Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, March 26, 2025 -- SEVEN
Mustangs drop season opener Heppner athletes open season with
to Buckaroos
top performances at The Dalles
Pendleton/Nixyaawii J/V 9, Heppner/Ione 6
Freshman umpire Jace Wilson catches a fast ball that got by
a McLoughlin Pioneer last Friday. -Photo by Andrea Di Salvo
Ryan Haugen on the mound during the first inning of the game
versus Mac-Hi last Friday. -Photo by Andrea Di Salvo
By Brian Bunch
A sixth-inning rally was
not enough as the Heppner/
Ione Mustangs dropped
the 2025 baseball season
opener to the Pendleton/
Nixyaawii Buckaroos.
On St. Patrick’s Day,
the Mustangs could have
used a little luck of the
Irish as they traveled to
Bob White Field for a non-
league matchup, as both
teams looked to sharpen
their skills ahead of their
grueling 20-plus game sea-
sons ahead.
For a mid-March game,
the weather was surprising-
ly comfortable, with a tem-
perature around 50 degrees
at the first pitch and a typ-
ical Eastern Oregon spring
breeze. The worst part was
the cold metal bench, as I
had forgotten seat padding,
standard for the first game
of the season.
The box score tells
the story of a hard-fought
game. The Mustangs outhit
the Buckaroos, 8-7, but the
three additional errors made
the difference.
The Mustang bats came
out swinging in the first
inning, with Caleb George
hitting a leadoff double.
George would go on to
be the lone Mustang run
in the first inning with a
Caylan Proudfoot RBI sin-
gle. Proudfoot was thrown
out when he attempted to
stretch it to a double. Ma-
son Orem also picked up a
single in the top half of the
frame.
Keaton Coiner started
on the mound for the Mus-
tangs in the bottom of the
first inning, struggling to
find the zone. Coiner gave
up a walk, a single and a
triple that made the game
3-1 Buckaroos after an error
allowed Nathan Driskell’s
triple to score.
Shaking off the rust,
Coiner found the zone,
and his defense stepped up
behind him, getting the first
two outs of the inning with
a ground out and a fly out.
Coiner gave up a single be-
fore freezing Keli Spencer
with three straight strikes
looking to end the inning.
The second inning was
the inning of twos, as in
double plays, two of them.
In the top of the inning,
Shad Greenup popped up
into a double play that also
got Coiner thrown out try-
ing to retreat back to first
after the catch by Buckaroo
pitcher Joe Foster.
In the bottom of the sec-
ond, the Mustangs looked
for payback as Proudfoot at
shortstop and R. Haugen at
first made a double play on
a ground ball look routine
to end the inning and keep
the score at 3-1 Buckaroos.
Both teams changed pitch-
ers after the second inning.
Coiner gave up three runs
(zero earned) on three hits,
and Foster gave up one
earned run on three hits.
New pitchers in the
third inning brought on
more base-running activi-
ty. Proudfoot scored after
getting on base with an
error by Buckaroo shortstop
Driskell. Alakae Rodriguez
got his lone hit of the game,
a single, before falling vic-
tim to Orem’s fielder’s
choice while advancing to
second.
R. Haugen got his sec-
ond of three hits and an RBI
for batting in Proudfoot
with a single hit to second
base. Coiner grounded out
to first base to slow the
Mustang momentum and
bring the Buckaroos to the
plate up 3-2.
George was on the
mound for the Mustangs
in the bottom of the frame.
The Buckaroos took advan-
tage of an untimely walk
and a hit-by-pitch. Group-
ing those together with a
sacrifice fly and a couple
of singles, the Buckaroos
stretched their lead to 6-2
by the end of the third.
George finished the inning,
giving up three earned runs
on two hits.
The fourth inning was
very tight defensively by
the Buckaroos, and R. Hau-
gen started his appearance
on the mound with quality
pitching. The Buckaroos’
defense picked up the first
two outs, and Jace Wilson
struck out after working a
seven-pitch at-bat.
The Buckaroos changed
pitchers in the middle of
the fourth, with Driskell
replacing Bonifer. Bonifer
allowed one run on two
hits in 1.1 innings of work.
The Buckaroos went down
in order, from the top, with
R. Haugen dealing three
straight strikeouts. The only
action was Bonifer getting
thrown out on a dropped
third strike.
