SIX - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, January 12, 2022
Mustangs busy over winter break
Basketball teams competed in four contests over two-week break
By Blake Carter
Christmas break was
no relaxation period for
the Mustang basketball
teams. Each varsity team
competed in four contests
across the 17-day break,
including three games in
three days. The teams start-
ed their games on Thursday,
December 16 as they hosted
Riverside.
The Mustang girls team
fell to a scrappy Riverside
squad 28-24. Offense was at
a premium for most of the
contest, Heppner gained an
early lead at 6-5. A 12 -3
second quarter would push
the Mustangs out in front
18-8 at halftime. Heppner
would continue to quiet the
Pirates, only allowing four
points in the third quarter,
and continuing to lead 24-
12. Unfortunately, the Pi-
rates found their groove in
the final quarter of play as
the Pirates made a 16-0 run
across the fourth quarter,
completing their comeback
bid at 28-24. Brook Wil-
son’s 10 points, alongside
ZaBrena Masterson’s eight,
weren’t enough to grab the
win. Jasmin Lopez led the
Pirates with 13 points
Girls’ stats vs River-
side: Hannah Finch, two
rebounds; Zandra Master-
son, one rebound; Hadlie
Nation, four points, seven
rebounds, one steal; Brook
Wilson, 10 points, two re-
bounds one steal; ZaBrena
Masterson, eight points,
eight rebounds, three steals;
Hallee Hisler, two points,
two rebounds, Hailey Wen-
berg, two rebounds, one
steal; Kadie Henrichs, one
rebound.
The Heppner Mustang
boys’ team found a bit more
success than the girls’ team
did, as a hot start propelled
them to a dominant 59-27
victory. The Mustang’s de-
fense would only allow 13
points in the first half, while
offensively the Mustangs
found easy buckets scoring
31 in the first half. The
second half would go much
of the same as the Pirates
offense only mustered 14
points in the second half.
Caden George fueled the
Mustangs with 15 points,
as Kason Cimmiyotti con-
tributed 12 points.
Boys stats vs River-
side: Tucker Ashbeck, four
points, three rebounds, two
steals; David Cribbs, eight
points, one assist, one re-
bound, one steal, one block;
Trevor Nichols, six points;
Caden George, 15 points,
two rebounds, two steals;
Landon Mitchell, two
points, one rebound, three
steals; Cameron Proudfoot,
one rebound; Kason Cim-
miyotti, 12 points, three
rebounds, one steal; Blake
Carter, three points, one
assist; Brock Hisler, six
points, six assists, seven
steals; Brian Lindsay, three
points.
Entering the weekend,
the Mustangs would begin
their tournament hosting
Irrigon, Warrenton and
Weston-McEwen. Heppner
began the tournament with
Warrenton, where the girls
team grabbed a 36-29 vic-
tory. Heppner built a 17-8
lead at halftime, allowing
four points in both quarters.
The early advantage stuck
all game despite a 16-point
fourth quarter from the
Warriors as Heppner held
on. Hailey Wenberg led
the team with 13 points,
while ZaBrena Masterson
added 10.
Girls’ stats vs Warren-
ton: Hannah Finch, four
points, two rebounds, one
steal; Hadlie Nation, one
point, three rebounds,
three steals; Brook Wilson,
six points, two rebounds,
ZaBrena Masterson, 10
points, seven rebounds,
one steal; Hallee Hisler,
two points, three rebounds,
two steals; Morgan Cuts-
forth, one rebound; Hailey
Wenberg, 13 points, four
rebounds, one steal; Kadie
Henrichs, two rebounds.
The Mustang boys hit
a speed bump during the
weekend as they fell to a
scrappy Warrenton squad
46-43. Warrenton was ef-
fective in their halfcourt
offense, creating easy looks
for their shooters. Hep-
pner had a very tough time
scoring any points on the
Warrior’s defense in the
first half. The Stangs found
themselves down as many
as 20 in the first half. Hep-
pner once again flipped a
switch at the start of the
second half as a strong
press forced multiple War-
renton turnovers. Heppner
continued to erase the lead
as they eventually tied the
game late in the fourth
quarter. Warrenton would
earn themselves a trip to
the free throw line where
they would make the front
end of the two free throws
before missing the second.
However, an offensive re-
bound and putback grew the
lead to three. Heppner did
get a quality look at the end
of the game, unfortunately
the ball didn’t roll their way
as the three-point attempt
rattled out. Landon Mitchell
grabbed 12 points on the
night to lead the Mustangs.
