SPORTS
Wednesday, March 27, 2019
herMIsTOnheraLd.cOM • A11
PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Thomas rises above the competition
By ANNIE FOWLER
STAFF WRITER
While Hermiston was a
welcomed addition to the
Mid-Columbia
Confer-
ence this season, the girls
basketball coaches were
a little unsure of the chal-
lenges that would come
with the Bulldogs and their
6-foot-4 senior center Jor-
dan Thomas.
“She was very diffi-
cult for us,” said Kami-
akin coach Lane Schum-
acher, whose team won the
MCC title. “Not only does
she have the height to make
things difficult for us with
her defense, but she also
has a good touch on the
offensive end. We tried to
pressure the guards so they
couldn’t get her the ball.”
Thomas was a cut above
the competition this season,
earning her the East Ore-
gonian Player of the Year
honor.
“It’s a well-deserved
honor for her,” Schumacher
said. “She is going to keep
developing. Her best bas-
ketball is still ahead of her.”
Thomas is joined on the
first team by teammate Jaz-
lyn Romero, Pendleton
freshman Muriel Hoising-
ton, Sydney Wilson and
Jacee Currin from Hep-
pner’s 2A state champion-
ship team, and Ana Zacarias
of Irrigon.
Heppner’s Robert Wil-
son is the Coach of the Year.
Thomas averaged 15.5
points, 13.2 rebounds, 3.8
blocked shots and 1.2 steals
a game for the Bulldogs,
who advanced to the 3A
regional tournament.
She also was named to
the MCC’s first team, and to
the defensive team.
“It makes my job easy in
terms of scoring options,”
Hermiston coach Juan
Rodriguez said. “I think a
lot of coaches would like to
have a player like that, who
can get a basket at any time.
She’s definitely a dominant
staff photo by e.J. harris
Hermiston’s Jordan Thomas is the East Oregonian Player of the Year. Thomas averaged 15.5 points and 13.2 rebounds this
season for the Bulldogs.
Zacarias
player, especially in this
league. For the coaches to
single her out and put her
on the first team says a lot.”
For Thomas, the switch
to the MCC helped her
game, and helped in prepa-
ration for taking her game
to the college level.
“I found it more chal-
lenging,” Thomas said. “I
took that in a positive way.
It was fun to play against
those girls, they are so
skilled. There was new
competition, and I learned a
lot. It was good to see new
Hoisington
Currin
things.”
After three years of play-
ing the same teams, Thomas
said the hardest part of the
move was scouting reports.
“When you continually
play Pendleton, The Dalles
and Hood River, you know
what to expect,” said said.
“We had like a day to figure
out (the MCC) teams and
adjust the best we could.”
Thomas honed her skills
last summer with the Ore-
gon Elite team out of Port-
land, which Rodriguez
appreciated.
Wilson
“She is just unique,” he
said. “Some teams have big
girls, but they don’t always
have the talent that gives
people problems. Peo-
ple don’t realize how hard
she works. She puts in the
work, she moves well, she
can shoot the ball and can
dribble pretty well. Play-
ing with her traveling team
gets her out of her comfort
zone.”
What the future holds
Thomas signed a letter of
intent to play basketball at
Getting athletes on the field
a priority for Hermiston
By ANNIE FOWLER
STAFF WRITER
The Mid-Columbia Con-
ference spring sports sea-
son began with snow on the
ground, but Hermiston High
School did not let that deter
it from trying to get its facil-
ities playable for its athletes.
Hermiston
facilities
supervisor Martie McQuain
and his staff put in long
hours over a few days to get
the snow off of Kennison
Field, the track and the ten-
nis courts.
“We got a head start on it
the first couple of snowfalls
and tried to stay ahead of it,”
Hermiston athletic director
Larry Usher said. “The big-
gest message in our school
district is, we are able to put
in the extra time as adults so
the kids can play.”
Usher said the athletic,
maintenance and grounds
departments meet once a
week to make sure every-
thing runs smoothly.
“We want to make sure
we get our fields and courts
prepared and ready for the
kids,” he said.
Hermiston hosted fel-
low MCC schools March 9
in a soccer jamboree, then
hosted three nonleague soc-
cer games March 12.
“We had a league meet-
ing (March 6), and everyone
was asking who had a field
we could play on,” Usher
said. “I said, ‘We do.’ That
is how our league is, we
look out for each other.”
Walla Walla Athletic
Director Dirk Hansen said
the good will was not lost
on them.
“I appreciate everything
Larry and his staff did to get
us out there,” Hansen said.
“Larry and his crew busted
Romero
Eastern Arizona College.
“I’m really excited,”
she said. “The campus was
so beautiful and I like the
atmosphere.”
She also got to take in
a game while she was in
Thatcher, Arizona.
“They were down by
25 at halftime and won by
one,” Thomas said. “That
takes dedication and coach-
ing. It gave me a good
feeling.”
The Monsters are look-
ing forward to adding
Thomas and her 6-4 frame
staff photo by annie Fowler
“We got a head
start on it the first
couple of snowfalls
and tried to stay
ahead of it.”
Larry Usher ,
Hermiston athletic director
their tails. We appreciate
them getting our kids out
there to play.”
In the Tri-Cities, South-
ridge High School has an
on-site grass soccer field,
which still is unplayable.
