West Valley duo leads local contingent vying for titles near Tacoma ||

YAKIMA, Wash. — Mikki Campbell and Ally Delozier are not just BFFs, they’re also BBFF’s — best bowling friends forever.

And that’s what makes this week’s state high school bowling tournament so special for the West Valley duo, because they’ll be competing together one last time at the prep level.

“Going with my best friend is the best thing,” said Campbell, a senior who was 15th last season and in 2010, along with Delozier, part of the Rams’ fourth-place team. “We’re like sisters. It’s exciting to go together this time.”

“It’s heart-wrenching because it’s our last year together,” said Delozier, a junior who was 13th in 2010. “But we’re getting to go to state together, so we’re treating this as something special. We’re inseparable.”

They aren’t the only local bowlers heading to Narrows Plaza Bowl in University Place.

Eisenhower junior Megan Walls is making her second straight trip in Class 4A, while Selah’s team will take part in the 3A-2A event.

All bowlers, both individuals and those on teams, will vie for individual titles on Friday, bowling six games. Teams then return Saturday for 14 Baker games to decide those state champions.

As for Campbell and Delozier, even though it marks the final chapter in their prep friendship, today couldn’t come quick enough.

“I can’t wait,” said Delozier, who said the bond between her and Campbell have really help each other continue to improve. “We can tell when the other is screwing up. I believe we’ll be better (at state) because we have each other.”

“Her support means a lot to me. We bowl off each other — I help her, she helps me,” said Campbell, adding that their teamwork extends beyond the physical part of the sport. “Bowling takes a lot of patience and you have to have a positive attitude. It does not help to be angry and we calm each other down.”

That connection, combined with strong bowling skills, has both expecting to turn in strong showings.

“They challenge each other,” Rams coach Brad Cramer said. “They’ve gotten stronger and stronger as the year’s gone on.”

Particularly last week when Delozier rolled games of 201, 186 and 188 to win the district title, with Campbell fourth with games of 211, 148 and 168.

Now, they’re going to rely on that friendship one final time.

“We’re stoked and excited,” Campbell said. “With our experience, we should be able to excel.”

Another individual vying for a title today is Ike’s Walls.

The junior enters state on a roll, having won the district title last week, and both Campbell and Delozier, who have worked with Walls this season, believe she can improve on last season’s 41st-place state finish.

“She has improved dramatically this season,” Campbell said.

Also seeking to improve on last year’s state showing are the Selah girls, who return three bowlers off a team that placed seventh. The Vikings enter state confident, having won the district title by nearly 100 pins after dominating the Baker games, a pivotal part of the state tournament.

Leading the team are seniors Ashley Baughman and Taylor Jones, and junior Emily Imbery, who were on last year’s team. The others are Kaiti Dell and Ceci Estela.

“I know they can do something great if they have enough desire,” coach William Foster said.

Kupp signs with EWU, Wright, Chapman heading to W. Oregon ||

YAKIMA, Wash. — They’ve played together since they were nine years old.

They’ve been instrumental in producing a run of football success not seen at Davis High School in many years, culminating in a record-setting season this past fall.

Now, members of that impressive senior class are beginning to reap the rewards of their hard work and dedication, starting with three who will be playing college football.

Cooper Kupp hugs his father Craig Kupp as his mother Karen Kupp takes a photograph Feb. 1, 2012 following a ceremony in which Cooper, a standout Davis High School football player, signed a letter of intent to attend Eastern Washington University. Also signing letters of intent were teammates Deion Wright and Chris Chapman. Both will attend Western Oregon University. (Gordon King/Yakima Herald-Republic)

Cooper Kupp, Deion Wright and Chris Chapman gathered at the high school Wednesday to sign letters of intent, with Kupp heading to Eastern Washington University and the other two committing to Western Oregon University.

“I’m not looking forward to saying goodbye to those guys but it’s sweet to see all that hard work pay off,” Kupp said later Wednesday. “These are (among) the guys who have made me who I am and these guys are going off to do great things (in college).

“I’ve just been blessed to have such a talented, athletic group to push me every day to be a better person and a better athlete.”

“It’s great seeing how hard we worked … and how far we’ve come,” Chapman said.

Several more seniors, notably David Trimble, are expected to receive college offers down the road in a variety of sports.

“This truly is pretty rewarding,” Davis football coach Rick Clark said of Wednesday’s signings. “This (entire class) is just an outstanding group of kids.”

Kupp landed the top offer, agreeing to join the Eagles, who won the NCAA Bowl Championship Subdivision title in 2010, but missed the playoffs last season.

“The biggest thing … was the value and character (of the people there),” said Kupp, who also received an offer from Idaho State University. “You could see that value and character (of the coaches) had transferred down to the players.”

Kupp, a two-way standout at Davis, will play receiver at Eastern.

“He’s going to be a huge factor for us at receiver because there is going to come a time in a year or two where we lose some of our receivers who have done some great things,” Eastern coach Beau Baldwin said in a news release from the school announcing the team’s signings.

Kupp, whose grandfather Jake and dad Craig both played in college and the National Football League, can certainly have an impact. As a senior, he had 60 receptions for 1,059 yards with 18 touchdown receptions and 22 total TDs.

A big part of Kupp’s success was due to the presence of Wright, who threw for 2,988 yards and 34 touchdowns and just 10 interceptions last fall, and accumulated 6,542 passing yards and 72 TDs in his prep career.

