12/30/09 Prep basketball roundup — Girls

SUNDOME SHOOTOUT

Burbank 34, La Salle 32

BURBANK — Carrell 0, Zuhlke 3, Houser 0, Rivas 4, Riehle 0, Akerblade 8, Breazeale 4, Rude 2, Idler 6, Roberts 7. LA SALLE — Vickers 8, Hernandez 2, Bonny 4, Ashby 6, Andringa 3, Newell 0, DeGooyer 2, Adkins 7.

Burbank 8 4 11 11 — 34 La Salle 7 7 10 8 — 32

Highlights: Lauren DeGooyer (L) 9 rebs; Chelsea Adkins (L) 7 rebs.

Cashmere 56, White Swan 44

YAKIMA, Wash. — Down 27-25 at the break, the Bulldogs made their move in the third quarter with an 18-3 burst. Sophomore Evelyn Hawk paced White Swan (5-2) with 13 points.

CASHMERE — Gaby Gonzalez 15, O’Bryan 3, Holt 2, Caudill 0, Salgado 1, Krishka 2, Kimes 0, Rachel Lippert 19, Emily Abbott 12. WHITE SWAN — Van Pelt 5, Evelyn Hawk 13, Espindola 4, Pimms 2, Wallahee 7, James 2, Sheppard 4, Perez 3, Jones 4.

Cashmere 17 8 18 13 — 56 White Swan 8 19 3 14 — 44

Colville 52, Naches Valley 42

YAKIMA, Wash. — Sophomore Justine Benner led the Rangers (2-5) in the loss with 16 points.

COLVILLE — Jorden Brons 13, Luu 2, Rainer 1, Little 2, Sager 8, Ashley Knight 16, Pond 9, Forman 0. NACHES VALLEY — Farris 2, Evans 2, Taylor 9, Aiken 3, Romero 0, Curtsinger 7, Justin Benner 16, Bogardus 3.

Colville 13 15 12 12 — 52 Naches Valley 7 13 11 11 — 42

Deer Park 34, Connell 33

CONNELL — Hawkins 0, Riner 0, Easterday 3, Wells 3, Sarah McGary 13, Gibbons 2, Whitby 2, Bjorge 4, Booker 0, Withers 6. DEER PARK — Magney 0, Heins 3, Alison Ruygrok 15, Molina 0, Harris 3, Obert 7, Perez 0, Palmer 0, Powell 0, Talbort 6.

Connell 7 7 12 7 — 33 Deer Park 8 8 13 5 — 34

Lakeside 46, Colfax 33

LAKESIDE — Brittos 2, Tayler Flemming 11, Lexie Zappone 10, Kendra Lahue 10, Stillar 6, Daggy 3, Campbell 4. COLFAX — Wilson 7, Harazin 2, R. Johnson 5, K. Johnson 9, Elkins 1, Burke 1, Shaw 5, Maltone 3.

Lakeside 11 11 8 16 — 46 Colfax 3 9 11 10 — 33

Granger 48, Vashon 28

YAKIMA, Wash. — Sophomore Fantasia Reyes buried three 3-pointers and Granger’s defense was at its best in a 48-28 victory over Vashon in Tuesday’s girls action in the SunDome Shootout. The Spartans (5-0) will take on Colfax today at 6 p.m. Reyes finished with 14 points and Janae Klarich tallied 12 for Granger, which held Vashon and its trio of 6-footers to 16 points through three quarters.

VASHON — Wendt 4, Means 3, Costello 7, Chrissy Swope 11, Kehoe 3. GRANGER — Gunnier 2, Janae Klarich 12, Carpenter 2, Mengarelli 2, Reddout 5, Oswalt 4, Zapien 7, Fantasia Reyes 14.

Vashon 7 4 5 12 — 28 Granger 8 13 9 18 — 48

Newport 51, Zillah 43

YAKIMA, Wash. — The Grizzlies opened a lead with a 16-5 third period and finished with 18 points from Hayley Odell. Alisi Uasike led Zillah (4-3) with 14 points.

NEWPORT — Bush 4, Wiese 6, Betz 4, Frederick 8, Hayley Odell 18, Morse 4, Newcomb 2, Pancho 5. ZILLAH — Nelson 3, Ziegler 2, Whitney Winters 12, Cameron 2, Slack 1, Alisi Uasike 14, Myers 9.

Newport 10 10 16 15 — 51 Zillah 10 11 5 17 — 43

NON-LEAGUE

Lewiston, Idaho 54, Eisenhower 27

HERMISTON, Ore. — Nicole Redd and Savannah Blinn combined for 32 points for the Bengals, who outscored Ike 22-6 at the foul line. Jessica Bush scored 19 points for the Cadets (2-5).

LEWISTON — Kramer 2, Wilson 6, Baldwin 3, Nicole Redd 18 , Johnson 8, Savannah Blinn 14, Schlader 3, Blewett 0. EISENHOWER — Grant 4, Abrams 0, Frank 0, Kinney 0, Van Alstine 4, Olivera 0, McKenna 0, Avila 0, Jessica Bush 19.

