Stars win tourney for fourth straight time
The Spokane Stars Elite Blue girls basketball team did something last week that no other AAU team has done.
For the fourth consecutive year, the Stars won the 10th annual Midsummer Nights’ Madness tournament held July 10-13 at the University of Washington in Seattle. No other AAU team has ever won more than two consecutive titles at the tourney.
Kristi Kingma led Spokane over The Way to Win Gold in the championship game, scoring 19 points, including nine in the first quarter.
Coached by Ron Adams, the Stars went 7-0 and have not lost a game the past four years at the tournament.
Lewis and Clark senior Brittney Kennedy led the way for Spokane, averaging 6.6 points, 8.5 rebounds, 3.6 steals and 3.4 assists per game.
The Spokane Stars Red and the Spokane Stealth each advanced through pool play, but were eliminated after losing their first game in bracket play.
The Stars Blue, one of only 21 Nike National teams, finished fourth at the End of the Trail tournament July 6-9 in Oregon City, Ore., losing to the Boulder Rockies in the consolation game.
Next up for Spokane is a trip to Memphis, Tenn. to compete in the River City Classic July 22-25. The Stars will face the Kenner Angels, a team out of Louisiana, in the opener on July 22. From there, Spokane will compete in the Nike National Championships held July 27-31 in North Augusta, S.C.
Spokane Stars Elite Blue team roster: Ali Johnson (Coeur d’Alene High School), Jordan Loera (Moses Lake), Kristi Kingma (Jackson), Katelyn Loper (Post Falls), Brittany Kennedy (Lewis and Clark), Kenzie DeBoer (Lynden Christian), Carly Noyes (Moses Lake), Jessica Oestreicher (Liberty Christian), Allison Walker (Othello) and Lexie Pettersen (Shadle Park).
Baseball
The Spokane Dodgers U-17 team went 3-2 and finished third at the Sapa-Johnsrud Memorial tournament held July 14-15 in Whitefish, Mont.
The Dodgers beat the Glacier Twins 20-5 in the consolation championship. Jarek Cunningham hit home runs in four of the five games, including two in the third/fourth place game.
Spokane Dodgers team roster: Jacob Partridge, Jeremy Carey, Kellen Webb, Trevor Shull, Tyler Jackson, Nic Fowler, Rusty Shellhorn, Jarek Cunningham, Brandon Williams, Jackson Seaman, C.J. Perry, K.C. Mack and Kellon Huffman.
Climbing
Lewis and Clark junior Melissa Main placed third in her age group at the Wall Climbing National Championships held July 6-8 at Planet Rock in Ann Arbor, Mich.
Next up for Main is the World Youth Championships held Aug. 22-26 in Ecuador.
Legion baseball
Freeman and University clinched AA Spokane American Legion League Championships with victories over the weekend.
Freeman (17-2) secured the AA South title with a doubleheader sweep of Whitman County on Sunday, while University (16-1) wrapped up the AA North title with a doubleheader sweep of Colville on Saturday.
Newport (14-4) and Central Valley (15-4) clinched the runners-up spots in the North and South division, respectively.
The league champs and runners-up receive first-round byes in the division playoffs, which start Thursday.
The State 2007 AA Legion Tournament will take place at University and Central Valley High Schools Aug. 2-7.
Softball
Shadle Park pitcher Samantha Skillingstad and outfielder Allie Burger were selected to the Louisville Slugger/NFCA High School All-Region first team.
The pair led the Highlanders to the State 4A championship last season.
Track and field
Madeline Fuchs of the Greater Spokane Track Club and Lauren McCluskey of the Comets Track Club (Pullman) performed well at the Junior Olympic Track and Field Regional Championships held July 12-15 in Seattle.
Fuchs won the 400-meter hurdles in the Young Women (ages 16-19) group and tied for second in the high jump.
McCluskey won the Bantam Girls (ages 9-10) high jump and combined events.