Jess Brown

It was nothing short of spectacular. In yet another match between Greater Spokane League rivals and the two top-ranked teams in the state, LC edged Mead in a five-game, edge-of-your-seat contest and the GSL made a clean sweep of the region's three state berths at the 4A regional tournament on Saturday at Mead.

Gonzaga Prep only needed a sluggish first quarter to get the motivation it required. After a slow start, the Bullpups erased the idea of an upset and defeated Eisenhower 27-6 in a State 4A preliminary football game Saturday afternoon at G-Prep.

For the record, high school volleyball season in Washington began in late August. For the Pullman Greyhounds, though, the real season will start at the end of this month when they will go for back-to-back state titles. While all high school teams dream about qualifying for – or even winning – the state tournament, the Greyhounds (11-0 in the Great Northern League) actually have a realistic chance to reach that pinnacle again. It would be impossible, head coach Jennifer Greeny said, without her co-captains Grethe Vogel and Katie Hinrichs.

Mead coach Judy Kight and Central Valley coach Chad Coupland didn't know they were going to a surprise party. Neither did John LaFever, coach of Grandview. For some, the surprises were good, while others were upsetting at the 13th annual Crossover Classic played Friday night and all day Saturday at various sites around Spokane.

Eric Nikkola should have expected the unexpected. Nikkola, head football coach at Reardan, expected a defensive battle between his Indians and Davenport on Friday night. He even anticipated his running backs would be the Gorillas' main targets.

In a game in which skills are evenly matched, momentum and communication are often deciding factors. Both were for Gonzaga Prep, which outlasted Central Valley (0-2) in a five-game, edge-of-your-seat Greater Spokane League matchup Thursday night at G-Prep (2-0).

Kids really do say the darndest things. Take 7-year-old Madi Goldfeldt. Madi was one of hundreds of local participants at the Sports Illustrated for Kids Kick-It 3v3 soccer shootout held Saturday and Sunday at the Plantes Ferry Complex. After her team, the 7U Pink Polar Bears, won their division on Sunday, Goldfeldt was grinning from ear to ear. And it wasn't just soccer on her mind. When asked if she was a World Cup soccer fan she wasn't really sure.

Elise Otto and Katie Griffith are rivals on the tennis court. Off the court, they are friends – even USTA doubles partners. The two met as opponents for the third time this year in Saturday's 4A Eastern Region girls singles championship match held at North Park Racquet Club.

In tennis, sometimes a breeze is a good thing. Such was the case for Katie Griffith, who breezed her way into the girls No. 1 singles championship at the 61st Annual Inland Empire Championships at Mead.

New champions were crowned all around at the 60th Inland Empire Tennis Tournament on Saturday. Lewis and Clark's Elise Otto won the girls singles title with a 6-4, 6-2 upset over top-seeded Jessica Martin of Richland.

The stage is set for the Gonzaga Prep girls soccer team to avenge last year's state quarterfinal loss to top-ranked Richland, and getting there hasn't been an easy task. The Bullpups (15-1) opened the State 4A tournament Saturday with a 2-1 comeback home win over Big Nine Conference regular season champion Kamiakin (15-3), scoring two late second-half goals.

The Spokane Junior Rifle team returned last week, medals in hand, after competing in the Great Briton Juniors International Match held in Bisley, England from Aug. 10-13. The team from Spokane, who earned the international bid after placing first in Washington and second at the National Meet in Arkansas, joined a team from Pennsylvania to represent the United States. Teams from England, Germany, South Africa, Ireland, Denmark and Malta were also present at the international match.

The Spokane Tribe "Black" 14U fastpitch softball team placed ninth out of 49 teams at Nationals held Aug. 2-9 in Moreno Valley, Calif. The Tribe, which placed fourth at the state tournament and won the five-state regional tournament in Seattle last month, opened nationals with a 10-0 pool-play victory over the state-champion team from Minnesota. Seeded second out of pool play, the Trice first faced Vista Red from San Diego, Calif., opening tournament play with a 5-0 win. Jordan Emmil pitched a five-hit shutout and Shayd Urhausen, Jordan Monasmith and Emmil all went 2 for 4 at the plate.

Local athletes in soccer and softball represented Eastern Washington well in national tournaments played last week around the country. For the Spokane Shadow Soccer Club, the 18-U girls won the title at the National Cup Championship Tournament in Long Island, New York, while the 15-U girls placed second overall at their tournament held in Cary, North Carolina.