“The biggest thing for me over the years has just been learning the game of football,” said Wright, who chose Western Oregon over Central Washington in part because he was the only quarterback the Wolves recruited, while Central signed five players listed as quarterbacks Wednesday.

“They told me I was their main quarterback (recruit),” he said.

And Wright, who settled on the Monmouth, Ore., school Sunday, was additionally happy to find out that Chapman, a receiver, will be joining him.

“I just felt it was the right place for both of us,” Wright said.

Chapman, who missed the latter part of last season because of a severely broken pinkie finger, got an offer from the Wolves in the past couple of days.

“After I got hurt, I didn’t think I’d get recruited at all,” said Chapman, who also had some interest from Central.

Although all three were looking to their futures Wednesday, they also took time to reflect on their time with the Pirates.

“I wouldn’t trade a state trip for the experience I had with these guys,” Kupp said, alluding to last season’s team falling one victory shy of the school’s first-ever state berth.

“We kept working hard and pushed through the adversity,” Wright said of helping turn the program around. “Now, everyone (at Davis) is just happy for us and proud of what we’re doing.”

YAKIMA, Wash. — Marshall Kent has enjoyed plenty of success in national bowling tournaments, but his latest conquest is easily his most impressive.

Kent won the United States Bowling Congress Team USA trials earlier this month in Las Vegas, setting up a busy year for the West Valley High graduate.

“This was a very big win for him,” his father Jim Kent said. “I think it’s just now starting to sink in.”

Not only did Marshall Kent win an event that annually attracts the top professional bowlers in the country, it means he will compete in the two most prestigious bowling events in the world, and likely represent the U.S. in the World Championships.

Kent

Kent, who was already a member of Junior Team USA, becomes just the second Washington state bowler to earn a spot on Team USA. The other was Puyallup’s Jerry Ledbetter, who made the original Team USA in 1979.

Kent’s first reward will be competing in the U.S. Open at the end of February in New Jersey, which attracts the top bowlers from around the world.

Next will likely be the World Championships the last week of June in Bangkok. The U.S. team will consist of four bowlers, but Jim Kent said that winning the trials “pretty much assures (Marshall) will be on the traveling team.”

Finally, Kent will be the lone U.S. participant in the World Cup, which the elder Kent called that the sport’s second most prestigious event behind the U.S. Open. That will be in November at a site to be determined.

Normally the U.S. World Cup representative is chosen at a later date, but Team USA, trying to attract more pro bowlers to the trials, announced that the winner there would automatically fill that spot, Jim Kent said.

Marshall Kent earned these opportunities thanks to a strong, steady performance at the trials, which debuted a points system similar to cross-country running to determining the champion rather than using total pins.

Bowlers competed on four different surface patterns and were assigned a point total based on their finish each day. For example, if a bowler had the top pinfall on a given day, he received one point and if he was 10th, he received 10 points.

In that format, Kent finished with 43 points to outdistance runner-up Steve Smith from San Diego, who had 57.

Kent was the only bowler in the 145-man field to post three top-10 finishes — second place on day 3, third on day 1 and sixth on day 4 — with a 32nd place on day 2, thus his 43 points.

“Some people didn’t like the change, but the thinking was that this format assures them of someone who bowls well on all four patterns,” Jim Kent said. “If it’s based on total pins, someone could bowl really well on just one pattern and carry it through to a win.”

By the way, had total pins been used, Kent still would’ve won handily. His 6,423 total was more than 200 pins ahead of his closest competitor, Jarret Mizo from Honolulu, who wound up fourth overall in the point scoring.

While Kent’s victory was impressive, it wasn’t a complete surprise to his father.

Marshall entered the trials as one of the top two bowlers for Robert Morris University in Chicago, the top-ranked team among 154 college bowling programs, according to www.collegebowling.com. Kent, a freshman, has an average of 213.309, which ranks 12th nationally and is slightly behind teammate Dominic Partililo (213.643).

“He had a really good feeling going into the trials,” Jim said. “The week before, there were two top-tier college events and he bowled well in both. He’s as strong mentally and physically as I’ve seen him.”

Which will be important moving forward.

“It’s going to be an exciting spring and summer,” Jim Kent said. “It’ll be interesting to see how it all pans out.”

White Swan wins to stay perfect in league||

WHITE SWAN, Wash. — Defending their home floor and preserving their unbeaten league records, White Swan’s boys and girls swept Riverside Christian in a North Central 2B South Division doubleheader Tuesday night.

White Swan' Amber Jones drives to the basket during Tuesday's girls basketball game against Riverside Christian in White Swan. Jones scored 25 points, pushing her past the 1,000-point plateau for her career.||GORDON KING/Yakima Herald-Republic

Amber Jones’ career-scoring milestone highlighted White Swan’s 58-42 victory in the girls contest, and the Cougars followed up with a 73-55 triumph in the boys game.

In the back-to-back duals for the South lead, White Swan’s teams both moved to 5-0 while Riverside Christian’s squads dropped to 4-1.

Jones, a 5-foot-7 senior, topped 1,000 career points in the third period when she scored 11 of her 25 points. Averaging 27 points in her last four games, Jones also had five assists and four steals.

Teammate Emily Botkins put together 14 points and nine rebounds to help White Swan’s sixth-ranked girls improve to 10-2 overall.

