Blue Mountain Eagle
Wednesday, December 14, 2016
B1
WEDNESDAY
December 14, 2016
Lady Pros blast competition at Columbia Clash
Grant Union hosts
teams Dec. 16-17
By Angel Carpenter
Blue Mountain Eagle
The Grant Union Lady Prospec-
tors won the Columbia Clash Tour-
nament in Umatilla this weekend.
Prospectors Heather Mosley and
Mariah Moulton were selected for
the All-Tournament team.
Grant Union took home the tour-
nament title with wins over Stan-
fi eld, 53-28; Pilot Rock, 37-33; and
Echo, 44-36.
Prospector head coach Mark
Mosley said the Stanfi eld game pre-
sented an opportunity for the team
to work on offense, and they exe-
cuted well.
“We shot the ball very well from
the outside and also took advantage
of pounding the ball inside,” he
said.
Pilot Rock entered competition
ranked No. 4 in the state.
“Pilot Rock is a very good team
that will have a lot of success this
season,” Mosley said. “We played
well both offensively and defen-
sively. It was a one- or two-point
game the whole game. We were
able to hit a couple big shots in the
last 2 minutes that allowed us to
get a win.”
Grant Union was scheduled to
host the Burns Hilanders Tuesday,
past press time.
They host the Irrigon Knights at
6 p.m. Friday and Heppner Mus-
tangs at 4 p.m. Saturday. Junior
varsity games will precede the var-
sity games.
Let t snow
Anthony Lakes opens for season as local ski bus prepares for trips
By Rylan Boggs
Blue Mountain Eagle
D
espite a power outage, Anthony Lakes Mountain Re-
sort got their lift spinning for opening day on Satur-
day. Skiers and snowboarders fl ocked to the resort to
ride, fall and enjoy the snow.
“We’re a super small ski area but we have a base eleva-
tion of 7,100 feet so we get killer snow,” Marketing Director
Chelsea Judy said.
Judy is one of about 30 employees who run the moun-
tain.
“It doesn’t really feel like work most of the time because
I’m here with the people I love doing what I love,” she said.
Sixty-two-year-old Bill Shank is the director of the ski
school at the mountain and said, “It’s like a family here.”
Shank is in his third year as director, though he has skied
at the mountain much longer. He enjoys sharing his joy of
skiing with people such as 25-year-old Jenny Daffer, who
moved to Oregon from the Philippines. Daffer has been ski-
ing less than a year but keeps up with Shank just fi ne.
The mountain opened in 1963 and is still frequented
by some of the original skiers, including members of the
all-volunteer ski patrol.
See SNOW, Page B3
LEFT:
Skiers and
snowboarders
wait in line
to purchase tickets after
a brief power outage at
Anthony Lakes Mountain
Resort on Saturday, Dec.
10. RIGHT: Bill Shank, 62,
carves down the hill at
Anthony Lakes Mountain
Resort on Saturday, Dec. 10.
Eagle photos/Rylan Boggs
Grant Union wrestling
team has talent, depth
Full team
includes 11
returning
wrestlers
Blue Mountain Eagle
The Eagle/Angel Carpenter
Ugly Sweater
5K runners brave
snow and slush
for good cause
Proceeds to give bright
Christmas to children
By Angel Carpenter
Blue Mountain Eagle
Decked out in holiday threads, 45 run-
ners had no shortage of enthusiasm for John
Day’s fi rst Ugly Sweater 5K.
The snow, slush and chilly weather
didn’t dampen spirits as the participants
gathered Saturday at The Corner Cup,
where the race started and ended.
When faced with a decision of what to
choose for her senior project, Reitta Wyllie
chose a sport she knows and loves: cross
country. Her senior project advisor, Russ
Comer, also a 5K buff, helped Wyllie orga-
nize the race.
See 5K, Page B10
Grant Union wrestling
head coach Andy Lusco said
he’s seeing talent moving up
in the ranks and expects the
team to have a successful sea-
son.
Over the fi ve years he’s
led the team, Lusco said he’s
seen an improvement in qual-
ity and quanity.
“We have a full lineup,
which is huge,” he said.
Of the 20 wrestlers on the
roster, 11 are returning to the
program.
“We have some pretty ex-
ceptional kids, and some pret-
ty exciting young kids, too,”
he said. “We’re starting to see
the effects of kids club.”
A couple boys who par-
ticipated in the Grant County
Youth Wrestling Club in the
past are now on the varsity
team, and even more are on
the junior high team.
“That’s going to start pay-
ing off dividends,” Lusco
said.
The youth club has 28
wrestlers this year from age
5 to 12.
Tye Parsons, who led the
club last year, is an assis-
tant coach to Lusco. He also
assists the youth club head
coach Terry Harper.
SPORTS ROUNDUP
By Angel Carpenter
Blue Mountain Eagle
Prospector boys win 2,
lose 1 at tourney clash
By Angel Carpenter
Bentley Hall runs ahead of his
sisters Amelia, left, and Shanniyah
and mother, Alicia Hall, in
Saturday’s Ugly Sweater 5K.
G RANT C OUNTY
The Eagle/Angel Carpenter
Grant Union assistant coach Tye Parsons, right,
works with the team on proper stance.
The Grant Union Prospector basketball
team was on the road to Umatilla for the Dec.
8-10 Columbia Clash Tournament in Umatilla
where they placed fourth.
The team had a 78-60 loss to Stanfi eld, a
47-43 win over Arlington and a 48-44 win
over Umatilla junior varsity.
Grant Union head coach Kelsy Wright de-
scribed the loss to Stanfi eld as a diffi cult and
physical game.
“Arlington was another tough game,”
he said. “We were trailing the whole game
until the fourth quarter. We brought back a
12-point defi cit and ended up winning by
four points.”
The Prospectors were scheduled to host
Burns on Tuesday, past press time. They host
nonleague games later this week, including Ir-
rigon at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Heppner at 5:30
p.m. Saturday.
Panther boys pounce on
Grant Union JV team
Clay Johnson
James Mabe
Lusco also has help
from assistant coaches Jake
Batease and Guy Johnson.
Two seniors on the team,
Clay Johnson and James
Mabe, are stepping into lead-
ership roles.
“Clay has qualifi ed three
times for state, and is a two-
time placer, winning third
and fourth,” the coach said.
“He’s in the challenge for
state. James has been real-
ly stalwart in the program.
He works hard and is a great
leader.”
He said the team is aiming
to be a good dual meet team.
“That’s the big goal,” he
said.
Prairie City boys head coach Jonathan Gill
viewed their Dec. 6 game against the Grant
Union junior varsity team as an opportunity
to gain experience and playing time, and the
Panthers seized the 64-43 win.
“I’m a big fan of rivalries,” Gill said. “I
was excited to see us playing GU. I think very
highly of GU’s program. It was a good chance
for us.”
Junior Dorran Wilson led the Panthers
with 21 points, followed by senior Wyatt Wil-
liams with 11, including three three-pointers.
Senior Brogan McKrola contributed 10
points to the win.
Gill said the game was competitive and an
overall good win for his team.
“It’s a good start to the season, and I was
very happy with the win,” he said.
See WRESTLING, Page B10
See ROUNDUP, Page B10