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About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 11, 2015)
S PORTS Hermiston A10 WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2015 HERMISTONHERALD.COM Match 6WDQ¿HOGJHWV1R&HQWUDO/LQQLQTXDUWHUV turns on Cobras, Tigers More inside alike offensively the luck of the kick Results: For a recap of Stanfield’s game against Vernonia, see Page A11. By SAM BARBEE Staff Writer O ne-hundred minutes of soccer is ruined by 10 shots. One-hundred minutes of intense, physical, aggressive, life-on-the-line soccer is arbitrarily thrown out and decided by luck. If a soccer match goes to penalty kicks, that’s what happens. And it’s a shame. It happened to Sam Hermiston’s and Barbee Umatilla’s girls pro- FROM THE SIDELINES grams last season. Hermiston lost to /LEHUW\ RQ WKH ¿QDO NLFN DQG WKH Vikings lost to Perrydale/Western Mennonite. Saturday, Hermiston lost to Woodburn on penalty kicks, and it is just no fun. I mean, I guess it was fun for Woodburn, who piled on keep- er Jesse Lopez after he made the VHPL¿QDOFOLQFKLQJ VDYH %XW LW¶V no fun for the fans, who see a match decided by luck. It’s no fun for the coaches, who have to stand back and helplessly watch as luck unfolds. And it’s no fun for me, because penalty kicks are stupid. I guess they do have their dra- PD %UDQG\ &KDVWDLQ ZRQ WKH ),)$ :RPHQ¶V :RUOG &XS on penalty kicks, and her celebra- tion has survived. They do create tangible moments that are often lasting because of the nobody- knows-what-will-happen tension. %XW LW¶V VXFK D ZDVWH7KH NLFNV which are supposed to be award- ed to the offensive team when a penalty was committed in the box, have no bearing on the match as a whole. Imagine a baseball game went extra innings, but they only played two. Then afterwards it came down to a home run derby, and one team loses because they don’t KDYH D SRZHU KLWWHU .DQVDV &LW\ Royals, sorry, guys, all those extra inning games wouldn’t have gone your way. Probably. Or in foot- ball, if a double-overtime game is GHFLGHGE\D¿HOGJRDONLFNRII ,¶PQRWVXUHZKDW¿[FRXOGEH made. It’s so ingrained into the sport that it seems impossible to make any changes. Perhaps that’s just the thing, it only seems that ZD\ &KDQJH LV DOZD\V SRVVLEOH but the most popular sport in the world isn’t going to simply make a decree and have sweeping changes implemented overnight. It’s a logistical nightmare. I also understand you just can’t keep playing soccer like you do baseball, football or even bas- ketball. The matches are already physically demanding, and 100 minutes is a long time to be run- ning up and down a huge space. %XW FRPH RQ JX\V VWDQGLQJ yards from the net and pounding it one after another past the keeper is boring and disappointing, espe- cially after a well-played match. Perhaps they could go the route of the NHL, which is trying to phase out shootouts because of the arbitrary nature of deciding a win- ner. So, they instituted three-on- three overtimes to increase scor- ing. It worked. Overtime hockey matches are more exciting than they’ve ever been, and shootouts are down. Everyone wins. I just feel bad for the Herm- iston boys team and any soccer team that loses on penalty kicks. That match was so much fun to watch and cover, yet the ending left something to be desired. That something is fairness, or some- thing approaching it. The obvious argument against this is, “Well, make your kicks and you’d win.” And I suppose that’s a reasonable point, but it’s all luck. The kicker decides where to put it, and the keeper tries to guess where it’s going. It’s luck. Games and matches shouldn’t be decided on luck and luck alone. It takes 100 minutes of skill and effort to get to penalty kicks, and luck decides it. It’s a shame. Sam Barbee is a sports reporter for the Hermiston Herald and East Oregonian based out of Hermiston. He can be reached by email at sbarbee@ hermistonherald.com or on Twitter @SamBarbee1. Follow Herald Sports @HHeraldSports. )RULWV¿UVWURXQGSOD\- RII JDPH WKH 6WDQ¿HOG Tigers traveled the dense forests of northwest Ore- gon to play the Vernonia Loggers and had to recali- brate its defensive scheme to defend against the high-octane passing attack employed by the Loggers. )RULWVVHPL¿QDOPDWFK- up, the No. 9 Tigers travel IXUWKHUVRXWKWR1R&HQ- tral Linn, where they will face a more familiar offen- VLYHDWWDFN7KH&REUDVUXQD ground game eerily reminis- cent of the Tigers’ Wing-T scheme, and they’re ready to go toe-to-toe. “My kids are hungry,” head coach Davy Salas said. “Since we’ve been together, we told our- selves we want to go play for a state championship. That’s been our goal for these guys. That’s what we want to do. We’re go- ing to go play the games on our schedule, and if we play a great game we’ll come out on top.” In preparation for the &REUDV 6WDQ¿HOG LVQ¶W