Kendra Staymates and Tori Carpenter had 12 and 11 points, respectively, for RC.

In the boys game, the Cougars used an 18-5 burst in the second period to pull away.

Lawrence Fiander, who topped 1,000 career points in his junior season, collected 21 points, five assists and four steals and Alex Sampson added 17 points for White Swan (11-1).

Tucker Jones’ 14 points led three RC boys in double figures.

McMurray, Hernandez, Aho lift Leopards to Dome title ||

YAKIMA, Wash. — Shortly after claiming the 145-pound title, Zillah’s Shane McMurray said the only thing better than getting to stand on the awards podium was going to be standing with his Leopards teammates later to collect the team title.

Behind McMurray and fellow titlists Cortes Hernandez and Josh Aho, Zillah turned in an impressive performance to claim the team title in the 21st SunDome Mat Classic wrestling tournament Saturday.

Zillah's Cortes Hernandez, top, wrestles Sunnyside's Nathan Gonzalez in the 132 pound championship match of the SunDome Mat Classic Saturday, Dec. 17, 2011. (Andy Sawyer/Yakima Herald-Republic)

“It means a lot to be up there as a team as well as an individual,” said McMurray, who scored a solid 8-0 victory over Jared Sell of Klahowya. “We wanted to win. I didn’t know if we could do this well but we’re happy to win it.

“It definitely raises our expectations for the end of the season.”

Zillah’s three champions headlined a strong local showing in the 24-team event, with seven other winners — including two each for Granger, including Joshua Salcedo, named the meet’s outstanding wrestler, and Goldendale.

McMurray’s win came shortly after his teammate recorded one of the biggest surprises when Hernandez knocked off two-time SunDome champion Nathan Gonzalez of Sunnyside at 132 pounds.

“He was wrestling pretty solid, but when he came close to making a mistake, I took advantage,” said Hernandez, who scored a late takedown to edge Gonzalez 4-2. “He’s a three-time state wrestler so it’s pretty exciting for me to win.”

Aho capped Zillah’s impressive day by winning the 285-pound title in equally impressive fashion, getting two near falls en route to a 9-3 victory over Fife’s Monike Failauga.

“I was motivated because in my (semifinal) match I wrestled terrible,” Aho said. “I had to get some redemption.”

Aho’s victory capped Zillah’s scoring, giving the Leopards 188 1/2 points, 20 1/2 more than runner-up Ellensburg. Granger was third with 166 1/2, Othello fourth, defending champion Sunnyside fifth and Toppenish sixth.

“Not a bad day,” said a smiling Zillah coach Mike Gonzales. “I’d thought we’d compete but to be honest, I didn’t think we’d compete (at) that high (of a level) at this point of the season.

“We’ve still have a lot of work to do, but this is huge. With all the 3A and 4A schools here, to do as well as we did is impressive. The kids have to be excited.”

Several other local wrestlers were also pretty excited by how things ended up.

Those highlights started with Granger’s Salcedo, who dropped down from 120 to 113 specifically with the hope of facing fellow 2010 state champion Wyatt Scribner from Ellensburg in the final. Salcedo got his wish and took charge with an escape and takedown in the second period and went on to score a 7-1 decision.

“I decided to go to 113 because I wanted to see where I was at as a wrestler,” said Salcedo, who won at 103 in the SunDome last year. “I just wanted to keep pressuring him and go hard for all three rounds.”

Salcedo’s teammate Adrian Guerrero was just as solid in beating Highland’s Andres Tereza 8-3 at 126. After falling behind 2-0, Guerrero took charge, and like Salcedo, took command with a three-point second period.

Goldendale’s champions were the most dominant in the finals, with Nolin Bare and Kurt Wilkins both winning by pins.

Bare finished off East Valley’s Anton Yates at 2 minutes, 56 seconds, and Wilkins took almost exactly the same amount of time, pinning Ephrata’s Tyler Kemp in 2:54.

“(Watching Nolin win) really pumped me up,” said Wilkins, who recorded his 63rd career pin, nine off the school record. “I had to show everyone that I could do it too.”

Davis and Eisenhower each had a champion, with the Pirates’ Austin Wagner outlasting Ellensburg’s Kamal Qteishat 2-1 in overtime at 152, and Acevado dominating Hanford’s Joe Traverso 17-5 at 170.

Ellensburg’s Tyler Coates claimed the 182 title, pinning Royal’s Damien Dela Rosa in 1:14.

Wapato swimmer has options in the pool ||

YAKIMA, Wash. — Jeremy Klarich knows he can swim his way back to state.

What the Wapato senior isn’t yet sure about is just which event(s) he’ll be competing in if he does.

“Each year, we kind of start new and see which strokes he’s performing the best,” said Davis High coach Carl Scott, whose team Klarich practices with through a co-op arrangement. “Right now, we’re still getting him into shape and working on his times.”

Klarich

Klarich’s diverse background in the pool certainly gives them plenty of options.

Just last season, he had the Valley’s best times in the 200-yard and 500-yard freestyle, and 200 individual medley, as well as the second-best time in the 100 butterfly, and third-fastest 100 backstroke.

His state history has also been varied. He had an eighth-place finish in the Class 2A 200 IM last season, an 11th place in the 500 free in 2010, and a hand on Wapato’s 200 medley and 400 free relay teams in 2009.

