Stone Is Wrestling’s Man Of The Year In State

Cash Stone may be retiring, but his accomplishments continue to earn recognition.

Stone, the Mead High School wrestling coach for 38 years, has been named the Man of the Year for the state of Washington by Wrestling U.S.A. Magazine.

In his final season, Stone saw the Panthers place seventh at the State AAA Tournament with three of his wrestlers placing second, third and fourth.

On July 9, Stone will be in San Antonio, Texas, to be inducted into the National High School Sports Hall of Fame.

Stone, who won two state titles, produced eight state champions and won 405 matches in a career that started in 1959, will be one of 14 inductees in the 15th installation ceremony at the Marriott Rivercenter.

Mead High School coaches will be honored at an appreciation spaghetti dinner Thursday at 6:30 p.m. in the school cafeteria.

Seven of the 18 coaches will either be transferring to the new high school or retiring.

Info: Mead High School, 468-3050.

Baseball

Darin Blood, a Post Falls native who played at Gonzaga University, continues to pitch well at Class AA Shreveport (La.), a San Francisco Giants farm club. In seven starts, he is 3-2 with a 3.79 ERA.

Blood has allowed 36 hits in 40-1/3 innings. Uncharacteristically, he has struggled with his control, yielding 21 walks.

The Coeur d’Alene American Legion program will hold three days of tryouts beginning Tuesday.

Tryouts will be held for AA and A teams, whose players are ages 14 to 18. Practices will be Tuesday and Thursday at Lake City High and Wednesday at Coeur d’Alene High from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m.

Info: Phil Hayes, 667-5975.

Basketball

Washington State women’s basketball coach Harold Rhodes has announced the signing of four players, including 6-foot forward Yvonne Volkman from Hanford High in Richland.

Volkman averaged 18 points and 7 rebounds as Hanford won its district title and finished eighth at the State AA tournament. She earned all-state and all-state tournament honors.

Joining her will be Victoria Harrod, a 6-foot forward from Nepean, Ontario, who averaged 19 points and was invited to the Canadian National Junior Team tryouts; Jessica Collins, a 5-6 guard from Reno, Nev., who was named all-state and to the America’s Girls Basketball Elite Team; and Katie Nyseth, a 5-3 guard from Cheshire, Ore., who averaged 15.2 points, 5.2 assists, 5.6 steals and 9.1 rebounds in earning first-team all-state.

Shennae McNairy, a 5-8 point guard from Lake Washington High in Kirkland, has signed a letter of intent to attend Gonzaga University, head coach Kellee Barney announced.

McNairy played one season for coach Roger Hansen after transferring from Juanita High. She set a school single-game record with 12 assists against Issaquah on her way to 119 assists and a 4.1 per-game average. She averaged 12.1 points and 3.6 rebounds per game.

Upcoming AAU youth basketball tournaments. For registration details and deadlines, contact tournament officials. Most deadlines are two to three weeks before the tournament:

June 13-15, 17th annual Pacific Northwest High School Championships, class B, AA, AAA, AAAA varsity and JV, boys and girls, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Utah. Info: Paul Campbell, (509) 453-2696.

June 13-15, Chewelah Invitational, boys grades 5-9, high school. Info: Chewelah Basketball Club, (509) 935-8472.

June 20-22, 17th annual Pacific Northwest High School Championships, class A, AA, AAA, AAAA varsity and JV, boys and girls, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Utah. Info: Paul Campbell, (509) 453-2696.

June-July, Chewelah Summer League, grades 4-9, high school. Info: Chewelah Basketball Club, (509) 935-8472.

College scene

Two Whitman College freshmen from Spokane, Amy Fong (Mead) and Leslie Whitten (University), will represent the Missionaries in the NAIA National Tennis Tournament in Tulsa, Okla., this week after winning the Northwest Conference of Independent Colleges doubles title.

Fong and Whitten, singles rivals when both played No. 1 for their high schools, were seeded No. 2 in the tournament. But after winning just one of their first six matches, they won 10 of their last 14.

“Amy and Leslie played their best match of the season in the (NCIC) championship match,” said Whitman coach Jayne McCarthy.

“It’s been a wonderful story to see them become good friends and such a solid doubles team this year.”

Whitworth College will send four women to the NAIA National Track and Field Championships this week in Marietta, Ga.

Trina Gumm, a junior from Colville and the national champion in the javelin as a freshman, will compete in the javelin and discus. Her best marks are 137-11 and 129-8, respectively. Junior Betsy Slemp will compete in the hammer (137-2) and discus (116-4).

