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About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 20, 2017)
A10 Blue Mountain Eagle Wednesday, September 20, 2017 WEDNESDAY September 20, 2017 The Eagle/Angel Carpenter Long Creek/Ukiah Mountaineer Brooke Harrison sets the ball with Gladys Johnson watching in Friday’s game against Monument/Dayville. Tigers sweep Mountaineers in Monument Mountaineers host Ukiah Sept. 21 at 5 p.m. By Angel Carpenter Blue Mountain Eagle The Monument/Dayville Tiger varsity team took a 3-0 sweep Friday, hosting the ju- nior varsity Long Creek/Uki- ah Mountaineers. Meeting up in Monument, the Tigers won with scores of 25-11, 25-3 and 25-13. Tiger head coach Kristi Emerson said, although her team needs to work on com- munication on the court, she was proud of them. “What I’m completely happy about is the bench got to play, and they did very well,” she said. “I’m glad they got the opportunity to play.” Tiger freshman Sam Ad- ams said she was glad to get in on the action. “It was fun to get the ball over the net on the front row,” she said. “It was a good practice to raise our expectations,” said Tiger starter Kyla Emerson, a junior. “It was nice to work everyone in, so we can even- tually have subs.” Mountaineer head coach Linda Studtmann said her team wasn’t quite them- selves, letting jitters get the best of them. “They fell apart for the second game, then got a few nerves calmed down,” she said. “Overall, they’re getting used to each other and learn- ing the game.” Long Creek/Ukiah’s Jua- na Wagner, a foreign student from Germany, said she was nervous. “We lost, but it’s just a game,” said Wagner, who is a junior. “We’ll do better next time.” Freshman Jenny Kim, a transfer student from Alaska, played volleyball in middle school. She said this was her fi rst high school game, facing var- sity players. Kim said the team made some mistakes, but she was pleased with their effort. “They did good and tried,” she said. Joe Mun, a junior who hails from South Korea, said she appreciated everyone’s friendliness. “It’s my fi rst sports team,” she said. “It’s hard, but excit- ing.” Monument/Dayville was scheduled to face Mitchell/ Spray in Spray Tuesday, past press time. They travel to the Crane Tournament at 9 a.m. on Sat- urday. Long Creek/Ukiah hosts Nixyaawii at 5 p.m. Thursday in Ukiah, and is on the road to Spray Friday for a 4:30 p.m. match. Ridin’ and ropin’ Eagle photos/Angel Carpenter Grant Union cross country athletes, including sophomores Eli Sheedy, Airron Glimpse, Nathaniel Hodge and freshman Jacob Smith work out in last week’s practice. Cross country runners build endurance while having fun Grant Union has full boys varsity team this year By Angel Carpenter Blue Mountain Eagle Head coach Sonna Smith has 17 high school athletes out for the cross country team this year. “This is the largest team I’ve ever had, which is encouraging to me,” she said. With 13 boys on the roster, a full fi ve-member varsity team was easy to form. One of the fi ve varsity girls is down with an injury, so the remain- ing members run as individuals at the meets. The team was surrounded by the beautiful scenery of Catherine Creek near Union on Saturday, running through forested areas, up hills — and through a mud pit, twice. Smith said the athletes were in mud up to their mid-thighs, and exit- ing the mudpit was slick. She said having extra boys run- ning on the Grant Union team this season makes them more competi- tive. That friendly rivalry is needed for the big fi eld of opponents in Special District 5, which includes 16 other teams in the 3A/2A/1A class, and some schools combine for a team. “Our boys district division has the top seven runners in the state, so our boys have tough competition,” Smith said. With the athletes they’ll face, the Grant Union boys have looked at what they need to do to be compet- itive. “Their goal from the timed trial is to cut a minute a month off their 5K time,” Smith said. “That’s a lofty goal.” Grant Union cross country runners, sophomores Gage Brandon, left, and Donavan Smith, start off with a jog during practice last week. Training for the entire team includes different types of running. Smith said they work on base run- ning, and take on Savannah hills to build en- Wyllie