No wonder Klarich and his coach want to take their time and weigh all their options before finalizing a plan.

“Right now, it’s really an open book,” Scott said. “We’re working hard on a variety of strokes. He was pretty good in the IM last year, but he also may be pretty good at one of those individual strokes, so we don’t want to limit him right now.

“Right now, we want to try different things and see what to shoot for at state.”

Taking a patient approach is possible because of the swimmer’s demeanor, Scott said.

“What’s great about him is that he’s a great listener and he works hard,” the coach said. “He has the same idea of trying some things and seeing what happens.

“You couldn’t have a better kid to work with.”

As Klarich works on the four different strokes — freestyle, butterfly, breaststroke and backstroke — his primary focus has been on technique.

As a distance freestyle swimmer for many years, Klarich has built up the stamina and endurance necessary to be competitive in any event. What’s he’s trying to do now is become more efficient.

“I’ve got the strength. I just have to make sure I’m more fluid in the water,” he said, alluding to things such as having his hands enter the water at the right spot each time and making better turns at the wall.

“He’s learned to swim patient, and not just swim hard,” said Scott, adding that Klarich has also gotten stronger and more coordinated in the past year.

That combination of factors has both confident they’ll not only find the right events but that Klarich will enjoy state success in whichever ones they decide on.

“He’s worked hard to get better in every event,” Scott said. “And every year, he’s improved on all of his strokes.”

“I’ve gotten a lot better in the last year,” he said, “… and I’m fired up.”

Class 4A

DAVIS has a strong turnout of 24, anchored by four returners, primarily freestylers, in seniors Patrick Knittle and Raihei Sato, and juniors Sam Fiander and Cody Zeller. Knittle, in his fourth season with the Pirates, also swims the backstroke, while Saito also swims breaststroke. Freshman Andrew Sader has prior club experience and will be a strong addition for Coach Carl Scott. … There’s a similarly strong turnout at EISENHOWER with 20 swimmers, although just five are returners. Seniors Jared Klingele (primarily butterfly), Jimmy Liu (back) and Jacob Hino (diving, breast) are the top returners. Senior Ben Minick is new this year, but after nearly posting a district time in the 50-yard free last Saturday in Walla Walla, he could team with those other seniors for a strong medley relay team, Coach Rick Alderson said.

Class 3A

Seniors Garrett Rice (individual medley, breast) and Dallin Olander (middle-distance freestyle) head a 28-swimmer contingent for Coach Jake Kessler at WEST VALLEY, although freshman Kian Hausken may ultimately have the biggest impact. At the Walla Walla Invitational, Hausken set a school record in the 100-yard back with a time of 58.25 seconds. A solid sophomore class is led by Dawson Finley (IM, fly) and Tucker Andis (sprint freestyle, breast), and senior Tim Gibson (sprint freestyle, diving) will also contribute. … SUNNYSIDE has no swimmers this season.

Class 2A-1A

Senior Garrett Borchert and junior Scott Smith were part of SELAH’s seventh-place state 200 medley relay team, and Borchert was on the 200 free relay that also took seventh, giving Coach Ken Yager something to build on. Individually, Borchert will focus on the fly, with Smith and fellow junior Carson Petrea in the backstroke. Freshman Nolan Frampton has made a quick impression, breaking the school’s freshman record in the 100 back at Walla Walla. … PROSSER returns a pair of individual state qualifiers in seniors James Wildman (in the 50 and 100 free, where he was also the Valley leader) and Nolan Saam (100 breast). Sophomore Will Burgett joined those two on the Mustangs’ state 400 free relay team. Along with junior Jeremy Clark (backstroke), new coach Scott Whittington has solid individual and relay potential. … Jeremy Klarich is looking to improve on his eighth-place state finish in the 200 IM for WAPATO, and has plenty of other options, given that he was the Valley leader in the 200 IM and 200 and 500 free, second in the 100 fly, and third in the 100 back last season. … NACHES VALLEY sophomores David and Daniel Whitmore had top-10 state finishes in diving as freshmen, placing eighth and 10th respectively. Both also swim, primarily freestyle events. Sophomore Andrew Brewington (freestyle) and senior Aaron Schmitt (back, middle-distance freestyle) also return. … Sophomores Breyden Newland (breast) and Caleb Danforth (freestyle) are back for EAST VALLEY. TOPPENISH senior Victor Valdez (breast) hasn’t competed in high school before but has swam on club teams. … ELLENSBURG and GRANDVIEW have no swimmers this season.

YAKIMA, Finding your path in life and love is rarely well marked, making it all the more rewarding when it’s discovered.

It’s even less likely — but infinitely more satisfying — should those two paths converge.

Bryan Caraway and Miesha Tate practice a series of moves during a training session at the Yakima Mixed Martial Arts gym in Yakima on Wednesday, Nov. 17, 2011. (SARA GETTYS/Yakima Herald-Republic)

As teenagers, respectively, in Goldendale and Tacoma, Bryan Caraway and Miesha Tate never could have imagined the roads they would travel to get where they are today. But they wouldn’t trade their respective journeys for anything now.

Both have become successful mixed martial arts fighters, training out of Rich Guerin’s Yakima Mixed Martial Arts club, with their careers enhanced by their own personal relationship that blossomed after they first met at Central Washington University in 2005.

