Swab Finalists
These are the finalists for the 1997 Inland Northwest Sportswriters and Broadcasters competition. Winners will be announced at the banquet, which will be held Feb. 11 in the Ag Trade Center. Story/C1
Amateur Male Athlete of the Year
Ike Fontaine, WSU - Cougars’ All-Pac 10 basketball player became the school career scoring leader when he averaged 21.8 ppg. last year. His 2,003 points is 12th all-time in league and he became the only Cougar to score 500 or more points in three different years.
Ryan Leaf, WSU - Top quarterback in school history and perhaps in the nation, Leaf tossed Cougars to a 10-2 season, including a 21-16 loss to Michigan in the school’s first Rose Bowl appearance in 67 years. Leaf, who was 227 of 410 passing for 3,968 yards and 34 touchdowns, was named second-team AP All-American.
Harry Leons, EWU - Eagles quarterback was named 1997 Burger King Division I-AA Coaches All-America. He passed for 2,588 yards, a 61.9 completion percentage, and 21 touchdowns. His 169.5 quarterback efficiency rating ranked fourth nationally and established a school record.
Rex Prescott, EWU - Running back set career, single season and game school rushing records with 2,929, 1,494 and 272 yards respectively for the 12-2 Eagles, who reached the semifinals of the Division I-AA playoffs.
Amateur Female Athlete of the Year
Shelly Bartlett, Nebraska Spokane athlete led Nebraska to league and regional gymnastics championships. She set school records in all-around and two individual events and was third on uneven bars and ninth all-around at NCAA Championships to be named All-American. Bartlett was the Cornhusker Athlete of the Year and a finalist for NCAA Woman of the Year.
Tricia Lamb, SJE - St. John-Endicott athlete now at WSU, Lamb was named State B Player of the Year and Seattle Post-Intelligencer Female Basketball Player of the Year. Lamb averaged 23.4 points per game last season and finished with 2,100 during her career. She is the second all-time leading scorer in State B Tournament history.
Jaimie Lee, Notre Dame - Ferris High product was two-time Big East Player of the Year for volleyball. She was also named Big East tournament MVP after school-record 29 kills in championship match helped guide the Irish to 25-8 record and spot in “Sweet 16” at NCAA Tournament
Jennifer Stinson, WSU - Cougars junior from Davenport was an All-Pac-10 selection for 24-6 volleyball team that also reached the round of 16 at NCAA Tournament. She was 10th in the nation in blocking and led Cougs in kills.
Professional Athlete of the Year
Dermal Brown, Spokane Indians Brown was named most valuable player in the Northwest League by batting .326 with 97 hits. He scored 67 runs, drove in 73 runs, hit 20 doubles, six triples and 13 home runs and had 17 stolen bases.
Jason Hanson, Detroit Lions Mead and WSU graduate missed only two field goals all year and was named to the Pro Bowl from playoff qualifier Detroit in the NFL. Hanson was fourth in NFC scoring with 117 points and became Lions’ second all-time leading scorer.
Mike Hollis, Jacksonville Jaguars - Former Central Valley and Idaho kicker led AFC in scoring with a high of 134 points for Jacksonville’s NFL playoff team and was named to the Pro Bowl team.
John Stockton, Utah Jazz Gonzaga Prep and Gonzaga University graduate led team into the NBA Finals, went over 12,000 assists for career, averaged 14.4 points and 10.5 assists per game with .548 field goal and .846 free-throw percentage.
Team of the Year
Central Valley football - Bears became only the third Greater Spokane League state football champion. CV compiled a school-record 13-1 record and beat South Kitsap 49-13 in the first 4A title game.
EWU football - Eagles won their first outright Big Sky championship with 10-1 record, were ranked sixth in the final pre-playoff poll and went on to the semifinals of the NCAA I-AA playoffs with two wins, finishing 12-2.
WSU football - Cougars won Pac-10 championship with 10-1 record to qualify for their first Rose Bowl in 67 years. Team lost 21-16 to No. 1-ranked Michigan in Pasadena on New Year’s Day and wound up ranked ninth nationally.
WSU volleyball - Compiled a 24-6 record to reach the round of 16 in the NCAA Tournament for the second year.
Coach of the Year
Cindy Fredrick, WSU volleyball Cougars were again a top-10 team and qualified for the postseason, reaching the round of 16.
Rick Giampietri, CV football - In his fifth year as head coach, guided Bears to a school-record 13 wins and a 49-13 triumph in 4A state championship game.
Mike Kramer, EWU football Guided Eagles to their first outright Big Sky championship in his fourth year as coach. They went on to reach the NCAA I-AA semifinals.
Mike Price, WSU football Cougars finished with a school-best 10-1 record, shared the Pac-10 championship and reached the Rose Bowl for the first time in 67 years. Price was named WSU’s first national Coach of the Year for the accomplishment.
, DataTimes