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SATURDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2021
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Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian, File
B1
OSAA is going
digital with
playoff tickets
Hermiston’s Katelyn Heideman drives the
ball up the court during the second half
May 12, 2021, against the Hanford Falcons
at Hermiston High School. The Hermiston
senior recently has signed to play with the
University of Providence in Butte, Montana.
Tickets can be bought at the
gate for early round games
By ANNIE FOWLER
East Oregonian
LIVING THE DREAM
Hermiston’s Heideman signs to play basketball at University of Providence
By ANNIE FOWLER
East Oregonian
HERMISTON — Playing
college basketball has been a
dream of Katelyn Heideman’s
since she was in the fi fth grade.
The Hermiston senior
recently had her dream come
true, signing with the Univer-
sity of Providence in Butte,
Montana.
“I am super excited about
it,” Heideman said. “They are
a super competitive team, I
love the coaches, they make
sure you work hard, and I love
that. When I committed there, it
felt so right. I am super blessed
to have the opportunity I have
been given.”
Heideman, who plans to
major in business and manage-
ment, said she fell in love with
school and the program on her
Sept. 24 visit.
“It was amazing,” she said.
“I loved the family atmosphere
they have there. It’s a little
smaller of a campus, which I
like. Butte Falls is so beautiful.”
Argos coach William
Himmelberg, who is in his
12th season, said he is excited
to have Heideman, a 5-foot-5
guard, join his program.
“We are really excited that
Katelyn chose the University
of Providence,” he said. “She
comes from a strong high
school team and a great AAU
club team. I am excited about
how well Katelyn can shoot the
basketball. Her ability to shoot
the 3 at a high percentage, and
shoot it from deep range, will
make her a big threat.”
Hermiston reached the
District 8 playoff s in 2020, with
Heideman being a big part of
the team’s outside threat.
During the COVID-19
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian, File
Hermiston’s Katelyn Heideman drives toward the basket during
the second half June 15, 2021, against the Chiawana Riverhawks
at Hermiston High School. Heideman next heads to play college
ball with the University of Providence in Butte, Montana.
pandemic’s shortened 2021
spring season, the Bulldogs
were 4-3.
“We love how Katelyn
competes and she has good
quickness and has a great work
ethic,” Himmelberg said. “She
is a good fi t for our program,
and it was evident on her visit
she will have great chemistry
with our current players.”
Heideman already knows
soon-to-be and current Prov-
idence players Camryn Cart-
wright and Delaney Pink.
Both are from Chiawana High
School.
“I train with Camryn and
Delaney,” Heideman said. “It
will be fun to play with them.”
Pink plays basketball and
soccer for the Argos.
One last season
Heideman will be a key
player for new Hermiston coach
Jay Ego.
Ego already is familiar with
Heideman, who played on his
Oregon Elite basketball team
for two years in the Portland
area.
For Heideman, Ego is her
third high school basket-
ball coach in four years. Ego
replaced Maloree Moss.
“I am super excited he is our
coach,” Heideman said. “He
defi nitely knows how to coach
girls and motivate them without
a yell-in-your-face kind of way.
He has a very high basketball
IQ. As a team, we have gotten
better.”
Other key players return-
ing for the Bulldogs are Bailey
Young, Haylee Mercer, Alexis
Ackerman, Morgan Brown and
Adrianna Coleman.
“They are all great girls and
some of my closest friends,”
Heideman said. “It’s nice to
play with them and get to know
them as players. We all know
what we can do and what we
are capable of. I think we will
be OK.”
Heideman gets her love of
basketball from her parents.
Her dad, Aaron, played foot-
ball and basketball at Ione High
School, while her mom, Mary-
Jane, played volleyball and
basketball at Echo and Ione.
Heideman has stuck mainly
to basketball, except for a stint
on the track team as a fresh-
man.
“Basketball is my thing,” she
said. “I play all year around. I
just think basketball correlates
to life. If you put your mind to
it, you can achieve it. It teaches
you a lot. I am competitive and I
love how competitive it is.”
Heideman, who has worked
hard to improve her game, also
has taken advantage of track
coach Emilee Strot’s weight
training program for girls at the
high school the past four years.
She said it has been benefi cial.
