UPDATED THROUGH FRIDAY FEB. 10

CBBN 4A BOYS
Friday, Feb. 10
Game 1: Chiawana 65, Wenatchee 42, loser out.
Game 2: Walla Walla 56, Moses Lake 54, loser out.
Saturday, Feb. 11
Game 3: Chiawana (11-10) at Richland (12-8), semifinal, 7 p.m.
Game 4: Walla Walla (10-11) at Davis (17-2), semifinal, 7 p.m.
Friday, Feb. 17
Game 5: Winner 3 vs. Winner 4, championship, winner to state.
Game 6: Loser 3 vs. Loser 4, loser out.
Saturday, Feb. 18
Game 7: Winner 6 vs. Loser 5, loser out, winner vs. GSL No. 2 on Feb. 21 for state berth.

CBBN 3A BOYS
Friday, Feb. 10
Game 1: Southridge 64, Hanford 61, loser out.
Game 2: West Valley 64, Eastmont 22, loser out.
Saturday, Feb. 11
Game 3: West Valley (13-7) at Kennewick (17-3), semifinal, 7 p.m.
Game 4: Southridge (8-14) at Kamiakin (19-1), semifinal, 7 p.m.
Friday, Feb. 17
Game 5: Winner 3 vs. Winner 4, championship, winner to state, loser vs. GSL for playoff.
Game 6: Loser 3 vs. Loser 4, loser out. winner vs. GSL for playoff.

CBBN 4A GIRLS
Friday, Feb. 10
Game 1: Wenatchee 45, Moses Lake 31, loser out.
Game 2: Richland 53, Davis 34, loser out.
Saturday, Feb. 11
Game 3: Wenatchee (14-7) at Walla Walla (14-6), semifinal, 7 p.m.
Game 4: Richland (12-9) at Chiawana (15-3), semifinal, 7 p.m.
Friday, Feb. 17
Game 5: Winner 3 vs. Winner 4, championship, winner to state.
Game 6: Loser 3 vs. Loser 4, loser out.
Saturday, Feb. 18
Game 7: Winner 6 vs. Loser 5, loser out, winner vs. GSL No. 2 on Feb. 21 for state berth.

CBBN 3A GIRLS
Friday, Feb. 10
Game 1: Hanford 53, Kennewick 39, loser out.
Game 2: Sunnyside 50, West Valley 44, loser out.
Saturday, Feb. 11
Game 3: Hanford (10-11) at Eastmont (15-5), semifinal, 7 p.m.
Game 4: Sunnyside (11-10) at Kamiakin (20-0), semifinal, 5 p.m.
Friday, Feb. 17
Game 5: Winner 3 vs. Winner 4, championship, winner to state, loser vs. GSL for playoff.
Game 6: Loser 3 vs. Loser 4, loser out. winner vs. GSL for playoff.

CWAC BOYS
Monday, Feb. 13
Game 1: Ephrata (9-11) at Grandview (14-6), loser out, 7 p.m.
Game 2: Prosser (11-9) at Wapato (14-6), loser out, 7 p.m.
Thursday, Feb. 16
Game 3: Winner 1 at Ellensburg (16-4), semifinal, 7 p.m.
Game 4: Winner 2 at Toppenish (16-4), semifinal, 7 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 18
At West Valley
Game 5: Loser 3 vs. Loser 4, winner to regionals, loser out, 1 p.m.
Game 6: Winner 3 vs. Winner 4, championship, both to regionals, 5 p.m.

CWAC GIRLS
Tuesday, Feb. 14
Game 1: Ellensburg (10-10) at Ephrata (14-6), loser out, 7 p.m.
Game 2: Toppenish (12-8) at Prosser (12-8), loser out, 7 p.m.
Friday, Feb. 17
Game 3: Winner 1 at Wapato (18-2), semifinal, 7 p.m.
Game 4: Winner 2 at East Valley (19-1), semifinal, 7 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 18
At West Valley
Game 5: Loser 3 vs. Loser 4, winner to regionals, loser out, 3 p.m.
Game 6: Winner 3 vs. Winner 4, championship, both to regionals, 7 p.m.

SCAC BOYS
Thursday, Feb. 9
Game 1: Naches Valley 75, Mabton 52.
Game 2: Kiona-Benton 46, Goldendale 40.
Game 3: Granger 58, Royal 51.
Game 4: Zillah 52, Burbank 40.
Saturday, Feb. 11
Game 5: Mabton (8-13) vs. Goldendale (13-7) at Toppenish MS, loser out, 4 p.m.
Game 6: Royal (10-11) vs. Burbank (9-13) at Toppenish MS, loser out, 2 p.m.
Game 7: Naches Valley (19-2) vs. Kiona-Benton (17-4) at Wapato HS, semifinal, 4 p.m.
Game 8: Granger (17-4) vs. Zillah (19-2) at Wapato HS, semifinal, 8 p.m.