Lewiston 13 15 13 13 — 54 Eisenhower 8 6 5 8 — 27

Kittitas 59, Cle Elum 43

CLE ELUM, Wash. — Kayvonne Vaver’s 23 points and 13 rebounds powered the Coyotes (3-2), who took control with a 17-8 surge in the second quarter.

KITTITAS — Uceny 2, Ali Kilgore 11, Calahan 3, Winegar 0, Natalie Gibb 10, Lawrence 2, Erickson 0, Kayvonne Vaver 23, O’Shaughnessy 0, Hudson 3, Fewins 5. CLE ELUM — Bator 8, Reed 4, Sweigard 5, Andrus 0, Alexander 6, Newton 0, Carlee Creager 10, Jones 3, Potts 7.

Kittitas 9 17 14 19 — 59 Cle Elum 10 8 11 14 — 43

Highlights: Vaver (K) 13 rebs, 3 assts; Gibb (K) 6 rebs, 4 assts; Laura Potts (CE) 10 rebs, Hailey Bator (CE) 8 rebs, Dani Sweigard (CE) 5 rebs.

Touchet 47, Riverside Christian 41

WALLA WALLA, Wash. — Zoe Weaver led all scorers with 20 points for the Indians. Kendra Staymates led the Crusaders (0-6) with 17 points, 12 rebounds and four blocked shots.

TOUCHET — Pedroza 4, Frazier 6, Zoe Weaver 20, Intinarelli 0, Butler 8, Kessler 6, Warner 1, Huesby 2, Owens 0. RIVERSIDE CHRISTIAN — Conradi 0, Byrne 6, Lenderman 2, St. Hilaire 0, Van Horn 7, Kinder 6, Lenz 0, Cleveringa 0, Kendra Staymates 17, Fulton 3.

Riverside Chrstian 11 8 16 12 — 47 Touchet 11 13 4 13 — 41

Highlights: Staymates (RC) 12 rebounds, 4 blocks; Marian Van Horn (RC) 6 rebounds; Touchet 23-32 free throws.

Mabton 47, Wahluke 18

MATTAWA, Wash. — Kristian Carrasco fired in 20 points and Tyler Herrera and Josh Sanchez chipped in 10 each as the Vikings moved to 5-2.

MABTON — Reynolds 8, Melissa Gutierrez 19, Flores 7, Martinez 1, Sustiata 2, Vasquez 6, Sanchez 2, Tellez 2. WAHLUKE — Mungia 4, Salazar 2, Jimenez 4, Munoz 8, Erazo 0.

Mabton — 47 Wahluke — 18

White Salmon 46, Lyle-Wishram 39

WHITE SALMON, Wash. — Karlee Roth scored 14 points and Treane Wells had 13 for Lyle-Wishram, which meets Stevenson today.

LYLE-WISHRAM — Gidley 4, Freemantle 5, Roth 14, Karlee – Brock 3, Wells 13, Treane — Churchwell 0, Hickman 0, Mueller 0. WHITE SALMON — A. Rude 12, P. Struck 12, A. DeLay 11, Nybruten 1, Huth 5, Campus 5.

Lyle-Wishram 10 8 7 14 — 46 White Salmon 12 9 9 15 — 39

Goldendale at White Salmon tournament

No report from coach

Goldendale — TBA —

Griswold, Ore. 53, Klickitat 30

HELIX, Ore. — Samantha Brewer collected 10 points and 11 rebounds in the loss at the Helix Invitational.

KLICKITAT — Spino 5, Lambert 0, Lindner 9, Samatha Brewer 10, Parsons 0, McConville 0, Curtis 6. GRISWOLD — Thompson 0, Kaves 0, Kylee Rodgers 23, Addie Terjson 13, Clare 7, Delaney 0, Cheyanne Hack 10, McKayla 0.

Klickitat 11 5 0 14 — 30 Griswold 10 20 15 8 — 53

Cook, Clift lift CWU men

SEATTLE — Guards J.C. Cook and Jon Clift combined for 42 points as Central Washington downed Colorado Christian 84-77 in the Falcons Tournament on Tuesday at Seattle Pacific University.

Cook finished with 24 points and Clift had 18 while forward Riley Sivak added 17 for the Wildcats (5-4), who meet Academy of Art of San Francisco today.

Colorado Christian (1-7) led 42-41 at halftime and 66-65 with 5:10 to play. But successive layups by Clift, Humberto Perez and Sivak gave CWU a 71-66 advantage at 3:43.

The Cougars of Lakewood, Colo. crawled to within 71-70, but Cook hit a 3-pointer off an assist from Perez and Clift converted a three-point play to make it 77-70 with 2:04 left.

Central was outrebounded 44-29 but forced 24 turnovers while committing only nine.

“Our pressure got to them,” said CWU coach Greg Sparling. “We thought we could wear them down, and at the end we did. In the second half we stopped relying on the jump shot and got to the rim more. I’m pleased with the way we played.”

CENTRAL WASHINGTON — Perez 4-11 0-2 8, Riley Sivak 5-8 7-8 17, Sprinker 2-7 0-0 4, Jon Clift 4-8 10-12 18, J.C. Cook 7-18 8-10 24, Snowden 1-4 0-0 3, Clyde 3-4 0-1 6, Miller 1-2 0-0 3, Gibler 0-1 0-0 0, Nelson 0-1 1-2 1. Totals 27-64 26-35 84.

