A12
SPORTS
East Oregonian
Tuesday, November 16, 2021
Character:
that kind of tip,” said Chris-
tensen, who said she never
counted the money until she
got home. “The boys kind of
went crazy.”
Christensen said she is
grateful for the generous
tip. With the extra money,
she will be able to fly her
son, Remington, home for
the holidays from Chapman
University in California.
Something she was not able
to do last year.
“We wanted to be thank-
ful for who paid for our tab
and to the kind waitress,”
Graham said. “If everyone
chips in a little bit, we can
make someone else’s day.”
As word got around that
the players were generous
and courteous beyond their
teenage years, one person
wrote in a Facebook post:
“We were in Denny’s today
having breakfast with one
of my favorite vets and saw
them all come in. They were
very respectful and they
were opening doors for the
elderly and thanking vets at
the tables on their way to be
seated. Definitely gives hope
for the future.”
The players’ kind act
was not lost on W-M coach
Kenzie Hansell.
“It’s an honor to be the
head coach at Weston-McE-
wen,” Hansell said. “It’s
not just what’s between the
white lines that matter. It’s
what happens off the field,
at home and in the commu-
nity. We talk about charac-
ter a lot. We are fortunate to
have them two hours a day.
It’s easy and a joy to coach
these great young me. I’m
proud of every single one of
them.”
Graham said it was nice
to go out as a group and be
welcomed.
“No matter where we
go, we are representing the
TigerScots,” he said. “We
want to keep that good repre-
sentation.”
remaining. The Mountain-
eer sideline and fans in
attendance erupted as the
team all but secured the
victory.
One final Hail Mary
attempt from the Raiders
was intercepted in the end
zone as the Eastern players
rushed the field in celebra-
tion.
Quinn was elite in his
final game in blue and gold,
totaling 284 passing yards,
one passing touchdown and
52 rushing yards. Eastern’s
defense made a strong stand
against Southern, holding
the Raiders to 292 yards of
total offense. In their final
games on the Eastern defen-
sive line, Sage DeLong and
Chase Van Wyck wreaked
havoc. Van Wyck tallied 3.5
tackles for loss and DeLong
totaled two tackles for loss
and half a sack.
While the victory will
not change the fact that a
six-game losing streak led
to a losing record this year,
fans will not soon forget the
late game heroics against
Southern.
After a 3-0 start to the
season, the Mountaineers
wrapped up the season sixth
in the Frontier Conference
at 4-6.
Continued from Page A11
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
Heppner’s Caden George (24) runs the ball for a touchdown
Saturday, Nov. 13, 2021, during the second half against the
Weston-McEwen TigerScots at Les Payne Field in Heppner.
The Heppner Mustangs defeated Weston-McEwen 40-0 in
the quarterfinal round of the Oregon School Activities Asso-
ciation Class 2A state football playoffs.
Mustangs:
Continued from Page A11
Weston-McEwen got the
ball to start the second half,
and the TigerScots drove
from their own 31 to the
Heppner 40 behind some nice
running by Levie Phillips.
On third-and-9, Heppner’s
Blane Mahoney sacked Peal
to force a punt.
“We knew after the half,
they would fire up the inten-
sity,” Coe said of the Tiger-
Scots. “We wanted to be
prepared.”
Heppner took over on its
own 23, and ran nearly 7
minutes off the clock during
its drive that ended with
George running 11 yards for
his second touchdown of the
day for a 20-0 lead.
Heading into the fourth
quarter, W-M had third-
and-37 at its own 13.
The TigerScots were
later forced to punt. Hisler
blocked Peal’s punt to
put the Mustangs at the
Weston-McEwen 13. Hisler
then ran the ball in for a
touchdown and a 26-0 lead.
From there, the Mustangs
added a 58-yard touchdown
run from Coe, and a 2-point
conversion run by Hisler for
a 34-0 lead with 7:33 to play
in the game.
“We were disappointed at
halftime,” Grant said of his
team. “They knew they had
to get to work.”
On the TigerScots’ ensu-
ing drive, Peal hit Dylan
Youncs on third-and-3.
