Wednesday, October 20, 2021
A9
SPORTS
CROSS-COUNTRY
VOLLEYBALL
Joseph
fi nishes
undefeated in
league play
Chieftain staff
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
Wallowa Valleys’s Zac Knapp, right, takes off at the start of the men’s 5,000 meter Thursday, Oct. 7, 2021, at the Mustang Invite at Thompson Ranch in
Heppner. Knapp fi nished fi rst with a time of 15:38.9, his fi fth win in fi ve races this season.
Focus has paid off for Outlaws’ Knapp
Senior Wallowa Valley
runner has won all
fi ve races this fall
By JEFF BUDLONG
For EO Media Group
ENTERPRISE — Focus made
a big diff erence for Zac Knapp.
The senior cross-country run-
ner for Wallowa Valley has always
loved to play soccer. It is no sur-
prise, because he is quite good at
it. But this spring he had to make
a tough decision.
“I started playing soccer com-
petitively about fi ve years ago,
and that was my life and all I
wanted to do,” he said. “That is
actually how I got into running
because I got into cross-country
as a way to stay in shape for that.
“Last spring, I started feeling
that maybe I should just focus on
running, and I was curious what
I could do if I just focused on
running.”
Knapp is leaving no doubt.
The decision to commit to run-
ning has paid off for Knapp and
Wallow Valley as he has won all
fi ve races the team has taken part
in this fall. He took the top spot
to open his season at the Cath-
erine Creek Scamper in 17 min-
utes, 22 seconds. He was the lone
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
Wallowa Valley’s Zac Knapp runs Thursday, Oct. 7, 2021, at the Mustang
Invite at Thompson Ranch in Heppner. Knapp fi nished fi rst in the 5,000
meter with a time of 15:38.9 to win for the fi fth time this season.
sub-17 minute runner in win-
ning the Wallowa County Invite
in 16:20.2, and went under 16 to
win the Stanfi eld Fun Country in
a school-record time of 15:24.9.
Knapp also claimed the Baker
Invite in 16:15.34 and the Mus-
tang Invite in 15:38.9.
Knapp said eliminating soc-
cer practice in the morning allows
him to get more sleep, and it has
freed up his weekends to be able
to put in a few more miles.
“Once he made that decision,
he just became a totally diff er-
ent runner,” said Wallowa Valley
head coach Dan Moody, who has
led the team since 1989. “He is
really conscientious about it and
working toward what he can get
to.”
Knapp hopes his extra work
will lead to an individual state
title after a trio of third-place fi n-
ishes and a low 15-minute eff ort
this season.
That doesn’t mean that Knapp
has been adding a ton of miles to
his 40-miles-a-week training reg-
imen because Moody doesn’t
believe in overdoing it in the
off season.
“I didn’t put many miles in
this summer, which annoys me a
bit, but I understand it,” he said.
“To stay busy I do a lot of bike
workouts.”
His success has him pivoting
his future plans as well. No longer
looking to play soccer in college,
Knapp wants to continue running
at the next level. Where that will
be is yet to be determined, but it
would continue a connection to
former Outlaws’ runner David
Ribich.
Ribich ran at NCAA Division
II Western Oregon University
before turning pro and racing for
Brooks.
“He is such an inspiration
to me,” Knapp said. “We had a
meet in Joseph a couple of weeks
ago and he came up for that. The
day after that we went for a run
together, and that was honestly
something I will remember for-
ever. He has so many nuggets of
wisdom and words of support.”
Knapp said without Ribich’s
success at the professional level,
See Knapp, Page A10
Joseph gets snakebitten
FOOTBALL
Eagles football
team taken down
by Rattlers
By RONALD BOND
Wallowa County Chieftain
JOSEPH — It’s been more
than four years — when Joseph
was still playing eight-man foot-
ball — since the Eagles have lost
on their home fi eld.
That streak came to a screech-
ing halt Friday, Oct. 15.
Wheeler County’s Nate Clark
returned three kicks for touch-
downs, caught two receiving
scores and added an intercep-
tion on defense, and the Rattlers
scored on the fi rst play and never
let up in a 49-6 victory to conclude
an undefeated regular season.
The teams hadn’t played since
2019, a 93-7 beatdown by the
Eagles.
Clark, though, set a differ-
ent tone Friday when he took
the opening kickoff 83 yards
down the right sideline to put
Wheeler County — a co-op of
Mitchell, Spray and Wheeler
high schools — up 7-0 just 13
Ronald Bond/Wallowa County Chieftain
Joseph’s Jaxon Grover (8) looks for running room Friday, Oct. 15, 2021,
against Wheeler County. Grover rushed for 101 yards in the 49-6 loss.
seconds into the game.