“When I fi rst came in as a
freshman, I was tiny,” she said.
“It helped me a lot with strength
and speed.”
WILSONVILLE — The Oregon School
Activities Association is going digital with
tickets to all postseason events.
Starting with fall playoff s — football,
volleyball, soccer and cross-country — fans
can go online and purchase their tickets in
advance for events. They then will show
their e-ticket at the gate when arriving for
the event.
“Pre-sold digital tickets will take prece-
dence over any potential walk up at the day
of the event,” OSAA Assistant Executive
Director Kyle Stanfi eld wrote in a new
release. “It’s important that host facilities
are prepared to take these tickets at the
event.”
Though the digital tickets are preferred,
fans can pay at the door if the game is hosted
at a high school. Once playoff s reach neutral
sites (semifi nals and fi nals), e-tickets will be
the way to go.
In small communities where internet
is limited or fans prefer to pay at the gate,
Stanfi eld said the OSAA will work with
those communities to off er both.
“Each school and location may have
diff erent restrictions and we want to honor
those restrictions,” Stanfi eld said. “We will
be communicating consistently throughout
October and November.”
Having the option to pay at the gate
will be good for some fans, according to
Heppner Athletic Director and football
coach Greg Grant, who also sees the appeal
of digital tickets.
“If we do host a playoff game, it makes
sense to buy the tickets online,” Grant said.
“We may have to have people available to
help those who don’t have the technology or
the savvy to purchase them online.”
According to the OSAA, the COVID-
19 pandemic has changed every commu-
nity and every level of life over the past 18
months. The consumer has shifted to using
apps and digital services now more than
ever.
By not having large ticketed events the
last 18 months, the OSAA considers this the
perfect time to reset and start a new way of
thinking on how to enter contests.
The move to digital tickets also will
reduce the number of people needed for an
event. Venues no longer will need multiple
ticket sellers, just a couple of ticket scan-
ners. Finding people to work games has
been diffi cult for some schools. This move
helps reduce the number of people in the
ticket booths while providing frictionless
access to patrons.
See Tickets, Page B2
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian, File
Heppner fans watch from the stands during
the Mustangs’ 12-7 win over the Kennedy
Trojans in the 2019 Oregon School Activ-
ities Association Class 2A state title game
at Kennison Field in Hermiston. The OSAA
is going to sell tickets to postseason events
online starting the fall of 2021.
SPORTS SHORT
EOU men’s wrestling comes in at No. 5 in preseason poll
East Oregonian
Eastern Oregon University Athletics/Contributed Photo
Eastern Oregon University senior Noel Orozco (right), an
All-American at 285 pounds, returns for the Mountaineers
this season. The Cascade Collegiate Conference’s 2021-22
preseason poll has Eastern in the No. 5 spot.
LA GRANDE — The Cascade
Collegiate Conference released its
2021-22 preseason men’s wrestling
coaches’ poll. Eastern Oregon found
itself near the middle of the rankings
in the 12-team conference.
The Mountaineers checked in at No.
5 with 98 points and were just three
points away from being tied for fourth
with Vanguard University. EOU also is
the highest-ranked full-time member of
the CCC in the preseason poll.
Taking the top spot in the poll is
Menlo College with 131 points and
seven fi rst-place votes. Slotted second
is Embry-Riddle (Arizona) with
120 points and two fi rst-place votes.
Rounding out the top-three is Montana
State-Northern with two fi rst place
votes and 114 points.
Eastern will have an experienced
squad going into the 2021-22 campaign
with all fi ve National Association of
Intercollegiate Athletics national quali-
fi ers returning from last season, includ-
ing All-Americans Keegan Mulhill
(174 pounds) and Noel Orozco (285),
who are both seniors.
Also back are Luciano Fasulo (125),
Kyle Knudtson (184), Marco Retano
(197), and John Bittinger (165).
All six athletes will look to lead the
Mountaineers this season after fi nish-
ing the 2020-21 season ranked No. 18
in the NAIA.
The Mountaineers will look to make
the most of what is expected to be a full
regular season. They have 12 duals on
deck and seven tournaments. Eastern
will get things offi cially started Nov. 3
when they take on Western Wyoming
Community College in American Falls,
Idaho.