Quick hits

LOOKING AHEAD

There are only two weeks left in the 2004-2005 prep sports season.

Two of the busiest weeks.

Two of the best weeks.

And, with luck, two of the sunniest.

For the Greater Spokane League schools, odd-year springs mean everyone but track athletes have to travel to the Tri-Cities or the Yakima Valley to compete in regional competition.

Softball is in Richland, baseball in either Kennewick or Yakima, soccer in Pasco, tennis in Yakima or Sunnyside.

Then there’s the exotic location for the track regional: the Spokane Valley.

No matter the locale, the destination is the same for everyone: state.

Only the fastest, strongest, and most tenacious will advance to play another week.

Stories detailing track and softball regional play are in today’s section. Baseball and soccer will be covered Friday.

LOOKING AROUND

Tennis tries to get back home

Combining the Big 9 and the GSL, 4A regional tennis will be played Friday and Saturday at Kissel Park in Yakima. The region gets four spots into the State 4A tournament, which will be June 3 and 4 at University and Central Valley high schools. Ferris’ Whitman Hough, a freshman, won the District 8 boys singles tournament, and Mt. Spokane’s Logan Napolsky won the Inland Empire boys singles title. On the girls’ side, Lewis and Clark’s Elise Otto swept the District 8 and Inland Empire girls singles titles. The 3A regional tennis tournament will be Friday and Saturday at Sunnyside High School, with the top two advancing to the State 3A tournament, June 3 and 4 at the University of Washington.

And the winners were …

There are no team scores or team trophies at the District 8 track meet as athletes try to qualify for regional and a shot at state but … we have the results. The 4A girls race was the closest, with Ferris scoring 123.4 points, just in front of Mead (118), Mt. Spokane (109.7) and Lewis and Clark (101). Mead edged Ferris 114-100 on the boys’ side. North Central and East Valley swapped 3A crowns. The NC girls dominated, scoring 226 to 174 for EV. It was reversed for the boys, EV scoring 218 to 179 for NC. … By the way, a few district results were recorded incorrectly and passed on. It did not affect regional qualifiers, but coaches got them correct and they should be right in the regional program.

This and that

The All-State Feeder baseball games will be June 8-9 at Shadle Park’s Jackson Field. The games, which match three all-star teams (combined 4A/3A, combined 2A/1A and B), feed into all-state baseball games. On June 8, the 2A/1A team will meet the B team at 3:30 p.m. then the 4A/3A team will face the Bs at 7. The 2A/1A team will battle the 4A/3A group on June 9 at 7 p.m.

“Shadle was ranked ninth in the latest Washington state baseball rankings. The Highlanders’ regional opponent, Richland, dropped from first to second after two losses last week. East Valley’s opponent Saturday, Centralia, is ranked fourth in 3A while Mid-Valley champion West Valley (Yakima) is third. Pullman is ranked fourth in the 2A. The Greyhounds’ opponent Saturday, Ephrata, is ranked eighth. The poll, by the Washington State Coaches Association, does not rank 1A or B schools.

“Mead High is examining the ramifications of the WIAA’s new classification and whether the school should remain in 4A starting in the 2006 school year. Along those lines, the school is inviting parents to a discussion Wednesday in the school library starting at 7 p.m. A possible change to the athletic policy handbook will also be part of the agenda.

“The WIAA’s experiment with starting spring sports a week later to avoid conflict with the end of winter sports was a one-year thing. The organization announced this week that next year’s spring season will move up a week, starting on Feb. 27 instead of March 6. That will move the state tournaments back to Memorial Day weekend, where they had been up until this year.

“Curtis High’s Scott Deal, who is headed to Washington State, was named the Gatorade state baseball player of the year. The 6-foot-4 pitcher is the second consecutive Curtis player to earn the honor.

“Pasco native Preston Zimmerman was named to the Parade All-America high school boys soccer team. But Zimmerman isn’t on the Bulldogs team that Central Valley faces in the State 4A quarterfinals on Saturday. He trains at the U.S. National team residency camp with the U-17 team in Bradenton, Fla.