FKDQJLQJ DQ\WKLQJ %XW that’s been the modus ope- UDQGL RI ¿UVW\HDU FRDFK Salas since he took over before this season. The ¿UVWWLPHKHDGGUHVVHGKLV team, he told them he isn’t interested in sexy big-play football. He wanted to play “man-on-man, hat- on-hat” football and run between the tackles. The Tigers have done just that this season. Junior running back Thyler Monkus has three games of 200 or more rushing yards, and he’s eclipsed 100 in every game but two. In total, Monkus has rushed for 1,353 yards on 153 carries See TIGERS, A12 STAFF PHOTO BY SAM BARBEE 6tanÀeld TuarterEacN 'ylan *rogan center leads the 1o. 6tanÀeld Tigers into &entral /inn to play the 1o. &oEras in this Friday’s $ TuarterÀnal IootEall game. BULLDOGS WILL RETURN PLAYERS WITH EXPERIENCE DAWGS WILL RETURN IN 2016 WITH DEPTH AT ALL POSITIONS By SAM BARBEE Staff writer ermiston head football coach David Faaeteete will walk into his classroom next week and erase the current depth chart he has written on a white board. 1DPHV OLNH 7UH 1HDO %RE &ROHPDQ +D\GHQ 6LPRQ Ethan Snow, Nathan Hunsaker and more will never again ap- pear on it, but that means new names will. It all feeds into a belief that isn’t uncommon that the Hermiston program has adopted: next man up. “The next man up mentality is a belief,” Faaeteete said. That philosophy was on display all year. All-state wide receiver Ethan Snow broke his FROODUERQH LQ WKH ¿UVW KDOI RI STAFF PHOTO BY E.J. HARRIS WKH¿UVWJDPHDJDLQVW+DQIRUG and he never returned. Starting Hermiston sophomore Tyler Rohrman returns an interception in the Bulldogs’ loss to Wilsonville on quarterback Dayshawn Neal Friday in Hermiston. EURNHKLVDQNOHDJDLQVW&RHXU d’Alene, and never returned. In all, Hermiston was with- out six offensive starters and a handful of defensive starters in its 49-14 home playoff loss to Wilsonville. Faaeteete said the %XOOGRJV VWDUWHG GLIIHUHQW sophomores throughout the 2015 season. For a program that was returning just a handful of starters from last year’s state championship run, “next man up” became the rallying cry By ERIC SINGER Staff Writer IRUWKH%XOOGRJVDVWKHLQMXULHV and losses mounted. The 2014 OSAA state Guys stepped up. Hunsak- playoffs were something to er took over under center and remember for the Hermis- took the offense from stum- WRQ%XOOGRJVFXOPLQDWLQJLQ EOLQJ WR VSULQWLQJ &ROHPDQ WKHZLQRIWKH&ODVV$VWDWH and Simon took over the run- championship. ning back slot for the injured %XWWKH26$$SOD\- STAFF PHOTO BY E.J. HARRIS Jonathan Hinkle, and turned it offs will be a thing to forget into a physical ground game for the Hermiston squad, as Hermiston’s RoEert &oleman rumEles up Àeld in the Bulldogs’ that wore down opponents. they were booted from the loss to Wilsonville on Friday in Hermiston. “I think if people work hard EUDFNHW LQ WKH ¿UVW URXQG RQ enough, with hard work that’s ³:LOVRQYLOOH GH¿QLWHO\ with a little controversy. Friday night, falling to the how the program runs,” junior On the second play of that came out to play, and I don’t Wilsonville Wildcats 49-14. FHQWHU.DGHQ&DOGZHOOVDLG³, 7KH %XOOGRJV ZHUH think we came out at nearly drive, Neville threw an inter- think we’ll be OK next year. simply overmatched in the the level that they did,” said ception deep in Wilsonville’s 7KHJUDGXDWLQJVHQLRUVZHUH game, as their offense could Hermiston senior running own territory that would have big guys for us, but I think QRW ¿QG GHYHORS D UK\WKP EDFN %RE &ROHPDQ DIWHU WKH VHW WKH %XOOGRJV XS ZHOO we’ll be OK.” against the Wildcats defense. game. “It’s hard, because +RZHYHUDSHQDOW\ÀDJZDV ,Q DOO %XOOGRJV SOD\HG 'HIHQVLYHO\ WKH %XOOGRJV nothing was clicking for us thrown for pass interference their last game Friday night. VWDUWHG RXW ZLWK D ¿UH KROG- and it’s hard to build momen- against Hermiston, giving %XW PDQ\ VWURQJ FRQWULEXWRUV Wilsonville new life. LQJ :LOVRQYLOOH WR D tum that way.” will return. Neal, a sopho- %XOOGRJV KHDG FRDFK 'D- On Wilsonville’s second short possession and a punt more, will return. Kick return- RQ LWV ¿UVW SRVVHVVLRQ RI WKH possession, stud junior quar- vid Faaeteete said after the er, wide receiver and defen- WHUEDFN &RQQHU 1HYLOOH OHG game that he believes that’s game. VLYH EDFN %UDG\ &KULVWHQVHQ %XWDIWHUWKH%XOOGRJVVHF- his team on 10-play, 73-yard where the game turned. is just a junior. Wide receiver “That phantom intercep- ond-straight punt to begin the drive that Neville capped off Tucker Salinas, H-back Jer- game, Wilsonville’s offense with a one-yard touchdown tion pass interference when ry Ramirez, line backer Ty found its own rhythm and plunge to put his team up ear- the guy trips over the line, Knutz and offensive lineman VWDUWHGWRSXWWKH%XOOGRJVLQ O\LQWKH¿UVWTXDUWHU %XW WKH GULYH GLG FRPH a big hole. See LOSS, A11 +HUPLVWRQRXVWHGE\:LOVRQYLOOH Slow start proves to be too much for Bulldogs See BULLDOGS, A11