The King County sheriff’s office reported that a snowboard rider was killed Sunday afternoon at Stevens Pass. Sgt. John Urquhart says the victim was apparently out of bounds on the back side of the ski area Sunday afternoon when he was caught in an avalanche and hit a tree. Urquhart says the man was partially buried. The Seattle Times reported that the snowboard rider, Riley McCarthy, was a 20-year-old engineering student from the University of Washington and he was in the Cowboy Mountain area. A friend he was with was not hurt and dug the victim partially out before the ski patrol could get to them. Sheriffs got a faint cell phone call from the friend around 4:30 p.m. The name of the victim was not immediately released. The National Weather Service on Monday issued an avalanche watch for the Cascades after heavy snow accumulations this month and poor consolidation of weak spots between snow layers.