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About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 18, 2019)
SPORTS Wednesday, december 18, 2019 HermIsTOnHeraLd.cOm • A9 Slow start hurts Hermiston in loss to Kennewick By ANNIE FOWLER sTaFF WrITer Hermiston was hot from the 3-point line in the second half, but it was a lackluster first half that put the Bull- dogs behind the 8-ball early. Avery Fiander scored a career-high 24 points — 16 in the first half — to lead the Lions to a 59-48 Mid-Co- lumbia Conference victory Saturday night at the Dawg House. “We didn’t play the best team defense, that’s what it came down to,” said Herm- iston coach Malloree Moss, whose team fell to 0-2 in MCC play. “They hit their shots. They are a tough team, and we knew that. They hit the boards hard and we didn’t do what we needed to do.” The Lions used their size to dominate the boards, and took advantage of uncon- tested shots in the paint. “Our defensive rebound- ing was key tonight,” Ken- newick coach Daron Santo said. “Our defense is really great. I’m happy that we came out aggressive tonight.” The Bulldogs came out and took a 5-2 lead, and led 8-6 before the Lions took control of the game for good on a deep 3-pointer from the right wing by MeiLani McBee. From there, Kennewick finished the quarter on a 7-2 run for a 16-10 lead. Hermiston’s Jazlyn Romero scored seven of her 11 points in the first quarter. Fiander scored 10 of her points in the second quarter Staff photo by Kathy Aney Hermiston’s Mia Hernandez and an unidentified Kennewick player battle for the ball during Saturday’s game. Moss said. “We turned it on a little too late. As a coach, it’s good to see them playing until the end.” Pasco beats Hermiston Staff photo by Kathy Aney Hermiston’s Katelyn Heideman brings the ball down the court during Saturday’s game against the Kennewick Lions. as the Lions went on an 18-5 run to take a commanding 34-15 lead at the half. Hermiston pulled within 36-21 early in the third quarter courtesy of a pair of 3-pointers by Makaylee Young. Kennewick enjoyed a 45-25 lead at the end of three quarters, but the Bull- dogs never backed down. They went on a 23-14 run in the fourth quarter to make things interesting. Young, who led the Bull- dogs (2-3, 0-2 MCC) with 15 points — all off 3-point- ers — scored nine points in the fourth quarter. Hermiston scored 11 of the game’s final 13 points to keep the score respectable. “We have a lot of heart,” In a battle of the Bull- dogs, Pasco made a 20-7 run in the second quarter to take down Hermiston early and hand them a 54-45 MCC loss on Friday. Hermiston took a 24-11 lead by the end of the first quarter, bolstered by Katelyn Heideman’s four 3-pointers, but the game got away from them after the opening eight minutes. “We came out hot,” Moss said. “We played hard team defense. But we let ‘em back into the game in the second half. We went cold.” Romero scored two points at the line in the third quarter — the only points Hermiston would record until the final eight minutes. Hermiston outscored Pasco 12-8 in the fourth quarter, but could not over- come its early deficit. Heideman led the Herm- iston Bulldogs with a team- best 16 points on the night. BOX SCORE KENNEWICK 16 18 11 14 — 59 HERMISTON 10 5 10 23 — 48 KENNEWICK — Fiander 24, Flores 6, Thornton 10, McBee 8, Gebers 11. HERMISTON — Heideman 6, M.Young 15, Ray 2, Dowdy 1, Hernandez 7, Romero 11, Brown 2, B.Young 4 Hermiston boys finish in fourth place at La Grande tournament By ANNIE FOWLER sTaFF WrITer Jon Lee and Dustyn Coughlin finished second, and Hermiston finished fourth in the team standings Saturday at the Muilenburg Tournament at La Grande High School. The Bulldogs rolled up 229 points, just six points behind third-place Weiser, Idaho. La Grande won the team title with 387 points, while Burns was second (263.5). Mac-Hi was ninth (105), while Pendleton was 12th (102), and Heppner/ Ione 17th (35.5) Lee registered two pins and a major decision to reach the 220-pound finals. In the championship match, Lee was pinned by La Grande’s Spencer Gerst in 1:38. Gerst also pinned Herm- iston’s Sam Cadenas, in 1:20 in the semifinals. Cadenas won his next two matches to finish third. Coughlin had pins of 50 seconds and 1:23 to reach the 285 semifinals, where he beat Joel Rogers of La Grande 1-0. Cutter Sandstrom of Scappoose pinned Coughlin in the championship bout in 2:49. Also placing for the Bull- dogs were Trevor Wagner (4th, 170), Daniel Faaeteete (4th, 182), and Blake Betz (4th, 195). Hunter Dyer won the consolation champion- ship at 132. Girls wrestling Hermiston finished sev- enth in a field of 27 teams Saturday at the Warden Invitational. Marina Izagu- Romero signs at OSU for track By ANNIE FOWLER sTaFF WrITer Since she was a little girl, basketball has been life for Jazlyn Romero. She plays summer ball for the Oregon Elite out of Lake Oswego, and has been a var- sity player for four years at Hermiston High School. Three years ago, she dis- covered track, and the sport is quickly becoming a big part of her life. Last week, Romero signed to throw the javelin for Oregon State University. “Coach (Dave) Dumble is a really great coach, and his philosophy is similar to coach (Emilee) Strot,” Romero said. “He has expressed his interest in me as an athlete. Definitely a confidence booster when the coaches believe in you.” Strot, who threw shot put, discus and javelin at Ken- tucky and UC Berkeley, has helped Romero navigate the recruiting process to find the right fit. “Oregon State is a rela- tively new program, and they are trying to make a name in the Pac-12,” Strot said. “Dave Dumble is one of the best. Jazlyn going right out of high school and signing early is a big deal. It’s a big deal to go