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TUESDAY, JUNE 14, 2022
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COUNTDOWN TO LAUNCH
Rockets
football team
under new
leadership
with Munkers
By ANNIE FOWLER
East Oregonian
PILOT ROCK — Shane
Munkers grew up playing
football in Heppner. Now,
he wants to share his passion
and knowledge of the game
with the next generation.
Munkers recently was
hired as the head football
coach at Pilot Rock High
School, where he was an
assistant coach for four
years.
“Really, I just missed
coaching,” said Munkers,
who played on the 1992
Heppner state champion-
ship team. “There are a lot
of kids out here who need
a positive infl uence in their
life. I thought I could fi ll that
for some of them.”
Munkers replaces Mike
Baleztena, who stepped
down after last season to
spend more time with his
family. He coached the
Rockets for seven seasons.
This past fall, Pilot Rock
started the season 2-0 before
injuries and suspensions
depleted the roster. The
Rockets fi nished 2-5.
“They had a lot of success
under Mike,” Munkers said.
“Those are some big shoes
to fi ll, for sure.”
By day, Munkers is assis-
tant vice president at US
Bank in Pendleton, where
Yasser Marte/East Oregonian
Pilot Rock High School’s new head football coach Shane
Munkers stands outside the school Friday, June 10, 2022.
Munkers was the assistant coach of the Rockets for four years.
he has been a commercial
credit analyst for 24 years,
but football is where his
heart is.
“It’s the best sport in the
world,” he said. “I know
most of the players,” he said.
“I was an assistant coach,
but I stepped away two
years ago. I coached middle
school basketball for seven
years, I gave that up two
years ago too.”
Munkers is encouraged
by the 24 players who said
they would play this season.
The Rockets, who play
eight-man football, have a
handful of starters return-
ing, but they will need to
find a quarterback after
Jace Otteson transferred to
Pendleton in January.
“T hat’s a position
we need to fill for sure,”
Munkers said. “We will have
pretty good-sized linemen. I
played in Heppner for Greg
Grant. I was a 175-pound
offensive and defensive
lineman. If you coach them
right, anyone can be success-
ful on the off ensive line.”
Among the returning
players are Austin Ford,
Efren Castro, Brave Pereira,
Broc Erickson, James
Lunzmann and Tanner
Bedard.
Munkers has gotten a
head start on the season,
watching fi lm of opposing
teams.
“I know most of the
coaches in the league
already,” he said. “We have
a tough schedule to start the
season. We have Adrian
Week 2. We start with
Imbler, and they have some
big kids.”
Munkers already has his
assistant coaches in place
with Joe Byrnes, who has
been with the program for
a few years, superintendent
Troy Jerome, and his son,
Cade Munkers, who played
for the Rockets and gradu-
ated in 2019.
Munkers also has been in
touch with Grant.
“Not so much about Xs
and Os, but guiding me on
how to build a program and
make Pilot Rock football
important again,” he said. “I
want them to have fun and
make them better people.
You build relationships with
the guys you play with. It’s a
brotherhood. That’s what we
would like to build out here.”
A10
Racing at the Butte
Photos By Kathy Aney/East Oregonian
Toby Murphy competes in the children’s portion of the
one-mile run Saturday, June 11, 2022, as part of the
Butte Challenge at Hermiston’s Butte Park.
Denise Jones competes
Saturday, June 11, 2022,
in the Butte Challenge
10K at Hermiston’s Butte
Park. Jones won the wom-
en’s 10K with a time of
51 minutes, 46 seconds.
Brian Frazier competes
Saturday, June 11, 2022, in
the Butte Challenge 10K
on at Butte Park, Herm-
iston. Frazier crossed the
line fi rst with a time of 45
minutes, 19 seconds.
SOCCER
4 Dawgs earn MCC honors
By ANNIE FOWLER
East Oregonian
HERMISTON — The
Hermiston Bulldogs had four
players named to the Mid-Co-
lumbia Conference soccer
team, with two on the second
team and two on the honor-
able mention team.
