Dave Trimmer

KENNEWICK – The Spokane Chiefs blinked. Or maybe flinched.

Tyler Schmidt’s shot from the point 2:32 into the second overtime made it through a crowd in front of the Spokane goal and gave the host Tri-City Americans a 4-3 win over the Chiefs Thursday night.

Though Gonzaga star Courtney Vandersloot and Spokane native Angie Bjorklund were surprised to be selected by the Chicago Sky in the WNBA Draft on Monday, for some reason it seems quite natural that they are together for the next chapter of their lives. “I finally get the chance to play with her,” Vandersloot said. “That’s something I’ve always wanted to do.”

Gonzaga star Courtney Vandersloot became the highest drafted basketball player with local ties when the Chicago Sky selected her with the third pick in the WNBA Draft Monday afternoon.

The Spokane Chiefs aren’t where they need to be, but they took a step in that direction Sunday night. After dropping the first game of their best-of-7 Western Hockey League playoff series to the Tri-City Americans on Saturday, the Chiefs rebounded with a solid 6-3 win before 5,026 fans at the Arena.

It wasn’t a classic, not compared to the last time the Tri-City Americans and Spokane Chiefs met in a Western Hockey League playoff series three years ago. But Saturday night the two teams kept 8,215 fans on the edge of their seats before the visiting Americans skated away with a 3-1 victory in the opener of their best-of-7 series. “That was a real good playoff game,” Spokane coach Don Nachbaur said. “Both teams battled like a bugger for space. We had the chances to make a game of it. The difference was that they buried their chances and we didn’t. We had some pretty good looks.”

There was a little too much magic in the recently completed basketball season for Courtney Vandersloot’s next dream to come true. The All-America point guard who led Gonzaga to the Elite Eight should be a first-round draft pick in Monday’s WNBA draft, but after what she accomplished her stock has probably risen too high to get drafted by the Seattle Storm.

Spokane Chiefs lose to the Tri-City Americans in the opener of their WHL playoff series.

Gonzaga's Courtney Vandersloot and University HS grad Angie Bjorklund, who played at Tennessee, anticipate Monday's WNBA draft.

Three Spokane Chiefs have great memories from their epic 2008 WHL playoff series with the Tri-City Americans.

Sammie Pedersen prefers basketball, younger sister Ashlee likes soccer. As for track, the Mt. Spokane three-sport athletes have learned to like it.

Déjà vu? Not quite, but it did get a little dicey for the Spokane Chiefs and the 5,016 fans at the Arena Thursday night.

Kelly Graves made it official – again. The Gonzaga women’s basketball coach said he was not interested in the same position at the University of Washington, although he was on the UW campus Wednesday.

The Spokane Chiefs, without their leading scorer, jumped to a 3-0 lead after one period and held on for a 4-2 win over the Chilliwack Bruins Thursday night, to open a 3-1 lead in their best-of-7 Western Hockey League playoff series.

Kelly Graves made it official - again. The Gonzaga women's basketball coach said he was not interested in the same position at the University of Washington, although he was on the UW campus on Wednesday.

Only once in the regular season did the Spokane Chiefs take a lead into the third period and lose. But just three games into the Western Hockey League playoffs they did it again, coughing up a three-goal advantage to lose when Kevin Sundher scored 3:20 into overtime to give Chilliwack a 4-3 win Wednesday night, shocking a crowd of 4,737.

Kevin Sundher scored the last two goals of the game, the second 3:20 into overtime, to rally the Chilliwack Bruins to a 4-3 win over the Spokane Chiefs Wednesday night at the Arena.