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A8 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM WEDNESDAy, JuLy 24, 2019 HeraldSports Follow sports on Twitter @HHeraldSports Hermiston Little League ousted from state tourney By ANNIE FOWLER STAFF WRITER KLAMATH FALLS — Herm- iston Little League’s run at the 9-10-11-year-old state tournament was a bit shorter than they would have liked. Bend North rallied from early deficits of 5-0 and 9-8 to hand Hermiston a 15-9 loss Monday night in a loser-out game. “All the teams are good,” coach Justin Simmons said. “It’s whoever shows up and the ball falls your way.” After a scoreless first inning, Hermiston put five runs on the scoreboard in the bottom of the sec- ond inning. Bend came back with four runs of its own in the third, then took an 8-5 lead in the top of the fourth inning. Hermiston, the District 3 cham- pion, took the lead back in the bot- tom of the fourth with a four-run outburst. It was all Bend from there, which scored seven runs over the final two innings. Hermiston outhit Bend 12-10, but committed seven errors on the night. Camden Venoy went 4-for-5 with a triple and four RBIs for Hermis- ton, while Lane Simmons and Bar- rett Stanek each hit a double. Photo courtesy of Hermiston Little League The Hermiston 9-10-11 Little League team includes: front row (from left) Cougar Philippi and Hunter Link. Middle row: Brocc Haagenson, Ruben Mendez, Brody Woodard, Quinn Warner, Camden Venoy, Lane Simmons, Ryder Wilson, Evan Hays, Carter Waelty, Barrett Stanek and Wyatt Larson. Back row: coaches Blake Philippi, Justin Simmons and Kirby Warner. Hermiston opened the state tour- nament with a 20-2, four-inning victory Saturday over Southeast Portland. Brody Woodard and Wyatt Lar- son each pitched two innings for Hermiston, combining on a five-hit- ter with four strikeouts and just two walks. “We came out ready to play,” Simmons said. “They decided they would go for it.” Hermiston led 8-1 after the first inning, 11-2 after two, and 15-2 after three. Offensively, Hermiston had 14 hits — all singles — and took advantage of 11 walks. 3-ON-3 Stanek had three hits and three RBIs for Hermiston, while Venoy, Evan Hays, and Hunter Link each had two hits. Cougar Philippi also drove in three runs. Lake Oswego was a differ- ent obstacle on Sunday. The Port- land-area team handed Hermiston a 15-1 loss. “Lake Oswego is a really good team,” Simmons said. “They are the best team we have seen all season.” Hermiston trailed just 2-1 after three innings, but a couple of errors in the fourth led to runs for Lake Oswego, which then scored 11 runs over the final two innings. “About the fourth inning, a cou- ple of errors happened and they put their heads down,” Simmons said of his team. Ryder Wilson took the loss for Hermiston on the mound. He allowed three hits and three runs over 3⅓ innings of work. “Ryder kept us in the game,” Simmons said. “They just kept chipping away at us and we kind of fell apart.” At the plate, Philippi had two of Hermiston’s four hits. Merik Adler pitched 3⅔ innings for Lake Oswego, striking out eight and walking none. Alex Trojan hit a pair of dou- bles for Lake Oswego, while Chase Kelly and Sawyer Best each drove in three runs. TAEKWONDO Photo contributed by Erwin Watson From left to right: Anna Rivera, Abel Garcia, Anna Garcia, Amauri Black, Jordan Velasco, J.T. Rowden, Kiona Idris, and Isaiah Diaz pose with their medals earned at the Grand Master Pierce’s Memorial Tournament in Lynnwood, Wash., on June 28. Taekowndo youth take home gold By BRETT KANE STAFF WRITER Staff photo by Kathy Aney A player goes to the hoop during Saturday’s Takin’ it to the Streets 3-on-3 basketball tournament in Hermiston. Hermiston takes to the streets By BRETT KANE STAFF WRITER For the 14th year in a row, Hermiston proved that basketball brings people together. Over the course of Satur- day and Sunday, more than 145 teams from around the region flocked to downtown Hermiston to participate in the annual Takin’ it to the Streets 3-on-3 tournament. Teams, comprised of ath- letes anywhere from the fifth grade and upward, braved the sizzling summer heat to showcase their passion for the sport. “Our community has always been supportive of us,” organizer Juan Rodri- guez said. “You can see all of our local sponsors on the backboards. We couldn’t have done this without them.” Alongside the various teams were groups of vol- unteers — many of whom were members of Hermis- ton High School’s boys and girls varsity basketball pro- grams. Money raised from the weekend-long contest helped support their upcom- ing seasons. “They’re also doing it because they want to pro- mote basketball,” Rodriguez