SCAC GIRLS
Friday, Feb. 10
Game 1: Granger 59, River View 36.
Game 2: Kiona-Benton 58, Zillah 53.
Game 3: Connell 59, Goldendale 37.
Game 4: La Salle 49, Mabton 30.
Saturday, Feb. 11
Game 5: River View (12-9) vs. Zillah (10-11) at Wapato HS, loser out, 2 p.m.
Game 6: Goldendale (14-6) vs. Mabton (9-12) at Toppenish MS, loser out, 6 p.m.
Game 7: Granger (18-3) vs. Kiona-Benton (17-4) at Wapato HS, semifinal, 6 p.m.
Game 8: Connell (16-4) vs. La Salle (18-2) at Toppenish MS, semifinal, 8 p.m.

GREATER COLUMBIA 1B BOYS
Friday, Feb. 10
At Goldendale
Game 2: Lyle-Wishram 49, Trout Lake-Glenwood 40.
Game 4: Sunnyside Christian 70, Bickleton 28.
Saturday, Feb. 11
At Goldendale
Game 6: Trout Lake-Glenwood vs. Bickleton, loser out, 3:30 p.m.
Game 8: Lyle-Wishram vs. Sunnyside Christian, semifinal, 6:30 p.m.

GREATER COLUMBIA 1B GIRLS
Friday, Feb. 10
At Goldendale
Game 1: Trout Lake-Glenwood 52, Lyle-Wishram 34.
Game 3: Sunnyside Christian 70, Klickitat 9.
Saturday, Feb. 11
At Goldendale
Game 5: Lyle-Wishram vs. Klickitat, loser out, 2 p.m.
Game 7: Trout Lake-Glenwood vs. Sunnyside Christian, semifinal, 5 p.m.

YAKIMA, Wash. — At least it can’t be a four-way tie for first. That’s some relief for the logjam at the top of the CWAC boys basketball standings, but it could still be a three-way tie for the title.

Heading into Friday’s final games, Toppenish and Grandview share the lead at 14-3 with Ellensburg a game back.

Here’s your triple-knot scenario: Toppenish loses at Prosser and Grandview loses at Ellensburg, thus three teams at 14-4. If that happens the first-round byes for district would go to Ellens-burg (No. 1) and Toppenish (No. 2) with Grandview taking the No. 3 spot based on quality wins.

If Toppenish beats Prosser and Ellensburg defeats Grandview, the Wildcats would win the title outright with Ellensburg still owning the tiebreaker criteria over Grandview for the No. 2 seed.

If both Toppenish and Grandview win, they share the title and the first-round byes. Ellensburg can’t fall any lower than a No. 3 seed because even if Wapato (12-5) moves into a tie for third the Bulldogs own the head-to-head sweep.

On the girls side, Wapato is playing at East Valley in a game that will decide the league title. Both have long since locked up the top two seeds.

Only one district berth remains up for grabs. Grandview and Ellensburg are tied for the sixth and final girls spot and they play in Ellensburg on Friday.

District starts next Monday for boys and Tuesday for girls.

Pirates get rested up

After squeezing five games into the final nine days of the regular season, Davis’ top-ranked boys basketball team has the opportunity for some serious practice time.

The Pirates (17-2) can reach the state quarterfinals in Tacoma by playing just once in each of the next three weeks — two of those games being at home. Here’s the route:

Win Saturday’s CBBN 4A district semifinal and advance.

Win the district title on Feb. 17 and advance to state.

Win a regional game on Feb. 24 at Spokane Falls Community College and that punches Davis’ ticket to Tacoma.

“We sure like having the practice time,” said coach Eli Juarez. “We can fine-tune some things and get guys healthy. Last week was kind of hectic but now we can reset things.”

The Pirates are bracketed with tonight’s Walla Walla-Moses Lake winner but Saturday’s opponent could end up being Wenatchee if the sixth-seeded Panthers upset No. 3 Chiawana tonight.

Back-to-back breakouts

So what are the chances of two girls in the same league living 10 miles apart — both juniors, no less — putting up the same blockbuster career games of 35 points and 18 rebounds?

Grandview’s Payton Parrish did exactly that, following Prosser’s Sydney Mercer less than a week later.

Parrish connected on 11 of 17 field goals and 13 of 14 free throws and grabbed 13 of her 18 rebounds on the defensive end in a 61-59 loss to Toppenish on Feb. 3.

Getting to the foul line was a common thread for Parrish and Mercer, who were a combined 24 of 27 in their big games.

They went head-to-head on Tuesday and it was nearly a draw with Parrish going for 23 and Mercer 22. Mercer’s Mustangs got the win, however, 58-50.