COLORADO CHRISTIAN — Jobi Wall 7-17 3-4 21, House 2-3 0-0 5, Justin Neuhaus 5-7 11-15 21, Urrutia 0-1 1-2 1, Olson 2-5 1-2 7, Lemburg 1-3 0-0 3, Nale 1-1 0-0 2, Ziemer 1-6 2-2 4, Joel Morris 3-6 6-6 13, Ogbewele 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 22-49 24-31 77.

Halftime — CCU 42, CWU 41. 3-point goals — CWU 4-16 (Perez 0-3, Cook 2-6, Clift 0-2, Snowden 1-3, Miller 1-2); CCU 9-25 (Wall 4-10, House 1-2, Urrutia 0-1, Olson 2-4, Lemburg 1-3, Ziemer 0-3, Morris 1-2). Fouled out — Sprinker, Clyde, Urrutia, Olson. Rebounds — CWU 29 (Sivak 7); CCU 44 (House 10). Assists — CWU 10 (Clift 5); CCU 18 (House 6). Turnovers — CWU 9, CCU 24. Total fouls — CWU 25, CCU 29.

YVCC loses to No. 1 Red Devils

OREGON CITY, Ore. — Jordan Kidd scored a game-high 27 points, but Yakima Valley was unable to overcome torrid second-half shooting by top-ranked Lower Columbia in an 83-79 loss in a semifinal Tuesday of the Clackamas Holiday Tournament.

The Red Devils (8-0) made 14 of 21 field goal attempts over the final 20 minutes to hold off the Yaks and offset 27 turnovers.

Kidd was 8 for 13 from the field, including 2 for 2 from 3-point range, while Kenneth Woods and Ryan Dornik added 10 points each.

Jeray Key led four LCC players in double figures with 17 points.

Yakima Valley (6-4) will meet the loser of a late game between Clackamas and Tacoma at 1 p.m. today, then will be idle until its Eastern Region opener Jan. 9 at Wenatchee Valley.

YAKIMA VALLEY — Skelton 0-2 0-0 0, Wilson 1-6 1-2 3, Evans 1-3 0-0 2, January 0-8 1-2 1, Kirvin 3-4 2-2 8, May 3-6 0-1 7, Blodgett 2-4 0-0 4, Jordan Kidd 8-13 9-12 27, Brown 3-5 1-3 7, Kenneth Woods 3-5 3-6 10, Ryan Dornik 3-6 2-2 10. Totals 27-62 19-30 79.

LOWER COLUMBIA — Jeray Key 7-9 3-8 17, Burgoyne 0-3 6-6 6, Justin Stores 5-6 4-6 16, Bell 4-8 1-2 9, Carvalho 4-6 2-2 13, David Smith 10, Hoff 0-0 2-3 2, Ritchie 2-7 0-0 5, DeGraaff 1-2 0-0 2, Moreland 1-2 1-2 3. Totals 27-48 23-35 83.

Halftime — LCC 37, YVCC 34. 3-point goals — YVCC 6-16 (Skelton 0-1, May 1-3, Blodgett 0-1, Wilson 0-2, Kidd 2-2, Woods 1-1, Dornik 2-4, January 0-2); LCC 6-17 (Key 0-1, Burgoyne 0-3, Ritchie 1-4, DeGraaff 0-1, Stores 2-2, Carvalho 3-5, Moreland 0-1). Fouled out — Kirvin. Rebounds — YVCC 36 (Wilson 7, Woods 7). Assists — YVCC 14 (three with 3); LCC 14 (Bell 4). Turnovers — YVCC 23; LCC 27. Total fouls — YVCC 26, LCC 20.

Yaks fall to North Idaho

SALEM, Ore. — Anna Marchbanks totaled 18 points and 12 rebounds, but sixth-ranked Yakima Valley shot only 35 percent and committed 26 turnovers Tuesday night in a 69-59 loss to North Idaho in title game of the Chemeketa Holiday Classic.

The defeat left YVCC at 7-3. Yakima Valley hosts Mount Hood at 3 p.m. Saturday and begins Eastern Region play Jan. 9 at Wenatchee Valley.

Nicole DeRosier added 15 points for the Yaks, hitting 5 of 11 shots from 3-point range, but no other YVCC scorer hit double figures.

North Idaho, which defeated top-ranked Lane 83-68 in a Monday semifinal, trailed 32-26 at intermission but shot 60 percent (18 for 30) during the second half while Yakima Valley managed only 35 percent (10 for 29).

NORTH IDAHO — Camille Reynolds 4-10 3-4 12, Warbrick 0-3 1-2 1, Griffits 5-15 1-2 14, Dotts 4-6 1-3 9, Tugce Canitez 5-12 4-5 14, Divilbliss 3-8 0-2 6, Sanders 4-6 1-5 9, Lazzarini 1-3 0-0 2, Carlton 0-2 2-2 2. Totals 26-65 13-25 69.