“Sometimes before fights (early in my career), I’d ask myself, ‘Why am I fighting this guy?’” Caraway said. “Then after it was over, I’d realize why I love this. I love the adrenaline rush. I love the crowd cheering.”

“When I first started learning (the sport), I had no inclination or interest to fight,” Tate said. “After my first fight, I was hooked.

“Looking back, it’s pretty amazing. I never thought I’d be in a position to support myself fighting and doing something I love.”

Especially with someone she loves.

Love outside the cage

Both Caraway and Tate are comfortable with their now-five-year relationship, although they came at it in different directions.

Arriving at Central in 2005, Tate quickly became enamored with Caraway after she joined the MMA club that he and Tommy Truex started there a year earlier. Caraway, who began coaching Tate, took a more cautious approach.

“I had a crush on him right away; he wasn’t as quick,” Tate said with a smile. “I admired his work ethic … and he’s goal-driven. I found all of that attractive. I was kind of sprung right away.”

Eventually, it was similar qualities in Tate that moved Caraway.

Bryan Caraway and Miesha Tate chat with fellow fighters before a training session at Yakima met while training and both currently train in Yakima. are both MMA fighters on Wednesday, Nov. 17, (SARA GETTYS/Yakima Herald-Republic)

“There’s not many girls doing this and I wanted to make sure she was here for herself,” he said. “After about 11?2 years, she showed she was definitely not here for me; she was here to work and she works as hard as any one of the guys. She’s here to be professional and a serious athlete.

“I started admiring that — her work ethic and dedication.”

That dedication to their craft has been a strong component of their relationship.

“It’s nice having a companion and a competitor,” Caraway said. “She knows what kind of sacrifices I’m going through. I can actually talk to her about this (sport) and know she understands.”

Still, their coach-athlete dynamic has also created tension.

“It’s hard to separate that sometimes,” Tate said. “I can get hurt feelings when I hear something coming from him instead of hearing it from another coach.

“But I care a lot more about him as a person than as my coach.”

“It’s tough sometimes … because emotions come in,” he said. “We’ve been able to keep it professional — when we come to the gym, it’s time to work.”

Working through those moments has strengthened their relationship.

“We’ve had a lot of trials and tribulations but we’ve made it work. It’s hard sometimes because she’s pretty and gets a lot of attention. I have to just say that’s part of it and trust in Miesha and know everything’s going to work out in the end.”

A much different path

Much like his approach to his relationship with Tate, Caraway, 27, had a slow transition to MMA.

The Yakima-born Caraway was a wrestler, starting as a fifth-grader in Montana, and continuing after the family moved to Goldendale prior to his sophomore year of high school. Fueled by an intense competitive drive, he went on to finish sixth in state at 119 pounds that year, third at 130 as a junior, and second at 130 as a senior despite suffering some late-season injuries.

“My mom (Sandra) told me that it didn’t matter if you win or lose, just never give up,” Caraway said.

He went to North Idaho College to continue wrestling but after one year, transferred to Central. That’s when he was introduced to MMA through wrestling teammate Matt Lininger and his cousin Dennis Hallman, an Ultimate Fighting Championship standout at the time.

Hallman later introduced Caraway to Guerin, who was teaching kickboxing at the Yakima Police Athletic League, where he also met Truex.

That began Caraway’s transition to the sport, with he and Truex starting Central’s MMA club and then later helping to form a team of amateur fighters representing the Yakima Mixed Martial Arts club that Guerin opened after leaving YPAL.

It was with Guerin that Caraway learned to convert his wrestling background into success in the cage.

“Wrestling is probably the best base you can have for (MMA) fighting … (but) as this sport has evolved, people have learned to use kickboxing and submission holds more and you have to be good in all three aspects,” he said. “Rich started showed me the ropes and helped me start to put the tricks together.”

Following a similar road

Tate, like Caraway, started out as a wrestler, but quite a bit later, not picking up the sport until her sophomore year at Franklin Pierce High in Tacoma.

“Not having a prior background, I had a lot of catching up to do,” she said.

But Tate, 25, proved to be a quick learner, and, combined with a similarly competitive drive, she excelled on the mat.

“It’s so challenging; that’s why I fell in love with it,” she said. “If it was really easy, I would’ve lost interest. But there’s so many ways to push yourself.”

Tate missed out on the first girls invitational at the state tournament in 2004, her junior year, when she broke her ankle two weeks prior to state, but came back the next season and won the 145 title.

“I was determined to win,” she said.

Arriving at CWU, Tate struggled being away from home for the first time and looked for some activity to meet new people. Another woman in her dorm discovered the MMA club and suggested they give it a try.

“I wasn’t sure … but (after going) I was pleasantly surprised,” Tate said. “I learned basic submission holds and learned Jiu-Jitsu, which is another form of wrestling in my mind.”

Tate took the next step after being invited to join Truex and Caraway at Yakima Mixed Martial Arts.

“I went to my first fight card … and that’s when I fully grasped the sport,” she said. “It was about self — pushing yourself to the ultimate limits.

“Three weeks later, I was fighting and it’s snowballed from there.”

Careers on an upswing

Both fighters have come a long way since their early MMA days.

After about a half dozen amateur fights with Guerin’s club, Caraway turned pro in 2005. He’s found success fighting for Strikeforce, EliteXC and World Extreme Cagefighting, compiling a 15-5 record, although he hasn’t had many showcase bouts.

