PENDLETON — Pendleton made a push in the fourth quarter, but came up short against Burns 27-13 on a chilly Friday night at the Pendleton Round-Up Grounds.
“I feel like we played hard for three quarters,” Pendleton coach Erik Davis said. “I have to be better in getting our kids going after halftime. We don’t score enough points to have letdowns. Playing a complete game is what I have been looking for, and we haven’t put together four full quarters. That’s on me. Whether it’s preparing them or motivating them.”
The Bucks (1-6 overall) and Hilanders (6-1) were in close battle in the first half as Burns went into halftime with a 3-0 lead.
“Our defense in the first half was some of the best defense we have played all year,” Davis said. “They got down to the 10, we held them, and they kicked a field goal.”
Pendleton scored its first touchdown in the fourth quarter as Jubal Harrington hauled in a touchdown pass from Tucker Kuza.
Trailing 27-6, the Bucks finished the game with an impressive drive that went 79 yards.
Kuza connected with Hoisington on first-down plays of 14 and 29 yards to put Pendleton in Burns territory.
Kuza then hit Joe Foster with a 14 yard pass to put the ball at the Hilander 22-yard line.
After an incomplete pass, Kuza connected with Foster for a 22-yard touchdown pass with 14 seconds left in the game. With the PAT by Miles Johnson splitting the uprights, the Bucks pulled within 27-13, but would run out of time.
“Burns played extremely hard,” Davis said. “I am in awe sometimes of some of the teams we play. They play hard. It’s something as a coach I appreciate.”
Kuza completed 13 of 21 passes for 145 yards, while Hoisington caught 10 passes for 100 yards. Foster had three catches or 39 yards, and Aaden Hernandez caught six passes for 59 yards.
Cole Sazue completed 10 of 14 passes for 80 yards before going out with an injury.
“We got banged up,” Davis said. “We lost two starting receivers in Aaden Hernandez and Teegan Herrera, Cole Sazue and one of the special teams kids. That hurts. I don’t know if we will get any of them back for Baker next week. We had some kids step up in those roles, like Joe Foster who caught the touchdown pass. That to me, shows a lot of character. When you lose a kid like Aaden, who is your speed guy, and Teegan who plays both sides, it becomes a scramble without a lot of depth. Our call sheet has shrunk with some of our go-to guys out.”
Pendleton will host Baker on Oct. 22 in a Greater Oregon League battle at the Round-Up Grounds.
“We are in for another dog fight,” Davis said.
HEPPNER 78, WESTON-MCEWEN 0 — Seven players ran for touchdowns, and Caylan Proudfoot threw for two touchdowns, as the top-ranked Mustangs cruised to a Blue Mountain Conference home win over the TigerScots at Les Payne Field at Greg Grant Stadium.
“It was a good chance for us to mix some groups of guys,” Heppner coach Rob Wilson said. “We are trying to see what our depth is. That will help us grow. The deeper you can go, the better you will be.”
Heppner scored just 1:12 into the game and the points just kept lighting up the scoreboard.
Alakae Rodriguez got Heppner (7-0 overall, 2-0 BMC) on the board, scoring on a 30-yard run, then taking the ball in for the 2-point conversion.
Cody Johnson followed with an 8-yard touchdown run, and Rodriguez added the 2-point conversion for a 16-0 lead with 8:15 left in the first quarter.
Proudfoot hit Tripp Stewart with a 25-yard touchdown, Rodriguez added a 25-yard touchdown run, and Brody Parrish hauled in a 22-yard scoring pass from Proudfoot as Heppner led 40-0 at the end of the first quarter.
The Mustangs added three scores in the second quarter, including a 64-yard run by Kord Dickinson, for a 64-0 lead at the half.
With a running clock in the second half, Heppner continued to roll with its younger players, taking a 78-0 lead after three quarters.
The Mustangs’ final touchdown of the game came in the third quarter as freshman Maddex McMasters took a handoff from Cooper Stefani and powered his way down the field for a 32-yard touchdown run.
Rodriguez had 55 yards rushing on two carries, while Maddox McMasters had 44 yards on eight carries and a touchdown.