YAKIMA VALLEY — Roe 1-5 2-2 4, Anna Marchbaks 7-16 4-4 18, Adzasu 2-11 1-4 5, Nicole DeRosier 5-15 0-0 15, Urquhart 2-6 1-2 5, Jones 0-0 0-0 0, French 1-2 0-0 3, Azurin 0-0 0-0 0, Fenumiai 4-7 1-2 9. Totals 22-62 9-14 59.

Halftime — YVCC 32, NIJC 26. 3-point goals — NIJC 4-11 (Divilbiss 0-1, Reynolds 1-1, Griffits 3-7, Lazzarini 0-1, Canitez 0-1); YVCC 6-17 (French 1-1, Roe 0-1, Marchbanks 0-1, Adzasu 0-3, DeRosier 5-11). Fouled out — None. Rebounds — NIJC 45 (Canitez 9); YVCC 24 (Marchbanks 12). Assists — NIJC 13 (Griffits 4); YVCC 14 (Adzasu 5). Turnovers — NIJC 21, YVCC 26. Total fouls — NIJC 11, YVCC 18.

Local report: Wilson, Kidd help YVCC rally past Linn-Benton

OREGON CITY, Ore. — The Yakima Valley Community College men’s team rallied from a one-point deficit with 20 seconds left to beat Linn-Benton 94-92 at the Clackamas Holiday Tournament on Monday.

Damar Wilson stole the ball and was fouled. He made both free throws to put YVCC up one. Linn-Benton made two free throws to regain the lead before Jordan Kidd hit a jumper with 10 seconds left to put the Yaks ahead.

On the defensive side, Jonathan Kirvin blocked a shot with three seconds left to secure the win for Yakima Valley (6-4).

Kidd led the Yaks with 23 points, Wilson had 21 points and 10 rebounds, and Ryan Dornik added 15 points.

YVCC will play Lower Columbia in the semifinals at 5 p.m. today.

YAKIMA VALLEY — Skelton 2-6 0-0 5, May 2-4 0-2 5, Blodgett 0-0 0-0 0, Wilson 9-14 3-5 21, Evans 3-4 0-0 6, Kidd 10-17 3-6 23, Brown 1-2 0-0 2, Woods 2-2 4-4 9, Dornik 5-11 1-2 15, Kirvin 3-7 2-4 8, Gream 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 37-67 13-23 94.

LINN-BENTON — Roos 5-9 2-4 14, Challe 3-5 4-4 10, Lorenzen 0-1 0-0 0, Haney 2-3 0-0 5, Watson 7-12 0-1 15, Highland 8-14 5-7 21, Carter 6-11 0-1 13, Yukich 0-1 0-0 0, Wolf 0-2 1-2 1, Kruesi 0-1 0-1 0, Hutley 0-1 2-2 2, Avila 5-5 0-0 11. Totals 36-65 14-22 92.

Halftime—Yakima Valley 55, Linn-Benton 47. 3-point goals—Yakima Valley 7-16 (Dornik 4-7, Woods 1-1, May 1-3, Skelton 1-4, Wilson 0-1), Linn-Benton 6-11 (Roos 2-2, Haney 1-1, Avila 1-1, Watson 1-2, Carter 1-2, Challe 0-1, Lorenzen 0-1, Wolf 0-1). Total fouls—Yakima Valley 20, Linn-Benton 21. Fouled out—none. Rebounds—Yakima Valley 36 (Wilson 10), Linn-Benton 36 (Highland 7). Assists—Yakima Valley 17 (Kidd 5), Linn-Benton 23 (Wolf 5). Steals—Yakima Valley 13 (Kidd 4), Linn-Benton 11. Blocked shots—Yakima Valley 7, Linn-Benton 1. Turnovers—Yakima Valley 17, Linn-Benton 21.

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Women’s college

YAKIMA VALLEY 77, LOWER COLUMBIA 58: At Salem, Ore., Anna Marchbanks led Yakima Valley with 20 points and 10 rebounds as the Yaks beat Lower Columbia at the Chemeketa Holiday Classic.

Kate Urquhart had 15 points and teammates Rosetta Adzasu and Nicole DeRosier added 13 apiece for the Yaks.

Yakima Valley was able to pull away in the second half after being tied at halftime, shooting 45 percent from the floor while holding Lower Columbia to just 30 percent shooting.

The Yaks will play North Idaho in the championship game at 4 p.m. today.

YAKIMA VALLEY — Jones 0-2 1-2 1, French 1-3 0-0 2, Roe 2-4 1-2 5, Huck 0-1 0-0 0, Marchbanks 9-19 2-5 20, Adzasu 6-9 0-0 13, Azurin 0-0 0-0 0, DeRosier 5-15 0-0 13, Urquhart 5-13 5-7 15, Hull 0-1 0-0 0, Fenumiai 4-6 0-0 8. Totals 32-73 9-16 77.

LOWER COLUMBIA — Crisman 0-3 3-4 3, Olstedt 2-8 1-2 5, Everett 2-5 0-2 4, Seidl 0-5 0-2 0, Welch 2-7 0-0 5, Marxer 1-3 0-0 2, Mortimer 2-7 3-4 7, Stanley 1-1 0-1 2, Schwegler 6-15 0-0 13, Koering 0-0 0-0 0, Haas 4-8 1-2 9, Salte 4-15 0-0 8. Totals 24-77 8-17 58.

