PULLMAN — Golfers on the Palouse should have a new opportunity to play a championship course in a little more than a year's time. Palouse Ridge, an 18-hole layout on the eastern edge of Washington State's campus in Pullman, is still on schedule to be completed around the end of summer 2008.
PULLMAN – Somewhere in between playing tour guide and trying out for their national teams, Aron Baynes and Thomas Abercrombie are likely to register some telling minutes for the Cougars in the coming weeks. Washington State's basketball team is off on its two-week summer tour of New Zealand and Australia on Saturday, a road trip for all but those two, who will be playing on their home turf.
PULLMAN – Washington State has secured its second oral commitment for the recruiting class of 2008. Guard Michael Harthun of Medford, Ore., told WSU head coach Tony Bennett Saturday that he intended to join the Cougar ranks, adding perhaps the most highly touted recruit of Bennett's Cougars tenure to the fold.
June Daugherty is expected to be released from Providence Everett Medical Center within the next 48 hours after having a defibrillator surgically implanted Thursday, her doctors said at a news conference. The recently hired women's basketball coach of Washington State, though, can thank her 12-year-old daughter, Breanne, for giving her that chance after she went into cardiac arrest Tuesday afternoon.
Washington State University women's basketball coach June Daugherty's condition is improving after entering cardiac arrest at a medical clinic in Everett on Tuesday afternoon. On Wednesday morning, the Providence Everett Medical Center announced that Daugherty was listed in serious condition, upgraded from critical. In the afternoon, a spokeswoman at the hospital said things had improved further, after speaking with Daugherty's husband, Mike.
Only two members of Washington State University's women's basketball team are in Pullman, but their situation is no different than that of their teammates scattered around the country. "It's a helpless situation," team captain Katie Appleton said of new coach June Daugherty's cardiac episode and ongoing recuperation in the hospital. "You can't do much but offer your thoughts and prayers to the family."
PULLMAN – Washington State University assistant football coach Ken Greene will not continue with the program, multiple sources in the athletic department have confirmed. Greene, who joined WSU's staff in January 2003 shortly after Bill Doba became the head coach, is apparently working on an agreement with the university to finalize the terms of his departure, although WSU officials said the school will not release any information until the matter is resolved. That resolution – which, if the coach and the university can come to terms, would likely be in the form of a resignation – is expected soon, possibly as early as this morning.
PULLMAN – Washington State University running back Derrell Hutsona and safety DeWayne Patterson have both failed to meet NCAA standards and will no longer attend the university, head coach Bill Doba said Tuesday. "They're both really good kids," Doba said. "We'll miss them."
PULLMAN – The 2006-07 Washington State athletic season is essentially over, and it didn't take long for the 2007-08 year to start. In an early – and much-anticipated – return to the court, the Cougars men's basketball team strode out onto the Beasley Coliseum floor Monday evening for the first of 10 days of practice before a trip to Australia and New Zealand for six games in June.
PULLMAN – Washington State defeated UCLA handily on Friday and Saturday, needing its bullpen for just two outs. On Sunday, the Cougars discovered just how valuable that superior starting pitching was.
PULLMAN – A slow drive on Stadium Way alongside Martin Stadium will make it quite obvious to the seasoned onlooker that some major changes are taking place in the home of Washington State football. Apparently, the changes won't be difficult to notice in the fall, either.
PULLMAN – Donnie Marbut can't help but wonder what might have happened if this Washington State baseball team had found itself a few weeks sooner. After sputtering to a 1-9 start in Pac-10 play this season, the Cougars drew within one game of the end of its conference schedule by winning for the ninth time in 13 games on Saturday. The 10-5 victory at Bailey-Brayton Field against UCLA also provides WSU with a chance to sweep a Pac-10 series for the first time since the league took its current form in 1999.
Former Lewis and Clark basketball star Katelan Redmon received word Thursday from the University of Washington that her request to opt out of her letter of intent has been denied. Redmon signed the letter in the fall, committing to play for the Huskies and head coach June Daugherty. Since then, UW declined to extend Daugherty's contract and the coach has taken the reins at Washington State. That coaching shuffle prompted Redmon and her family to request permission to be released from the scholarship agreement in recent weeks, a request that landed on the desk of UW athletic director Todd Turner.
