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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (May 21, 2022)
E AST O REGONIAN SATURDAY, MAY 21, 2022 FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @EOSPORTS | FACEBOOK.COM/EOSPORTS B1 Buff alo Peak Golf Course to host Eastern Oregon Junior Championship By DAVIS CARBAUGH The Observer UNION — The state’s top youth golfers are set to return to Buff alo Peak Golf Course in Union. The local course is gearing up to host the Eastern Oregon Junior Championship, the first leg of the Oregon Junior Golf Associ- ation summer tour. The tourna- ment, which is in its second year in Union, begins Saturday, May 21, and concludes Sunday, May 22. “It’s a pretty awesome thing for our county,” Buff alo Peak General Manager Dana Londin said. The Eastern Oregon Junior Championship is the fi rst of a full slate of summer tournaments that stretch across the entire state. The tour extends through the months of June, July and August, with the season culmination in Septem- ber. More than 80 golfers will take the fairways at Buff alo Peak for the annual competition. After hosting the 91st Bob Norquist Oregon Junior Amateur tournament last summer, Buff alo Peak secured the fi rst leg of the junior tour for this season and the following four years. Golfers competing on the tour are between the ages of 8 and 18, with the high- est marks in the state. The tour fi eld primarily consists of golfers from the west side of the state, with many of the young athletes visiting East- ern Oregon for the fi rst time. Last year’s tournament was a success for the local golf course, serv- ing as a showcase to the Oregon Golf Association and the golf community in the region. The tournament was a large factor in the course receiving the 2021 facility of the year award by the Oregon Golf Association — the award is given to the course with the overall highest contributions to the game of golf, the community and the Oregon Golf Association. A major diff erence between last year’s tournament and this year’s is a new and improved pro shop at Buff alo Peak. Community members donated materials necessary for the renovations, which entailed new wood paneling and new shelving. The store is now stocked with top golf brands like Ping, Callaway, Cleveland, Titleist, Evnroll Putters, Asics, Puma and more. The Island See Golf, Page B2 BRAD TRUMBO UPLAND PURSUITS Learning patterns a key to tricking turkeys S Kathy Aney/East Oregonian Pendleton’s Anders Oja competes in the 300-meter hurdles at the Intermountain Conference track and fi eld championships May 14, 2022, in Prineville. Oja won the event with a time of 40.45 seconds to earn a trip to state. Pendleton swept the top three spots. Hurdling toward success Oja is looking to leave his mark on the Pendleton track team By ANNIE FOWLER East Oregonian P ENDLETON — Long before Andy Oja burst onto the track scene, his grandpa George Oja was forging a path in the sport as a mara- thon runner. The Pendleton senior races at the 5A state track and fi eld meet Friday and Saturday, May 20-21, at Hayward Field in Eugene, a place his grandpa once competed. “My grandpa did indeed run at Hayward, although he said it was not at a noteworthy event,” Andy Oja said. “I’m sure excited to run there. I went down there and watched a meet. That facil- ity is amazing. It will be fun to run there.” George Oja will be in the crowd this weekend, watch- ing his grandson run in the 110 hurdles, the 300 hurdles, the 4x100 relay and the 4x400 relay. “You could tell he was going to be something special his fresh- man year, and having a year where he could work with Lane (Maher), Ty (Patrick) and Dustin (Henderson),” Pendleton hurdles coach Ben Bradley said. “We told him he was going to be Lane’s replacement. He has stepped in and fi lled those shoes.” It has been a long journey for Oja to reach the state meet. His able to run at the big meets,” Oja said. “Lane’s got that cool record of 38.75 in 300s, which is 1.2 seconds ahead of mine. It would be great to have that record.” This year, Oja has the third best time going into state in the 110 hurdles at 15.40, and has the top time in the 300s at 40.45, which he ran last weekend at “THESE GUYS HAVE BEEN GETTING BETTER AND BETTER ALL SEASON LONG. THAT HAS BEEN A DIFFERENCE MAKER FOR US. GUYS HAVE BEEN STEPPING UP.” — Ben Bradley, Pendleton hurdles coach freshman year he was behind three outstanding hurdlers. The coronavirus pandemic