Two Pirates earned spots by being ranked in the top 16 nationally in their events. Heather McDonald, a sophomore, is ranked 14th in the heptathlon (3,803 points) and freshman Rose Pope is 15th in the triple jump (36-4-1/2). She’ll also long jump, where she’s gone 16-4-1/2.

Annaka Gustafson of Spokane (Mead), a sophomore at Westmont College in Santa Barbara, Calif., will participate in her sixth national meet this week at the NAIA Track and Field Championships.

Gustafson, who has competed in two cross country, two indoor track and one outdoor track championship, will run the 1,500. She has a personal best of 4:39.78. She has earned All-America honors once in cross country and twice on the Westmont distance medley relay team in indoor track.

North Idaho College’s Jason Bay, spurred by a hot regional tournament, broke several school baseball records.

Bay was 15 for 20 at the Region 18 Tournament to finish the season with a school-record .447 batting average. He also set a record with 63 hits. Bay’s 45 RBIs were the second-highest by a Cardinal. Bay, a freshman third baseman, was an honorable mention All-Region 18 selection.

Sophomore first baseman Paul Wilson, considered among NIC’s top four-year school prospects, along with pitchers Shelby Hawkins and Marc Pizzoferrato, had a .379 batting average. In 278 career at-bats, Wilson struck out just 13 times.

NIC won seven of its last nine games to finish 19-20.

Five Spokane high school products, four of them from Mead, had a hand in Cornell College’s baseball resurgence when the Rams from Mount Vernon, Iowa, had a 10-23 record, the most wins in recent memory, according to the school.

Senior Ethan Wynecoop (Mead) was the ace of the pitching staff, setting a school record with 54 strikeouts in 63-1/3 innings. He had a 4-6 record and 5.26 ERA. Senior catcher Brooks Clergy batted .223 with five doubles and eight RBIs, starting 29 games.

Sophomore Jeff Rinck (Mead) started 32 of the team’s 33 games, batting .269 with a school-record 28 RBIs and had a 1-3 pitching record with 19 strikeouts in 27-2/3 innings. Sophomore Tim Heeter (Mead) batted .304, capping the season by batting for the cycle in the last game with a grand slam and five RBIs. And sophomore Jacob Fancher (Ferris) pitched in one game.

Golf

The Washington Trust Bank/Vandal Golf Scramble will be June 27 at the Coeur d’Alene Resort Golf Course. The five-person scramble begins at 1 p.m.

Among University of Idaho athletic luminaries expected are John Friesz, Doug Nussmeier, Bob Curtis, Keith Gilbertson, John Yarno and Jeff Robinson.

Cost is $175 per individual, $150 for players under age 30.

Info: Randy Haddock, (208) 664-9783; Jake Greenslitt, (208) 667-2588.

Gymnastics

Eighty-eight of the 152 6- to 12-year-olds who competed in the Eastern Washington USA Gymnastics Sectionals last weekend at Spokane Elite Gymnastics qualified for the state championships that wind up today at Whitworth College.

Host Spokane Elite Gymnastics won both the Level 5 and 6 team titles. In Level 6, Lilac City Gymnastics of Spokane was second and Northwest Gymnastics of Spokane was third.

Spokane Level 5 all-around age group winners: Keena Watkins (SEG), 6- to 8-year-olds, 33.20; Nouel Cason (SEG), 9, 35.00; Kati Bezdicek (SEG), 11, 35.95.

Spokane Level 6 all-around age group winners: Jenny Smith (NWG), 7-10, 35.95; Heather Malott (LCG), 11-12, 37.375; Amy Keppler (SEG), 13, 35.675.

Rock climbing

For the second straight year, the Junior National Climbing Tour will stop in Spokane, visiting Wild Walls (202 W. Second) this Saturday at 9 a.m.

Although it’s a junior event, all ages are welcome to participate.

Spokane is the second stop of the three-month, 26-city tour. Nine of the events will be in the Pacific Northwest.

Swimming

Debbie Pipher, Washington State’s swimming coach for 20 years, has resigned to “explore several opportunities.”

Pipher, who did not elaborate on her plans, compiled an 85-62-1 record.

“I’ve really enjoyed my involvement … for the past 20 years,” she said. “Now it’s time to take on a new challenge.”

“Debbie has guided Cougars swimming through periods of great change, starting with the impact of Title IX on women’s collegiate programs,” said WSU senior associate athletic director Marcia Saneholtz. “The dean of our coaches, Debbie has provided strong and steady leadership.”

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