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About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (March 16, 2016)
Page 12 HEPPNER East Oregonian/Hermiston Herald Wednesday, March 16, 2016 Mustangs hoping to get over hump H EPPNER B ASEBALL In this May 19, 2015 ile photo, Jake Lindsay, of Heppner, dives for home plate as pitcher Freddie Vera waits for the ball during a game in Irrigon. COACH: Jim Kindle, 3rd year 2015 SEASON: 9-11, 5-7 SD6 (4th) POSTSEASON STORY: The Mustangs have not had a winning record or made the postseason since 2011. RETURNERS: C Weston Putman, sr.; P/INF Patrick Collins, sr.; UT C.J. Kindle, sr.; OF Kevin Murray, jr.; INF Jake Lindsay, jr. T he Heppner Mustangs haven’t had much time together as the 2016 season draws near, as the teams’ practices were set back by the basketball team advancing to the state playoffs. Head coach Jim Kindle said that the team will have only had six practices before their ¿rst game. “The guys have done a lot to get their arms in shape,” he said. “We’ll probably have to throw several (pitchers) in the ¿rst game because all of their arms won’t be ready.” Heppner loses only two starters from last years’ sTuad in in¿elder =ach Irons and out¿elder Cade Arbogast, but return plenty of expe- rience all over the ¿eld. Leading the pack of returners is senior utility player C.J. Kindle, who hit for a .326 average, scored 25 runs, and stole 22 bases to land on the ¿rst team all-league roster. The Mustangs also return seniors Weston Putman and Patrick Collins, as well as juniors Kevin Murray and Jake Lindsay to help bolster the offense and defense. Pitching will be a big question mark for the Mustangs heading through the season, as the staff allowed more than seven runs per game in 2015. The team has not had a winning season since 2011, and has hovered around the .500 mark for the past two seasons. So what does Kindle think it will take to get the Mustangs over the hump? “Cut down on the errors and put the ball in play,” he said. “We can make good contact, we just need to ¿nd some space in the ¿eld.” Heppner’s district landscape Staff photo by Kathy Aney H EPPNER S OFTBALL COACH: Petra Payne, 3rd year 2015 SEASON: 3-19, 1-11 SD6 (7th) POSTSEASON STORY: The Mustangs have not made the playoffs since its back-to-back appearances in 2012 and 2013. RETURNERS: P Meranda Lemmon, jr.; P Onna DeLoach, jr.; 3B Jessica Kempken, sr.; C Caitlyn Bailey, sr. he Heppner Mustangs have struggled to ¿nd winning consistency in each of the last two seasons, mustering just ¿ve total wins overall. Coach Petra Payne is hoping for a turnaround in 2016, as the team returns all of its starters and most of the contributors from the 2015 team. “We have 16 girls out for the team this year, and that should help us,” she said. “We have a couple of new dynamics to make us tougher, and our returners are getting better and stronger.” Heppner will have three strong pitching options this year, with junior Meranda Lemmon as well as newcomers Cassidy McCullough and Dakota Durphy. So what does Payne want to see from her team in 2016? “We’re going to need to be able to beat the top teams in our league to hopefully boost some con¿dence,” she said. “I’m really hoping for some solid defense, continued improvement, and being able to put some runs on the board.” T 2016 SCHEDULE 2016 SCHEDULE Mar. 15 Mar. 29 Apr. 1 Apr. 4 Apr. 12 Apr. 16 Apr. 19 Apr. 23 Apr. 26 Apr. 30 May 3 May 7 May 10 May 14 vs. Weston-McEwen vs. Pilot Rock at Weston-McEwen (DH) at Pilot Rock at Grant Union vs. Grant Union (DH) at Dufur* vs. Dufur* (DH) vs. Irrigon* at Irrigon* (DH) vs. Sherman* at Sherman* (DH) at Culver* vs. Culver* (DH) 4 p.m. 4 p.m. 2 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4 p.m. 11 a.m. 4 p.m. 11 a.m. 4:30 p.m. 11 a.m. 4:30 p.m. 11 a.m. 4:30 p.m. 11 a.m. *League game changed a bit for the 2016 season, as the Mustangs’ home Special District 6 has two less teams after both Pilot Rock and Weston-McEwen have been relocated to Special District 7. Dufur has also added a co-op with South Wasco this season, and Arlington/Sherman has added Condon High School, with Sherman taking the lead. “It’ll be a different look, for sure,” Kindle said. “But we still have to play against Sherman and Dufur, and we still have to drive to Culver, so we’ll still have to play well.” Mar. 17 Mar. 23 Mar. 23 Mar. 24 Mar. 24 Mar. 28 Mar. 31 Apr. 1 Apr. 9 Apr. 12 Apr. 16 Apr. 19 Apr. 23 Apr. 26 Apr. 30 May 3 May 6 May 10 May 14 vs. Umatilla vs. Hermiston JV vs. Enterprise vs. Knappa vs. Enterprise