Halftime—Yakima Valley 34, Lower Columbia 34. 3-point goals—Yakima Valley 4-11 (DeRosier 3-8, Adzasu 1-2, Marchbanks 0-1), Lower Columbia 2-20 (Schwegler 1-4, Welch 1-5, Seidl 0-1, Mortimer 0-1, Crisman 0-2, Olstedt 0-3, Salte 0-4). Total fouls—Yakima Valley 14, Lower Columbia 16. Fouled out—none. Rebounds—Yakima Valley 51 (Marchbanks 10), Lower Columbia 50 (Haas 8). Assists—Yakima Valley 18 (Marchbanks, Adzasu 5), Lower Columbia 8. Steals—Yakima Valley 13, Lower Columbia 11. Blocked shots—Yakima Valley 6, Lower Columbia 1. Turnovers—Yakima Valley 19, Lower Columbia 21.

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Prep basketball

BOYS

WHITE SWAN JV 70, YAKAMA TRIBAL 40: At White Swan, Nate Lewis led the Cougars junior varsity with 25 points and six rebounds as they defeated Yakama Tribal in a non-league game.

Gordon Gardipee had 13 points, and teammates Zacharia Ike and Vashon Whitefoot added 12 and 10 points, respectively, for the Eagles.
YAKAMA TRIBAL — Chavez 0, Lewis 0, Crossinghorse 0, Zacharia Ike 12, Wahchumuah 1, Gordon Gardipee 13, D. Whitefoot 1, Vashon Whitefoot 10, Thomas 0, J. Whitefoot 3.

WHITE SWAN JV — Sampson 9, Aguado 2, Huereca 6, Perez 9, A. Lewis 0, Nate Lewis 25, Zuniga 5, Vallo 6, Fiander 8.

Yakama Tribal    15    10    8    7    —    40

White Swan JV    15    19    17    19    —    70

Highlights: N. Lewis (WS) 6 rebounds; Huereca (WS) 4 steals.

WDFW elk regulations not very sporting

Murvin Mullinax remained stock still as the elk, a four-point bull, walked up the Cleman Mountain slope closer and closer to him. The animal was clearly unaware of Mullinax’s presence behind the tree as it meandered practically right up to him, stopping barely 6 feet away.

Mullinax did what any good hunter would do — he remained motionless, his breath steady and quiet.

The elk was just as still.

“He stood there a long time,” recalled Mullinax, who will turn 84 on the second day of 2010. “The whole time, I’m thinking, ‘Don’t you have a spike buddy somewhere?’”

As if Mullinax had spoken the words instead of thinking them, the bull finally noticed him and, of course, bolted.

The rifle in Mullinax’s grip had never moved an inch. He could not legally have shot this elk, because — except for the lucky hunters drawn for a branch bull or a cow permit — Yakima-area elk hunters are confined to hunting for spike-only bulls, young males whose antlers have yet to branch out into multiple points.

And Mullinax, a Yakima resident who has been hunting the elk herds of Cleman Mountain and Bethel Ridge for more than a half-century, never saw any of those during the 2009 elk season. Neither did anyone in his family hunting group or the friends that came with them.

“We saw a lot of big bulls, but no spikes, and none of us got drawn on those big bulls,” Mullinax recalled. “We saw a lot of big bulls, but couldn’t shoot them. We saw a lot of cows, and a lot of bulls — four-pointers, five-pointers, six-pointers. Last year we had a lot of six- and seven-points that just run all over us.

“I brought up a friend of my grandson from California. He was amazed at all the big branch bulls he saw. He’d never seen anything like that in the wild. He was really thrilled — but we couldn’t shoot a thing.”

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Frustration aplenty

Over on Bethel Ridge, Don Brennan and his group of Yakima buddies that have been hunting the same area for decades had a similar lack of luck.

“The last two years, I’ll see cows, of course, but I’ll see more big bulls than spikes,” said Brennan. “Our whole group was the same way.

No one fired a shot.”

Because hunters have until Jan. 31 to report their success (or lack of) during the elk season, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife doesn’t yet have a good idea of this year’s Yakima elk harvest. Regional WDFW staffers expected a somewhat depressed season, though, and anecdotal reports from hunters would seem to bear that out.

Eddie Kuchynka of Kent, who for more than 30 years has made an annual elk-hunting trip to the Oak Creek Wildlife Area to hunt the flanks of Bethel Ridge, was just as frustrated as Brennan and Mullinax.

“We saw a few cows, but we had spike-only, so it was pretty slow,” Kuchynka said. “A lot of the hunters were pretty disappointed. It sounded like a lot of them weren’t coming back next year. I didn’t see any (branch bulls); my hunting partner saw two, but no spikes.”

Kuchynka, 71, said he had friends with cow tags in the Naches and Bumping game management units (GMUs), “and they didn’t see anything. People are really getting frustrated.

