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About Baker City herald. (Baker City, Or.) 1990-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 4, 2021)
A6 — BAKER CITY HERALD SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2021 SPORTS BAKER FOOTBALL OPENS SEASON THIS AFTERNOON AT HOME BAKER SPORTS ROUNDUP Baker, Cascade to renew rivalry Bulldogs get Teams have battled in road wins playoffs three times since 2012 Baker City Herald By JAYSON JACOBY jjacoby@bakercityherald.com Driving most of the way across Oregon for a high school football game in Baker City hardly daunts coach Brandon Bennett and his Cascade Cougars. They had planned to go much farther — all the way to Colorado — to open the 2021 season. Bennett concedes he was disappointed when COVID-19 concerns canceled the Cou- gars’ Colorado plans. They had been slated to play his own high school coach’s team. But the chance to renew the rivalry with the Baker Bulldogs is more than a conso- lation prize, Bennett said. “Baker’s a great opponent — they have history,” Bennett said in a phone interview on Wednesday, three days before his Cougars were scheduled to take on the Bulldogs at Baker Bulldog Memorial Stadium. “It’s a great battle between two country-type schools from smaller towns.” Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. this afternoon, Sept. 4. Baker and Cascade, being separated by more than 300 miles and playing in different leagues, wouldn’t be expected to have a rivalry. But the vagaries of playoff scheduling have pitted the schools against each other three times in the past decade. The fi rst of those games was the most dramatic. In November 2012 at Hillsboro Stadium, Baker topped Cascade 35-29 in a triple-overtime thriller capped by Braden Phillips’ touch- down run. The Bulldogs rallied after Cascade scored two touchdowns in 25 seconds in the fourth quarter to forge a tie in the Class 4A semifi nal game. Baker went on to beat North Bend for its second state title in three years. A year later Cascade avenged the loss by beating Baker 37-14 in a play-in game at Baker Bulldog Memorial Stadium. The Bulldogs then had to wait six years for their chance at revenge on the Cougars’ home fi eld near Turner, south- east of Salem. In November 2019 Baker traveled to Cascade and beat the Cougars 38-21 in a playoff game. Almost two years — and a pandemic — later, Bennett said the Cougars, many of whom played in the 2019 loss to Baker, remember that game. “We have unfi nished busi- ness,” Bennett said. He sees today’s game as something of a reversal from the 2019 playoff contest. Baker relied largely on ju- niors and seniors in that game, all of whom have graduated. Cascade, though, had just six senior starters on the 2019 squad, and 17 sophomores played in the loss to Baker, Ben- nett said. “That was their fi rst experi- ence in a varsity playoff game, and we have not forgotten,” he said. Among those players, now seniors, are quarterback Jacob Hage, who threw a 76-yard touchdown pass in the 2019 playoff game, and Blake Lewis, who had a 33-yard touchdown run against Baker. The Bulldogs, meanwhile, Buell Gonzales Jr./Contributed Photo Baker’s Alex Hammans, No. 23 at left, carries the ball against Cascade Saturday, Nov. 9 2019, at Cascade. Hammans had a touchdown run in Baker’s 38-21 playoff win. return just a few players from the 2019 playoff team. One of those players, though, has the Cougars’ attention, Ben- nett said. Running back Gauge Bloomer, now a senior, led Baker with 95 yards on 18 carries as a sophomore in the 2019 playoff win at Cascade, including an 8-yard touchdown run late in the game. “He was a signifi cant player from that game,” Bennett said of Bloomer. Baker coach Jason Ramos, who was on the sidelines for the Bulldogs’ win at Cascade two years ago, agrees with Bennett’s assessment of the differences between the two teams com- pared with 2019. “We’re young,” Ramos said. “We’ve got some pretty athletic young kids, but it is kind of a reversal of that game two years ago. We know that (Cascade) has upperclassmen this year, and they’re loaded.” Ramos said the Bulldogs are grateful for the chance not only to play, but to do so in Septem- ber, the traditional start to the season. “We know that they’re going to be a tough opponent,” he said of Cascade. “We’re always excited for the opportunity to STILL 1 # More Information • Cascade Cougars vs. Baker Bulldogs • Saturday, Sept. 4, 2 p.m. • Baker Bulldog Memo- rial Stadium, Ninth and E streets • Fans required to wear face masks. No limits on the number of fans. play westside teams. This will be a good gauge for where we are as a team.” Sophomore Paul Hobson will start at quarterback for Baker. “He did play some as a freshman, and we’re expecting him to step up and have a good sophomore season,” Ramos said. Breaking in a new quarter- back is less challenging, he said, when Hobson has a veteran running back such as Bloomer to hand the ball to. “Gauge is a great senior leader,” Ramos said. “He’s got a lot of experience. That is going to be helpful.” Baker and Cascade both went 3-3 during the pandemic- abbreviated season that ran from early March to early April this year. They didn’t have any com- mon opponents. Multiple Baker High School sports teams went on the road Thursday, Sept. 2 and all had suc- cessful trips. The Bulldog girls soccer team traveled to Ontario and beat Four Rivers 5-1 for its fi rst win after opening the season with three losses. Baker’s volleyball team rallied in the fi fth and deciding set to nip Union. And the Baker girls and boys cross-country teams had strong performances at the big Caldwell Twilight meet in Idaho. Girls soccer Junior Sydnee Pierce had a hat trick as Baker took 36 shots on goal in its strongest offensive perfor- mance of the season. Junior Daphne Thomas and freshman Jill Poe each had a goal. Although Baker’s fi ve goals was one more than the Bulldogs scored in their fi rst three matches, assistant coach Christine Teegarden said defense was the real key in the win over Four Rivers. “Our defensive line is really starting to under- stand their positioning and function well as a defensive unit which in turn helps the whole team stay in formation better,” Teegarden said. Bobcats rallied to win the next two, 25-17 and 25-23, forcing a decisive fi fth set. Union continued its momentum in the fi nal set, racing to an 8-4 lead. But after Baker coach Ali Abrego called a timeout, the Bulldogs dominated, winning 11 of the fi nal 14 points to claim the hard-fought match with a 15-11 win in the fi nal set. Abrego said she simply told her players during the timeout to “trust each other.” “They really banded together, and it was awe- some to see,” Abrego said. “It was a big moment for us mentally.” Cross-country Baker traveled to Idaho for the Caldwell Twilight, a major meet with 33 teams and more than 275 runners compet- ing. The Baker girls, led by senior Emma Ba- eth’s 27th-place fi nish (21:12.41), placed 11th in the team standings. Other girls results: Sydney Lamb, 39th; Sofi a Kaaen, 68th; Emma Timm, 85th; Paige Marlia, 87th. Junior Thaddeus Pepera was Baker’s top boys runner, placing 54th in a time of 17:52.53. Baker fi nished 17th in the team standings. Other Baker boys: Volleyball Jordan Mills, 73rd; Daniel Baker seemed poised Brown, 90th; Seth Mas- to get the sweep at Union, trude, 120th; River Clark, winning the fi rst two sets, 132nd; Payton Waters, 25-21 and 25-18. But the 133rd. urgers, dy, hamb n a c n o tt ice, Co i, shaved il h c , s g o cake, hotd err y short , b w a tr s , pizza le corn food, kett Mexican nade, ezed lemo fresh sque s and more! a iced moch IN CUSTOMER SATISFACTION ICA SPONSORED RODEO LEW BROS. TIRE SVC RODEO TIMES SATURDAY 7PM SUNDAY 7PM MONDAY 2:30PM • Free admission to fair & exhibits • Mule races daily at rodeos • Kids pig & chicken scrambles at each Rodeo • MIDWAY food & wares vendors 210 BRIDGE ST • 541-523-3679 WALK INS WELCOME L E S S C H WA B WA S R A N K E D # 1 I N C U S T O M E R S AT I S FAC T I O N F O R A F T E R M A R K E T T I R E R E P L AC E M E N T, 2 Y E A R S I N A R OW For J.D. Power 2021 award Information, visit jdpower.com/awards LEW BROTHERS LES SCHWAB 210 Bridge Street, Baker City 541-523-3679 SATURDAY 7-10AM free breakfast @ Midway sponsored by Safeway SUNDAY AND MONDAY 7-10AM Let ‘R Buck breakfast @ Lions hall SUNDAY 10 AM jackpot team roping • 3-6 PM The EV Locals perform MONDAY 9 AM Youth livestock auction SATURDAY AND SUNDAY After the Rodeo Cowboy food/dinners by 3Rs & Adult Cowboy Dance on Midway QUEEN’S COURT TRYOUTS SUNDAY @ 9AM · PIE AUCTION SUNDAY @ 6PM PARADE MONDAY @ 12:30 · LIVESTOCK SHOW · EXHIBITS ALL DAY EVERY DAY V I S I T W W W. H A L F W AY FA I R A N D R O D E O . C O M Walk-ins Welcome