Locally: Buschbacher wins two state bowling titles

Led by Dave Buschbacher of Spokane Valley, the area produced three champions and seven other top-five finishers when the 70th U.S. Bowling Congress Washington State Open Tournament wound up seven weeks of competition last weekend in Spokane.

Buschbacher was a double champion – and a doubles champion. He teamed with John Scott to win handicap doubles with a score of 1,561, and also was the handicap all-events winner with a 2,405.

Terminators from Hayden, Idaho, was the other champion, winning the handicap team title with a 3,704.

Other area top-five finishers: Carl Haskell, Nine Mile Falls, 2nd handicap singles, 822; Phillip Hagen, Hayden, 4th handicap all-events, 2,346; Josh Scamahorn, Spokane Valley, 2nd scratch all-events, 2,214; Todd Dudley, Spokane Valley, 3rd scratch all-events, 2,144; and Michael Handelin, Spokane, 4th scratch all-events, 2,140.

Also, For the Love of Gary, Spokane, 3rd handicap team, 3,574, and A-L Compressed Gases No. 2, Colbert, 4th handicap team, 3,572.

Basketball

Joe Grewe from Colbert, an All-Bi-County League selection at Northwest Christian, has signed a letter of intent to play at Northwest Nazarene, the university’s coach, Tim Hills, announced.

Grewe, a 6-foot guard, averaged 13 points, three rebounds and three assists a game as NWC followed up its State B championship of 2006 with the first State 2B title in 2007. Grewe, a second-team all-league pick as a junior, is also a 4.0 student.

“Spokane had two champions and two runners-up in the 21st boys Best in the West AAU Championships two weeks ago in Yakima.

Lewis and Clark Tiger Hoops won the High School Same School division, 55-50 over Lake Stevens/ Moran; Eastern Washington Elite Red was second in High School Elite, losing 81-71 to Yakima Elite in the title game; and The Strike beat GSE Magic Spokane 50-35 for the Eighth Grade championship.

“A fifth Spokane team won a championship in the girls division of the Best of the West AAU tournament three weeks ago in Yakima.

Missing from the list of winners published May 20 was Washington Stone Firestorm, which defeated Wapato Lightning 28-27 in the Fourth Grade title game.

College scene

Jamie Redman, a 2004 graduate of Lewis and Clark and a junior at Yale, sits in the No. 5 seat of the Bulldogs’ No. 1 varsity 8 crew that capped an unbeaten season by winning the NCAA Division I championship last weekend in Oak Ridge, Tenn.

“Lindsay Mann-King of Colville, a three-time All-American for three- time NCAA Division II national rowing champion Western Washington, was named the school’s co-female athlete of the year.

Mann-King, the team captain who rowed No. 7, is the ninth athlete in school history to receive All-America honors three or more years.

“Two former Colfax High School baseball teammates, Jameson Maj and Greg Biagi, capped stellar seasons with All-America recognition.

Maj, a junior pitcher at Abilene Christian, was a first-team All-America selection by both the American Baseball Coaches Association and Daktronics.

Maj led the nation with 20 saves, tying an NCAA Division II record, and had a 5-3 record, figuring in more than half the team’s 47 wins. He also had a 1.00 ERA and was the league and region pitcher of the year.

Biagi, the record-setting junior shortstop at Dakota State who was his league and region player of the year, was an NAIA All-America honorable mention.

The NAIA team was led by Lewis-Clark State third baseman Beau Mills, who had a record 38 home runs, named the player of the year and a first-team All-American.

NAIA champion LC State also landed pitchers Chris Kissock and Brian Parker on the first team, utilityman Mark Thompson and catcher Jessie Miller on the second and pitcher Matt Fitts on the honorable mention list.

“Washington senior Alex Prugh from Ferris was named to the Pac-10 All-Academic honorable mention list in men’s golf. He has a 3.19 grade-point average in economics.

“Brett Pflugrath, a senior at Northwest University in Olathe, Kan., from Ritzville and Big Bend Community College, was named an NAIA Scholar Athlete.

To be eligible, athletes must have a GPA of 3.5 or higher.

Pflugrath was also named to the 2007 Daktronics-NAIA scholar- athlete team in men’s basketball.

Shooting

Amanda Furrer of Spokane, the youngest competitor representing the United States, placed 12th overall in women’s small-bore rifle 3-position at the Munich World Cup last week, shooting 580 out of 600.

Furrer, 16, a sophomore at Mead High School, who also has competed in World Cup events in the U.S. and Australia, will shoot with the U.S. Junior team in the Czech Republic this week. Later this summer she will shoot in the Pan Am Games in Brazil.

Triathlon

Marla Emde of Spokane has been chosen an assistant coach for the USA Triathlon national team that will compete in the World Cup International Triathlon Union event in Vancouver, British Columbia, next Sunday.

Emde, one of 14 chosen from a pool of 67 in the World Cup Assistant Coach program to assist the national team at different events around the world, said she was “honored” to have been selected, adding, “I’ll be working with 2008 Olympic hopefuls and that is very exciting.”