“It sounded like a lot of the guys aren’t going to put in for another game license next year, and I don’t blame them. Why spend $100 for tags and stuff, and your gas money, and you don’t get nothing. People will get tired of that. I feel the game department should start waking up and start thinking about that.”

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‘Kind of a balancing act’

Ted Clausing, the WDFW’s regional wildlife program manager, said it’s too early yet to know whether some hunters’ frustration is indicative of an overall bad elk hunting season.

“We’ve had a couple of down years of recruitment (birth and survival of young bulls),” Clausing said. “I think the population was probably down going in, but I think the weather might have balanced that a little bit and we might have had a pretty good harvest.

“We just don’t know yet.”

Typically 70 percent of the spike bulls in the Yakima-area herds are harvested every year, the bulk of them in the modern firearm season and the rest in the bowhunter and muzzleloader seasons. Every year, Clausing said, hunters in pretty much every group will complain to WDFW staff that the other groups are getting preferential treatment, seasons or harvest limits.

“All of us gets some of those (calls from disappointed hunters),” he said. “Nobody ever calls and says ‘It’s too good, you should take some away.’ It’s always, ‘You’re favoring some other group’ or ‘It’s too hard for me.’”

One of the things that has impacted the number of elk permits, Clausing said, was the decision about six years ago — following several years of increasing elk damage on private land — to cull the Yakima herd from roughly 11,500 animals to 9,500.

“When you get the principal down to, now, 9,500, you’re not producing as many calves, so you can’t be killing as many cows or bulls,” Clausing said. Hunting success is likely to become even more difficult to achieve in this region, he said, with the game department proposing “a fairly major reduction in the antlerless (cow) harvest in the 2010 season.”

“Permits are adjusted annually,” he said. A raise in one area “has to be taken away from somebody, because there’s only so many you can kill. It’s kind of a balancing act, and we have to base it on this year’s harvest and this year’s survival during the winter, those kinds of things.”

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Greener pastures

For Yakima elk hunters, that’s little solace. Yakima hunter Terry Mullinax, though, is trying to remain philosophical about the seemingly dwindling opportunities.

“I’m not too upset about the situation,” said Murvin Mullinax’s son. “Elk hunting, even if you’re a very dedicated hunter, you’ve got to put in your time to have success and you’ve got to improve your skills all the time.

“I keep seeing all the (harvest) reports. It seems like all the opportunities for big-horn elk have run over to the other side of the mountain. There’s a lot of bulls, three-point or better, in the areas around Packwood; it seems like there’s a lot more bulls in general killed over there.

“I see the reasoning for spike-only (in the Yakima area); it’s been that way for a lot of years. Sometimes I wonder if (the WDFW’s) number counts are really correct, but then again, I talk to big-bull people and they don’t always end up with the big bull.”

Mullinax, 62, said what he’d like to see most of all is to see the WDFW increase opportunities for older hunters like his father, to give them a better chance at a big-bull tag for what might be the last big hunting thrill.

“All in all, the game department does a pretty good job with the challenges they’re faced with,” he said. “But I’d like to see them do something about gaining access for the older guys who don’t have as much time left.”

His father, though, isn’t convinced his hunting years are nearing their end.

“I’m going to live to be 120,” the 83-year-old said with a grin. “That way I can look over on one point and see my 100-year-old son, and look over to another point and see my 80-year-old grandsons.”

And, preferably, with one of them holding a permit for that big bull coming up the slope.

This spring’s chinook run should be great … we think

To most anglers, a salmon is a salmon. We like to catch whatever salmon we can, wherever we can. We’ll take a king in the Columbia, a coho in Cowlitz or a pink in Puget Sound. Salmon are fun to catch and, for the most part, good to eat.

But nothing may get a salmon angler more fired up than a spring chinook salmon. They are fantastic fighters, they are the very best to eat, and for us anglers here in the center of the state, a spring salmon chinook season on some of the tributaries to the Columbia offers the best and closest opportunity to catch one of these coveted fish.

I bring this up because the early forecasts for the 2010 spring chinook salmon return are just out, and if predictions are even close to what the biologists and other prognosticators believe, we may be in for one fantastic salmon year.

Already I can hear you mumbling, “We’ve heard all of this before.”

Yes, we have heard this before — particularly the past two years, when large numbers of chinook salmon were forecast for the Columbia and tributaries and then the fish returned later and in far fewer numbers than predicted. In 2008, the run was 33 percent lower than forecast, and last spring, when we were all thinking we’d be fishing on a record run of springers, the run ended up being 43 percent below the predicted return number.

This year may be different, though. Or, at least there is a chance it will be different.

I won’t get into the methods used by all of the soothsayers and experts to arrive at the numbers they did. I won’t because I can’t. I’m not sure even the experts totally know.

But I do believe they factored in the past two years’ actual versus predicted numbers and took those numbers into account. Suffice it to say if there are anywhere close to the 470,000 spring chinook the experts think will be headed to the Columbia and its tributaries, 2010 could be a fantastic year.

Last week, we upriver spring salmon fishers got some more good news. Of the nearly half-million chinook salmon forecast for the Columbia, some 47,400 are headed to three popular fishing rivers above Bonneville Dam.

