawks were scheduled to
play Thurston, which also is in the
midst of COVID-19 protocols.
The Bucks will host Wilsonville in a
non-league game at 7 p.m. on Sept. 10.
Pac-12 decides
not to expand
SAN FRANCISCO — The Pac-12
said Thursday, Aug. 26, it will stand
pat with its membership and not look
to expand the 12-team conference,
making it highly unlikely the Big 12
schools being left behind by Texas and
Oklahoma will fi nd new Power Five
homes.
The announcement came two days
after the Pac-12, Atlantic Coast Confer-
ence and Big Ten pledged to work
together on governance issues and
scheduling agreements in football and
basketball.
The formation of a three-conference
alliance came a little less than a month
after the Southeastern Conference
invited Texas and Oklahoma to join
the league in 2025. The move would
coincide with the end of the Big 12’s
current television contract.
With Pac-12 expansion off the
board, and both the ACC and Big Ten
stating publicly that they are content
with their current membership, the
eight remaining Big 12 schools appear
to have limited options beyond stick-
ing together.
— The Associated Press
SPORTS SHORT
Ronaldo heading back to Manchester United
By STEVE DOUGLAS
Associated Press
Cristiano Ronaldo is headed back to
Manchester United.
The English club said Friday, Aug. 27,
it has reached an agreement with Juven-
tus for the transfer of the 36-year-old
Portugal forward, subject to agreement
of personal terms, visa and a medical
examination.
Ronaldo, a fi ve-time world player of
the year, told Juventus on Aug. 26 that he
no longer wanted to play for the Italian
club, coach Massimiliano Allegri said.
United did not disclose a transfer
fee for Ronaldo, but it is reported to be
$29.5 million. He had one year left on his
contract at Juventus.
Ronaldo played for United from
2003-09 and turned into a superstar
under the guidance of then-manager
Alex Ferguson.
“Everyone at the club looks
forward to welcoming Cristiano back
to Manchester,” United said in a brief
statement, ending a day of fast-moving
developments.
It is the latest blockbuster move of
the transfer window, with Lionel Messi
— Ronaldo’s long-time rival — having
joined Paris Saint-Germain after his
contract at Barcelona expired. PSG
forward Kylian Mbappe is also the
subject of a bid of about 160 million
euros ($188 million) from Real Madrid.
Hours before United confirmed
Ronaldo’s return to the club where he
scored 118 goals in 292 games, current
manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said
Ronaldo “knows that we’re here” if he
wanted to join.
Associated Press
Juventus’ Cristiano Ronaldo goes for the ball during
the Serie A soccer match between Udinese and Ju-
ventus, at the Dacia Arena in Udine, Italy, Sunday.