E AST O REGONIAN
SATURDAY, APRIL 16, 2022
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B1
PHS girls soccer coach gone
Rickman led
the Bucks to
the 5A state
playoff s last fall
The hardest part of stepping
down for Rickman was telling her
team.
“It was super hard to tell the
girls,” she said. “I was dreading it.
They were really mature about it.”
This past fall the Bucks were
11-4-1 overall and 7-2-1 in the Inter-
mountain Conference. Rickman
was named IMC Coach of the Year
and the 5A state Coach of the Year.
Pendleton won its fi rst-ever state
playoff game — a 2-1 victory over
Thurston — before losing a 4-0
battle to La Salle Prep in the 5A
state quarterfi nals. It also was the
fi rst year the Bucks had ever won
10 games in a season.
By ANNIE FOWLER
East Oregonian
P
ENDLETON — Just when
Pendleton Athletic Direc-
tor Mike Somnis thought
the fl ood of coaches leav-
ing the school had stopped, girls
soccer coach Kiana Rickman was
added to the list.
“It is what it is,” Somnis said.
“Sometimes it goes in bunches.
All of these decisions are life deci-
sions, chance and timing. She’s a
phenomenal teacher (history) and
coach. She’s a big loss for our soccer
program. We are going to miss her.”
Rickman’s husband, Nate, has
been accepted to physical therapy
school in Minnesota and Wiscon-
sin, and still is waiting to hear from
a program in Hawaii. The program
is two years long.
“I’m sad,” Rickman said. “I have
been here three years and time has
really fl own by. It was an awesome
fi rst job. I am excited for the next
adventure.”
The Bucks will be dropping
down to 4A and the Greater Oregon
A true Buckaroo
Dillon George/Contributed Photo
Pendleton girls soccer coach Kiana Rickman, with super fan Louie, an-
nounced in April 2022 she is leaving the role for personal reasons. She
led the Bucks to the 5A state playoff s and was named the 5A Coach of the
Year in 2021.
League this coming fall, and Rick-
man said she sees good things for
the team.
“I’m so excited for them,” she
said. “They will do amazing things.
I think we built a really good culture
in the program. Going into the GOL
will be a good transition for them.”
A fl y rod for every occasion
ON THE SLATE
SATURDAY, APRIL 16
TUESDAY, APRIL 19
Prep baseball
Weston-McEwen at Pilot Rock (2), 11 a.m.
Stanfi eld/Echo at Sherman (2), 11 a.m.
Prep baseball
Umatilla at Riverside, 4 p.m.
Union at Stanfi eld/Echo, 4 p.m.
Kamiakin at Hermiston, 4 p.m.
Pilot Rock at Heppner, 4:30 p.m.
The Dalles at Pendleton, 4:30 p.m.
Prep softball
Weston-McEwen at Pilot Rock (2), 11 a.m.
Echo/Stanfi eld at Union (2), 2 p.m.
BRAD
TRUMBO
Boys soccer
Hanford at Hermiston, 7 p.m.
UPLAND PURSUITS
he night before my fi rst
desert rainbow trip of the
year, I stared into my fl y
rod cabinet at the impressive
lineup that had accumulated
over the years. I sought two rods,
approximately fi ve-weight, one
for a fl oating line to cast nymphs
and the other for stripping
streamers on a sinking line.
The trouble was that the
number of rods and nondescript
casing made it diffi cult to deci-
pher which were the fi ve-weights
among them or which of the
fi ve-weights I was looking for.
I would be casting from infl at-
Rickman (nee Sperl), a 2015
Pendleton graduate, went on to
play soccer at Nebraska-Wesleyan
University for the Prairie Wolves.
She also had off ers to play college
basketball, but chose the sport she
had been playing since she was 4
years old.
“I liked basketball games a lot,”
she said. “I liked playing, but not
set plays. My basketball coaches
were awesome.”
Rickman fi nished her Pendleton
soccer career with 31 goals and the
school’s record for hat tricks in a
season with three.
Rickman returned to Pendleton
three years ago to teach and took
Prep Tennis
Hermiston at Tri-City Invite, 8 a.m.
Prep lacrosse
Hermiston at Wenatchee, 7 p.m.
T
Track and fi eld
Hermiston, Pendleton, Pilot Rock at Pasco
Invite, 9:10 a.m.
Ione at Sherman Invitational, 10 a.m.
College baseball
Treasure Valley at Blue Mountain (2), 1 p.m.
