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About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 13, 2019)
A8 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2019 HeraldSports Follow sports on Twitter @HHeraldSports TEAM CHEMISTRY 101 Staff photo by E.J. Harris Hermiston seniors Ryne Andreason, Adrian Mendez, Andrew James, Jordan Ramirez, Cole Smith and Cesar Ortiz have been playing basketball together on the same team for the past six years. By ANNIE FOWLER STAFF WRITER T he Hermiston boys bas- ketball team likely has never heard of the late Don Meyer, but it is practicing what he preached. The six seniors on the Hermiston roster have grown up playing basketball together — three of them since the second grade. They are brothers in a sense. They argue, tease, disagree over the silliest things and drive their coach crazy, but that’s what makes them who they are. “They stick together when times are tough,” Hermiston coach Casey Arstein said. “They know each other’s role. They know who the shooters are, who the scorers are and they have good chemistry on and off the court. They drive me crazy at times, but ”TO BE A TEAM, YOU MUST BE A FAMILY.” all bring something different to the game. That is a good thing. When times get tough, they know how to turn it on.” — DON MEYER, Northern State basketball coach Andreason and James started playing basketball together through the Hermiston Parks and Rec Department in the fi rst grade. In the second grade, they joined an AAU team coached by current Hermiston athletic director Larry Usher. It’s on that team they met Smith. Fast forward to the sixth grade, that’s when Mendez joined the team. “I got in trouble in the sixth grade and had to see Mr. Usher,” Mendez said. “He asked if I wanted to play. I had never played bas- ketball before.” But he was tall (at the time), something the team had lacked from the onset. I love them all.” The group of Ryne Andreason, Andrew James, Cole Smith, Cesar Ortiz, Adrian Mendez and Jordan Ramirez have helped the Bulldogs (14-6) secure the No. 1 seed in the 3A portion of the MCC/GSL District 8 tournament. They will host Kennewick at 7 p.m. Friday. “They have spent a lot of time in the game,” Arstein said. “They have a high bas- ketball IQ, and that time on the court helps when you play teams bigger than you. They GIRLS HOOPS The Hermiston girls basketball team saw a fi ve-point lead melt away in the fourth quarter, then fell short last Tuesday night in their 3A District 8 opener against North Central in Spokane. Quincy McDeid hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer in overtime to lead the Indians to a 51-48 victory over the Bulldogs. “It was really heartbreaking,” Hermis- ton coach Juan Rodriguez said. “We were up in the fourth quarter and didn’t exe- cute properly. They came down and hit two free throws with a second left to send it to overtime.” The Bulldogs (8-14) are off until Thurs- day, when they will play the loser of Wednesday’s Mt. Spokane-Kennewick game. Mt. Spokane, the GSL’s No. 1 seed, had a fi rst-round bye, while Kennewick beat visiting Shadle Park 90-29. See Chemistry, Page A9 BOYS HOOPS North Central tops Hermiston in overtime By ANNIE FOWLER STAFF WRITER In the beginning In overtime, the Indians (12-9) quickly went up by fi ve, but the Bulldogs clawed their way back into the game and tied the score at 48-48 before McDeid hit the game-winning shot. “It really just comes down to not mak- ing mistakes at the end of the game,” Rodri- guez said. Hermiston trailed 20-15 at the half, but went on a 10-6 run in the third to pull within 26-25 entering the fourth quarter. Jordan Thomas, the Bulldogs’ 6-foot-4 post, fi nished with 14 points, but did not score in the fi rst half. Jazlyn Romero chipped in 13 points, and Paige Palzinski came off the bench to score six. McDeid led the Indians with 17 points, while Adria Blocker added 11. Hermiston 5 10 10 13 10 — 48 North Central 5 15 6 12 13 — 51 HERMISTON — Ray 4, Bryd 2, Stefani 4, Palzinski 6, Dowdy 2, Her- nandez 3, Romero 14, Thomas 14. NORTH CENTRAL — Blocker 11, Crockett 8, Chastain 6, McDeid 17, Sayers 6. Inclement weather strikes again Third times a charm: Kennewick at Hermiston scheduled for today, 7 p.m. By ANNIE FOWLER STAFF WRITER Blame Mother Nature or Old Man Winter. Either way, the Hermiston-Kennewick boys 3A District 8 tournament basketball game has been moved once again. The teams will play at 7 p.m. Wednes- day at Hermiston High School. The Bulldogs originally were sched- uled to host Kennewick on Friday night, but poor weather conditions pushed the game to Tuesday. “As it is now, there will be games played Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday to see who goes to Tacoma,” Hermiston athletic director Larry Usher said. “We cancel any more games, we might have to petition the WIAA to play two games a day.” The Bulldogs (14-6) earned the Mid-Columbia Conference’s top seed to the tournament, and had a bye the open- ing round. Kennewick (11-10) beat North Central 61-50 in the fi rst round to stay in the win- ner’s half of the bracket. It will be the third meeting between the Bulldogs and Lions this season. Hermiston won the fi rst meeting 72-64, and the second 64-63. Admission prices, set by the WIAA, are $7 for adults and $5 for students. Usher said Hermiston Athletics will cover the admission cost for students who want to attend the game. With Tuesday’s games being pushed to Wednesday, the Hermiston girls game, which was scheduled for Wednesday, was moved to Thursday. The Bulldogs will play at the loser of Wednesday’s Kennewick-Mt. Spokane game.
