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About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (July 26, 2017)
A8 Blue Mountain Eagle Wednesday, July 26, 2017 WEDNESDAY July 26, 2017 John Day Swim Team wins home meet Howard wins high-point award By Angel Carpenter Blue Mountain Eagle Winning their home invita- tional over the weekend made the event that much sweeter for the John Day Swim Team. John Day won with 587 points, Prineville Swim Team placed second with 495, Pend- leton Swim Association was third with 433 and Lakeview Swim Team was fourth with 382. La Grande Swim Club (227) and The Dalles Swim Team (172) also brought ath- letes to the competition. John Day had 60 swimmers competing in the three-day event. The John Day team will meet up again with the Prineville and Lakeview teams at the District Swim Meet Fri- day through Sunday, July 28- 30, in Prineville. Eight-year-old Colbie Howard, who swims in the 8 and under division, won the high-point award for the John Day team. John Day head coach Sa- brina Howard said the relay teams gave them the needed point boost for the win. “Our relay teams were just outstanding across the board,” Howard said. She added that she and assistant coach Stephanie Le- Quieu work hard to choose placements for those teams. “Our relay really brought us to the forefront in the meet,” she said. “They were pumped and they were ready. It’s a mo- ment for them to shine.” She said Deja Amsden (girls 15 and over) and Taylor Hunt (boys 15 and over) gave The Eagle/Angel Carpenter John Day Swim Team members Zeri Janssen, front, and Cayden Howard compete on Saturday during the John Day Invitational Swim Meet at Gleason Pool. especially impressive per- formances in their individual medleys. “They are my warriors on the team,” Howard said. “They are up to battle.” She said they were asked to add the 400 individual medley to their events, and showed they were up to the challenge, swimming in the event fi rst thing Saturday morning, on top of all the other events they had that day. “It speaks so highly of their character, and they represented the swim team very well,” the coach said. She also highlighted My- ckee Coalwell as their se- nior team member and recent graduate of Grant Union High School. Coalwell qualifi ed for the district meet, which will be her fi nal event with the swim team. Coach Howard said the home meet is a special time, especially for those new to the team. “With home pool advan- tage, it’s a lot more comfort- able for fi rst-year swimmers,” she said. “Just to experience that magic and enthusiasm with them on what a fi rst swim meet is like, it’s just priceless.” Russell Hodge, 15, said he enjoys staying in shape for foot- ball by being on the swim team. “It’s fun just racing,” he said. “The funnest part is knowing when you’re done. It’s worth it.” Amsden, 16, agreed. “It’s rough, but worth it,” she said. “I think it’s amazing that we can get such a large community together like this.” The coach said the event is not just about the winning, but about supporting the swim- mers and families coming to- gether to help at the event. “It makes the swim team feel like a family,” Howard said, adding, “To have the amount of kids at that meet cheering on the others, playing in the creek, building that ca- maraderie, just embodies what swim team is all about.” Those who’ve qualifi ed for the district meet will be fi ne tuning their fl ip turns and event times in practice this week. Third in state Contributed photo Cauy Pool of Long Creek competes in bareback riding for District 1 at the California State High School Finals Rodeo in Bishop, California. Riding high Long Creek bareback rider places 23rd at national finals By Angel Carpenter Blue Mountain Eagle Long Creek bareback rider Cauy Pool had the experience of a lifetime, fi nishing 23rd at the July 16-22 National High School Finals Rodeo in Gil- lette, Wyoming. There were over 1,500 cow- boys and cowgirls from 43 states, fi ve Canadian provinces and Australia competing in 13 events. Up against over 60 other bareback riders, Pool said he kept focused on his event. “It was really fun and a great experience,” he said. Pool placed second in his fi rst round July 18 with a score of 74. Thursday proved to be a bigger battle, Pool scoring a 46 for fi fth place. “I got a low score on my second round,” he said. “It wasn’t feeling 100 percent and a little bit tougher horse.” Pool was just shy of making it into Saturday’s short go, the fi nal round. Qualifi ers had to be in the top 20. “I’d like to thank my dad and a friend Austin Foss — who’s been to the NFR four times in bareback” — for their coaching, he said. He added his parents, grandparents and Foss all sup- ported him in his ride to the NHSFR. The Monument High School graduate said he plans to help his parents on the ranch before heading to Las Cruces, New Mexico, where he’ll study welding technology while rid- ing bucking horses for the New Mexico State Aggies on a full- ride scholarship. Contributed photo Long Creek steer wrestler GW Clark