The fifth inning was a
rough one for the Mustang
hitters, as George was the
only base runner after get-
ting on base with a leadoff
hit-by-pitch. Proudfoot laid
down a sacrifice bunt, but
both Rodriguez and Orem
grounded out to first.
Three errors and a balk
for the Mustangs in the
bottom of the frame helped
the Buckaroos push the
score to 9-2 with runs by
Kolt McQuinn, Kreg Krol
and English. Orem stepped
up defensively out in center
field in the bottom of the
frame to account for two
of the three outs for the
Mustangs, the other being
a ground out to Jace Wilson
at second.
R. Haugen led off the
sixth inning with a single,
followed by Coiner with
a walk to give the Mus-
tangs first and second with
no outs. The Buckaroos
replaced Driskell on the
mound with Krol. Driskell
ended his pitching night, al-
lowing two earned runs on
one hit through 1.2 innings.
Greenup got on base
but at the expense of Coiner
in a fielder’s choice. Lind-
say was thrown out at first
by the pitcher, but Gree-
nup was able to move into
scoring position. Mason
Haugen replaced Wilson
in the game and walked to
load the bases after working
it to a full count.
Bases loaded, two outs,
the Mustangs returned to
the top of the order. George
squared up a bases-clearing
triple, scoring both the Hau-
gen brothers and Greenup.
What a moment for the
Haugen family as Mason
scored his first run of his
freshman year on the same
play Ryan scored his first
run of his senior year.
With the score 9-5
Buckaroos now, George
standing on third, still two
outs, Proudfoot at the plate,
hit an RBI single to score
George and bring the game
within three. Rodriguez
worked the count full and
went down with a strikeout,
leaving Proudfoot on base,
9-6 Buckaroos.
R. Haugen, still on the
mound for the Mustangs,
faced the three, four, and
five hitters due up for the
Buckaroos. R. Haugen got
the first out, throwing out
Driskell at first, and the
second out with a strikeout
against McQuinn. Krol flew
out to Orem, who made a
diving catch in center as
the Mustangs’ momentum
closed out the sixth.
The heart of the order
was due up for the Mus-
tangs. Orem tried to take
first on a dropped third
strike, and the Buckaroos
set the tone for the last
half an inning. R. Haugen
managed a walk on a full
count to give the Mustangs
a base runner and their last
bit of hope.
The last two outs for
the Buckaroos to earn were
Coiner, going down swing-
ing, and Brody McDaniel,
with a fielder’s choice,
making the final score 6-9
Buckaroos.
Rodriguez was a wall
behind the plate, catching
six innings and allowing
only one passed ball. George
(.667/.750/1.333), Hau-
gen (.667/.750/.667), and
Proudfoot (.667/.667/.667)
led the team hitting with two
hits apiece, being joined by
Orem (.250/.250/.250) and
Rodriguez (.250/.250/.250),
both adding one.
Pre-Season Wrapping
Up
The Mustangs traveled
to McLoughlin on Friday,
March 21, only to be rained
out in the first inning.
On Tuesday, March 25,
they will travel to the Uma-
tilla Sports Complex for a
double-header, with the first
game against Umatilla at 11
a.m. and the second game
against Kennedy at 1 p.m.
On Wednesday, March
26, they will take on Cross-
hill Christian at Riverside
High School, with a noon
first pitch.
The last non-league
game will be a home match-
up against Joseph/Enter-
prise/Wallowa on April 1
at 4 p.m.
Heppner track and
field athletes proved them-
selves again despite cold,
nasty weather at the Mul-
len-Leavitt Invite last Fri-
day in The Dalles. Athletes
from 15 teams around the
state competed, but Hep-
pner athletes took the top
spots in multiple events.
Placing first in the jav-
elin was junior Chris Hum-
phreys with a 163’ 8 throw.
Marty Medina placed third
in the 1500 meter with a
personal record of 4:44.97,
while Nick Wenberg’ 19’
2.25 long jump secured him
the third spot on the podium
Hallee Hisler took fist
in the women’s 100 and
200 meter races, with sis-
ter Healy Hisler hard on
her heals in second place
in both races. Lily Nichols
clinched the 800 and 1500
meters as well as the 300m
hurdles, while Riley Archer
showed her cross-country
staying power as she led
the pack to finish the 3000
meter in 12:01.6. Archer
also placed second in the
400 meter race. Laia Puelles
placed third in the 100m
hurdles.
