WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2016
HERMISTONHERALD.COM • A7
SPORTS
Bulldogs return with experience in secondary
Hermiston will
have three returning
starters in
defensive backfield
By MATT ENTRUP
Staff Writer
When Hermiston senior Vae-
mu Ena grew two inches between
his sophomore and junior seasons,
Bulldogs coaches took a look at
the 6-foot-2, 175-pound athlete
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That’s where he was listed
on the team’s initial roster, but it
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With three senior returners al-
ready on the line and another ju-
nior in front of Ena, the athletic
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safety, where he quickly made the
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season he had earned honorable
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honors and was one of the de-
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with a whopping 158 return yards,
and three pass break-ups in just
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He’s one, but not the only, rea-
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“I think our secondary is going
to be pretty tough this year,” he
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Junior cornerback Tyler Rohr-
STAFF PHOTO BY MATT ENTRUP
STAFF PHOTO BY MATT ENTRUP
Hermiston’s Tyler Rohrman (16)
goes up against Tucker Salinas
during a drill at a recent football
practice at Kennison Field.
Rohrman, a junior, is one of three
returning starters to the Bulldogs
secondary.
Hermiston safety Vaemu Ena
catches the ball during a drill at
football practice at Kennison Field.
Ena, a senior, was an all-state
honorable mention selection
last season and is one of three
returning starters to the secondary.
Hermiston cornerback Dayshawn
Neal, right, presses a wide receiver
during a drill during football
practice at Kennison Field. Neal,
a junior, is the only newcomer to
the starting lineup in the Bulldogs
secondary this season.
STAFF PHOTO BY MATT ENTRUP
man, senior safety Joey Gutierrez
and junior cornerback Dayshawn
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Rohrman was a second-team All-
CRC corner last season and had 21
tackles and three pass breakups in
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CRC second-team linebacker who
had 42 tackles, one interception,
two pass breakups and one fumble
forced as a junior, and Neal started
at quarterback last season before
an injury ended his season after
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That’s still a well-seasoned
group, and Ena said it feels like the
unit is ahead of pace in his second
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at safety and these guys (Rohrman
and Gutierrez) were just barely
coming up, so I feel a lot better
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With Ena and Gutierrez (5-10,
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on the back end while Rohrman
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the Bulldogs size and speed on the
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All of them also start on of-
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But it’s not the unit’s great mea-
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summer in camps, playing togeth-
er in 7-on-7, we just click,” Gutier-
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kind of got a feeling and we know
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got to be there they’re going to be
there, that’s what type of bond we
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The Bulldogs will face some
pretty tough passers in Special Dis-
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5A Player of the Year John Bled-
soe and Redmond brings back sec-
ond-team All-Intermountain Con-
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As a team the Bulldogs
snagged 10 interceptions in 2015,
but Rohrman said they’re not go-
ing into this season with any type
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us, getting the ball back for the of-
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do that when Union (Washington)
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was one of those teams the Bull-
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“We got the look, but I feel like
we locked them up a little bit,”
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Rohrman said they expect
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come September, but it was good
to at least see how they matched
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While the unit has the poten-
tial to be one of the best in their
league, none of the players expects
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ing hard, keep grinding together,”
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IN BRIEF
Colleges scrimmage
Thursday at Kennison Field
Hermiston School District will host
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College and the College of Idaho at 3
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quality football programs to scrim-
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tor of operations for Hermiston School
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“With former bulldog athletes Dylan
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Clark Gammell and Keegan Crafton, at
the College of Idaho, it will be great to
welcome these former students back to
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No admission will be charged to
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Fall classes set
for dance, gymnastics
Dance classes and gymnastics
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through Hermiston Parks & Recre-
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Participants can register for one or
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take place on Thursdays at the Hermis-
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The dance classes are $30 for res-
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gymnastics sessions range from $18 to
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non-residents
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more information, call 541-667-5018 or
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