competes in a High Stakes Jackpot Rodeo July 20, which was held for contestants during the National High School Finals Rodeo in Gillette, Wyoming. Clark competes at national fi nals Blue Mountain Eagle Steer wrestler GW Clark of Long Creek competed in the July 16-22 National High School Finals Rodeo in Gil- lette, Wyoming. Clark, a graduate of Mon- ument High School, qualifi ed after placing third in steer wrestling at the June 8-10 Oregon State Finals rodeo in Prineville. At nationals, the draws didn’t go as hoped for Clark. He made two attempts, riding with injured knees, and said he was glad to have the nationals experience. “It was a lot of hard work to put in to make it that far,” Clark said. “To get the chance to be able to compete with ev- eryone else was an honor.” Clark will attend Treasure Valley Community College with a focus on equine stud- ies. He will also ride for the Chukars’ rodeo team. Contributed photo/Tanni Wenger Photography The Grant County Wildfire softball team and coaches after their third-place finish Sunday at the State Little League Tournament in Medford. From left, back row, assistant coach Marissa Williams, head coach Zach Williams and assistant coach Levi Watterson; middle row, Lexi McKrola, Jaydika Anderson, Lauren Wenger, Halle Parsons, Drewsey Williams and Savannah Watterson; front row, Brilynn Combs, Grace Voigt, Sivanna Hodge, Addy Northway, Reece Jacobs and Lilly Rockhill. Ray Wenger, not pictured, is also an assistant coach. Wildfire girls give all in softball battle By Angel Carpenter Blue Mountain Eagle The Grant County Wildfi re earned third place, competing at the July 20- 24 Oregon State Little League Softball 8-9-10 Tournament in Medford. Wildfi re short stop Savannah Watter- son said she hopes her team will be just as good or better next year. Her favorite memory was seeing her team improve. “We went from earning third in dis- tricts last year to winning districts and getting third in state this year,” she said. The team had three wins and two losses at the tournament, held at U.S. Cellular Community Park’s AstroTurf fi eld. Head coach Zach Williams said it was a good season, and the team in- creased their knowledge of the game at a quick pace. “ They do little things just right, knowing secondary options on a play,” he said. “They’re years beyond their age with their softball IQ. They’re learning the game so much faster than I’ve expe- rienced in the past.” On Thursday, Drewsey Williams pitched a 9-0 game against Del Norte of Crescent City, California. “The girls were patient at the plate,” coach Williams said, adding they threw good pitches and put the ball in play. Grant County had tougher compe- tition, facing Willow Creek of Port- land on Friday. Coach Williams said Willow Creek’s pitcher threw hard and located her pitches well. Willow Creek went on to win the title. Saturday brought a turnaround for the Wildfi re girls with two wins. They claimed a 15-0 victory over South Sa- lem in the morning and a 12-5 win over Crook County in the evening. Drewsey pitched the fi rst inning against South Salem with Addy North- way relieving for the remainder of the four-inning win. Coach Williams said his team had Contributed photo/Tanni Wenger Photography Brilynn Combs of the Grant County Wildfire team slides home safe during last weekend’s state tournament in Medford. success with quite a few base hits, swinging at good pitches. Drewsey pitched all six innings for the win over Crook County. “They were selective (in hitting) and played a lot better defense,” the coach said. Sunday’s game was a nail-biter, Klamath County taking an 8-7 win to oust Grant County from the tourna- ment. “Addy threw the whole game, and she did a really good job,” Williams said. “The girls battled hard on offense and put the ball in play hard a lot. In the end, we just came up short.” Williams said the Wildfi re girls who now range in age from 9-11, played more than 40 games this season. “The girls worked hard for months and months in the heat,” Williams said. “They came to practice every night. That’s why I love coaching. The im- provement I saw from March through July was unbelievable.” First baseman and catcher Halle Parsons said she had a fun summer of softball. “We had a really good time working hard and coming together as a family,” she said. “I like that we worked togeth- er really well.” Right fi elder Reece Jacobs said she didn’t know the team members well at fi rst and enjoyed making friendships. “The experience (of the tourna- ment), it was pretty diffi cult,” she said. “We played some pretty tough teams, but overall, it was pretty fun.” Coach Williams said he appreciated the contributions of his assistants, Levi Watterson, Ray Wenger and Marissa Williams. He said the time they dedicated to the team was valuable, as well as the commitment from parents and the con- tributions of the community who helped them raise more than $4,000 to go to the state tournament. “To the volunteers and fans and community that donated, we just can’t say thank you enough,” Williams said.