But a breakthrough moment could be in the offing thanks to UFC’s “The Ultimate Fighter” competition.

After several tryouts in New Jersey and Las Vegas, Caraway was selected to be one of 16 fighters — one of eight at 145 pounds — to compete this past June for the chance to land a UFC contract.

The show, which had all the fighters living in one house during the competition, is currently airing on Spike TV.

Caraway’s first two fights — both victories — have already aired, with his semifinal against Diego Brandao set to air Wednesday, Nov. 30, with the final show scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 3, both on Spike TV.

Having to keep his results secret until after the respective show airs has been difficult at times — Caraway had to sign a $5 million non-disclosure agreement and the show’s producers regularly check things like his Facebook account to make sure he hasn’t said anything — but he’s fully aware of the importance this opportunity presents.

“This could make my whole career,” said Caraway, who has suffered anxiety attacks before matches because of the pressure he puts on himself to succeed.

“People ask what are you scared of?” he said. “I’m not scared of the fight or my opponent, I’m scared of letting myself down. I’m scared of not performing well.

“This means so much to me. To follow my dream; to chase this dream.”

Tate has enjoyed a quicker rise, winning the Strikeforce bantamweight (135 pounds) world championship earlier this year in just her 14th professional fight and 20th overall. She’s currently the fourth-ranked female fighter in the world regardless of weight and has a 12-2 pro record after going 5-1 as an amateur.

“People say you’re not really a champion until you defend your belt, so I really want to show that (title fight) wasn’t a fluke,” said Tate, who hopes to make her first title defense this winter.

Tate’s toughness in the cage started to be forged way back in her bloody debut.

In the first round of that fight, Tate’s opponent kneed her twice in the face, with one of the blows breaking her nose, and she was caught in a choke hold later in the round.

“Looking at the mat, I see the blood spreading out, getting bigger and bigger and I’m thinking, ‘What the hell is happening?’” Tate recalls. “It came down to fight or flight. I have to fight. I got really mad, bucked her off and started whaling on her. I finished the round and that was a big learning experience.”

That baptism under fire proved to be a huge motivation for Tate, and her success since then hasn’t surprised those around her.

“I have a lot a lot more faith in my abilities,” she said.

“She’s an amazing athlete,” Caraway said. “Whatever I’ve taught her, she’s picked up.

“I’m going to make sure she’s the best fighter she can be.”

Now, both see even bigger things on the horizon and can’t wait to chase those dreams together.

“It’s been an interesting ride,” Tate said. “We support each other and push each other.”

“It’s getting tougher to keep working together and it gets pretty hectic,” Caraway said. “But we’re dedicated to helping each other.”

YAKIMA, Wash. — Suffering their first loss of the season in the district final last week turned out to be a blessing in disguise for Tekoa-Oaksdale.

Although the defeat forced the Nighthawks to run a daunting gauntlet in the Class 1B state volleyball tournament, it also meant that they weren’t going to underestimate their foe in Saturday’s final.

That’s because Tekoa-Oaksdale earned a rematch with Colton — the team that beat them in that district final.

“That (loss) really helped us. We asked the girls last week, would you rather lose to them in the district final or the state final?” Nighthawks coach Brandy Brown said moments after her team dispatched Colton 25-16, 25-13, 15-25, 25-23 in the SunDome to claim their fourth state title and first since 2007.

And to say Tekoa-Oaksdale earned this title is something of an understatement.

The Nighthawks opened against defending champion Almira/Coulee-Hartline, met Moses Lake Christian, last year’s fourth-place finisher, in the quarterfinals, and then had to get past last year’s state runner-up Christian Faith in the semifinals.

“That was scary big-time, but we just went out and played our hardest,” said sophomore outside hitter Cassandra Mendoza, who had a team-best 20 kills and five aces against Colton. “We just tried to stay positive the whole time.”

“We had a had a hard road but we just told the girls to play hard and have fun,” said Brown, who gave credit to senior setter Kaela Dewan for being a steadying influencce on her young squad.

Dewan capped her career with 28 assists and 16 digs against Colton, while sophomore hitter Eden Anderson added 16 kills and 16 blocks.

“We earned every single point,” Brown said.

Tekoa-Oaksdale’s day began with a 25-18, 21-25, 25-10, 24-26, 15-12 victory over Christian Faith, while Colton dispatched Seton Catholic 25-16, 25-20, 25-22 in the other semifinal.

In the final, the Nighthawks easily won the first two games, but Colton found its footing in the third game, building leads of 22-9 and 24-11 before closing it out.

The fourth game was back-and-forth, with Colton eventually taking a 23-21 lead before Tekoa-Oaksdale ripped off the final four points, the last coming on a booming kill by Mendoza, to claim the title.

“Our motto is ‘get in beast mode,’ and that’s what we did tonight,” Mendoza said.

YAKIMA, Wash. — La Salle had more than enough opportunity.

What the Lightning lacked was a finishing kick.

In a match made all the more frustrating because of its numerous near-misses, La Salle lost a heartbreaking 1-0 decision to Cashmere in a state Class 1A girls soccer quarterfinal match on a cold Saturday afternoon at Marquette Stadium.

“We played so hard, we were just unlucky,” senior McKenzie Andringa said. “We had a lot of good opportunities … but things just did not go our way.”

