Stephens New Baseball Coach At Gonzaga Prep

REPLAY: 10-21-96 Page C2 The names of Pat Shine and Joe Keogh were misspelled in a local briefs item on page 2 of Sunday’s edition.

Darryl Stephens got plenty from the game of baseball. Next spring, he wants to give back. Stephens has been named to replace Pat Shines as the Gonzaga Prep baseball coach.

A 1979 G-Prep graduate, Stephens walked on at Stanford University and ended up with a successful career that included an appearance in the 1982 College World Series.

“It’s a great opportunity to pass that knowledge on to players at my alma mater,” he said.

Stephens worked in the family grocery store, Mike’s Grocery, until his mother passed away last spring and the business was sold.

“This is a wonderful opportunity, but bittersweet,” Stephens said. “Mom and Dad aren’t there to share it with me and neither is Joe Koegh. … He’s the reason I kept playing.”

Koegh, a childhood friend, was killed in a car accident driving to Seattle to see Stephens and Stanford play at the University of Washington.

Stephens, a center fielder, is among the Stanford leaders in games played, runs scored, stolen bases, put outs, assists, fielding percentage and hitting.

Basketball

Calling all high school boys and girls basketball referees in North Idaho. A mandatory rules clinic for veteran and rookie officials will be held Oct. 29 at 7 p.m. at Coeur d’Alene High School.

Prior to the meeting at 6, the North Idaho Officials Association - which consists of referees and umpires for all high school sports - will have a meeting to elect officers.

Retired basketball referees Dave Corbeill and Dan Malcolm will be co-commissioners of District I. They will hold two pre-clinic meetings next week. The first meeting will be Tuesday at Mitzy’s Restaurant in Sandpoint, followed by another meeting Wednesday at the Iron Horse Restaurant in Coeur d’Alene. Both begin at 6:30 p.m.

Bowling

James McCold had the hot hand in the October Junior Bowlers Tour event at Sports Page, moving on top after the fourth game and holding it through the qualifying and playoffs to emerge as champion.

McCold defeated No. 2 qualifier Justin Kostick 209-201 in the finals of the TV-style rolloffs.

Brian Long won the first two playoff matches to finish third, followed by Pat Kovacs and Ron Bowman.

McCold had high game for the boys in the field of 56, a 279, while Danielle Shurbutt’s 236 was tops for the girls.

The next JBT event will be at Sawmill Lanes, Post Falls, Nov. 10.

College scene

R.J. Merritt of Spokane (Mead) is a junior regular on the Western Washington men’s soccer team that is bidding to become the school’s first since 1992 to qualify for postseason play. The Vikings entered last week 9-6-1 with a 6-2 league record.

Disabled athletics

Robert Messerly of Spokane, paralyzed since 1988 by complications following an auto accident, picked up two bronze medals and a sixth in the 1996 U.S. disabled national track and field championships.

In the meet last weekend in New Orleans, Messerly picked up third-place finishes in the shot put (8.1 meters) and javelin (23.3 meters) and a sixth in the club throw, which is similar to the hammer (29 meters).

Messerly barely missed qualifying for the Paralympics the week after the Summer Olympics in Atlanta.

Football

Dan Graham, in his fourth year as head football coach at Reardan High School, received a special honor from the Seattle Seahawks, being named the Seahawks’ coach of the week for the second week of the season.

The honor carries with it $500 from the National Football League that Graham, in his 22nd year at the school, can use to help supplement his football program, a letter from the Seahawks states.

Golf

Hangman Valley assistant pro Scott Petterborg has been named the Golf Professional of the Year for the Inland Empire chapter of the PGA.

Petterborg was selected by a vote of his peers for his contributions to area golf and service to the chapter.

Indian Canyon assistant Dave Christensen, who had the lowest scoring average in the Athletic Round Table Pro-Am series, was named Player of the Year, and Clint Wallman, the head pro at Birdies Golf Center, was named Teacher of the Year.

Horse racing

Hugh Mellon, former director of marketing at Playfair Race Course, has been named vice president of marketing and public relations for Colonial Downs, Virginia’s first parimutuel racetrack, in Providence Forge, Va.

The track, still under construction, has scheduled its inaugural thoroughbred meet for June and its first harness season for next fall.

Softball

Gary Broadbent, who has worked two national tournaments and four regionals in his 17 seasons, received the prestigious Bruce Campbell Award at the Spokane Softball Umpires Association banquet.

The award, which honors a longtime former local umpire-in-chief, is given for longevity, dedication, excellence and service to softball umpiring.

Annual awards in the adult division: Gary Kuck, umpire of the year; Jake Perry, most improved; and Trevor Taylor, rookie of the year. Youth division: Clint Nelson, umpire of year; Ron Walker, most improved; and Paul Clary, rookie of the year.

Tennis

Five athletes from Spokane and one from Medical Lake are in Eugene, Ore., this weekend for the U.S. Tennis Association Pacific Northwest Junior Fall Sectionals.

Adam Loucks, boys 12, and Ryan Moran, boys 16, both took No. 4 seeds into the event while Matthew Loucks was seeded eighth in boys 14.

Other entrants: Carla Jones, girls 12; Karl Johnson, boys 14; and Joshua Greene, Medical Lake, boys 18.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Photo