Youncs was hit by Heppner
defensive lineman Conor
Brosnan, who knocked the
ball loose. Brosnan picked up
the ball and rumbled 25 yards
for the touchdown.
“Those hits do feel good,
not going to lie,” Bros-
nan said of the play. “I was
running and my calf was
cramping. I didn’t think I was
going to make it.”
Grant likes to see his line-
backers get a little glory now
and again.
“It’s nice to see his play
pay off,” Grant said. “Our
kids stepped up and they
were resilient.”
Hisler f inished with
110 yards rushing for the
Mustangs, who had 301 yards
on the day.
Hisler also had eight
tackles, while Mahoney had
six and two sacks. Brosnan
added seven tackles, while
Toby Nation and Tucker
Ashbeck each had six. Cade
Cunningham and Kegan
Steagall each recorded a
sack.
The TigerScots were held
to just 76 yards of offense,
and 115 yards in penalties
came back to haunt them.
“I want to thank the
senior class, the fans and the
community,” Hansell said.
“We have so many fans that
follow us everywhere.”
11/19/2021
“It’s nice to have local
teams feel like they can
come in as a group,” Chris-
tensen said. “They were so
polite. I told them to please
win. When the guy came
back to get his card, I told
them they were wonderful,
and they tipped me. I asked
him to call us and let us know
if they won. It’s important to
our business to support local
teams.”
The team’s bill came to
$493, and the anonymous
benefactor left Christensen
a 15% tip.
When the players got up
to leave, they handed Chris-
tensen a wad of cash and
thanked her. She told them
a tip had been left, but they
insisted.
“It was cool how they
were keeping up with all 25 of
us and the rest of the restau-
rant,” Blankenship said. “She
looked pretty excited.”
The original tip was
$73, and the players left her
another $82.
“I have been here for 23
years, I have never gotten
Quinn:
Continued from Page A11
of his career.
The redshirt senior threw
a dime down the middle of
the field to redshirt senior
Sage Wilkerson, breaking
the plane of the end zone
and giving Eastern the lead
with just three seconds
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
Weston-McEwen football players take to the field Oct. 1,
2021, with United States flags ahead of a game against
Heppner. The TigerScots on Thursday, Nov. 11, gathered
for a breakfast at Denny’s in Pendleton, two days before
facing Blue Mountain Conference rival Heppner in the
state football playoffs. The tab for the meal came to almost
$500, but a benefactor covered the cost, and the players
still left the waitress with cash tips totaling $82.
ON THE SLATE
FRIDAY, NOV. 19
College men’s basketball
Blue Mountain vs. Linn Benton at
WWCC, 6 p.m.
College women’s basketball
Edmonds at Blue Mountain, 7:30 p.m.
College cross-country
Eastern Oregon at NAIA National Cham-
pionships, 10:30 a.m.
College men’s wrestling
Simpson at Eastern Oregon, 7 p.m.
College women’s wrestling
Simpson at Eastern Oregon, 5 p.m.
Prep football
2A state semifinals: Heppner vs.
Coquille at McMinnville High School,
noon
College women’s basketball
Eastern Oregon vs. Montana Western,
THURSDAY, NOV. 18
Prep girls bowling
Kamiakin at Hermiston, 3 p.m.
SATURDAY, NOV. 20
Caldwell, Idaho, 2 p.m.
Lower Columbia at Blue Mountain,
5 p.m.
College men’s basketball
Blue Mountain vs. Mountain Home
AFB, 2 p.m.
SUNDAY, NOV. 21
College men’s wrestling
Eastern Oregon at Spokane Open, Spo-
kane, Washington, TBA
College women’s wrestling
Eastern Oregon at Spokane Open, Spo-
kane, Washington, TBA
College women’s basketball
Clark at Blue Mountain, 2 p.m.
TUESDAY, NOV. 23
Prep girls bowling
Hermiston at Kennewick, 2:30 p.m.
TUESDAY, NOV. 30
Prep girls basketball
Hermiston at Davis, 5:45 p.m.
Prep boys basketball
Hermiston at Davis, 7:30 p.m.
11/19/2021
Mention code: 21NovWanted