College softball
Walla Walla at Blue Mountain (2), noon
Brad Trumbo/Contributed Photo
Rods, reels, nymphs and streamers selected for a day on a desert lake.
able watercraft, which puts the
angler right down on the water. A
fast-action rod with some length
would be important for handling
long leaders and heavy fl ies.
The year prior, I made the
See Fishing, Page B2
over the soccer program two years
ago.
It was a job she didn’t know she
wanted.
“Troy Jerome (former athletic
director) approached me about the
job,” Rickman said. “He had to
convince me. I didn’t know how
long we would be here, and I didn’t
know if I wanted the head job. I
was so glad I did it. I had Rocky
(Dillenburg) and Ty Burchard
helping out my fi rst year. This year,
Dillon George helped me out. It
was great having that experience
behind me.”
Dillenburg was Rickman’s high
school soccer and tennis coach her
senior year.
“Most of my coaching style is
based on what Rocky taught us,”
Rickman said.
Rickman and her husband are
high school sweethearts, having
been together since their sopho-
more year in high school.
Nate Rickman was a standout
swimmer for the Bucks. He was
part of the 200-medley relay team,
along with Jon Jennings, Layton
Kirsch and Dylan Clemons, that
placed fourth at the 5A state meet
in 2015 with a time of 1:44.94.
He also placed fourth in the 50
meter freestyle and was part of
the 200 freestyle relay team that
placed second. The Bucks placed
fi fth in the team standings.
MONDAY, APRIL 18
Prep tennis
Ridgeview boys at Pendleton, 3 p.m.
Pendleton girls at Ridgeview, 3 p.m.
Prep golf
Pendleton girls at Eagle Crest, Redmond,
11 a.m.
Prep softball
Kennewick at Hermiston, 4 p.m.
Umatilla at Echo/Stanfi eld JV, 4 p.m.
Irrigon at Heppner/Ione, 4 p.m.
Pendleton at The Dalles, 4:30 p.m.
Boys soccer
Kennewick at Hermiston, 7 p.m.
Prep tennis
La Grande at McLoughlin, 3 p.m.
Weston-McEwen at Riverside, 3:30 p.m.
Richland at Hermiston, 4 p.m.
Ione/Heppner at Stanfi eld/Echo, 4 p.m.
Prep lacrosse
Hermiston at Chiawana, 7:30 p.m.
Track and fi eld
Heppner, Pilot Rock, Stanfi eld/Echo at
District 2A-5 Preview, Weston-McEwen,
3:30 p.m.
College softball
Blue Mountain at Treasure Valley (2), 1 p.m.
SPORTS SHORT
Northwest University to add beach volleyball
The Observer
KIRKLAND — Northwest
University Director of Athlet-
ics Gary McIntosh formally
announced the sponsorship
of beach volleyball beginning
in 2022-23.
Following the addition of beach
volleyball, Northwest will spon-
sor 11 athletic programs in the
National Association of Intercol-
legiate Athletics. The addition of
beach volleyball will add approx-
imately 12 female student-athlete
opportunities to the Northwest
athletic program and will become
the seventh female sport at
Northwest University.
“We are excited about the oppor-
tunity to add beach volleyball to our
department,” said McIntosh. “We
are confi dent that beach volley-
ball will be a good addition here at
Northwest and will achieve success
in conjunction with our current
women’s volleyball program.
Beach volleyball is a growing sport
in the NAIA, and we are excited to
bring that growth to Northwest.”
Beach volleyball consists
of two-player teams with dual
matches featuring fi ve pairs from
each team. The school that wins
three matches fi rst is the winner.
Each match consists of three sets
with the fi rst to 21 winning the
fi rst two sets and the third set to 15
points if needed.
“Beach volleyball competition
at Northwest is set to commence in
the spring of 2023. We are currently
searching for a head coach,” McIn-
tosh said.
Beach volleyball was declared
an emerging sport by the NAIA
in 2019 and has since garnered
national invitational tournament
status with more than 25 programs.
Though not a conference sport,
the Cascade Collegiate Conference,
which includes Eastern Oregon
University, has six member or asso-
ciate member schools sponsoring
the sport: Arizona Christian, Bush-
nell, Corban, Life Pacifi c, Southern
Oregon and Vanguard.
Bushnell University/Contributed Photo
Bushnell’s Camille Guerrero (20) prepares to spike the ball over the net
as Corban’s Avari Ridgway (23) defends during the Warriors’ 4-1 win
over Bushnell on April 2, 2022. Northwest University has announced it
is joining Corban and Bushnell in sponsoring beach volleyball in 2023.
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