Defensively, Rodriguez finished with eight tackles, while Matt Wilson had seven, and Darby Spivey, Johnson and Bennette Atkins all had four. Johnson, Stewart and Peyton Matheny all had interceptions, while Andrew Lindsay had a fumble recovery, and Lincoln Lovgren a quarterback sack.
For the TigerScots (0-6, 0-2), Titus Hodgins threw for 28 yards and three interceptions, while Mason Stallings ran for eight yards, and Angelo Romero caught two passes for 21 yards.
Weston-McEwen owned the time of the possession, it just couldn’t find the end zone. The TigerScots finished with 34 yards of offense and turned the ball over five times.
“Most of their time of possession came in the fourth quarter against some of our younger guys,” Wilson said. “It was a good experience for them. Caylan came out in the second quarter. In the second half, our plan was to put together drives, but we scored on long runs with a young line in front of them. I never want to run the score up, but things happen.”
Cross country
Pendleton freshman Liam Pennington ran the second-fastest time of his young career at the Meriwether Cross Country Classic at the Meriwether National Golf Club in Hillsboro, placing 16th in a field of 278 runners with a time of 16:34.40, and helping the Bucks to fifth place in the team standings with 249 points.
Faysal Ibrahim of David Douglas won the race with an impressive time of 15:09.70, with runner-up Isaiah Carpenter of McMinnville right in his heels at 15:10.50.
McMinnville won the team title with 59 points, with Central Catholic second with 88.
Farley Hill was the second Pendleton runner across the finish line, placing 46th with a time of 17:21.80. He was followed by Eagle Edmiston (56th, 17:35.20), Gabriel Rock (69th, 17:45.70) and Ryan Simpson (82nd, 17:53.20).
In the girls race, which featured 195 runners, Evelyn Hayes led Pendleton, placing 75th with a season-best 22:38. She was followed by Kirsten Blackburn, who was 99th with a PR of 23:24.30, Savaya Cree Medicine-Minthorn (119th, PR 23:58.40), Ella Holtz (178th, 26:26.50) and Seely Hemphill (182nd, 26:55.20).
Molly Schoolmeester of Banks won the race with a time of 18:38.70, with teammate Lydia Hellman second at 18:45.40. No other runners were under 19 minutes.
Sherwood won the team title with 48 points, with Banks second with 82. Pendleton was 19th with 421 points.
FOOT RACE TO VALHALLA — Union-Cove’s Ian Garlitz ran away from the competition at the Foot Race to Valhalla, winning the race in a time of 16 minutes, 32.20 seconds on a sunny afternoon in Umatilla.
The Bobcats, who had all five of their placing runners in the top 15, won the team title with 29 points, while Enterprise was second with 72. Stanfield finished fourth with 106 points, while Hepper was sixth (133) and McLoughlin seventh (155).
Garlitz was 14 seconds ahead of runner-up Peter Davis of Pine Eagle (16:46.50), while Eric Pullen of Riverside was third (16:56.70) and Weston-McEwen’s Arden Shaul was fifth with a season-best 17:02.60.
Also figuring into the scoring for Union-Cove were Bryce Burton (7th, 17:08.40), Jacob Baxter (8th, 17:16.90), Corban McNeil (10th, 17:26.50) and Austin Flick (15th, 18:24.40).
Also running for Weston-McEwen were Tyler Smith, who placed 26th with a personal best 18:59.20, and Tristan Gillum (44th, 19:51.80).
Landon Norton led Pilot Rock, finishing 41st with a time of 19:49.70, with Parker Bucher 62nd (22:02.40).
In the girls’ race, the top four runners were under 20 minutes, led by Trout Lake’s Melody Stock, who won the race with a time of 18:54.30. Lilly Weer of Enterprise was second (19:16.40), Imbler’s Piper Braseth was third (19:40.70), and Weston-McEwen’s Evelyn Hodgson was fourth (19:51.70).
Enterprise won the team title with 29 points, with Union third (74), Heppner fourth (83) and Imbler fifth (111).
Nixyaawii’s Rosaella Salt crossed the finish line in 37th place in a time of 25:44, with teammate Ayanna Star 52nd (32:29.60). Pilot Rock’s Paige Hansen was 39th with a time of 26:06.50, while teammate Rylee Bedard was 51st (31:37.40)