canceled the 2020 meet, and Oja broke his arm during the third meet of the season last year. “We had a pretty strong team back then (2019) and I wasn’t the Intermountain Conference district meet. Oja has won every 110 and 300 hurdle event this year except one — he was fourth in the 110s at the Nike/Jesuit Relays on April 29. There was not a 300 hurdle race at the event. “I’m following in his (Maher’s) footsteps to win a state title,” Oja said. “In 300s, I’m ranked fi rst right now. Running at Jesuit, I didn’t have my fastest time, but it helps having that kind of competition.” While he is good at both, he said he doesn’t prefer one over the other. “I like them both a lot,” Oja said. “They are diff erent. They are aggressive in their own ways. In the 110s, the hurdles are closer together. The 300 is tactical in its own way, and it’s longer and you are really pushing yourself that last 110. The 110s, it’s a quick blast and you are done.” With the proper mindset and a good start out of the blocks, Bradley sees Oja on the top of the medal podium. “I think Andy has a great chance at taking home fi rst in the 110s and 300s,” Bradley said. “I still don’t think we have touched what he is capable of. I hope he taps into that and gets onto the See Hurdles, Page B2 pring is upon us, and with the return of hummingbirds and the onset of fl ower and fruit tree bloom comes the wild turkey breeding and hunting seasons. The thunderous gobble of a dashing mature tom (male) puff ed up and strutting to impress the ladies induces heart-racing, palm-sweating and immense anticipation for the fanatic turkey hunter. A wild turkey’s keen vision and hearing makes for a challenging hunt. Turkeys are notoriously diffi cult to call, and successful hunts often require years of prac- tice to perfect call techniques and positioning for the bird’s approach. Embracing and learning from failure is part of the game, but scouting fl ocks and identifying their patterns on patchwork landscapes gives the hunter an advantage, particularly when hunting the Rio Grande (Rio) turkeys of the Blue Mountains. See Turkey, Page B2 ON THE SLATE Schedule subject to change SATURDAY, MAY 21 Prep Lacrosse 3A state quarterfi nals: Hermiston at Roosevelt, TBD Tennis Pendleton at 5A state tournament, Babette Hornstein Tennis Center, 8 a.m. Umatilla, Weston-McEwen, Riverside at 4A/3A/2A/1A state tournament, Ore- gon State University, Corvallis, 8 a.m. Track and fi eld Hermiston at District 8 Championships, Spokane, TBD 4A state championships, Hayward Field, Eugene, TBD 5A state championships, Hayward Field, Eugene, TBD THURSDAY, MAY 26 Track and fi eld Hermiston at 3A state championships, Tacoma, TBD SPORTS SHORT EOU women’s lacrosse coach announces resignation team faced challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic. LA GRANDE — Eastern Eastern earned the program’s Oregon University women’s lacrosse first official victory on Feb. 12, head coach Monica Plut is defeating Whitworth, 8-6. set to resign, the universi- The Mountaineers tallied ty’s athletic director Anji a 1-6 record overall in the Weissenfl uh announced on 2022 season, which ended in early April. April 20. In 2021 Eastern played Plut served as the team’s head coach from January strictly exhibition matches, 2020 through April of this taking the fi eld for the fi rst season, leading the way for Plut time. The Mountaineers Eastern’s fi rst two years as tallied a 1-4 record. an offi cial program. Eastern is one of three schools in The Mountaineers played their the Cascade Collegiate Conference fi rst offi cial season in 2022, after the that sponsor the sport as an offi cial The Observer program. Plut put a large emphasis on expanding the sport locally and in the region during her time as head coach at Eastern — the former coach worked with local middle schools and high schools, teaching the sport. Plut previously coached at Adams State University, a Divi- sion II school in Colorado — she also served as a high school coach before joining the program at East- ern Oregon. According to the press release from Eastern’s athletic department, the university is in the process of conducting a national search for the team’s next head coach. Samantha Buckley (5) faces off against Catie Kawamura (19) during the match Feb. 19, 2022, between Eastern Oregon University and Willamette University at Community Stadium, La Grande. The Mountaineers lost 17-6 against the visiting Bearcats. EO Media Group, File