vs. Echo at Umatilla at Grant Union (DH) at Echo at Burns* vs. Burns* (DH) at Union* vs. Union* (DH) vs. Pilot Rock* at Pilot Rock* (DH) at Irrigon* vs. Irrigon* (DH) vs. Culver* at Culver* (DH) 4:30 p.m. Noon TBD TBD TBD 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 1 p.m. 11 a.m. 3:30 p.m. 1 p.m. 4 p.m. 11 a.m. 4:30 p.m. 11 a.m. 4:30 p.m. 10 a.m. 4:30 p.m. 11 a.m. *League game H EPPNER T RACK & F IELD COACH: Russ Nichols & Laura Winters, 1st year POSTSEASON STORY: The Mustangs quali¿ed eight individ- uals in 10 events at the state meet, where the girls ¿nished tied for 30th and the boys ¿nished 29th. KEY RETURNERS: (BOYS) Kaden Clark, sr.; Skyler Palmer, sr.; Alex Lindsay, soph.; (GIRLS) Kaelyn Lindsay, sr. T he Heppner Mustangs had a successful trip to the district track meet in 2015, qualifying eight individuals for the state meet in 10 different events. However, that success did not translate into results at the state meet, where the Mustangs highest ¿nish on the boys side was Skyler Palmer ¿nishing seventh in the 800 meter run and Kelly Wilson ¿nishing eighth in the triple jump on the girls side. But the Mustangs return six of those eight quali¿ers in 2016, with Kaden Clark (200 meter dash), Alex Lindsay (triple jump, 4x400 relay), Len Havermeier (high jump, javelin throw), and Kaelyn Lindsay (100 meter hurdles) all looking to better their results from 2015. 2016 SCHEDULE Mar. 17 Apr. 2 Apr. 9 Apr. 14 Apr. 23 Apr. 27 Apr. 30 May 6 May 13 May 19 May 20 Buck Track Classic Sherman Invite Stan¿eld Invite Mustang Invite Pepsi Invite (Union) Bulldog Invite Condon Invite Baker Invite Districts (at Athena) State Meet (at Eugene) State Meet (at Eugene) 1 p.m. 1 p.m. 11 a.m. 1 p.m. 10 a.m. 4 p.m. 11 a.m. 10 a.m. 11 a.m. 8 a.m. 8 a.m. EO file photo Caitlyn Bailey of Heppner is one of the team’s top re- turners for 2016. GOOD LUCK TO IRRIGON KNIGHTS! H EPPNER G OLF In this May 13, 2015 ile photo, Heppner’s Logan Grieb chips during the 2A district golf tourna- ment at the Pendleton County Club. EO file photo/ E.J. Harris COACH: Greg Grant, 26th year POSTSEASON STORY: The Mustangs had a successful season, as the boys team ¿nished third at districts and seventh at the state tournament, and the girls ¿nished second in the district and second in the state tournament. LOSSES: Jesse Corbin, John Propheter, Paige Grieb, Maddie Lindsay, Emily Rae, RETURNERS: (Boys) Logan Grieb, jr.; Brian Rill, sr.; Tommy Bred¿eld, sr. (Girls) Sophie Grant, soph.; Amanda Rea, jr. H eppner returns three boys and two girls from the state qualifying teams from one year ago, and are poised for another successful season. On the boys team, Logan Grieb returns for his junior season coming off of a fourth-place ¿nish at districts and a 16th-place ¿nish at state. Also back for the Mustangs are seniors Brian Rill and Tommy Bred¿eld who earned 40th place and 36th place ¿nishes at the district tournament respectively. On the girls team, Sophie Grant returns for her soph- omore season after a stellar freshman year saw her earn top-ten ¿nishes at both the district and state tournaments. The only other varsity player returning is junior Amanda Rea, who ¿nished 11th in the district tournament and tied for 24th with former teammate Maddie Lindsay at the state tournament. The district tournament is back at Pendleton Country Club again for the 2016 season, and the 4A/3A/2A/1A state tournament will be held at Emerald Valley Golf Club in Creswell. 2016 SCHEDULE Mar. 17 Mar. 18 Mar. 28 Apr. 1 Apr. 8 Apr. 12 Apr. 15 Apr. 22 Apr. 29 May 8-10 at Willow Creek CC at Echo Hills GC at Pumpkin Ridge GC at Pendleton CC at John Day GC at La Grande CC at Big River GC at Buffalo Peak GC at Alpine Meadows GC Districts (Pendleton CC) Mentzer & Elliott 2 p.m. 10 a.m. Noon 9 a.m. 11 a.m. Noon 10 a.m. 10 a.m. 11 a.m. 8 a.m. Best of Luck Knights! www.mtvalleylandco.com LEE DOCKEN, Principal Broker P.O. Box 50, 101 • SW Kinkade Ave., Boardman, OR • leed@eotnet.net Office: 541-481-6251 Cell: 541-571-0062 Fax: 541-481-6262 P il o t Ro c k Pilot Rock Hardware R ocks! 181 NW Birch Pilot Rock, OR 541-443-2241 W ay to go R ockets! Attorney at Law 125 SW 3rd St. • Hermiston 541-564-2574 DOHER TY RECYCLING Regency & Buck Stoves Stihl Power Products 420 NE Elm, Pilot Rock, OR • 541-443-2351 JOHN L. BALLARD LL C GO ROCKETS! 'RKHUW\:HOGLQJ //& 3DFN\%XLOW 541-443-3234 Good Luck Rockets! Terry Becktold 541-278-4963 509 SW Frazer Ave., Pendleton, OR tperkins@farmersagent.com 2801 S T . A NTHONY W AY , P ENDLETON , OR 97801 WWW . SAHPENDLETON . ORG
