Area snowboarders have solid nationals

Valerie Reynolds and Cameron Maring, both of Spokane, led a strong showing by Inland Northwest entries in the USA Snowboarding Association Nationals at Northstar at Tahoe (Nev.), March 26-April 1.

Reynolds, 15, a student at Gonzaga Prep, finished on or near the podium in every event in her third nationals and is ranked second in the United States in her age group (women 14-15) in freestyle overall (halfpipe and slopestyle combined), combined overall (freestyle and alpine events combined), and triple overall (freestyle, alpine and boardercross combined).

Maring, 14, a member of the 2006 USASA All-American Team that competed in Italy last month, earned second-place awards in both the combined overall and triple overall in men’s 14-15. He added a seventh in the alpine overall, all after a 10th-place finish at the Junior Worlds in Italy.

Other finishes for Inland Northwest snowboarders and skiers in the event that attracted more than 1,300 entries, with more than 80 in some age/gender groups:

Lindsey Minana, 15, Spokane, fourth overall in both women’s freestyle overall and ridercross in her first season competing as a freeride skier; Coleman Allen, Spokane, 12-13, second overall alpine; Caitlin Sorenson, Whitworth College, women 18-22, sixth alpine overall; Sarah Shearer, Sandpoint, women’s 14-15, 11th alpine overall in her age group.

Also, Eric Davidson, Spokane, skier men’s 16-17, 10th freestyle overall and 11th ridercross; Austin Visintainer, 8-9, sixth in both the combined overall and triple overall, ninth alpine overall and 15th freestyle overall; Jacob Clements, 10-11, 25th alpine overall; Michael Brooks, 60-plus, second in freestyle overall, combined overall and triple overall and third alpine overall.

“Given the relatively young age and inexperience of our group, we did really well,” said Mark Harris, one of the coaches who accompanied the group. “It’s exciting to see that the pipeline we’ve put in place … is really paying off. Now our athletes have a place to showcase their talents.”

Other finishes included: Mitch Richmond, open men, 12th slopestyle; Kix Kamp, 8-9, third slalom and fourth boardercross; Hunter Bailey, 10-11, 23rd boardercross; Dash Kamp, men’s 12-13, third slalom, 15th boardercross, 30th slopestyle; Kyle Woodley, men’s 12-13, 43rd freestyle overall; Ian Anderson, men’s 14-15, 25th boardercross; Michael Anderson, men’s 14-15, 22nd giant slalom and 37th alpine overall.

Also, Axton Vorpahl, men’s 14-15, 45th freestyle overall; Hunter Robinson, men’s 14-15, 53rd freestyle overall and 29th boardercross; Jacob St. John, men’s 16-17, ninth slopestyle; Jeremy Jacobs, men’s 16-17, 47th halfpipe and 67th slopestyle; Andrea Mills, women’s 16-17, 26th slopestyle; Jason Guthrie, men’s 16-17, 13th halfpipe and 17th ridercross; Matt Sund, men’s 18-22, 16th boardercross; and Dave Sanborn, men’s 30-39, third boardercross.

Basketball

Community Colleges of Spokane has received commitments from two area players to join the Sasquatch in the fall – Brandon Holibaugh from Kettle Falls and Bo Gregg from Lewiston.

Holibaugh is a 6-foot-6 post player who averaged 18 points and 10 rebounds per game his senior season. The leading scorer in the Northeast A League, he was a first-team all-league selection.

Gregg, a 6-5 guard who averaged 14 points a game, was selected the most valuable player in the Inland Empire League and was first-team all-state. He scored 23 points in the Idaho high school all-state game.

Bowling

It was Brandon Roush‘s day, but Josh Schmehl‘s year as the Junior Bowlers Tour completed its season at Players & Spectators on April 2.

Roush, the only bowler to seem to master the conditions and top 200 – he averaged 216 for the first five games, 202 for the second five to qualify first – defeated Mike Federico 191-153 for the championship of the finale tournament.

Schmehl, who finished third in the final event, led the season-long all-star team competition, collecting 186 points. He had a 211 average.

Matt Descoteaux, fourth in the finale, was second on the all-star team with 164. Nick Schmehl finished fifth in the final event.

Third through fifth on the all-star team were Evan Nash (156 points), Todd Benner (136) and Ryon Cline (115).

Descoteaux had high game in the finale, a 268. Lacey Kerr led the girls with a 222.

“Only one new leader from the area emerged following the fifth weekend of the Washington Women’s Championship Tournament at Lilac Lanes.

Eastettes from Spokane Valley took over first in the five-women team B Division, compiling a scratch score of 2,449. The team it displaced was The 5 Buddies from Spokane, which held the top spot for just one week.

Lucky Ladies from Spokane, which had been sitting atop the five-woman team E Division with a 2,161, saw Landmark Realty from Ellensburg move into a first-place tie.

All other leaders from the area retained their spots.

The tournament runs through May 21, but is taking off this weekend because of Easter, and will take off the first weekend in May because of Bloomsday.

College scene

Eric Nygard, a senior hurdler at Washington State, has been named the male recipient of the 2006 Pac-10 Sportsmanship Award selected by members of the Pac-10 Student-Athlete Advisory Council.

Nygard, a native of Wenatchee, who competed both indoor and outdoor, placed eighth in the intermediate hurdles at the Pac-10 Championships in 2005. He is also actively involved in volunteer activities through his church.

