There’s a saying in the news business: “If it bleeds, it leads.” The truth is, bad news grabs people’s attention, and that’s one reason it so often dominates newspaper front pages and television newscasts. And there has certainly been no shortage of bad news in the headlines lately. War in Ukraine. Mass shootings in America. Soaring inflation. A lingering pandemic. A growing homelessness crisis.

But there’s also plenty of good news to be found out there if you’re willing to look for it. One place to look: our local schools.

It has been an absolute pleasure to follow the exploits of Grant County student athletes this spring. First the Grant Union boys golf team won the program’s first district title, winning the Nixy District Golf Championships in Pendleton on May 10 and advancing to the state tournament. On May 13, the Grant Union boys track team earned a district title of their own, winning the 2A Special District Track Meet in Athena and qualifying eight athletes for the state championships. The Grant Union girls finished third at districts and sent three competitors to state.

At the state track meet on May 20, held in the hallowed confines of the University of Oregon’s Hayward Field, Grant County senior Justin Hodge scooted to a 2A title in the 100-meter dash in a time of 11.39 seconds. And Prairie City’s Eli Wright fell just short of a 1A title in the high jump, recording a height of 6 feet, 5 inches — 1 inch shy of the winning mark.

The Grant Union/Prairie City baseball team mounted a late-season run to make the postseason — with only 11 kids on the roster. The squad drove clear across the state for a matchup with the Coquille Red Devils, coming away with a 6-2 win on May 23 before falling on the road two days later in the second round of the playoffs to Mt. Angel’s Kennedy High.

And what can you say about the Grant Union/Prairie City softball team? Those girls were on a mission all year. The Lady Prospectors went 23-0 before stubbing their toe in the last game of the regular season, a 9-6 loss on the road at La Grande. They stormed through the preliminary rounds of the playoffs, outscoring their opponents 34-1 in the first three contests. In the end they fell just short of a state title, losing 5-3 to Lakeview in the June 3 championship game in Eugene.

Finally, just last week, Grant Union sent four competitors — two boys and two girls — to the Oregon High School Rodeo State Finals in Prineville.

Our Grant County youth excelled in other arenas this spring, as well. Two local schools placed in the 2022 Academic Bowl, an annual general knowledge competition for small schools from around the region. A group of high school students from Long Creek placed third in the competition, as did the Prairie City Junior High squad, answering questions in fields such as math, history and language arts.

We salute them all, along with their dedicated coaches and supportive families — not only for their athletic achievements, but for giving us all something to cheer for.