PHS wants to return to 5-A classification
By Terry Murry on Friday, October 31st, 2025 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
PENDLETON – The Pendleton School District has requested that the Oregon School Activities Association move Pendleton High School back to 5-A in high school athletics. That’s where the Buckaroos had been for decades, and school officials say the OSAA raised the student enrollment numbers in order to put Pendleton into the 4-A division with three other Eastern Oregon teams.
Both Superintendent Michelle Jensen and PHS Athletic Director Mike Somnis say moving up would be the most equitable route for the school’s athletes.
“What we’re looking for is a more stable situation for all our programs – a bigger league – more connections to schools that kind of fit who we are and our size,” Somnis said.
Both Somnis and Jensen said that in 5-A Pendleton’s junior varsity and ninth grade teams would face greater competition that would help them hone their skills. They also point to the fact that Pendleton High School’s participation rate in sports is 115 percent, which is unusually high.
The district made the request at the last meeting of the OSAA Classification and Districting Committee on Monday, Oct. 27. Another meeting is scheduled for November and the classifications and districts will be finalized in December.
Both Somnis and Jensen talk about the school’s decision on the final two segments of the KUMA Coffee Hour on Oct. 30. Listen to it at Coffee Hour Podcast clips – Omny.fm.