PULLMAN – Cody Bartlett is not having the season he would like at the plate for Washington State, yet he still found a way to affect the score Monday. Inserted into the rubber match of a three-game Pac-10 baseball series against Stanford in the seventh inning, Bartlett scored the go-ahead run. But it was in the eighth inning, having taken the field at shortstop, that he made the game's biggest play.
Washington State finished off its recruiting class in advance of the 2007-08 season Monday, signing a Houston native to a letter of intent. Stephen Sauls, who spent this academic year at Air Force's prep school, decided to sign with the Cougars instead of continuing on with the Falcons. Sauls, a 6-foot-3 point guard, also had offers from Saint Louis and Colorado, where former Air Force coach Jeff Bzdelik recently took the top job.
PULLMAN – Step one in June Daugherty's rebuilding process of the Washington State women's basketball program has nothing to do with the game itself. It's all about the real estate. Daugherty, barely one week into her tenure with the Cougars, is in the process of purchasing former men's coach Dick Bennett's Pullman home. She insists that the purchase has more to do with the sweeping views and the comfortable entertaining space, but …
Lewis and Clark High senior Katelan Redmon has asked for a release from her scholarship agreement with the University of Washington, her father confirmed Tuesday. Chuck Redmon said his daughter applied for the release Monday and that UW is in the process of reviewing that request.
PULLMAN – In one of her first acts as the new head coach of the Washington State women's basketball team, June Daugherty accidentally knocked a tape recorder off of the lectern in front of her as she made some opening remarks. "Whoops. Turnover," she chuckled.
PULLMAN – Washington State will introduce former Washington coach June Daugherty as its new women's basketball coach this afternoon, having agreed in principle to a seven-year deal. Daugherty visited Pullman on Monday, becoming the first candidate to travel to the school's campus for meetings with athletic department officials. According to a WSU source close to the situation, she was offered the job on Tuesday and negotiations – though not yet complete – have progressed since.
PULLMAN – A procession of Washington State football players will make their way to head coach Bill Doba's office in the next two days to talk about their roles on the team in the aftermath of spring football. The meetings are part of WSU's normal post-spring routine, and the message from the head coach is usually simple. "I like to go into the fall with everybody knowing exactly where they stand, ensure there's no miscommunication," Doba said.
PULLMAN – Washington State has received a letter of intent from German high schooler Fabian Boeke, who is set to join the basketball team this fall as a freshman. After the transfer of guards Mac Hopson and Chris Matthews last week, the Cougars had two additional scholarships to use, one of which will go to Boeke, who orally committed to the Cougars months ago even before there was a slot available. WSU head coach Tony Bennett said there are still some eligibility hurdles for Boeke to clear, but it appears probable that the forward will qualify in time for the 2007-08 year.
PULLMAN – And just like that, Washington State's spring football sessions were over. Not wanting to risk any further injuries to his already-bruised squad, head coach Bill Doba had promised that Saturday's final scrimmage of the spring wouldn't last long.
PULLMAN – The names evoke memories of darts thudding into the chests of wide receivers, of wins stirring the hearts of alumni across the state. Jack Thompson, the Throwin' Samoan. Mark Rypien, the eventual Super Bowl MVP. Timm Rosenbach, the victor over a top-ranked UCLA squad. Drew Bledsoe, the Apple Cup hero in the snow. Ryan Leaf, the driving force in a return to the Rose Bowl. Jason Gesser, the man who repeated the feat five years later.
PULLMAN – Washington State would like to hire a new women's basketball coach soon, possibly by the end of the upcoming week, according to members of the school's search committee. Senior associate athletic director Pam Bradetich, one of four senior associates assisting athletic director Jim Sterk in the search process, said the school would begin making personal contact with candidates Monday.
PULLMAN – Fourteen practices and scrimmages are gone, and only the spring game remains. But let there be no doubt, grandiose plans are not in the works for the Cougars' final outing as a team before fall camp.
