Gonzales given preseason honor

Baseball: Less than a month away from the first pitch, Gonzaga University junior Marco Gonzales was named to Baseball America’s 2013 preseason All-America first-team Thursday.

It is the third preseason first-team All-American honor Gonzales has been named to this year. Gonzales returns to Gonzaga coming off a spectacular sophomore season where he compiled an 8-2 record with a 1.55 ERA on the mound. Washington State junior outfielder Jason Monda was named to the third team by Baseball America. The outfielder had 53 hits and batted .275 in 2012, both tops among WSU returners.

Cougar running back arrested

Football: Washington State running back Leon Brooks was arrested early Sunday morning by a Whitman County Sheriff’s deputy on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol.

The sheriff office’s arrest log shows Brooks was arrested at 3:01 a.m. on Sunday. According to an arrest report obtained by The Spokesman-Review, Brooks was pulled over after making a wide turn from Monroe Street onto Stadium Way.

A Whitman County Sheriff’s deputy reported that after he noticed an odor of intoxicants, he asked Brooks to step out of the car and perform a field sobriety test. The deputy concluded from that test that Brooks was impaired, transported him to the Pullman Police Department and administered two breathalyzer tests.

Brooks, 21, allegedly blew a .088 and a .092 four minutes apart. The legal maximum in Washington is 0.08. Brooks was transported to the Whitman County Jail and was later released.

Brooks, who will be a fifth-year senior next season, was the Cougars’ primary punt returner the last two seasons.

It’s not clear whether WSU coach Mike Leach is aware of the situation. Leach typically doesn’t comment on legal matters.

Christian Caple