Fast Break
Prep basketball
Bjorklund, Gray earn top honors
Angie Bjorklund added her second straight Associated Press Washington girls player of the year honor on Friday.
The senior at Spokane’s University High School was also named the Class 4A player of the year, edging out Kentwood’s Courtney Vandersloot for both honors. Vandersloot is headed to Gonzaga next season.
Bainbridge’s Steven Gray (above) was the choice for boys player of the year. The Gonzaga-bound Gray picked up all but three votes, and was also the Class 3A top player.
Bjorklund averaged 24.9 points this season and completed her career as the league’s leading all-time scorer, for boys and girls.
Other girls player of the year selections were: Brewster’s Kyla Evans (Class 1A); Mossyrock’s Lexi Belcher (Class 2B); and Sprague-Harrington’s Roni Jo Mielke (Class 1B).
Derek Gianukakis of Republic was the Class 2B choice, following his brother Zach’s award from last year.
Other winners were Franklin’s Venoy Overton (4A), Lynden’s Chris Bolt (2A), Toledo’s Ryan Votaw (1A) and Sunnyside Christian’s Aaron Van de Graaf (1B).
Other area boys named to the first teams are Ferris junior DeAngelo Casto in 4A; Northwest Christian senior Chase Ramey, 2B; and Curlew junior Austin Mannick and Almira/Coulee-Hartline senior Greg Giese, 1B.
Other area girls picked to first teams are: Lewis and Clark senior Katelan Redmon, 4A; Colfax junior Jordan Harazin, 1A; and Curlew seniors Amanda Grumbach and Nichole Miller, selected in 1B.
College basketball
There’s no ‘I’ in NIT champ
West Virginia may have won the National Invitation Tournament, but the Mountaineers’ commemorative T-shirts are less than championship material. They contain a misspelling.
The “West Virginia” printed on the shirts players wore after winning the NIT title with a 78-73 victory over Clemson on Thursday night is missing the last “i” in “Virginia.” WVU sports information director Shelly Poe said the NIT printed the shirts.
Hockey
Stanley Cup kicks off baby boom
There’s a baby boom in Stanley Cup land.
Nine months after the Carolina Hurricanes won the NHL championship in June, five current or former Hurricanes couples are expecting babies. All the women are due within the next four months.
Anne Adams, wife of right wing Craig Adams, said there have been many jokes about how much fun it must have been last summer after the team won the title.
“Everyone’s like, ‘Is there something in the water?’ ” said Anne, who is expecting the couple’s first child in July. “Everyone was partying this summer. … It just seemed like good timing. Craig signed a new contract. We had the greatest summer of our lives.”