Sunday locals: Spokane teams win gold at Washington Senior Games
Two Spokane-based teams recently earned gold medals in 3-on-3 basketball at the Washington State Senior Games in Olympia.
Competing in the 65-69 age division, the team of Jon Heimbigner, Jack Soliday, Dan Steward, Bill Maxey and Mike Bourn won their division.
Playing in the 60-64 age division, Doug Watson, Terry Souhrada, Dave Huss, K. Baumgartner and Dave Wilson also won gold.
Heimbigner, 67, also teamed with Denny Bailey of Olympia to take a silver medal in the men’s tennis doubles. Heimbigner also earned a bronze medal in men’s singles tennis.
“I played four basketball games and three tennis matches in a day-and-a-half,” Heimbigner said. “It was almost too much.”
• University of Idaho incoming freshman soccer player, Kayleigh Frederick, recently helped lead Carlsbad Elite to a United States Youth Soccer Association National Championship.
Frederick contributed to a defense that allowed only three goals in five games during the tournament, including a 1-0 win over the DMCV Sharks in the championship game.
“It was really cool to go up there and get to experience it all and have the hard work pay off,” Frederick said in a news release.
• The Northwest Blazers Orange girls basketball team went 6-0 to capture the championship at the PSB Summer Invitational in Marietta, Georgia.
The team, which includes Riley Lupfer (Lewis and Clark) and Megan Nilsson (Mt. Spokane) beat the Indiana Gym Rats 70-59 to win the championship.
The Northwest Blazers won the tournament, which is the only NCAA Certified Event where the Adidas- sponsored teams compete against the top Nike-sponsored teams in the United States, coach Steve Klees said.
College scene
Washington State pitcher Ian Hamilton was named the Co-Most Valuable player for the West Team in the Cape Cod League All-Star Game.
Hamilton, representing the Wareham Gatemen, pitched a scoreless inning in relief in a game that the East won 1-0. It was played in Wareham, Massachusetts.
Hamilton has made 11 appearances for the Gatemen this summer, recording one save. He’s had 31 strikeouts in 35.1 innings and held batters to a .211 batting average. His 0.76 ERA is the second-lowest in the league at this point.
Previously, Hamilton was named to the All-Pac-12 team after finishing the year with a 1.67 ERA and tied for the Pac-12 lead with 13 saves, which gives him an all-time WSU best 28 for his career.
• Former Idaho guard Mike Scott has signed to play professional basketball for a team in Lithuania.
Scott averaged 14 points and led the Big Sky Conference with 5.3 assists per game last season. He also was named to the All-Big Sky Conference second team.
This week, Scott signed to play for BC Siauliai of the Lithuanian Basketball League. Originally from Tulsa, Oklahoma, Scott played high school basketball in Los Angeles and transferred to Idaho from California’s Antelope Valley College.
• The Whitworth men’s team is one of 34 NCAA Division III programs to receive the Golf Coaches Association of America 2015 Team Academic Award.
The Pirates were the only team from the Northwest Conference to receive the honor, which requires a team to have a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher.
• The Gonzaga men’s team has been named to the Golf Coaches Association of America All-Academic Team.
The Bulldogs were among 90 NCAA Division 1 programs to receive the honor, which requires a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0. Gonzaga posted a 3.33 GPA for the spring term.
The Zags open the 2015-16 season on Sept. 14 at the Saint Mary’s Invitational at Pebble Beach, California.
• The Whitworth men’s team had its academic achievements honored by the National Association of Basketball Coaches.
Two Pirates, senior George Valle and junior Derek Isaak, also were named to the NABC Honors Court, which awards upper classmen who had a GPA of 3.2 or higher.
The team, which had a cumulative GPA of 3.3, earned the honor, which was given to 155 colleges and universities that posted cumulative GPAs of 3.0 or better.
• The Eastern Washington men’s team has been honored for the second consecutive year with the National Association of Basketball Coaches Academic Excellence Award.
The honor, bestowed on roughly half of all Division I programs, honors those teams that achieve a cumulative GPA of 3.0. The Eagles posted a team GPA of 3.27.
Four players, including forward Venky Jois and former players Tyler Harvey, Daniel Hill and Frederick Jorg, were also named to the NABC Honors Court, which recognizes those athletes who had a GPA of 3.2 or higher.
• Washington State senior Junior Longrus has been named to the National Association of Basketball Coaches Honors Court. The native of Oakland, California, has a GPA of 3.31. He averaged 1.5 points and 2.9 rebounds per game for the Cougars.
• The Eastern Washington and Idaho volleyball programs have earned the Team Academic Award from the American Volleyball Coaches Association.
The Eagles and Vandals were two of 147 NCAA Division I programs to receive the award given to the programs that maintain a cumulative 3.30 GPA.
Eastern earned the award for the third consecutive year and 12th time in team history. The Vandals earned the award for the fifth straight season.