The 2010 forecasts for the Wind River, Drano Lake and the Klickitat River are well above the actual numbers from last spring. Last year’s actual return on the Wind was 4,650. This year’s forecast for the Wind is 14,000 springers. That would be the largest return to the Wind in seven years and would be 300 percent higher than the recent five year average. Nice!

At Drano, which is fed by the Little White Salmon River, the run forecast for this spring is 28,900 chinook — which would be the largest returning run of spring chinook to Drano in some 40 years, well over the 17,600 springs in 2002, the largest run on recent record. Compare that to this past spring’s 10,700-springer return to Drano and you can see the popular lake will be busier than ever.

There are about 4,500 chinook salmon expected to return to the Klickitat River this spring. If that happens as predicted, it would be the second largest since 1977. Last year, only 1,500 spring salmon returned.

Of course, local salmon anglers may have a chance to fish even closer to home if the some 16,570 chinook salmon return to the Yakima River this spring as is being forecast.

No fishing seasons on any of the tributaries have been set, and some, such as a sport fishing season on the Yakima, may not be decided until the fish start climbing the dams and the officials for the state and tribes get a handle on the actual number of fish returning. But, based on these early numbers, it’s very likely there will be seasons at all of these favorite fishing holes.

And if the numbers are what the prognosticators predict, 2010 may be one of the best spring salmon fishing seasons on record.

• Rob Phillips is a freelance outdoor writer and partner in the advertising firm of Smith, Phillips & DiPietro. He can be reached at rwphillips@spdadvertising.com.

Snowshoe tours to begin next week

For some people — those with no energy and anybody unable or simply unwilling to try skiing — winter is that time of year for acting like a wild animal. That is, hibernating until things warm up in the spring.

Well, if you can walk, you’re probably capable of another form of winter recreation that will take you to a wonderland you’ve probably never seen.

“Nearly anyone can slap snowshoes on and start walking in the forest,” said Kim Larned, a Forest Service snowshoe guide who has led snowshoe trips for 25 years. “It is amazing to see someone’s face when they get to see first-hand how filled with life winter is.”

Beginning next week — the first week of January — the Forest Service offers classes through March at Snoqualmie Pass off I-90 (and a similar program at Stevens Pass on Highway 2).

Beginning, intermediate and advanced–level tours at Snoqualmie Pass run from Jan. 2 through March 28. The schedule:

• Moderate 90-minute interpretive walks each Saturday and Sunday, beginning at 10 a.m., 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m.

• Extended half-day hikes are held every Friday, Saturday and Sunday, lasting from 9:15 a.m. to 2 p.m.

• Kids in the Snow programs are scheduled for 1 p.m. on Jan. 14, Feb. 20 and March 20.

Reservations can be made by calling 509-852-1062 before this Saturday, and after that by calling 425-434-6111.

Participants need to wear layered and insulated clothing (no jeans or cotton), hats, gloves and sturdy, and waterproof boots, and the Forest Service will provide the snowshoes. (A donation of $10 per person is suggested for all tours except the extended hike, where $20 is suggested. Participants meet at the Snoqualmie Pass visitors center.

For more information, maps and directions go to: www.fs.fed.us/r6/mbs/news/2009/nr-snowshow-walks-20091209.shtml.

12/29 What’s Happening

Sturgeon numbers up in mid-Columbia

There’s apparently a small surge of sturgeon moving into the legal-size class in the pools of the mid-Columbia River.

John North of the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife said the Bonneville pool population went from 34,000 in 2003 to 42,100 in 2006, The Dalles pool population swelled from 12,700 in 2005 to 81,000 in 2008 and the John Day pool grew from 24,000 in 1996 to 26,600 in 2007.

North said those are the best numbers for The Dalles and John Day pools since the states starting making population estimates by tagging fish and recovering the tags the next year.

Brad James, a Washington biologist, said mid-Columbia sturgeon production is tied to spring runoffs.

The higher the water, the better the spawning success. Good production a few years ago will have more sturgeon recruiting into the fishery, at least in the short term, James said.

— Allen Thomas, Vancouver Columbian

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Non-permit holders filling up Sno-Parks

Anyone parking at the Department of Natural Resources Sno-Parks in the Ahtanum, whether  using snowmobiles or not, still have to have a Sno-Park permit.

Lately, DNR officials say, the Sno-Park has been getting filled up by families bringing their kids to go sledding on the slopes above the Sno-Park, and that takes away valuable parking space from the people who have paid for the permits to be able to park there.

The whole reason the area is plowed is because those permit-buyers have paid for it, and the many sledders parking on the entrance road to the Sno-Park on weekends have been making it difficult for the people with snowmobile trailers — you know, those people who have actually paid for permits — even to be able to access the area. If you want to use the area, get a permit.

They’re available online at www.parks.wa.gov/winter/permits/.

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BIRD ALERT

The western screech-owl seen regularly this fall in its favorite roost site in the cavity of a cottonwood tree on the east side of the Yakima Area Arboretum was soaking up some rays of sun this week.

