WEDNESDAY, MAY 23, 2018
HERMISTONHERALD.COM • A9
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Small schools fare well at state
By ALEXIS MANSANAREZ
STAFF WRITER
E
UGENE — On Day 2 of the
2018 State Track and Field
Championships, the small
schools wrapped up their final
events at Hayward Field.
Echo’s top finisher was Morgen
Marcum in the boys discus. After
scratching on his first attempt, he
rebounded with a throw of 121-10
to claim fifth place, and a new PR.
In the Class 2A finals, Hep-
pner’s Hunter Nichols returned to
the track after a second-place fin-
ish in the 1,500-meter run Thurs-
day. Again, he was up against Ban-
don’s Hunter Hutton but another
Bandon runner proved to also be
tough competition.
Josh Snyder was running with
his teammate to take a 1-2 fin-
ish for the Tigers but the Mustang
wasn’t far behind.
Nichols finished in third after
clocking 4:14.80, and had team-
mate Trevor Antonucci close
behind for a fifth place finish
(4:17.90).
Fellow Mustang Madelyn
Nichols rounded out the top eight
in the girls 1,500 meters. She was
a few hundredths of a second off
a seventh place finish. The fresh-
man’s time of 5:23.73 was a mas-
sive PR, shaving off over eight
seconds. Jake Wallace took the
eighth and final place in the boys
110-meter hurdles (17.90). Hep-
pner’s 4x400-meter relay team
ended the day on the track for the
Mustangs with a seventh place fin-
ish (3:41.60).
In the field, the Mustangs had
one of the most successful ath-
letes of the day with Alex Lind-
say clearing 6-feet even in the
boys high jump to match his PR
from last season. Lindsay quickly
moved from third place in the high
jump to atop the podium in the
triple jump. On his fourth go, he
recorded 41-11.00 to put himself
just inches above his competition.
Lindsay and the rest of the Hep-
pner boys team’s effort led the
Mustangs into a two-way tie for
second overall with 52 points.
Patty Burres made multiple
appearances on the track for the
Umatilla Vikings in the Class 3A
final events. Her efforts earned
her a state title and multiple top
finishes.
After competing in the girls
4x100-meter relay and the 100-
meter dash, Burres carved out time
for a quick jog to cool down, but as
she was taking a lap she heard the
announcer call for the next race.
So before Burres powered
through the grueling 400-meter
dash, she had to sprint to the start-
ing blocks.
Once there, she returned to
the basics that helped the Viking
clock 1:00.02 to earn a state
championship.
“I knew I needed a good start
and a strong finish,” Burres said.
“I remember my coach telling me,
‘Just start your race how you usu-
ally do but by the end you have to
pump your arms.’ So, I think that’s
what really helped me.”
Umatilla’s girls 4x100-meter
relay team — made up of Burres,
Jacqueline Brown, Abigail Carde-
nas and Nancy Ortiz — rounded
out the top five with a time of
53.02.
Burres also finished in the top
five of the 100 meters, beating
a Catlin Gabel sprinter by two
one-hundreths of a second. Her
time of 12.99 was good for fourth
place.
Ortiz also had a busy day, com-
peting again in the 300-meter
hurdles where she took fourth in
48.09.
Fellow Viking Anthony Ibarra
grabbed the final podium finish in
the boys javelin throw. His mark
of 142-09 was reached on his sixth
and final attempt. Nancy Ortiz fin-
ished eighth in the girls 100-meter
hurdles (16.78) for a lone point for
Umatilla and Trent Durfey, who
competed in the boys 110-meter
hurdles, finished seventh (16.29).
Zayne Troeger picked up a fifth
place finish in the boys 800 meters
(2:02.68). Julian Gutierrez cleared
6-feet even in the high jump to fin-
ish out the day for Umatilla.
Other top local finishers
included Irrigon’s Ana Zacarias,
who placed seventh in the 100
meters (13.26) and fifth in the
200 (27.12), and Riverside’s Faith
Rosen, who had a top five finish in
the girls 100-meter hurdles with a
time of 16.31.
Hermiston’s
farewell tour
on last stop
Bulldogs softball team
begins state tournament
at home on Wednesday
By ERIC SINGER
STAFF WRITER
STAFF PHOTOS BY KATHY ANEY
Patty Burres of Umatilla (right) races to a state championship in the 3A girls 400-yard dash Thursday
at the OSAA track and field state championships. Burres also competed in the relay and won a state
title in the 400-meter dash.
Hermiston High’s self-titled ‘OSAA
Farewell Tour’ is making its last stop.
The Bulldogs’ softball team marks the
final one in OSAA competition before the
move to the Washington Interscholastic
Activities Association this summer. And
like their football classmates that began
the sports season with a bang, the softball
team has a chance to end it with a bang in
the Class 5A state tournament.
Hermiston begins the state tournament
on Wednesday evening when the sev-
enth-seeded Bulldogs host No. 10 Eagle
Point at the Rocky Heights Elementary
field at 5 p.m.
The Bulldogs (16-9 overall) played
their way into the state tournament with a
decisive 10-5 victory on the road against
St. Helens in the play-in round last week.
Hermiston has proved itself against
playoff-level talent this season, earn-
ing victories against Pendleton (5A No.
1), Hood River Valley (5A No. 5), Rid-
geview (5A No. 9) and La Grande (4A
No. 1), and fell just short of a win against
6A No. 3 team in Clackamas.