As a result, La Salle (16-1-2) suffered its first defeat of the season while Cashmere (19-0-0) advances to next Friday’s state semifinals at Shoreline Stadium.

“I knew it would be a battle,” Cashmere coach Dennis Tronson said. “I’m just excited about where we’re at and where we’re headed.”

La Salle, meanwhile, was left to simply ponder, “What if?” as it suffered one agonizingly close call after another.

“I told the girls this is just one of days where you can’t get a shot to go in,” La Salle coach Felix Hernandez said. “We had a lot of open shots — particularly late — but we just didn’t get the lucky bounce.”

There were several good scoring chances for both sides, but while La Salle had a few more, outshooting Cashmere 14-7, it was the Bulldogs, thanks to a pair of freshmen, who were able to capitalize.

Five minutes into the second half, Breanne Knishka came down the center-right side of the field, with Tessa McCormick on her right flank.

Knishka fed a perfect pass to McCormick, who got past the defender for a one-on-one chance with La Salle goalie Stephanie Perez. As Perez came out to cut down the angle, McCormick fired a shot to the right of Perez and into the net.

“We told the defense to keep the ball in front of them, but (on that play) the defender came up and she (McCormick) just slides by and they take advantage,” Hernandez said.

Cashmere’s goal seemed to awaken La Salle, which had its best scoring chances after falling behind.

Those included a couple of point-blank shots where a Lightning player couldn’t quite get a good foot on the ball, a missed header in front of the goal, an Andringa free kick that went just over the crossbar, and a Margaret Busey free kick in the final minutes that banged off the crossbar with Grace Martin unable to gather in the rebound near the left post.

“After they scored, we really stepped up our play,” Andringa said. “We kept pushing and had a lot of good chances to score.”

Unfortunately, the Lightning couldn’t convert, resulting in a bitter finish to an otherwise stellar season.

“They have nothing to feel bad about,” Hernandez said of his players. “They didn’t play badly; sometimes you just can’t control it.

“They should feel proud. They had a great season.”

First half: No scoring.

Second half: 1, Cashmere, Tessa McCormick (Breanne Knishka), 45:00.

Saves: Suzy McCall (C) 11, Stephanie Perez (LS) 4.

Shots: Cashmere 7, La Salle 14. Fouls: Cashmere 12, La Salle 6. Corner kicks: Cashmere 4, La Salle 2. Offsides: Cashmere 2, La Salle 2.

YAKIMA, Wash. — The difference between Kittitas’ play on the first day of the Class 2B state volleyball tournament was as plain as night and day.

Fortunately for the Coyotes, their play Friday evening was what stood out — and kept their trophy hopes alive.

Kittitas celebrates a point against Bear Creek at the WIAA state volleyball tournament in the Yakima SunDome on Friday, Nov. 11, 2011. (Sara Gettys/Yakima Herald-Republic)

After struggling in a first-round loss to fourth-ranked Bear Creek on Friday morning in the SunDome, Kittitas did a complete reversal in its loser-out match against Pe Ell, turning in a spirited performance in posting a 25-20, 14-25, 25-16, 25-23 victory.

“We talked about staying motivated,” said senior Erica Clerf, who had five kills and three blocks in the victory and a team-best five kills in the Coyotes’ loss to Bear Creek. “We wanted to go out (against Pe Ell) and play with no regrets and play together.”

“Our coach told us that nobody who gave their best ever regretted it,” added Dakota Adams, who led the Coyotes against Pe Ell with eight kills and three blocks. “It was really important to us to go out and play that way.”

That was evident from the outset as Kittitas led 5-0 and 9-3 in the first game, and again jumped ahead quickly in the third game. And the Coyotes rarely let up at all, using strong finishing kicks to win the final two games — eight straight and nine of the final 10 points in game three, and a four-point run to take command 24-20 late in game 4.

What set that evening performance apart from the earlier 25-11, 25-13, 25-9 loss to Bear Creek was the Coyotes’ defense.

“Our defense was a lot more on. We made a lot better passes to the setter,” said Clerf. “In the first match, most of our passes were going into the net, so we couldn’t get our offense going.”

That effort pushed Kittitas one victory away from securing its third straight state trophy, having placed seventh in 2009 and eighth last year. The Coyotes can achieve that with a victory over DeSales this morning at 11 a.m.

For this group, which includes six seniors, that was added motivation against Pe Ell.

“We’re really close as a team and we knew this was our last chance to play on Saturday,” Clerf said.

YAKIMA, Wash. — Reardan ended Colfax’s two-year championship run last year in the SunDome, but on Friday, the Bulldogs showed they are more than capable of wresting the title back from their league rivals.

Then again, Reardan made it perfectly clear that it doesn’t intend to give it back without a fight.

Colfax turned in a dominating effort in the opening day of the Class 2B state volleyball tournament, sweeping past a pair of state-ranked opponents to reach today’s 1 p.m. semifinals against Darrington.

Meanwhile, top-ranked Reardan was equally impressive in gaining the other semifinal, against Adna.

“We play in a tough league and I figured that if we got here, we’d have a pretty good chance,” Colfax coach Sue Doering said following her team’s 25-13, 25-1, 25-18 sweep of fifth-ranked Brewster in a Friday evening quarterfinal. “Right now, we’re top four so we don’t have anything to lose. That was our goal and we made it. Now we’ll see how far they (the players) want to go.”