Joseph’s defense held on the
next two possessions, but the
off ense struggled, losing two
fumbles on its fi rst two times
with the ball, and getting saddled
with a safety when Clint Ruther-
ford took down Trace Collier in
the endzone for a safety and a 9-0
lead.
The ensuing free kick went
to Clark, who went 60 yards for
a second touchdown and a 16-0
lead late in the fi rst quarter.
Joseph’s appeared it would
get on the board early in the sec-
ond when Jaxon Grover sprinted
49 yards to the Wheeler County
2, but the Eagles went backwards
on the next four plays, turning
the ball over on downs to the
Rattlers.
JOSEPH — The Joseph vol-
leyball team swept its way to an
undefeated slate in Old Oregon
League play.
The Eagles trampled Elgin on
the road Friday, Oct. 15, 25-4,
25-12, 25-11, then rolled over
both Griswold and Nixyaawii at
home in OOL action Saturday,
Oct. 16, sweeping the Grizzlies
25-8, 25-8, 25-13, and the Golden
Eagles 25-12, 25-6, 25-14, to lock
up the OOL-North title and a berth
into the semifi nals of the district
tournament.
“I’m so proud of the girls for
being undefeated,” head coach Jill
Hite said. “This has never been
done in Joseph since I have been
here. It is an amazing accomplish-
ment, but they still have goals for
the season.”
The winning streak is now at
16 in a row for the Eagles, who
wrapped up league play sweep-
ing all but one of their matches —
only Powder Valley pushed Joseph
past a third set when the Badgers
and Eagles battled for fi ve sets in
late September.
Cooper Nave pounded down
13 kills in the win over Elgin,
while Sarah Orr had six kills.
Against Griswold, Nave had 12
more kills, Emma Orr had six,
and against Nixyaawii, Nave
had nine kills and Molly Curry
added seven. Aimee Meyers was
the team leader in assists all three
matches.
The Eagles (20-3 overall, 11-0
OOL) hosted Weston-McEwen in
a nonleague contest Tuesday night,
then will travel to Baker City for
the OOL District Tournament
semifi nals on Saturday, Oct. 23.
The district title and third-place
matches will also be played that
See Joseph, Page A10
Enterprise
falls to
Stanfi eld,
GU, but beats
Pilot Rock
By RONALD BOND
Wallowa County Chieftain
Clark then struck again on
a 79-yard TD reception for a
22-0 lead. Rutherford and Clark
both scored again before half-
time, with Clark’s 16-yard scor-
ing catch giving Wheeler County
a 35-0 lead and putting the run-
ning clock mercy rule in eff ect the
entire second half.
Joseph fi nally broke through to
open the third when Collier con-
nected with Kale Ferguson for an
18-yard touchdown catch to cap a
70-yard drive.
Clark got the points back,
though, on the very next play,
taking his third kick to the house,
this time from 92 yards out.
Rutherford added a fourth-quar-
ter touchdown to round out the
scoring.
Joseph was limited to 128
yards of total off ense, with Grover
rushing for 101 yards in the con-
test. Collier passed for 53 yards
and a score, but lost 37 yards on
the ground, threw two intercep-
tions and lost two fumbles.
Clark had 123 yards receiving
and 65 rushing to lead the Rat-
tlers’ 302-yard day on off ense.
ENTERPRISE — A scoring
run in the fi rst two sets — and
fi nding its strongest hitters —
was the key to Stanfi eld collect-
ing a win over Enterprise in Blue
Mountain Conference action.
The front-running Tigers used
lengthy rallies and held off a late
comeback attempt by the Outlaws
to complete a sweep Friday, Oct.
15, 25-18, 25-12, 26-24.
Enterprise led in each set,
and seemed to have some early
momentum in the opener after
going ahead 11-7, and later 14-11,
when the Tigers put kill attempts
into the net.
Nine of the next 10 points,
however, went to Stanfi eld. The
Tigers grabbed their fi rst lead at
15-14 and opened up a fi ve-point
lead at 20-15 on a tip kill by Zuri
Reeser. Enterprise got no closer
after that.
A kill by Josi Coggins and a
Stanfi eld error put Enterprise up
5-2 early in the second, but the
next 11 points went to the Tigers,
who pulled ahead 13-5 on a Jen-
nifer Flores ace. A Jada Gray kill
See Football, Page A10
See Enterprise, Page A10
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