Locally: G-Prep grad Nuess sets ASU record
CJ Nuess from Medical Lake, a senior at Arizona State, turned in the fastest collegiate time of the year in winning the men’s 400-yard individual medley at the Texas Longhorns Invitational swim meet last weekend.
The Gonzaga Prep graduate clocked 3 minutes, 44.51 seconds, setting a school record and automatically qualifying for the NCAA Championships.
Nuess, who swam for the Spokane Area Swim team, also turned in an automatic NCAA qualifying time with a second-place finish in the mile freestyle, 15:01.63.
“Jenni Dole, a senior at Mead and member of the Spokane Area Swim team, set a club record of 56.27 seconds in the 100 butterfly during the prelims of the USA Swimming Short Course Nationals last weekend in Atlanta.
Dole, one of only a handful of high schoolers among collegiate and postcollege swimmers in the meet, finished 63rd out of 133 competitors in the 100 fly. She was 65th out of 119 in the 100 backstroke (57.06) and 66th out of 101 in the 200 back (2:04.06).
College scene
Nick Atwood, a sophomore at Montana State from East Valley, earned the school’s Top Gun award for men’s cross country.
Atwood led the Bobcats in every race this fall, including turning in the seventh-fastest time in winning the MSU Invitational in September. He placed seventh in the Big Sky Conference meet and 32nd in the NCAA Mountain Region race.
“Two area athletes at Washington State were named to the Pacific-10 Conference All-Academic football team.
Matt Mullennix, a senior defensive end from Spangle, was named to the first team, his third selection in his career at WSU. Mullennix, who has a 3.30 grade-point average with a double major in management and operations, and psychology, was also named in 2004 and ‘05.
Ben Woodard, a junior tight end from Cheney, received honorable mention with a 3.08 GPA in civil engineering.
“Twins Brooke and Brynn Bemis from Coeur d’Alene (Lake City) were named to the Pacific-10 All-Academic team in women’s soccer. They play at Washington State.
Brooke, with a 3.84 GPA in history, was selected to the first team for a second straight year. Brynn, 3.31 in political science, received honorable mention.
“The Nevada women’s swim team has four area athletes making contributions, including senior Nonie Wainwright from Cheney and sophomore Sarah Shields from Coeur d’Alene (North Idaho Christian School), who are team captains.
Wainwright, who swam for the Eastern Washington Recreation Association, is a freestyle specialist. She tied for second in the 50-yard free at the WAC championships as a junior.
Shields, who swam at Lake City High School and the Coeur d’Alene Area Swim Team, was second in the WAC 100 breaststroke as a sophomore.
Also on the team are Miranda Moore from University and Summer Hawlas-Morgan from Nine Mile Falls, Wash., who graduated from Gonzaga Prep. The sophomores who swam for the Spokane Area Swim team are freestyle and individual medley specialists.
Tennis
Eastern Washington has signed two women to letters of intent, interim head coach Darren Haworth announced.
Slated to join the Eagles in 2008-09 are Caitlin Bampton from Kamiakin in Kennewick, the Big Nine champion last year who placed seventh in the state tournament, and Kelsey Knight from Folsom, Calif., who won her league title last spring.
Volleyball
Margie Ray of Spokane, who worked the first and second rounds of the women’s NCAA Division I tournament last weekend at the University of Washington, was selected to work the Stanford Regional this weekend in Palo Alto.
This is the fourth NCAA Division I tournament for Ray, a member of the Spokane Area Volleyball Referees Association, and her first trip to a regional. She works for five D-I conferences in the western U.S.
Golf
Gonzaga University has signed two players to letters-of-intent to join the Bulldogs next fall.
Stephanie Corey from Burien, Wash., and Mt. Rainier HS, and Jessica Howe, a senior at Poway (Calif.) HS, have signed with the Bulldogs.
Corey helped Mt. Rainier to third place in the 2007 Washington State 3A tournament. Howe placed 12th at the California state championship as a junior in 2006 as Poway won the state title.