COUGARS

Where were we? Right. Going off the grid for a few days. Of course, when you do that, big things happen. Read on.
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• Let's get right at it. Defensive end Cory Mackay was trying to get home late Thursday night after finishing his freshman-year finals. Somewhere on Highway 26 around Washtucna, Mackay's truck rolled and the 6-foot-4, 257-pounder was severely injured. After being taken to a hospital in the Tri-Cities, Mackay was airlifted to Seattle, where he underwent back surgery. His future, as Bud Withers' story in the Times this morning shows, is anything but clear. We know your heart goes out to Mackay and his family, and we'll try to keep up on this story through the week.

There are other items to keep up with, though nothing as crucial. Washington State's budget issues will be worth examining, in lieu of the comments coming out of the Pac-10 meetings in Phoenix last week (speaking of Arizona, the basketball rivalry in state is heating up again). ... The WSU baseball team is back in second place - two games up in the loss column on UCLA and Washington and one on OSU - in the Pac-10 after defeating Oregon in a series-opener Saturday. With school out, and more time for baseball, the Cougars are in good position to make a push to the NCAA Tournament. ... Finally, ESPN's Ted Miller did a quick spring summary for each Pac-10 school. Here's the Cougars' post.

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• That's it for now. We'll be back as events warrant the next few days. Until then …

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