added. Staff photo by Kathy Aney A player from the Hustlers drives to the basket against her opponent from the Lower Valley Ladies. Although players from Washington, Idaho, and cen- tral Oregon took to Main Street to flaunt their bas- ketball skills, several local teams made appearances to represent their hometowns. Among those teams was Purosho, led by Blue Moun- tain Community College’s own Dylan Grogan, who, with the help of teammates Deon Davis, Jerry Ramirez and Quinton Raynor, opened Saturday morning with a 20-14 victory against Drive Home Safe on the center court’s red Les Schwab mat. Grogan, 20, noted the dif- ference between summer basketball and the hours he’s put in on the Timberwolves’ court in Pendleton. “I love it,” Grogan said of Takin’ it to the Streets. “It’s less structured. You’re free to do what you want, and you get to play basketball with your best friends.” Grogan’s team was born out of a former rivalry. He met Ramirez in a previous Takin’ it to the Streets tour- nament years ago, where they played on opposing teams. This year was their first on the same side. “That’s how we got to know each other,” Grogan said. “This is a great group of guys.” A premier player on the Timberwolves’ roster, Gro- gan, a Stanfield native, played his first game in the tournament when he was in third grade. He’s been com- ing back ever since. Fans, family, and friends filled the bleachers to watch Purosho compete. After his team’s first win, Purosho still had two more games left to play on Satur- day alone. The team with- stood the heat and ended up winning championships in the Men’s Rec and Men’s Open divisions. Purosho wasn’t the only team who have made Takin’ it to the Streets an annual tra- dition — Tyler Winklebleck, Tyson Naylor, Carson Lloyd and Juan Coria have com- peted in the tournament together since they were in high school. Now in their 20s, their team, appropriately named the Three Throws, cruised to a 20-7 win over Cokini to open the tournament on Saturday. Photos For more photos of Takin’ it to the Streets, see A13. LYNNWOOD, Wash. — Eight Stanfield kids recently proved that a small town can still bring big competition. On June 28, Stanfield’s Eastern Oregon Family Taekwondo school sent a group of their younger ath- letes to the Grand Master Pierce’s Memorial Tourna- ment at Edmonds Commu- nity College in Lynnwood, Washington. All eight kids medaled in their respective events. Abel Garcia, 11, won first in forms and board breaking, and third in spar- ring. Anna Garcia, 7, took first in forms and board breaking, and second in sparring. Anna Rivera, 13, also got top honors in forms and board breaking, and second in sparring. Kiona Idris, 15, won first in spar- ring and second in forms and board breaking. Isaiah Diaz, 4, the youngest in the class, won first in forms and board breaking and second in sparring in the 4-year-old division. In the 6-year-old division, he placed first in padded weapons, and third in forms, sparring, and board breaking. J.T. Rowden, 9, won sec- ond in forms and third place in both board breaking and padded weapons. Jordan Velasco, 6, won second and third prizes in both of his padded weapons contests. Amauri Black, 6, won sec- ond in forms, third in spar- ring, and fourth in board breaking. She also won sec- ond and third place awards in padded weapons bouts. Eastern Oregon Fam- ily Taekwondo welcomes all aspiring athletes, aged 2 and older. Practices are held Monday through Thursday every week, unless there is an upcoming tourna- ment — then the week gets busier. “We practice, practice, practice,” said Erwin Wat- son, who co-owns and instructs the classes with his wife Lorry. “You just can’t practice enough. It showed (in Lynnwood). Some of these bigger schools bring in over a hundred students. We dominated for such a small group.” The team’s showing in Lynnwood was their first ever in the city. Their skills have earned them plenty of outside attention, Watson said. “It was a big thing for these kids,” Watson said. “I’ve had masters come up to me and say, ‘Wow, these kids are amazing.’” The gym, which typi- cally houses Stanfield ath- letes, will soon open its doors to those from all over Eastern Oregon, includ- ing Irrigon, Umatilla, and Heppner. Up next, the kids will hit the road to Southridge High School in Kenne- wick on Aug. 17 to com- pete in the Columbia Gorge Tournament. The gym is also gearing up to host a “Stranger Dan- ger” women’s self-defense class in the same month. “We try to teach every- thing you need to know in two hours,” Watson said of the yearly class. As for the kids, the hours and hours of hard work they’ve put in to win the gold in Lynnwood hasn’t been lost on them.