Division I. She deserves the scholarship. Hopefully, this is the start of something big for Hermiston High School and her.” Romero likes that she can be a driving force in helping put OSU on the track map, so to speak. “Any Pac-12 school has the stuff,” Romero said. “They are developing a pro- irre-Frasser led the way for the Bulldogs, placing second at 100 pounds. Marysol Flores of Ephrata pinned Izagu- irre-Frasser in the first round in the title match. Schae Borrego (145) and Shiyenne Swaggart (155) placed fourth, while Amree Braithwaite was fifth at 140, and Halle Thomas sixth at 145. The Bulldogs will partic- ipate in the Hanford mixer Tuesday, then will compete at the Lynden Tournament on Friday and Saturday. EO Media Group/Ronald Bond Hermiston’s Jonathan Lee wraps up Estacada’s Nico Winsor on Saturday during their 220-pound semifinal match. Lee won the semifinal match by an 11-0 major decision, but lost in the title bout to La Grande’s Spencer Gerst. Noland’s versatility earns her a shot with SLCC softball By ANNIE FOWLER sTaFF WrITer Courtesy of Oregon State Athletics Hermiston’s Jazlyn Romero signed a letter of intent last week to throw the javelin at Oregon State University. gram, and I like knowing I can be part of that.” The Beavers are getting an athlete whose potential has yet to be tapped, accord- ing to Strot. “Jazlyn’s entire life has been dedicated to basket- ball,” Strot said. “Ten weeks a year, the past three years, has been dedicated to track. She ended up being a com- plete stud. She has so much potential. She hasn’t even tapped that yet. There is so much more for her to learn.” Strot has done more than help Romero with her throw- ing. She also has a girls only weightlifting class at the school. Romero and softball player Bailee Noland started the program as freshmen four years ago. “They were the only two freshmen in the class,” Strot said. “To see them signing today is special.” Both players said the pro- gram has made a difference in preparing them for the future, both physically and mentally. With Romero, Oregon State is a getting an athlete with a solid foundation. Romero threw a personal best of 151 feet, 9 inches at the Mid-Columbia Confer- ence district meet in Herm- iston, then threw 143 feet at the District 8 meet in Rich- land to earn the top seed to state. At state, she won gold with a toss of 144-11 — more than 15 feet further than the next competitor. Michelle Coombs holds the Hermiston school record with a mark of 155-11, set in 2008. Breaking that record is on Romero’s list of things to do come spring. Romero also made visits to Washington State Univer- sity and University of Ari- zona before selecting OSU. Romero just started her senior year of basketball for the Bulldogs. It hasn’t quite hit yet that this is the end of that road. “The thing with this, I grew up playing basketball my whole life,” she said. “Track fell in my lap. If I had a chance to go Pac-12, I’m not going to turn that down. I think I will look back and I will miss basketball, but right now, I’m still playing.” Bailee Noland, one of the top softball players in the Columbia Basin, will take her game to the next level after signing last week with Salt Lake Com- munity College. While a lot of local col- leges would have loved to have had her versatility in their lineup, she chose SLCC after making an offi- cial visit. “I was at practice one day and coach (Kate) Greenough asked what I thought of SLCC,” the Hermiston senior said. “I didn’t know anything. The coach (Cyndee Bennett) got a hold of me, talked to me about the school and the program. After that, I headed to Utah.” Safe to say, it was a pro- ductive visit. “When I first met the girls and the coaches, I felt this was the place for me,” Noland said. Greenough said her for- mer coach at Utah State helps connect players with certain programs. “I was trying to use my resources to find a home for Bailee,” Greenough said. “It is a top five national junior college program that has gone to junior nation- als the past few years. It’s a step in the right direc- tion, not a destination. She will be pushed to be better every day.” The SLCC coaches put Noland through a work- Staff photo by Annie Fowler Bailee Noland has signed a letter of intent to play softball at Salt Lake Community College. out when she visited. She pitched, caught, and took swings with the Bruins baseball team. “I caught a girl from Australia (Tarni Stepto) who threw 75 mph,” Noland said. “She’s going to play in the (2020) Olym- pics. Most of the pitch- ers there have a scary change-up and rise ball.” Then, Noland took her turn in the batting cage. “She wanted to see me hit in a very uncomfort- able situation,” Noland said. “I wasn’t nervous — I was going for it. They (baseball players) were hit- ting bombs, but I felt I did pretty good.” In Noland, the Bru- ins are getting a complete package. Her junior year, she was named to the Mid-Colum- bia Conference’s first team as a utility player. On the mound, she was 10-5 with a 4.06 ERA. She had a 2-to-1 strike to walk ratio, and struck out 56 bat- ters over 88 innings. At the plate, she led the Bulldogs with 46 hits and a .575 average. She hit 31 singles, five doubles, one triple, and nine home runs. She also scored 30 runs and had 35 RBIs. She struck out just nine times in 80 at-bats. Defensively, she com- mitted just two errors in 27 games. “Her coaches know what she can do,” Gree- nough said. “She will find a way to get on the field, and isn’t afraid of hard work.” SLCC plays in the Sce- nic West Athletic Confer- ence, and is a regular par- ticipant in the NJCAA tourney. They also play a strong preseason sched- ule, which includes games against Idaho State Uni- versity, Weber State, Utah State and BYU.