Boys’ stats vs Warren-
ton: Tucker Ashbeck, five
points, four rebounds, one
steal; David Cribbs, seven
points, one rebound, two
steals; Caden George, eight
points, one steal; Landon
Mitchell, 12 points, one re-
bound; Kason Cimmiyotti,
two points, one rebound;
Brock Hisler, nine points,
one assist, two rebounds,
one steal;
The Lady Mustangs
added another win as they
edged Irrigon 37-36. Hep-
pner jumped out to an early
lead at the end of the first
quarter 8-6. Irrigon would
quickly respond with a
10-2 second quarter and
gain the 16-10 lead at the
half. A strong third quarter
would bring the Mustangs
back and into the lead 27-24
headed into the fourth quar-
ter. The lead would switch
hands over and over again.
Irrigon took a late lead on
free throws at 36-35, how-
ever ZaBrena Masterson
took the ball the length of
the floor and nailed a floater
from the left block at the
buzzer, lifting the Mustangs
to a 37-36 victory. Master-
son scored 19 points on the
night.
Girls’ stats vs Irrigon:
Hannah Finch, two points,
three rebounds, one steal;
Hadlie Nation, four points,
one rebound; Brook Wilson,
three points, five rebounds,
ZaBrena Masterson, 19
points, eight rebounds, two
steals; Hallee Hisler, two
steals; Katie Spivey, one
rebound: Hailey Wenberg,
nine points, five rebounds,
two steals.
The Heppner boys
would bounce back quickly
the following night as they
cruised to a 65-21 victory.
Defense was the name of
the game for the Mustangs
as the Knights never scored
double digits in one quar-
ter. Heppner only allowed
eight points in the first half
as they quickly gained a
35-8 advantage. Another
30 points in the second half
would sink the Knights.
Heppner stayed balanced
offensively as Tucker Ash-
beck, David Cribbs and
Landon Mitchell all scored
10 points.
Boys’ stats vs Irrigon:
Tucker Ashbeck, 10 points,
one steal; David Cribbs,
10 points, two assists, two
rebounds, three steals, two
blocks; Trevor Nichols, one
rebound; Caden George,
three points, five assists,
one rebound; Landon
Mitchell, 10 points, two
steals; Cameron Proudfoot,
five points, one steal; Der-
rick Smith, two points, one
steal; Kason Cimmiyotti,
nine points, three rebounds,
two steals; Toby Nation,
two points, one rebound;
Blake Carter, five points,
one assist; Brock Hisler,
five points, two assists, one
rebound, two steals; Brian
Lindsay, four points.
Heppner would shake
off some rust after a 10-
day break, as the teams
faced their first true road
test in Irrigon. The girls’
team would dominate the
Knights 40-21. A 26-13 sec-
ond half sunk the Knights
in a rout, 11 points from
Hannah Finch fueled the
Mustangs as Hailey Wen-
berg added 10.
Girls’ stats at Irrigon:
Hannah Finch, 11 points,
five rebounds, three steals;
Zandra Masterson, eight
points, five rebounds, two
steals; Hadlie Nation, five
points, five rebounds, one
steal; Brook Wilson, one
rebound, three steals; Cam-
ryn Scrivner, one point;
ZaBrena Masterson, five
points, four rebounds, two
steals; Hallee Hisler, two
rebounds, two steals; Hai-
ley Wenberg, 10 points,
three rebounds, one steal;
Kadie Henrichs, one re-
bound, one steal.
The Mustang boys’
team would lock down
the Knights as they built
momentum headed into
league play. Heppner took
the win 55-28. Irrigon kept
it competitive in the first
quarter as they only found
themselves down one point
in a 10-9 ballgame. Unfor-
tunately, the second quarter
was a bit tougher as Hep-
pner went on a 20-2 run to
extend the lead to 30-11 at
halftime. Heppner would
cruise in the second half
as they maintained their
lead in a 27-point victory.
Tucker Ashbeck was a force
in the paint as he posted
a double-double, with 19
points, and 10 rebounds.
Kason Cimmiyotti also
punished Irrigon with 14.
Boys’ stats vs Irri-
gon: Tucker Ashbeck, 19
points, 10 rebounds, one
steal; Trevor Nichols, three
points, three rebounds; Ca-
den George, one assist, one
block; Landon Mitchell,
two points, three rebounds,
one steal, one block; Cam-
eron Proudfoot, two points,
three rebounds, one steal;
Kason Cimmiyotti, 14
points, seven rebounds,
two steals, one block; Blake
Carter, four points, two
rebounds; Brock Hisler,
three points, three assists,
four rebounds, one steal;
Joe Sherman, eight points,
three assists, six rebounds,
one steal; Brian Lindsay,
one rebound.
Morrow
County Health
District “stays
strong” in the midst
of the pandemic
Staff members appreciated
Editor’s Note: The fol-
lowing was submitted by
Morrow County Health
District.
Morrow County Health
District (MCHD) employ-
ees have been working hard
over the last two years to
ensure the safety, health and
quality of care you’ve come
to expect and rely on at all
health district locations.
