Stars Of Future Will Face Off In Classic

FROM SPORTS PREP ROUNDUP Page C3 (Friday, April 19, 1996) Correction The Lake City-Coeur d’Alene baseball doubleheader Saturday will be played at LC. It was incorrectly reported in Thursday’s edition to be played at CdA.

They’ll be teammates this summer when the Spokane Stars play host to the AAU 18-and-under girls basketball national tournament.

But for one game, the top players in Idaho and Washington will be out for bragging rights when Eastern Washington tangles with North Idaho in the third annual Jack Blair Memorial Girls AAU All-Star Basketball Classic.

The game - the brainchild of Spokane Stars director Ron Adams and sponsored by All-Sport - will be June 15 at East Valley High School. Tipoff will be at 7:30 p.m.

The main subplot features Mead point guard Stacy Clinesmith, the Washington AAA player of the year, against Sandpoint post Alli Nieman, the Idaho A-1 player of the year. They were named most valuable players of their teams in last year’s all-star game. Eastern Washington leads the series 2-0.

What will likely transpire is Nieman and Clinesmith will both play brilliantly and cancel each other out. So the difference will be in their supporting casts.

Both supporting casts are deep in talent.

Nearly all the players selected to the 12-player teams were named to The Spokesman-Review all-area teams or all-league teams.

Clinesmith, who signed with UC Santa Barbara, is joined by two teammates off the Washington AAA championship team: Holly Turner and Jennifer Bennett.

Others named to the team are: Jayme Morrisette and Jennifer Swinton of Ferris, the third-place AAA team; Andee Schmick and Tricia Lamb from undefeated State B champion St. John-Endicott; Syd Perno (University), Jennifer Williams (Gonzaga Prep), Crystal Lee (Central Valley), Lora Jolley (Lakeside) and Anna Getz (Cheney).

Alternates are: Rikki Jackson (CV), Becki Huddle (Lewis and Clark), Allison Beatty (Mead), Star Olson (East Valley), Amy George (Ferris), Theresa Palmer (GP) and Natalie Weeks (Pullman).

Nieman, who signed with Idaho and led Sandpoint to a runner-up finish at state, is joined on the Idaho team by six players from the Inland Empire League team, including three from Lake City and two from State A-2 champion Moscow. They are: Katie Hatrock, Lindsay Herbert and Alison Asher of LC and Amy Lemm and Angie Sorbel of Moscow.

Also on the team: Heidi Umthun (Post Falls), Andrea Gomez (Lewiston), Sarah Peterson (Falls Christian), Sara McEachern (Lewiston), Julie Tyler (Leadore) and Cori Freeman (Capital/Boise).

Alternates are: Natalie Telford (LC), Jenny Moslemi (Moscow), Janelle Ruen (PF), Heather Stetson (LC), Joy Sperry (Wallace) and Laura Bloom (Lewiston).

Coaches for Washington will be Jeanne Helfer of Mead and Janet Skaife of Ferris. For Idaho, it’s Duane Ward of Sandpoint and Chris Johnson of Post Falls.

Many of the players will be on Spokane Stars teams that will play in the U-18 and U-16 national tournaments this summer in Spokane (July 5-13).

The nationally honored Ferris High drill team will perform at halftime and a 3-point shooting contest will be held.

Notes

The Lewiston boys track team can capture the Inland Empire League dual championship today when the Bengals visit Lake City in a three-way meet also involving Sandpoint.

Lewiston is 2-0 with earlier wins over Coeur d’Alene and preseason favorite PostFalls.

Lake City and Coeur d’Alene will meet in three events this weekend, beginning today when the crosstown rivals take to CdA’s new soccer field at 4:30. LC won the earlier North Idaho League match 1-0.

The softball teams, originally scheduled to play at CdA’s new field Friday, will meet at Ramsey Field in a doubleheader at 4. If a drainage problem can be corrected the games will be switched back to the new field.

The baseball teams meet for the first time this season Saturday morning in a doubleheader at CdA.

Area track teams will be scattered about the region at various invitationals Saturday.

Lake City will attend the 33rd Mooberry Relays at Rogers High School; Coeur d’Alene and a handful of other teams will be at the Kellogg Invitational; Sandpoint goes to the Libby (Mont.) Invite; and Lakeland will join several small schools at the Freeman Invitational at CV.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Photo

MEMO: Changed in the Spokane edition.