Senior forward Sam Cade-
nas and junior midfielder
Faber Ortiz were named to
the second team, while fresh-
man forward Renee Medrano
and senior defender Brandon
Madrigal were selected to the
honorable mention team.
Cadenas, a team captain
with Ortiz, scored fi ve goals
and had one assist. He was the
No. 2 scorer for the Bulldogs.
He also was voted Most Inspi-
rational by his teammates.
Ortiz, voted team MVP
Cadenas
Medrano
Madrigal
Ortiz
by his teammates, had three
goals and two assists.
“He’s a utility man and
can play anywhere on the
fi eld,” Hermiston coach Rich
Harshberger said. “He has an
engine that won’t quit.”
Madrigal played almost
every minute of every game
and helped the Bulldogs to
four shutouts. He had one
goal and two assists.
“He’s able to match up
with opposition strikers and
shut them down,” Harsh-
berger said.
Medrano led the Bulldogs
in scoring with nine goals
and two assists. He is the only
player in the MCC to score on
Pasco this season in the run
of play.
Chiawana’s Fernando
Lopez-Vega was named
MCC Player of the Year by
the conference coaches.
Coach of the Year honors
went to Pasco’s Matt Potter,
who led the Bulldogs to the
MCC regular-season title, and
a third-place fi nish in the 4A
state tournament.
Mac-Hi players selected to GOL teams
June is National Safety Month
Get ready for wildfire smoke events by planning ahead! Stay
up to date on local info, pay attention to home filters and air
cleaners, and keep some respirator masks on hand. For more
information on air quality alerts, current air quality conditions,
and forecasts, visit AirAlerts.org
Virtual Healthy Cooking on a Budget
By ANNIE FOWLER
East Oregonian
MILTON-FREEWATER
— McLoughlin’s Cooper
Waltermire earned Greater
Oregon League first-team
honors, while Cooper Yensen
and Javi Esparza were named
to the second team.
The Pioneers finished
the season 3-9 in GOL play
and 9-13 overall. They lost
their 4A state play-in game
to Henley 8-2.
St ate cha mpion La
Grande (28-1) dominated the
fi rst team with eight players
chosen. The Tigers’ short-
stop/pitcher Devin Bell was
named the Player of the Year.
Waltermire, the Pioneers’
shortstop, led the team with a
.393 batting average. He had
22 hits, seven of which were
doubles. He also had 15 RBIs
Good Shepherd
Outreach & Events
class for people of all ages and families who want to learn
how to cook healthy on a budget! Second Tuesday of each
month through November.
Esparza
Herndon
Rhoads
Waltermire
and scored 18 runs.
and walked 24.
Yensen t h rew
Mac-Hi had two
softball players earn
a team-high 45 ⅓
innings, striking out
GOL honors. Senior
43 and walking 39.
Darby Rhoads and
He had an ERA of
f re sh m a n Ryle e
8.029.
Herndon were named
E s pa r z a , who
Yensen
second-team infi eld-
played catcher and
ers.
pitched for Mac-Hi, hit .339
The Pioneers fi nished the
from his lead-off position. season 2-10 in league play
He had 20 hits, with three and 6-14 overall.
doubles and two triples.
Ontar io’s A n nabelle
He scored a team-high 27 Navar rete was named
runs. On the mound, he Player of the Year, while La
threw 23 ⅓ innings with a Grande’s Cody Bowen was
6.30 ERA. He struck out 32 named Coach of the Year.
VISIT US ON THE WEB AT:
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Virtual/In-Person Powerful Tools for Caregivers
6-week series to show caregivers the benefit of self-care skills.
Starts June 16th, 3-5pm
Save the Date: Family Health & Fitness Day + 5K Fun Run
September 24 from 9am – 1pm at Hermiston High School
GOOD SHEPHERD
COMMUNITY HEALTH & OUTREACH
541-667-3509 | healthinfo@gshealth.org