The Arboretum is a good place to bird during the winter. This week, the red fox sparrow was again at the Arboretum sparrow patch. To find the sparrow patch, park at the gravel parking area north of the main parking lot for the office.

If you stand at the walkway, near a new white gazebo, that leads from the parking lot, you will see a bushy pine tree to the east/northeast. Walk straight past and left of that pine tree until you come to the cottonwoods and brush on the east side of the Arboretum.

Follow a dirt roadway through the cottonwoods for 20 steps or so and you will come to the area where the cuttings from the arboretum are piled. You will see scattered birdseed at the east end of the straw bales and around a pine tree to the east.

A northern shrike was spotted alongside the road outside of Terrace Heights on Spring View Road. And in Kittitas County, a gray morph adult gyrfalcon was observed sitting an old sign post near where Box Canyon Road meets the Quilomene Ridge Road.

Please call your bird sightings into the Yakima Valley Audubon phone line at 509-248-1963.

— Kerry L. Turley

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AROUND AND ABOUT

CLAM DIG BEGINS: A four-day razor-clam dig gets under way Thursday on Washington coastal beaches. Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis, Mocrocks and Kalaloch beaches will be open for clam digging Thursday and Friday. All except Kalaloch also will be open Saturday, while Twin Harbors will open for a fourth evening of digging Sunday. All digs will be held on evening tides, with digging restricted to the hours between noon and midnight.

SMELT MEETING: The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife will hold a public meeting Jan. 6 (a week from Wednesday) at the Cowlitz County Administration Building (207 4th Ave. N., Kelso, 6-8 p.m.) to discuss prospects for 2010 smelt fisheries on the Cowlitz River and other Columbia River tributaries. Sport dipping on the Cowlitz may be cut to just two days per month, with a cut in the number of hours open.

The recreational smelt season on the mainstem Columbia, meanwhile, will run Friday and run through March 31, with a10-pound daily limit.

SKAMANIA WINTERFEST: Winterfest 2010, an annual event put on by Skamania County Facilities and Recreation, is set for 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Jan. 23, at Oldman Pass Sno-Park.

Snow-play activities (sledding, snowshoeing, snow-skating, a snowman-building contest) and how-to stuff (a backcountry safety presentation by Wind River Search and Rescue, a demonstration on how to build a snow cave) will be part of the lineup, and coffee and cocoa around the bonfire will be available.

There’s no admission cost, but a Sno-Park permit is required for each vehicle. For info: 509-427-3979 or e-mail to parks@skamania.wa.

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ON THE CALENDAR

TODAY: The Cascadians’ Tuesday group will meet at 8 a.m. at the 40th Avenue Bi-Mart parking lot and head out to some ski, snowshoe or hiking adventure chosen by the trip leader. Come prepared with enough warm clothing, water and food for a full, active day.

THURSDAY: This is just a head’s-up — the Cascadians’ Pokies aren’t doing their weekly Thursday hike because of New Year’s Eve.

Roe leads YVCC to rout of Linn-Benton

SALEM, Ore. — Mariah Roe scored 17 points off the bench to help the Yakima Valley women to a 73-39 victory over Linn-Benton on Sunday in the Chemeketa Holiday Tournament.

Yakima Valley shot just 35.2 percent from the field in the game, but were helped by an even-colder shooting Linn-Benton squad which hit just 17.5 percent of its shots.

Nicole DeRosier scored 14 points, while Anna Marchbanks earned 13 points for the Yaks (6-3).

Sam Sanders and Carrie Garrison scored 10 points each to lead Linn-Benton.

LINN-BENTON — Sanders 2-12 4-4 10, Wilson 2-8 5-6 9, Bartholomew 0-1 0-0 0, Mayhew 2-13 2-4 6, Crane 0-1 0-0 0, Garrison 3-10 4-6 10, Heacock 2-12 0-0 4, Saluni 0-4 0-1 0, McNeilly 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 11-63 15-21 39.

YAKIMA VALLEY — Jones 1-4 1-3 3, French 2-6 0-0 5, Roe 5-12 4-5 17, Huck 0-2 0-0 0, Marchbanks 5-12 3-6 13, Adzasu 1-3 0-0 2, Azurin 1-5 4-4 6, DeRosier 4-13 2-2 14, Urquhart 3-3 0-0 6, Hull 3-10 0-2 7. Totals 25-71 14-22 73.

Halftime—Yakima Valley 40, LBCC 19. 3-point goals—LBCC 2-9 (Sanders 2-6, Bartholomew 0-1, Wilson 0-2), Yakima Valley 9-27 (DeRosier 4-12, Roe 3-6, French 1-1, Hull 1-2, Marchbanks 0-1, Azurin 0-1, Jones 0-2, Adzasu 0-2). Total fouls—LBCC 19, Yakima Valley 17. Fouled out—none. Rebounds—LBCC 54 (Mayhew 14), Yakima Valley 55 (Marchbanks 9). Assists—LBCC 3, Yakima Valley 13 (Adzasu 7). Blocked shots—LBCC 0, Yakima Valley 6 (Roe 3). Steals—LBCC 14, Yakima Valley 23 (Roe 6). Turnovers—LBCC 28, Yakima Valley 21.

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