That hasn’t been an easy
job through the height of
the pandemic.
“One amazing thing
about our employees is that
they have all stayed strong
in their job responsibilities
and continue to do great
work no matter what,” Emi-
ly Roberts, Chief Executive
Officer, said.
According to the 2021
NSI National Health Care
Retention and RN Staff-
ing Report, the turnover
rate in health organizations
in 2021 increased by 1.7
percent and is now at 19.5
percent for most hospitals
and health organizations.
This increase in turnover
has happened most recently
due to COVID, the stress
of the pandemic and the
uncertainty about what’s
ahead in health care but it is
something to be concerned
about it because it could
point to future shortages in
health care staffing.
The district has been
holding strong through the
pandemic though and Rob-
erts attributes this to the
quality of staff employed
with the district.
“Every one of our em-
ployees matter. Each one
has played a role in suc-
cessfully maintaining our
level of care to the com-
munity through this pan-
demic. From the person that
sanitizes our facilities to the
crew shoveling snow to the
nurse helping with patient
care to the receptionist
working to get patients in
New training opportunities
offered at training center
The Port of Morrow has
announced a new partner-
ship with Blue Mountain
Community College to of-
fer free noncredit classes
and forklift training. Class-
es will be located at the
BMCC Workforce Training
Center and open to the pub-
lic. Participants do not need
to be registered as a BMCC
student to attend.
New courses include
Microsoft Word and Excel
as well as computer ap-
plications for beginners.
BMCC is also offering a
new language learning plat-
form that can be accessed
remotely.
In addition, the new
forklift simulator is avail-
able for training during
regular business hours.
The simulator is available
in multiple languages and
provides a safe and free
training environment for
anyone interested in build-
ing additional skills.
All course schedules
have been set through May
and include evening and
morning class times. Bilin-
gual options are available in
English and Spanish. More
information and the link to
register can be found online
COVID Boosters Available Now
Fast. Easy. Convenient. Walk-ins welcome.
Impulsores de COVID Disponibles Ahora
Rápido. Fácil. Conveniente. Se aceptan visitas sin cita previa.
Off-site vaccinations
available for businesses
and home-bound
patients. Call for details.
Vacunas fuera del sitio disponibles para
empresas y pacientes confinados en el
hogar. Llame para obtener más detalles.
Llame para obtener más detalles.
New Rx Local App
Available Now
Nueva Aplicación
Rx Local
Daisponible Ahora
Heppner
Condon
Boardman
(541) 676-9158 (541) 256-1200 (541) 481-9474
www.MurraysDrug.com
at https://www.portofmor-
row.com/workforce-train-
ing/home.
“We have heard from
employers and job seekers
that there is a need for short
term bilingual training,”
says Director of Workforce
Development Kalie Davis.
“We are excited to partner
with Blue Mountain Com-
munity College to make
these opportunities easily
accessible and free.”
“This partnership with
the Port of Morrow offers
some really exciting oppor-
tunities for local residents.
We at BMCC are excited to
to the doctor commuting in
from across the state, every
employee has stepped up
during this time and we
are so thankful for them,”
Roberts said.
In fact, in a time where
other health organizations
are struggling to move for-
ward through the pandemic,
MCHD has been growing to
better serve the communi-
ties throughout the county.
They have added key staff
to the roster and continued
to achieve high standards
of health care delivery and
care to residents.
“Our goal is to contin-
ue to be a resource and help
to our community,” Roberts
said. “We live here, we
work here, we care about
the success and health of
those around us. You’ll find
that each person that works
in our various locations
cares deeply about doing
their best and we strive to
continue working at that
high level no matter what
we face externally.”
The district is keenly
aware of the needs of the
community and is working
hard to fill open positions
within the various loca-
tions. Finding the right fit
for the community is key
and the administration is
actively pursuing candi-
dates for open jobs so they
can continue to serve all
community members in a
timely fashion.
When asked why he
chooses to come to Heppner
to work, ER Dr. William
Everts, DO said, “Heppner
is an off-the-beaten-path
jewel. It retains its charm,
unspoiled by suburban strip
malls and fast food chains.
Just folks helping each
other, pride in ownership,
a friendly wave to passing
cars on a country road.
What could be better?”
Along with open phy-
sician positions, the district
has other open positions
and is welcoming applica-
tions for jobs such as clinic
director, cook and RNs.
For more information on
working for the district,
check out their open jobs
at https://morrowcounty-
healthdistrict.org/about-
morrow-county-health/
careers/current-openings/.
welcome new students into
the building to learn new or
refresh existing skills, all
at no cost to them.,” says
BMCC Workforce Train-
ing Center Director Anne
Morter. “We are thrilled to
have the Workforce Train-
ing Center be the regional
training hub for Morrow
County residents.”
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