“Two sophomore members of the Idaho women’s swimming team, Mallory Kellogg from Lakeside-Nine Mile Falls and Katie Kolva from Gonzaga Prep, received all-academic honors from the Western Athletic Conference.

Kellogg majors in marketing, Kolva in secondary education. To be eligible, student-athletes must maintain at least a 3.0 grade-point average.

“Janelle Bekkering from Taber, Alberta, who has signed to play basketball at Gonzaga, is the youngest of the 24 players invited to attend the Canada Senior Women’s National Team tryouts this summer.

“Josh Martin, a 2002 graduate of University and a senior pitcher at Jamestown (N.D.) College, has been selected to the USA Athletes International baseball team that will compete in the Flanders Invitational in Brasschaat, Belgium, July 2-10.

“Tim Miller, a senior outfielder at Northwest Nazarene from North Central, was named the baseball player of the week in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference for the week of March 20-26.

Miller was 6 for 15 that week, with a double and two home runs, scored five runs and drove in four as the Crusaders beat four-time defending GNAC champion Western Oregon twice for their wins in a 2-3 week.

“Sam Hall from Colfax, who played at Big Bend Community College and for the Spokane Riverhawks, continues to be among the baseball team leaders at San Jose State.

Playing in 33 of the team’s first 36 games, he ranks first in stolen bases with 12 in 15 attempts and is in the top three in runs (21), doubles (seven), triples (two) and RBIs (16) while hitting .281, which ranks fifth on the team.

“Katie Dinsmore, a 2002 graduate of Lakeside-Nine Mile Falls and a senior at Boise State, completed her fourth year of gymnastics for the nationally 25th-ranked Broncos.

She capped the year by being named to the All-Western Athletic Conference first team in the vault and second team on floor and balance beam. Her high scores were 9.875 in the vault, 9.725 uneven bars and 9.85 balance beam. She will graduate this spring with a degree in health sciences.

Football

Josh McLain, a 6-foot-1, 275-pound offensive and defensive lineman from North Central, has signed a letter of intent to play at Rocky Mountain College.

The Billings, Mont., school is a member of the NAIA Frontier Conference.

“The Inland Northwest Chapter of the National Football Foundation will underwrite scholarships for disadvantaged youngsters to the third annual Morning Star Boys’ Ranch football skills camp June 17 at Ferris High School.

For information on scholarship criteria, contact Morning Star program director Brian Barbour at 448-1099 or (800) 834-7108. Information on the camp can be found on the Web at www.morningstar boysranch.org.

Soccer

Jill McAndrews, a defender-midfielder from Mead, is among four players who accepted scholarships to play for the North Idaho College women’s team this fall.

McAndrews, a three-year varsity letter winner at Mead, was a second-team All-Greater Spokane League selection last fall.

Also slated to join the Cardinals are McKenzie Favero, an all-state, all-region and Region 11 MVP from Ogden, Utah; Lauren Winterholler, a two-time all-conference defender from Idaho Falls, Idaho; and Erica Sonnenberg, a forward-defender two-year starter at Centennial in Boise.

Swimming

Spokane Area Swim Team completed the championship season with first-place team titles in the Inland Empire Championships and YMCA Pacific North Region Championships.

Two SAST swimmers competed at the USA Spring National Championships in Federal Way, Wash., March 28-31.

Nick Blank from Lake City High School was 45th in the 1,500-meter freestyle and 44th in the 400 individual medley. Marshel Renz from University was seventh in the 400 IM, his time of 4 minutes, 33.44 seconds less than 3 seconds from the Olympic Trials qualifying time, 33rd in the 200 breaststroke and 39th in the 100 breast.

Fourteen SAST swimmers competed at the YMCA nationals in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., last weekend, where Spokane placed 13th out of more than 250 teams.

Renz again led the showing by winning the 200 IM in 1:51.35, placing third in both the 200 breast and the 400 IM and sixth in the 100 breast.

Other SSA swimmers and their places: Jenni Dole (Mead), ninth in both the 100 and 200 back; Miranda Moore (U-Hi), 14th in the 1,650 freestyle and 16th in the 500 free; Lee Nelson (U-Hi), 10th, 500 free and 13th, 1,000 free; Alec Petrie (Ferris), 12th, 200 breast; Sam Thompson (Lewis and Clark), 14th, 100 free.

In relays, SAST was 14th in the men’s 200 medley, 10th in both the women’s and men’s 400 free, ninth in the men’s 800 free and 10th in the women’s 400 medley.

Kelly Frazier (Ferris), Josh Goldberg (Ferris) and Kari Tridle (Coeur d’Alene Charter School) also qualified and competed at the YMCA National Championships.

Volleyball

Four members of Mead’s state championship team will continue playing collegiately.

Amy Herron and Nicole Solum will remain teammates at Western Oregon in Monmouth, where they’ll join the program coached by Joe Houck, who coached their Spokane Splash club team. Megan Thigpen will attend Alaska-Fairbanks. Both schools are members of the 10-team NCAA Division II Great Northwest Athletic Conference.

Cassie Dobson will play for NAIA Lewis-Clark State in Lewiston.

Wrestling

Two wrestlers from Medical Lake, David Snyder, an All-Great Northern League selection and third-place state placer at 145 pounds, and Garret Johnson have committed to the University of Great Falls, the Montana school announced.