durance and speed. Tempo runs and re- peats, running a certain pace for an alloted time, and cross training in the weight room to strengthen their core are other workouts on their list. The coach said a couple athletes joined the team this year to condi- tion for winter sports. “They have been a pleasant sur- prise,” she said. Smith started the cross country program in 1995, and the school has had a team off and on since then. The program sparked back up four years ago, after the last hiatus. The coach also trains younger runners — seven middle schoolers and one elementary school athlete — whom she hopes will build the high school team in years to come. In practice last week, all the athletes joined for “game day” and were given a choice between four activities to get them running in short bursts. The majority enthusiastically chose a game called “Bigger Better.” Divided into four teams, the runners ventured out, making stops along their way to trade a large pa- per clip for something bigger and better, trying to increase the size and value of the item as they ran along. “We’re having a fun season and that is due to the many personalities that are present on this team this year,” Smith said. Grant Union cross country schedule Sept. 22: Footrace to Valhalla in Umatilla, girls varsity starts at 1:40 p.m., boys at 2:10 p.m. Sept. 29: Baker Invitational at Quail Ridge Golf Course in Baker City, girls at 4:30 p.m., boys at 5:15 p.m. Oct. 7: Tigers Invitational at Buf- falo Peak Golf Course in Union, TBD Oct. 14: Burns-Idlewild Meet at Idlewild Campground, boys at 10:45 a.m., girls at 11 a.m. Oct. 27: 3A/2A/1A Special District 5 Cross Country Championship at Pendleton Community Park, TBD Panthers corral the Bulls at Prairie City court Fans asked to wear pink at Friday’s game By Angel Carpenter Blue Mountain Eagle Contributed photo/LindseyWyllie.com Chad Finley of Mt. Vernon competes in tie-down roping, winning fourth place at the Sept. 10 Northwest Professional Rodeo Association’s rodeo in Burns. The NPRA Finals Rodeo will be held Sept. 22-23 with performances beginning at 7 p.m. each evening in Prineville. Local cowboy Tucker Wright of Canyon City is slated to compete in steer wrestling at the event. The Prairie City Panthers dominated Friday’s volley- ball match against the Burnt River Bulls, a 3-0 sweep at the Prairie City court. Prairie City won with scores of 25-9, 25-15 and 25- 10. “The match with Burnt River was a learning expe- rience for the team,” said Prairie City coach Louanne Zweygardt. “We dressed ev- eryone down and managed to get playing time for all 17 of our players.” She added, “The girls did a good job of maintaining a high level of play even with all the substitutions.” The Panthers’ high point this week was winning Sat- urday’s North Powder Tour- nament. Prairie City beat Mon- ument/Dayville 2-0 with scores of 25-20 and 25-17, then toppled Cove in three sets in the championship match. The Panthers beat Cove with scores of 25-16, 20-25 and 15-13. “We won the fi rst set, lost the second and then came from behind to win the third set,” Zweygardt said. “We were very happy with the team’s ability to main- tain focus and keep pushing through for the win.” “Think Pink” on Friday, as Prairie City hosts Harper for a homecoming and can- cer awareness game, with ju- nior varsity starting at 4 p.m., followed by varsity. Senior player Brianna Zweygardt is gathering do- nations for two raffl e bas- kets, and she’s also making a homemade goody basket. Brianna plans to use the proceeds to help local fami- lies with expenses associated with cancer treatments. “She is working with the hospital foundation in determining the best way to distribute the proceeds,” Louanne said. “She will be selling raffl e tickets this week.” The coach added, “Every- one is encouraged to wear pink to the game to show support.” Prairie City travels to the Crane Tournament on Satur- day with pool play beginning at 9 a.m. and bracket play at 1:30 p.m. Louanne said the team will be working to improve cover- age and blocking, along with keeping up on all their skills. “The team is working hard, and it feels like they are poised to take their play to the next level,” she said. Prairie City has a 9-1 over- all record, and they’re 1-0 in the High Desert League.