Rounding out the victo-
ries for the women was the
4x400 relay team of Healy
Hisler, Riley Archer, Lily
Nichols and anchor Hallee
Hisler. Their 4:26.14 run
earned them first place,
more than six seconds
ahead of second-place The
Dalles.
Full team results are as
follows:
Men’s Results
100 Meters Varsity -
Finals
7. Hayden McMahon
(12.35a SR)
1 2 . Nick Wen b erg
(12.57a SR)
37. Joseph Albitre
(13.28a PR)
200
Meters
Va r s i t y - F i n a l s
5. Hayden McMahon
(25.44a SR)
800
Meters
Va r s i t y - F i n a l s
5. Marty Medina (2:21.16a
PR)
1500
Meters
Va r s i t y - F i n a l s
3. Marty Medina (4:44.97a
PR)
Shot Put - 12lb
Va r s i t y - F i n a l s
6.
Chris
Hum-
phreys (38’ 5 PR)
14. Lucas King (31’ 10.5 PR)
15. Landon Mc-
Mahon (31’ 0 SR)
20. Gage Heideman (29’ 8 PR)
26. Austin Willis (27’ 6 PR)
Discus - 1.6kg
Va r s i t y - F i n a l s
4. Landon McMa-
hon (106’ 1 PR)
13. Chris Hum-
phreys (88’ 2 SR)
18. Gage Heideman (79’ 3 PR)
20. Lucas King (72’ 10 PR)
23. Austin Willis (70’ 10
PR)
Javelin - 800g Varsity
- Finals
1. Chris Humphreys
(163’ 8 PR)
19. Gage Heideman
(93’ 6 PR)
21. Lucas King (92’
8 PR)
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Hayden McMahon. -Photos by Healy Hisler handing off in the
Susan Hisler
4x400. -Photos by Susan Hisler
Marty Medina. -Photos by Riley Archer in the 3000-me-
ter race. -Photos by Susan
Susan Hisler
Hisler
29 Landon McMahon
(81’ 0 SR)
34. Austin Willis (65’
5 PR)
H i g h
J u m p
Va r s i t y - F i n a l s
4. Joseph Albitre (5’ 4 PR)
L o n g
J u m p
Va r s i t y - F i n a l s
3.
Nick
Wen-
berg (19’ 2.25 PR)
24. Joseph Albitre (16’ 0.25
PR)
Women’s Results
100 Meters Varsity -
Finals
1. Hallee Hisler (13.07a
SR)
2. Healy Hisler (13.87a
SR)
13. Teagan Kelton
(15.12a PR)
15. Laia Puelles (15.14a
PR)
27. Natalie Piper
(15.84a SR)
29. Samantha Lamb
(15.87a PR)
200 Meters Varsity -
Finals
1. Hallee Hisler (26.76a
SR)
2. Healy Hisler (28.30a
SR)
11. Teagan Kelton
(32.27a PR)
12. Laia Puelles (32.35a
PR)
16. Samantha Lamb
(33.30a PR)
400
Meters
Va r s i t y - F i n a l s
2. Riley Archer (1:08.90a PR)
10. Loren Trujillo (1:26.60a
SR)
800 Meters Varsity -
Finals
1. Lily Nichols
(2:34.19a SR)
10. Loren Trujillo
(3:24.41a SR)
1500 Meters Varsity
- Finals
1. Lily Nichols
(5:10.56a SR)
5. Brooklyn Hendricks
(5:49.12a SR)
3000 Meters Varsity
- Finals
1. Riley Archer
(12:01.60a SR)
5. Brooklyn Hendricks
(12:30.07a PR)
100m Hurdles -
3 3 ” Va r s i t y - F i n a l s
3. Laia Puelles (19.83a PR)
300m Hurdles - 30”
Varsity - Finals
1.
Lily Nich-
ols (52.40a SR)
4x400 Relay Varsity
- Finals
1.
Healy His-
ler, Riley Archer, Lily
Nichols, Hallee Hisler
(4:26.14a)
Shot Put - 4kg
Va r s i t y - F i n a l s
8. Avia Boutefuhr (23’ 5
PR)
Discus - 1kg
Va r s i t y - F i n a l s
15. Avia Boutefuhr (55’ 3
PR)
H i g h
J u m p
Va r s i t y - F i n a l s
8. Natalie Piper (4’ 0 SR)