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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Whitworth senior Sulpizio earns 2nd-team Academic All-American

Sulpizio

Emilio Sulpizio, Whitworth University’s senior center from Mead, has been voted to the second team on the 2011 Capital One Academic All-America Division III football team.

The team is sponsored by the College Sports Information Directors of America.

Whitworth’s first Academic All-American since 2006, Sulpizio is a fifth-year senior with a 3.90 grade-point average in biochemistry who has been accepted to the University of Washington School of Medicine. He has been on the Academic All-District VIII college division first team for four years.

Basketball

The six age-group winners from the 2011 Greater Spokane Elks Hoopshoot will advance to competition in Moses Lake on Jan. 14, local director Doug Holland said.

Age-group winners: 8-9-year-old boys - Ethan Moriniti; 8-9 girls - Sophia Liesse; 10-11 boys - Micheal Marinello; 10-11 girls - Carissa Ball; 12-13 boys - Dedrick Pakootas; and 12-13 girls - Lacie Hull.

Bowling

Evan Nash edged Will Smith to win the inaugural MOTIV Eastern Washington Bowling Association tournament Nov. 19 at Lilac Lanes.

Thirty-four professionals from Spokane and the Northwest competed in the scratch tournament organization’s first event, with 11 earning prize money. Tournaments include six games of qualifying and four games of match play with 30 bonus pins awarded for each match play win.

Nash, who won $400 and a new bowling ball, compiled a +279 that included 90 bonus pins. He was second in the qualifying with a 1,328. Smith had +269 with 90 bonus pins. Sean Heath was third (+237, 60 bonus).

Chad Demmitt, who led the qualifying with a 1,389 and finished fourth, had the day’s high game, a 299.

College scene

The Lewis-Clark State volleyball team, which made it to the final 12 in the NAIA national tournament and ranked 10th in the final Tachikara-NAIA Volleyball Coaches’ Top 25 poll, includes five players from the Spokane area.

The 23-6 Warriors, who won a fifth straight Frontier Conference championship and fifth consecutive appearance at nationals, includes senior first-team All-Frontier Conference standouts Kelli Tikker, an outside hitter from Lakeside of Nine Mile Falls, and Nicole Graybeal, a middle blocker from North Central.

Tikker was named a Tachikara-NAIA All-America honorable mention. Warriors senior Lauryn Herrick from Cypress, Calif., the Frontier Conference Player of the Year, was selected to the All-America second team.

Also, Kaylee Rector, a junior libero from Shadle Park, who led the team in digs; Brianne Brown, a junior right side from Shadle Park, who was All-Frontier Conference second team; and Mallorie Schoesler, a freshman defensive specialist from West Valley.

Abby Goss, a Puget Sound senior midfielder from University, was named to the National Soccer Coaches Association of America All-West Region second team. Goss started all 20 matches for the Loggers and scored two goals, both winners.

• Washington State picked up three awards from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America.

Junior Brandi Vega, a forward, and freshman midfielder Nicole Setterlund were named to the NSCAA All-Pacific Region second team while the Cougars received a Team Academic Award for the sixth time in eight years. To be eligible, a team must have a GPA of 3.0 or better.

Vega, who scored six goals, three of them winners, was named to the All-Pac-12 first team and Setterlund, who had three goals, was selected to the Pac-12 All-Freshman team.

• Idaho collected a Women’s Team Academic Award from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America for compiling a 3.46 combined team GPA, the highest among six WAC schools honored with the award.

Soccer

The Spokane Shadow girls ’97 U14 Navy team captured the 2011 Northwest Champions League championship last Sunday with a 2-1 win over Vancouver Timbers G’97 Red in Tukwila, Wash.

It earned the Shadow a spot in the 2012 San Diego Surf Cup next August.

Alex Chambers and Kelcie Hedge scored for the Shadow in the title game after Kelsey Turnbow and Kaylie Crawford scored in a 2-0 semifinal win over Northwest Nationals G’97 Red. Megan Nilsson registered the semifinal shutout in goal,

The NW Champions League is in addition to the Regional Club League in which the Shadow placed first in Division 2 during the fall to earn a promotion to Division I in the spring.

Other Shadow players: Alea Acosta, Maia Angell, Briegan Bester, Natalie Cabiad, Erica Casey, Morgan Crosby, Payton Douglass, Tayler Drynan, Holly Hamer, Jaden Howerton, Larkin Russell, Clancine Smith and Melissa Symmes. Kara Sharpe is the coach and Tara Chambers the manager.

Track and field

Christine Kirkwood, a 2011 graduate of Othello, a three-time State 2A javelin champion and high school All-American, will attend Washington State, enrolling in January, Cougars head coach Rick Sloan announced.

Kirkwood threw 173 feet, 9 inches to win the 2A district championship last May, the national prep-leading distance at the time and a state of Washington record. She also was her class valedictorian with a 4.0 GPA.

Her sister, Courtney Kirkwood Simmons, is a two-time All-American javelin thrower at WSU who has the second-best mark in school history.

Volleyball

Tori Bertsch, an All-Inland Empire League 5A setter from Post Falls, has signed a letter of intent with Rocky Mountain College in Billings, Mont., Post Falls coach Willow Hanna-Head and athletic director Craig Christensen announced.

Bertsch, the IEL Newcomer of the Year in 2009 as a sophomore, was instrumental in the Trojans’ State 5A runner-up finish this fall.

Imani Wimbush, a 6-foot-1 outside hitter/middle blocker from Honolulu, signed a national letter of intent with Gonzaga University, Bulldogs head coach Dave Gantt announced.

Wimbush is a two-time high school all-conference selection who helped her club team to a fifth-place finish in the 2011 Junior National Championships.