Home-field advantage has been help-
ful to the Bulldogs this season as they are
7-2 at home. The only two losses are to
No. 1 Pendleton by a 6-1 score on May 1
and 15-7 to No. 5 Hood River valley on
April 14.
Home-field could play a factor for the
Bulldogs on Wednesday as Eagle Point,
12 miles north of Medford, will be mak-
ing the seven-plus hour trip up to Eastern
Oregon for the first-round game.
However, Eagle Point has proved
itself on the road, too, going 10-3 in true
road games.
The Eagles average 8.7 runs per game
and allow 4.2 per game and are bat-
tle-tested as well. They hold wins over
South Umpqua (4A No. 7), Crater (5A
No. 14), Lebanon (5A No. 15), Marist
Catholic (5A No. 4) and Thurston (5A
No. 12), while losing to Central (5A No.
11) and North Medford (6A No. 3).
3A SOFTBALL
Hepper’s Alex Lindsay sails over the high jump Friday during the 2A OSAA State Track and Field
championships at Hayward Field. Lindsay earned a place on the podium with a fifth-place finish.
Team Results
CLASS 1A
Girls
1. Cove, 74 points; 2. Adrian,
52; 3. Hosanna Christian,
50; 4. Southwest Christian,
48; 5. Perrydale, 43; 6.
South Wasco County, 42; 6.
Griswold, 42; 8. Joseph, 34.
Boys
1. Pacific, 74.5 points; 2.
North Clackamas Christian,
53; 3. Cove, 46; 4. Triangle
Lake, 38; 5. Camas Valley,
33; 6. Southwest Christian,
32; 7. Harper, 31; 8. Dufur,
30.
Heppner’s Hunter Nichols races the 800-meter dash during the OSAA State
Track and Field championships at Hayward Field.
Derek Howard of Heppner throws the discus Friday at the OSAA State
Track and Field championships at Hayward Field in Eugene.
CLASS 2A
Girls
1. Monroe, 80 points; 2.
Grant Union, 65; 3. Central
Linn, 59; 4. Kennedy, 49;
5. Weston-McEwen, 46; 6.
Enterprise, 42; 7. Faith Bible
Christian, 36; 8. St Paul, 31;
8. Culver, 31.
Boys
1. Bandon, 70 points; 2.
Regis, 52; 2. Heppner, 52;
4. Weston-McEwen, 45; 4.
East Linn Christian, 45; 6.
Enterprise, 42; 7. Monroe,
40; 8. Vernonia, 33.
CLASS 3A
Girls
1. Blanchet Catholic, 67.5
points; 2. Catlin Gabel, 65;
3. St Mary’s, 55; 4. La Pine,
37; 4. Pleasant Hill, 37; 6.
Santiam Christian, 34.5; 7.
Cascade Christian, 34; 8.
Lakeview, 31.5.
Boys
1. Pleasant Hill, 62 points;
2. Salem Academy, 60;
3. Catlin Gabel, 52; 4.
Clatskanie, 49; 5. Burns, 34;
6. Amity, 31; 7. Dayton, 29;
8. Lakeview, 28.
No. 8 ECHO/STANFIELD VS. No.
9 TAFT — After one year away, the
Echo/Stanfield Cougars are back in the
OSAA state playoffs and this time get to
stay home for their first-round game.
The eighth-seeded Cougars (19-6
overall) start the state playoffs after win-
ning both their district’s regular season
and district tournament championships.
With the likes of Alyssa Ray, Monique
Montoya, Kendra Hart, Alex Putman and
Michelle Weems, among others, leading
the way, the Cougars come in averaging
11.1 runs per game and allow only four
runs.
However the Cougars welcome in a
talented team in the Taft Tigers (17-10).
The Tigers have played numerous
playoff teams this season and come in
well-tested. The Tigers hold wins over
Dayton (3A No. 1), Amity (3A No. 10),
Blanchet Catholic (3A No. 12), Coleton
(3A No. 13), North Bend (4A No. 11) and
Newport (4A No. 14).
First pitch is set for 3 p.m. in Echo.
3A BASEBALL
No. 2 STANFIELD/ECHO VS. NO.
15 BLANCHET CATHOLIC — The
Stanfield Tigers will host a first-round
state playoff for the fifth consecutive sea-
son on Wednesday when they welcome in
the No. 15 Blanchet Catholic Cavaliers.
The No. 2 Tigers (21-5 overall) come
roaring into the postseason with 16 wins
in their last 17 games, most recently a
8-1 win over Joseph/Enterprise/Wallowa
co-op in the district title game.
They boast an offense that averages
11.7 runs per game and allows 6.4 runs
per game, led by standout pitcher/hit-
ter Brody Woods and a lineup that has
improved top-to-bottom.
The Cavaliers (9-11) on the other hand
present an easy opponent for the Tigers
— on paper at least.
The second-place Cavaliers from the
PacWest Conference average 5.7 runs per
game and give up 6.8 runs per game and
are 3-4 in their past seven games.
Blanchet Catholic also has only one
win over a team with a winning record
this season, a 3-1 victory over the 12-10
Toledo program on April 18. The six
teams that the Cavaliers defeated com-
bine for a 50-78 record, or a .390 win
percentage. First pitch is set for 4 p.m. at
Madigan Field.