“We didn’t have a place
to play until last Friday,”
Suns Athletic Director Tim
Wood said last week. “We
have been practicing at
Lampson (Stadium). We
won’t play any games at
Southridge until April. If we
didn’t play that jamboree in
Hermiston, we would have
not been able to play. No
doubt that Hermiston gets
after it.”
Clearing a field the size
of Kennison, not to mention
the track, was no easy feat.
It took McQuain and
seven other men two full
days to clear the field and
four lanes of the track.
But before they removed
one snowflake, they con-
sulted with the company
Hellas Construction, which
installed the turf and track
in 2013.
“I read through the book
on how to remove the snow,
then I contacted them,”
McQuain said. “We used a
6-foot-wide rotary broom,
which is suggested by Hel-
las. It’s the same equipment
used to maintain the field.
The snow was powdery, so
it was pretty easy. Had we
had a couple more inches,
we would not have been
able to do it.”
To clear the tennis courts,
they used a snow blower
and plastic snow shovels so
they would not damage the
court surface.
McQuain said Hellas will
be in Hermiston this sum-
mer to provide field main-
tenance, which will include
an impact test, cleaning
and sanitizing the field, and
replacing any lost rubber
particles.
“We have 12 tons of rub-
ber,” McQuain said. “We
are going to be putting
some back in. The nap of
the field is 2-3 inches tall.
You only see about half an
inch. That’s how much fill is
there.”
all-east Oregonian Basketball Team
Player of the year: Jordan Thomas, sr.,
6-4, hermiston.
Coach of the Year: robert Wilson,
heppner.
First Team
Jordan Thomas, sr., 6-4, hermiston; Jazlyn
romer, jr., 5-9, hermiston; sydney Wilson,
so., 5-8, heppner; Jacee currin, sr., 5-7,
heppner; ana Zacarias, sr., 5-4, Irrigon;
Muriel hoisington, fr., 5-8, Pendleton.
Second Team
natalie neveau, so., Pendleton; JaLay
Burns, fr., Irrigon; Taylor durfey, fr., Uma-
tilla; Katie Vescio, sr., Weston-Mcewen;
Faith Mccarty, fr., echo; Marie chretien,
sr., Ione.
Hermiston’s
Colbray falls one
win shy of podium
In overtime, Ness took
Colbray down with 5 sec-
onds remaining.
Former
Hermiston
In the blood round to
wrestlers Sam Colbray and stay alive for a spot on the
Bob Coleman made their podium and All-American
first appearances at the status, Colbray dropped
NCAA Wrestling Champi- a 5-2 decision to Emery
onships last week, and the Parker of Illinois.
tournament came
Colbray, a soph-
omore, finished the
with mixed results.
season with a 28-8
Colbray reached
record.
the quarterfinals of
Colbray, ranked
the NCAA Wres-
tling Champion-
No. 10, opened
ships, but two
the
tournament
losses Friday put
Thursday with an
Colbray
him out of the
impressive
8-2
decision over Jack-
tournament, and
left him one win shy of the son Hemaur of Fresno
State.
podium in Pittsburgh.
In the Round of 16,
Colbray, a 2016 Herm-
iston graduate who wres- Colbray beat Dakota Geer
tles for Iowa State, lost a of Oklahoma State 7-4.
Coleman, who won a
6-4 quarterfinal match to
Chip Ness of North Car- Pac-12 title at 184 pounds,
olina in overtime at 184 competes for Oregon
State.
pounds.
Coleman had to win
After a scoreless first
period, Colbray took the his pigtail match against
down position to start. Christopher Kober of
He maneuvered an escape Campbell first thing Thurs-
within 9 seconds, then got day morning to reach the
a takedown with 48 sec- main bracket.
onds remaining.
Coleman posted a 9-0
Ness was out of Col- victory over Kober, only
bray’s grasp in 2 seconds, to draw top-ranked Myles
then took Colbray down Martin of Ohio State in the
with just 5 seconds left in first round.
Martin pinned Coleman
the round. Colbray got an
escape at the buzzer for a in 3:22 to send him to the
consolation bracket.
4-3 lead.
Coleman would lose
Ness started down in
the third and got an escape his first consolation match,
30 seconds in to tie the and finished the season
17-16.
score.
By ANNIE FOWLER
STAFF WRITER
The maintenance and ground crews at Hermiston High School worked long hours to remove
the snow from Kennison Field and the track two days before the Bulldogs hosted a soccer
jamboree March 9. The Hermiston track team will host the Bulldog Invite on Thursday.
to their lineup.
“A 6-4 girl is a like a
7-foot guy,” EAC coach
Cameron Turner said. “I
will take her.”
Turner said he first saw
Thomas play last spring
with her Oregon Elite team.
“I like Jordan because
of her size and potential,”
said Turner, who noted
that Thomas will be on
full scholarship. “I never
thought I had a chance
to get her. I texted her in
December and she came
for a visit in February. I
have big expectations for
Jordan.”
With Makenzie Bond
signing to play for Cal State
Bakersfield, Turner said
Thomas will be called upon
to make an impact this com-
ing season.
“She will battle people
her own size for the first
time in her life,” Turner
said. “She will be tested.
I’m super excited.”
Thomas said she looks
forward to the challenge.
“Playing against taller
people will be good for
me,” she said. “I’ve never
played with anyone taller
than me, or my height.”
Rodriguez has no doubt
Thomas will continue to
improve and have success
at the college level.
“She is shy in new situ-
ations,” he said. “But once
she gets comfortable, she
will be OK.”
When that happens, it
will be the other teams
looking for some form of
comfort.