Great Memories For Ev’S Clements
When he confirmed his resignation after eight years as football coach at East Valley High School, Jim Clements was reluctant to single out high points, lest he forgot some, during 19 years, a dozen of them at two Valley schools.
“I hate to imply the only thing I remember were the championships,” said Clements. “All my years were enjoyable.”
But he did mention Bob Pate, West Valley’s quarterback in 1982 and ‘83, during back-to-back unbeaten Frontier League seasons.
And that brought to mind one of the wildest conclusions of a game involving WV football.
The Eagles played on a balmy night in Clarkston, Wash. Both teams were unbeaten and scoreless when Pate unloaded a 63-yard pass to rushing star Doug Semler with just over four minutes remaining for a 7-0 victory.
Desperate times called for desperate measures for the ground-oriented Eagles and the stunning play sent WV to the playoffs.
Clements, who turns 60 this month, had been hired at West Valley in 1981, the year rival East Valley won the state AA title. WV made the state playoffs that year and three subsequent years.
The Eagles reached the state semifinals in Pate’s senior season and the state finals following another remarkable game in 1984, when a junior-oriented team upset league champion Pullman and future NFL quarterback Timm Rosenbach in the state playoffs by rallying from a first-half deficit.
Clements, an all-star prep quarterback in Detroit, played football collegiately, including at Arizona State.
From 1963 through 1980 he taught and coached in junior highs, high schools and colleges accross the country before beginning a 19-year high school career with nine playoff teams at four high schools in the Spokane area. Included was a state title in Coeur d’Alene.
His resignation, said EV activities coordinator Karen Gilmore, came as a surprise to his staff and school administration.
“He probably has two or three more years of teaching and we figured he probably had two or three more years of coaching,” she said.
Said Clements, “It (retirement) happens to everybody. I never thought it would happen to me. What it all boils down to is energy or lack thereof.”
The school board accepted his resignation at its meeting this week. Within the next week, said Gilmore, administrators will decide their approach to finding a replacement.
“I’m sure people in building an outside will be interested and we have to make up our minds, hopefully soon, how to approach this,” said Gilmore. “It’s a big position to fill.”
Big shoes to fill as well.
Colville beckons Eagles
Colville may be the new kid on the Border League block, but both boys and girls basketball teams pose obstacles to West Valley.
The Eagle boys risk their unbeaten record in Colville on Friday against a team that is in fifth place in league and 7-3 overall.
“I’m still pessimistic,” said boys coach Jamie Nilles, “but if we get through this weekend and beat Colville, we set ourselves up well.”
The girls game carries immediate importance, because Colville is currently the highest standing Washington school in league, a game ahead of the Eagles.
The Indians qualified for state last year as a 2A team and to date have won 6 of 8 Border League games. WV is 5-3 in league and 6-5 overall.
Where they finish in the Border League is important because the highest-placer is assured a regional berth in post-season and only three of the four Washington teams make the district playoffs.
WV’s 10-0 boys survived an 11-day layoff to beat Lewiston and Coeur d’Alene, rallying from an 8-0 deficit to hold off the Bengals 49-45.
“We played three minutes of man defense and were down 8-0,” said Nilles. “We played zone until about two minutes left, went man one possession and they scored so we went back to zone.”
It was, he said, a mental win, while the 72-55 victory over Lewiston was more a physical one.
Lance Pecht scored 44 points in two games and Luke Gordon had 17 against Coeur d’Alene.
WV’s girls split last week, beating Lewiston, but losing to league unbeaten Coeur d’Alene.
Chelsey Thomas scored a dozen in the win at Lewiston. Amanda Holstrom was in double figures both games.
It’s Stinky Sneaker time
Last year’s Stinky Sneaker outcome smelled.
The annual spirit competition during the Central Valley-University boys and girls basketball games ended in a tie, disappointing fans from both schools.
So will the spirit be willing when the two Valley rivals meet again on Friday for one shoe or the other?
Whatever the outcome regarding the side show, the games themselves loom large, particularly when the girls play at 6:45 p.m.
The Bears have a game lead over the Titans for fifth place and unlike years past, this one is a toss-up. One interested bystander will be East Valley, two games behind the Titans in the quest for a playoff berth.
CV’s boys could solidify their upper division standing by beating the Titans. U-Hi is a desperate team, needing to win if they are to entertain hopes for post-season play.