Cougars Open With Pair Of Victories

Washington State, ranked eighth in the USA Today/AVCA Top 25 preseason poll, opened its season with 3-0 wins over Tulsa and Gonzaga at the Cougar Challenge Tournament at Bohler Gym in Pullman Friday.

The host Cougars defeated Tulsa 15-9, 15-6, 15-4 behind the 17 kills and four blocks of senior All-America candidate Sarah Silvernail and Jennifer Stinson’s 11 kills. A crowd of 1,042 watched as WSU junior setter Stephanie Papke tallied 50 assists.

In the nightcap, WSU raced to big leads and defeated Gonzaga 15-5, 15-6, 15-6. Silvernail tagged 10 kills and six blocks with junior Shannon Wyckoff contributing eight kills. The Zags were led by Christine Kubista’s 10 kills and five digs. Earlier in the day, Gonzaga defeated Southern Illinois 15-7, 15-13, 15-10.

In other tournament games, Idaho State beat Tulsa 16-14, 15-10, 15-7, and Southern Illinois 15-12, 16-14, 15-9.

Jaimie Lee just can’t do enough on the volleyball court.

Now a junior for the sixth-ranked Fighting Irish of Notre Dame, the Ferris alum helped pace her school to a 15-10, 15-6, 15-3 victory over Central Florida in the first day of the Shamrock Volleyball Classic at South Bend, Ind., on Friday.

Lee was impressive considering she started as the team’s setter. It’s the third position she’s started in three years.

“I guess you could say that setting is a dirty job, but somebody has to do it,” Lee said. The team’s starting setter separated her shoulder two weeks ago and still isn’t ready to play. So Lee calmly stepped in and recorded 31 assists and no service errors.

Lee was a middle blocker her freshman year before she moved back to her natural position of outside hitter as a sophomore.

Chiefs tie in exhibition

Greg Leeb scored two goals, and John Cirjak, Mike Haley and Derek Schultz each had a goal and an assist, and the Spokane Chiefs and Portland Winter Hawks skated to a 6-6 tie at Kimberley, British Columbia. Ty Jones also scored for the Chiefs.

For Portland, Bobby Duncan and Todd Robinson each scored two goals. The two teams will square off against each other on Sunday at Eagles Ice-A-Rena at 6 p.m.

GU women lose in soccer

Carolyn Jenkins scored a pair of goals to lead the 13th-ranked University of Washington women team to a 3-0 season-opening victory over Gonzaga University at Martin Field.

Washington, ranked 13th by Soccer America and 23rd by Soccer News in the preseason polls, out-shot the young Bulldogs 16-2 as keepers Tina Thompson and Gretchen Mensinger combined for the shutout.

Gonzaga started four freshmen, five sophomores and two juniors against the more experienced Huskies which had four juniors and four seniors among its starters.

Men’s softball

In the first round of the 42-team Major Modified Fastpitch Softball National Tournament at Stevenspoint, Wis., Brymile of Spokane, the defending national champions, shut down Ryan Enterprises of Saginaw, Mich., 10-0 in five innings. Ryan Enterprises finished 24th at nationals last year.

Brymile was 23-1 going into the tournament and was 42-0 last year.

Pitcher Wade Liberty threw a fourhit shutout with five strikeouts and allowed only one walk. The first four hitters in the Brymile lineup, Dan Schaffer, Kurt Krauth, Mike Peterson and Mark Arland, were a combined 9 for 10 at the plate and scored nine runs while driving in 10. Arland led the hitting with two home runs and six RBI.

, DataTimes