A Grip on Sports: Mother Nature decided Thursday night to cut into the weekend TV sports watching time around Spokane but that’s OK, the schedule is not that full
A GRIP ON SPORTS • It’s not as if any of us will have a lot of time this weekend. Not with May about to shuffle off. And June coming in on the heels of a spectacular light and sound show Thursday night. There is a whole new list of yard chores waiting for every Inland Northwest home owner. But, if there is a chance to carve out a few minutes, this is what I would watch on TV.
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• Let’s start with “your first-place Seattle Mariners,” as Rick Rizz loves to say. That’s something he’s been unable to utter on radio this year. He can. At least tonight, when the M’s open a homestand by hosting the Arizona Diamondbacks (7:10). The series continues Saturday (7:10 p.m.) and Sunday (1:10 p.m., all on Mariners Network), whether Seattle is in first place in the American League West or not.
But that’s not all the baseball you might want to watch. Washington State is playing in the NCAA Division I Regional in Eugene and it begins today. The Cougars, third-seed in the regional, face Pac-12 partner Oregon State at noon on ESPNU. The rest of their games will be determined by the outcome. But the double-elimination format assures WSU will be available on your TV on Saturday.
The College World Series, fastpitch variety, is underway in Oklahoma City. ABC and ESPN will broadcast games all weekend.
In the professional ranks, the Canadiens will try to stay alive tonight when they face Carolina in Charlotte. The NHL Eastern Conference final, which the Hurricanes lead 3-1, starts at 5 on TNT. If Montreal wins, the series moves north of the border for Game Six on Sunday.
The NBA is also down to one active series and, after San Antonio’s home win last night, it is down the one game. Oklahoma City hosts the Spurs on Saturday night (5, NBC) with a trip to the Finals against the Knicks on the line. Which is appropriate, considering the big question on most pundits’ minds is whether the Thunder will get to the line. Seems to be their best path to victory.
If your only free time is in the morning, then French Open tennis is probably for you. Especially since Jannik Sinner, the world No. 1 and the prohibitive favorite among the men, was ousted Thursday after winning the first two sets. The men’s tournament seems wide open, as is usually the case among the women. TNT’s coverage each day begins at 11 a.m.
Oh, and I almost forgot. The Champions League final is Saturday morning (9, CBS). It pits Arsenal, the favored club in our household, versus PSG, the favorite in the betting lines.
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WSU: The thing about the NCAA baseball tournament. The first weekend three teams travel to one of 16 hosts and bring along huge chips on their shoulders. After all, they can be only one top seed. The other three schools are the “underdogs.” Usually around six or seven of the underdogs find a way to move on the Super Regionals next weekend. Will one of them this season be Washington State? As Greg Woods tells us in this preview, the Cougars’ added some challenges to their run due to travel issues. … Greg also has this story on the passing of former WSU sports information director Dick Fry. He was 103 when he died Wednesday. … Elsewhere in the (current, old and future) Pac-12 and the nation, Jon Wilner’s column in the S-R this morning looks at 10 storylines in college football this fall, a season that begins in 100 days. No. 7 should interest you. … The Pac-12’s football media plans caught John Canzano’s eye. … As we said yesterday, recruiting never stops and Washington is proving it. … Oregon has a bunch of folks it is adding to its athletic hall of fame. … Colorado’s athletic director puts football success atop his to-do list. … The Big 12 coaches want a 24-team CFP field. And are happy as heck Kyle Whittingham is no longer at Utah to make their postseason chances tougher. … California just landed a top high school quarterback. … How did the soon-to-be Pac-12 schools do in the Mountain West this season? Really well. … In baseball news, Oregon is once again trying to win a regional it is hosting. … Oregon State, for the first time, is trying to send its neighbor to the south packing. … UCLA is top ranked and hosts a regional. But the Bruins will not have their best starting pitcher available. … USC will rely heavily on its ace. … Arizona State is another of the underdog schools. … Arizona had a down season. … At the softball World Series, UCLA lost its opener when its pitching could not contain Alabama. … Arizona needs to improve its pitching to get back to OKC.
Gonzaga: Bulldog distance runner Rosina Machu finished seventh in the West Regional’s 10,000 meter and qualified for the NCAA meet in June. It will be her third consecutive year in the meet. … The women’s basketball team added another scholarship player yesterday, University of Denver transfer Jocelyn Medina.
Idaho: Blake Sturgis, a Valley Christian High graduate, also qualified for the NCAA Track and Field meet in June, throwing the javelin 236 feet, 7 inches and finishing eighth in the West Regional. … Elsewhere in the Big Sky, recruiting never stops for the Montana State women’s basketball team. … Idaho State’s roster and coaching staff has undergone major changes. … The Idaho State football team will face a huge challenge under the lights in Missoula. … Portland State added another high school player to its roster this week.
Whitworth: Around the Northwest Conference, Linfield lost its first game at the NCAA Division III fastpitch tournament.
Preps: The State track and field championships began Thursday. Greg Lee was at Mount Tahoma High in Tacoma for the large school meets and has this story on the 4A, 3A and 2A boys and this one on the girls. … We can also pass along this roundup from the smaller schools competing at Zaepfel Stadium in Yakima. … The baseball semifinals are today, with Gonzaga Prep holding the banner for the GSL. Not many Spokane schools have reached the semis since 1973 and this is the Bullpups first visit. Dave Nichols has a preview of the four teams – three, G-Prep, Richland and Kamiakin are from this side of the state – in the 4A’s final weekend in Everett. … Dave also has this story on tennis, pegged to last Saturday’s boys double title won by a Mead team over another Panther group in the State 4A finals.
Indians: Despite a four-hit game from catcher Jack O’Dowd, Spokane lost in Pasco 5-4 on Thursday.
Mariners: Colt Emerson has fit in well with the M’s thus far. His recent hot hitting has really helped in that regard. … The last time the powers that be in MLB proposed a salary cap, the World Series disappeared for a year. This time the MLB proposal includes a top end and a bottom one, one that the M’s are under currently.
Seahawks: We linked this Bob Condotta story yesterday on the possible price tag for the Hawks when it ran in the Times. It is on the S-R site today. … Mike Macdonald has a unique message for his team.
Hockey: Howie Stalwick has an obituary of former Spokane Comet Forbes Kennedy, who died Monday at age 90.
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• We are busy this weekend. Leaving town today and won’t be back until 72 hours later. But between now and then we have time to post on Saturday, though not on Sunday. And if I can Monday, it will be because the Internet on the plane is working. Until later …