A Grip on Sports: Wins and losses are one thing, but the key to Senior Nights is the memories
A GRIP ON SPORTS • A few thoughts on this last day of February, which follows a penultimate day of the month filled with enough sporting events to last another 28 days. Or something like that.
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• Senior Nights in the 2021 college basketball are not, really, Senior Nights. Little pomp, only a taste of circumstance. And no crowds. It happened on the Palouse last week and at Gonzaga yesterday. Not a bit of it was ordinary.
Except, maybe, the outcome.
But that was to be expected, right, especially at GU? The women rarely lose a home West Coast Conference contest. The men haven’t lost in 51 consecutive McCarthey Athletic Center games, a school record.
When the tears fell after Saturday’s games, they weren’t because of an unexpected defeat. It was all about a different type of loss. The end of the college experience. It hurts. But the pain stops after a while. And turns into a warm feeling, even when thinking of the bad times.
Life goes by quickly. The four or five years spent as a college athlete are just a blip on the road map in some ways. But in the way that really matters, as a percentage of memorable moments, it is often outsized. Especially when it ends cutting down another net or listening to someone detail your (and your team’s) accomplishments.
Even in a near-empty arena.
• Any story of Idaho’s 28-21 win over Eastern Washington University from yesterday will focus upon the game-winning play: A 25-yard third-down touchdown pass with less than a minute left from Mike Beaudry to Hayden Hatten, as well it should. But there was another play about 10 minutes earlier that had has much to do with the outcome as that one.
A play that illustrates how a football game can turn when one participant lets their guard down for just an instance.
The game was tied at 21 when Eastern drove to the Vandal 7-yard line. There were 11 minutes to play. The drive stalled. Seth Harrison trotted out to try a 24-yard field goal that would give the Eagles a lead. The ball came off his foot, headed toward the right upright, disappeared from the television screen but reappeared, after seemingly caroming off the upright or scoreboard. It looked to have landed on the good side of the goalposts. Still, it was ruled no good.
On the SWX broadcast replay, Dennis Patchin pointed out the referee under the right upright, the person who made the call. As Patchin noted, the official seemed distracted and, after watching it in slow motion, it was obvious he wasn’t looking up when the ball passed. Replay was no help. In a Big Sky game like this one, there are few cameras to make a determination.
Why was the call important? Fast forward to the final Idaho drive. The final play of that drive if you would like. If the field goal was made, the Eagles would have obviously defended a third-and-11 play from their 25 differently. The Vandals were already in field goal range. Only a touchdown would have ensured defeat. With a three-point lead you avoid that latter possibility at all costs. Keep everything underneath. Overtime is fine.
Instead, with the score tied and the outcome on the line, EWU blitzed, trying to force a sack to knock the Vandals away from a game-winning field goal attempt. It didn’t work.
Nor, ultimately, did the administration of the game.
• When the residents of the Mead School District passed a bond issue a few years ago, an issue that also included money for a football field, little did they know how the opening game in the facility would play out.
As in two games without any fans. On the final weekend of February.
But that’s what happened.
Union Stadium hosted its first football competition yesterday, though it had a feel almost like one of those existential questions concerning trees and forests. Yes, there was noise. We are sure of it. Mainly because Maggie Quinlan has this story about the experience and Dave Nichols covered both Mead’s win and Mt. Spokane’s defeat.
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Gonzaga: As good as GU has been for two decades, none of the previous squads had finished the regular season without a defeat. Until now. That’s the thrust of John Blanchette’s column and a big part of Jim Meehan’s game analysis. … Jim also has the difference makers in the 86-69 win over Loyola Marymount. … There is a recap with highlights, a photo gallery from Tyler Tjomsland and my TV Take. … From the women’s 77-39 rout of Loyola, Jim Allen has a game story and Tyler has a photo gallery. … Our local briefs column this week includes some notes about GU’s cross country program. … Elsewhere in the WCC, BYU ended its regular season on a high note, defeating Saint Mary’s in Provo. … Pepperdine handed USD another loss. … Pacific got past San Francisco.
WSU: Remy Martin took advantage of a late defensive miscue with a 30-foot 3-pointer, sending the Cougars to a 77-74 overtime defeat at Arizona State. Theo Lawson has this game coverage. … Around the Pac-12 and college basketball, Washington’s awful regular season came to an end with another loss, this one in the last seconds against Arizona. … Sean Miller’s contract status is a thing. … Oregon State turned its season around, including Saturday’s road win over reeling Stanford. … Oregon had little trouble with California. … The top of the conference is a mess. USC, which seemed to have the inside track a while ago, lost again, this one by 10 points at Utah. The Runnin’ Utes are the most up-and-down team in the Pac-12. … UCLA had a chance to take advantage, but fell to Colorado and McKinley Wright IV on the Buffs’ Senior Night. … In football news, there is still one recruit on the West Coast whose decision may just determine the conference’s competitive future. … Making the decision to transfer wasn’t easy for an Oregon running back.
EWU and Idaho: The football season opener for Eastern and UI deserved special coverage and it got it. Ryan Collingwood has the game story of the 28-21 Vandal win. … Peter Harriman also has a story on the Idaho defense, which came up big in the second half. … We also have a link to Ryan’s summary of Thursday’s Northwest Passages’ forum with Eastern basketball coach Shantay Legans. … Elsewhere in the Big Sky in football, Northern Arizona scored late for a one-point win over Southern Utah. … Weber State began its season with an easy win over Idaho State. … In basketball, Montana earned its first weekend sweep of the conference season. It came at Idaho State’s expense. … Weber State also swept Sacramento State. … Portland State handed Northern Colorado a key loss. … The Montana State women celebrated Senior Night at a volleyball match.
Whitworth: A last-second 3-pointer lifted Whitman to a 69-67 win over visiting Whitworth and avenged a 21-point Blues defeat the night before.
Preps: As we mentioned above, Dave has coverage of Gonzaga Prep’s season-opening win over Mt. Spokane and a roundup of other GSL games, leading with Mead’s win over Lewis and Clark. … James Snook adds photo galleries from both games. … Dave also has a roundup of results in other sports from around the area.
Mariners: Spring training games begin today. It’s another milestone on the road to a baseball season. … Some minor league teams won’t have a season this year, or it will be the start of a new era. … Dylan Moore is hoping to build on last season. On the other hand, Jake Fraley says he isn’t going to let last season impact this one.
Seahawks: Josh Gordon is playing football again. Just not in the NFL.
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• Saturday was a whirlwind. Today should be a lot less crowded. Good. The chili Kim has been making for two days should be just about ready this evening. A quiet day followed by a meal that will cause me heartburn until Tuesday? I’m all in. Until later …