Second-ranked Colfax opened play with a surprisingly quick 25-22, 25-11, 25-19 victory over third-ranked La Conner in a first-round match pitting the previous four state champions before Reardan broke through last year.

And Reardan picked up right where it left off last season, also sweeping a pair of opponents.

The Indians swept Pe Ell 25-15, 25-10, 25-14 in the first round, and dispatched fourth-ranked Bear Creek 25-22, 25-11, 25-22 in the quarters.

“They’re excited to play good opponents — it makes them play better,” Reardan coach Brittney Kubik said. “Our first game (against Bear Creek) was a struggle, but they found their rhythm. We just need to keep pushing ahead.”

While those two teams turned in the most complete performances Friday, they still have to get past a pair of worthy opponents before meeting for the third time this season.

Adna moved into the semifinals by sweeping Orcas Island 25-17, 25-12, 25-13, and Pateros 22-25, 25-20, 25-22, 25-21 in the quarterfinals.

Darrington advanced by beating South Bend and then Riverside Christian in the round of eight.

YAKIMA, Wash. — Coming into the season, both Kittitas and Riverside Christian knew they had enough firepower returning that another state trip was a more-than-attainable goal.

As the season progressed, both teams started to believe they could also bring home some hardware and that new quest begins today at the Class 2B state volleyball tournament in the SunDome.

Kittitas' Hannah Nelson (partially obscured) and Dakota Adams go up for a block against Northwest Christian at the 2B state volleyball tournament on Saturday, Nov. 13, 2010. (Sara Gettys/Yakima Herald-Republic)

“They’ve exceeded my expectations,” Kittitas coach Brandon Ambrose said. “This team is incredible to watch. The teamwork and bonds they’ve formed is impressive. I’m very fortunate to coach this group.”

It’s a similar story at Riverside Christian, which had to survive a five-game winner-to-state, loser-out district match against Warden last Saturday.

“As we came into the season, we definitely had a group of seniors and (junior) Breezy (Byrne) that was a strong core willing to work hard,” Coach Shanee Andreas said. “We’ve also had a lot of other people step up.

“We’re really excited about the girls’ chances.”

Both teams, however, will face rough roads to a trophy.

Kittitas, which finished eighth last year, opens at 11:45 a.m. against a Bear Creek team that returns most of the players from last season’s fourth-place squad. Should the Coyotes advance, they will likely face defending champion and undefeated Reardan in the quarterfinals.

Riverside Christian, which went 1-2 in 2010, losing to Kittitas in a match to gain the trophy round, gets started at 1:30 p.m. against Asotin. Looming after that could be matches against teams that placed last season, starting with Darrington (sixth place) in the quarterfinals, and La Conner (second), Colfax (third) or Brewster (seventh) in a potential semifinal.

Despite those challenges, both coaches expressed confidence, primarily because of their veteran cores.

Even though Kittitas lost standouts Kayvonne Vaver and Sareena Calahan, it did return seven players, led by junior libero Kaitlynn Kilgore filling Calahan’s role, and junior hitter Dakota Adams becoming the leader of a balanced group replacing Vaver’s front-line presence.

“Our setter (Jessica Lawrence) gets the ball to everyone,” Ambrose said. “That’s the crucial part. When they perform together as a team, they perform at a high level.”

While Riverside Christian has relied on its core of five returners, including seniors Onyx Gibbs, Kendra Staymates and Sara Lara, younger players have come along, giving the team more depth and balance, Andreas said.

“We had some (minor) injuries midseason and that gave others a chance to step up and get some experience,” she said. “The girls have been able to adapt and make the changes we’ve thrown at them.”

And both teams are ready for the challenge ahead.

“All the teams will be tough,” Andreas said. “We just have to go in as strong as we can.”

YAKIMA, Wash. — There are plenty of traditional powers with long state pedigrees among this year’s Class 2B state tournament field.

Yet there’s one team that still seems to rise above this stellar gathering.

Reardan, which won the state title in the SunDome a year ago with four sophomores in its starting lineup, is back — undefeated and eager to defend that title today and Saturday.

“Last year was a surprise — not getting to state but winning it,” coach Brittney Kubik said. “This year has been a whole lot different. The girls had already bought into the system and they’ve really put in the hard work and extra time.

“They want to win that trophy again.”

Even though it has the dual targets of being undefeated and defending champ, Kubik said it hasn’t fazed the girls.

“(Being undefeated) puts a little more pressure on us, but they like the challenge,” said Kubik, whose team opens against Pe Ell. “Everyone here is good but the girls are really looking forward to playing some tough competition.”

The Indians will certainly get plenty of that, considering that of the 16 teams, 10 were here last year, with seven of those teams earning trophies.

In addition to Reardan (first), other trophy winners back are La Conner (second), Colfax (third), Bear Creek (fourth), Darrington (sixth), Brewster (seventh) and Kittitas (eighth).

And four of those teams will meet in today’s first round — Kittitas against Bear Creek and La Conner vs. Colfax.

That latter match is a high-powered pairing between the two teams who won the previous four state titles (two each) before Reardan snapped that run last season.

It’s also just one of several potential showdowns in that bracket, with the La Conner-Colfax winner potentially meeting Brewster in the quarterfinals, and possibly Darrington in the semifinals.

“There’s no team that’s going to give you a freebie,” Kittitas coach Brandon Ambrose said.