Greg Lee

Mead baseball coach Jason Reich didn’t care how sizeable the numbers appeared on the Avista Stadium scoreboard Wednesday. What mattered most to Reich is his Panthers had one more run than the Gonzaga Prep Bullpups.

Mead earns regional berth

U-Hi handles Mt. Spokane

Consistent hitting and equally effective defense have carried the University baseball team since late March. The pattern continued Tuesday when the top-seeded Titans stopped No. 2 Mt. Spokane 12-6 in the first game of a best-of-3 series to decide the District 8 3A championship at Avista Stadium.

State 1A all-tourney volleyball team

Even after 35 years, the Lilac Bloomsday race still can celebrate firsts. After suffering through rain all week, the sun was bloomin’ Sunday morning for the 35th 12-kilometer Bloomsday run.

Even after 35 years, the Lilac Bloomsday race still can celebrate firsts. After suffering through rain all week, the sun was bloomin’ Sunday morning for the 35th 12-kilometer Bloomsday run. Under ideal conditions, the first Ethiopian runner broke through, but it wasn’t the favored Ethiopian. Misiker Mekonnin, 24, held off fellow Ethiopian Wude Ayalew, 24, in a sprint finish after the two broke away from a pack of six as they turned off Broadway onto Monroe for the final 250-meter downhill finish to capture $7,000 and the elite women’s title.

Ferris didn’t leave any doubt Friday which team was the best in Greater Spokane League baseball this spring. The Saxons captured their first GSL title since 2006, and Ferris made it a clean sweep in the three major sports this school year. The baseball championship goes along with league titles in football and boys basketball. The Saxons added the boys soccer title as well on Friday.

During the early years of the Jack Blair Memorial Girls Basketball game, the Metro team was heavily favored each time. It wasn’t until the 16th edition that the Region team broke through. The Region has been more competitive in recent years.

Bloomsday elite athlete coordinator Jon Neill admitted out of the chute that the 35th edition of the 12-kilometer run will have to go far to top the world-record breaking performance in the 34th race. There’s plenty of reason, though, why Sunday’s race should make its own headlines.

Shadle Park junior pitcher Nick Bettinson wasn’t about to let assistant coach Steve Hare take the ball out of his hand. Bettinson allowed a walk to Mt. Spokane’s leadoff hitter in the seventh inning but promptly got back-to-back strikeouts. Then he threw back-to-back balls to the next batter.

The Mead baseball team isn’t in contention for the Greater Spokane League championship. After the season is over, though, the Panthers may look back on their 13-3 win over visiting Gonzaga Prep on Thursday as pivotal to how they finish the season.

This region has a number of fine deputies – and I’m not talking about those you’d find in county law enforcement. I’m specifically talking about assistant coaches.

Kaleb DeHaas remembered he had done it before, and against the same team. The Coeur d’Alene senior catcher found himself at the plate in the bottom of the sixth with the score tied 4-4 against the crosstown rival and the potential winning run at third base with no outs.

Jim Sharkey pulls a rare double in Washington, coaching the Ferris football and baseball teams. He even says he enjoys pulling double duty.

Few changes

Preps