Locally: Cougars will honor Bernard Lagat
Three-time world champion and two-time Olympic medalist Bernard Lagat will be honored by his alma mater, Washington State University, next Sunday at Beasley Coliseum as part of a Cougars women’s and men’s basketball doubleheader that day.
A reception for Lagat and his family will take place from 2-3 p.m. in the Cougar Lounge prior to the women’s game at 3 against Boise State. He will be available to sign autographs in the Coliseum concourse area from 5-5:30 prior to the men’s game against Portland State. Lagat will also be recognized at halftime of the men’s game on Friel Court.
All events are open to the public, but fans must have a ticket for the basketball games for admittance into Beasley Coliseum.
“We are proud to have the chance to honor Bernard in person and thank him for his continued great representation” of WSU, said director of athletics Jim Sterk.
Lagat, originally from Kapsabet, Kenya, competed at WSU in the late 1990s and earned All-America status 11 times. He is married to another WSU graduate, Gladys Tom. They have a son, Miika, who is nearly 2 years old, and live in Tucson, Ariz. Lagat became a U.S. citizen March 29, 2005.
College scene
Rachael Schurman, a Central Washington junior from Mead, earned honorable mention on the American Volleyball Coaches Association Division II All-America team.
The 6-foot middle blocker, earlier named first team on both the All-AVCA Division II Pacific Region and All-Great Northwest Athletic Conference teams, led the Wildcats in nearly all offensive statistic categories.
“Washington State senior middle blocker Tara West was named to the 2007 ESPN The Magazine/College Sports Information Director’s Academic All-America third team in volleyball. She has 4.0 grade-point average in biological sciences.
“Mandy Troutt, a Lewis-Clark State College senior post from Pullman, was named Frontier Conference Player of the Week in women’s basketball last week.
Troutt, 6-foot-2, averaged 16 points and eight rebounds to be named most valuable player of the Menlo College Thanksgiving Classic as LCSC went 3-0 to run its record to 7-2. It was the second MVP honor in as many weeks for Troutt, who has had five double-doubles in nine games.
“Louis Hurd, a third-year guard on the Columbia Bible College men’s basketball team in Abbotsford, B.C., from North Central, is averaging 17.83 points and 3.83 assists to rank fifth in British Columbia Colleges Athletic Association scoring and fourth in assists.
“Jael Hagerott, Whitworth’s senior midfielder from Mead, was named to the third team on the 2007 ESPN The Magazine/College Sports Information Director’s Academic All-America college division women’s soccer team for a second consecutive season. She has a 3.99 GPA in health, fitness and physical education.
“Matt Damskov, a senior at Morrisville State from East Valley, was named to the Rutland Herald Invitational hockey all-tournament team following his New York school’s fourth-place finish.
Damskov, who played youth hockey for the Liberty Lake Lumberjacks, scored three goals in the tournament. The forward is second on the team in scoring with five goals and two assists in seven games.
Soccer
Sean Bushey, head men’s and women’s coach at Whitworth University, has been named club director by the Spokane Shadow following a nationwide search, board president Mike Keenan announced.
The Shadow, sponsored by the Spokane Youth Sports Association, is a premier program for players ages 9 through 18. Bushey, who holds an A license from the U.S. Soccer Federation and was the 2007 Northwest Conference men’s and women’s coach of the year at Whitworth, will oversee its operation.
Volleyball
Abby Bruya, a senior at Colfax, has agreed to play for Lewis-Clark State College, Warriors coach Jen Greeny announced.
Bruya helped Colfax win four straight Washington Class A titles in volleyball and three in basketball and was on a club team that won an AAU national title in 2007.
She was a two-time first-team all-state volleyball pick (2005 and ‘06; the ‘07 team hasn’t been released), and was first-team All-Northeast A League in 2005 and ‘07.