Parrish’s 35 points tied a school record held by Megan Buchmann (1997) and Kinzi Poteet (2009). Mercer’s tally was for a program that has produced two of the Valley’s biggest single games — Katie Hoefer’s 44 in 1992 and Kelly Blair’s 43 in 1989.

Top-Hi girls rising also

While Toppenish’s boys are close to the program’s first conference title in 25 years, the Wildcat girls have quite a turnaround going as well.

Top-Hi’s last winning season was 14 years ago — 11-10 in 1998 — but the current crew is tied for fourth in the CWAC at 10-7 and 12-7 overall heading into tonight’s conference finale at Prosser.

And, like last week’s mention here of Davis and Sunnyside and their youth, coach Akil White’s team is young. Sophomores Tara Bremer and Kaleea Zick, who combined for 39 points in a recent win over Grandview, are starters and freshmen Payton Greene and Brenda Garcia are in the rotation.

The only team to knock off East Valley this season, Toppenish is aiming for its first home district game in more than 20 years. That will be decided tonight in the Toppenish-Prosser game, a pairing that will be repeated in the first round of district on Tuesday.

Yakima vs. Mead

The juggernaut that is Mead wrestling will pose quite an intimidating presence at the 4A Region IV tournament in Moses Lake on Saturday, and Yakima’s two state-ranked wrestlers — Davis’ Austin Wagner and Eisenhower’s Humberto Acevedo — are right in the Panthers’ path.

Wagner (29-2) is bracketed opposite Mead’s Jeremy Golding, a two-time state champ, at 145 pounds while Acevedo (28-3) could meet the Panthers’ former state champ Chandler Rogers in the 160 final.

Mead rolled up 500.5 points in winning the GSL district title last week with nine champions and 23 regional qualifiers.

• Scott Spruill’s prep blog is at sportsyakima.com He can be reached at 577-7686 or sspruill@yakimaherald.com

YAKIMA, Wash. — Following up a state championship season is never easy, especially for a team that graduated two all-state scoring stars and has a new head coach.

But the Prosser girls are finding their way.

And for a time last Saturday night, Sydney Mercer gave the Mustangs a nice flashback that they hope is a glimpse of things to come.

The 5-foot-10 junior forward put up three career highs in one night, collecting 35 points, 18 rebounds and eight steals in a win over Selah that leveled Prosser’s records at 7-7 in league and 8-8 overall. Mercer had been averaging 12 points.

“Syd has this little fade on her jumper and it doesn’t draw much contact,” said coach Scott Yetter, a former assistant who took over for Mark Little. “I told her, ‘look, you’re not getting to the line enough. You need to attack the hoop more.’”

Mercer responded to the call for aggression, as evidenced by the 18 boards, and she connected on 11 of 13 free throws.

Prosser has four conference games left and is hopeful of earning a home game for the first round of district on Feb. 14. The transition has settled in.

“We talked about that a bunch at the start of the season, that December would be kind of rough,” Yetter said. “We don’t just throw the ball to Tamara (Jones) and Tayshia (Hunt) anymore and watch the ball go in the hole. But we’re doing some good things now and hopefully they’re beginning to believe in themselves.”

Adding to the legacy ||

When Cooper Kupp enrolls at Eastern Washington University in the fall, he’ll become the third generation in his immediate family to play college football.

Grandfather Jake played at the University of Washington before a 14-year career in the National Football League, and father Craig starred at Pacific Lutheran University before spending two seasons in the NFL.

All that experience was not lost on Cooper when he signed his letter of intent Wednesday.

“I’ve been really lucky to have two former NFL players to motivate me and help keep my mind focused,” he said. “It’s cool looking back and remembering those times I had with my day and grandpa, and realize how much they helped me, not just skill-wise but to build my character.”

On a related note, Cooper will also be the second Kupp to play for the Eagles, joining great-uncle Jeff Kupp, who was an offensive lineman there from 1982-84.

Grand update ||

Justine Benner’s addition to the 1,000-point career club brings the Valley total to seven this season and three more are closing in fast.

Benner’s four-year tally is at 1,006 as she becomes just the second girl at Naches Valley to reach the milestone. Tammie Birge reached 1,281 in 1996.

White Swan’s Amber Jones (1,062) has five games in the next nine days and is approaching Andrea Blodgett’s school record of 1,152. That would make a program sweep of school records this season since Lawrence Fiander has been adding to his boys mark (1,405) every time out.

Closing in this week is the Granger tandem of Brandon Castro (954) and Andrew Reddout (947) and Riverside Christian’s Kendra Staymates (965).

CWAC mat at Ellensburg ||

Unbeaten Tyler Coates will compete on his home mats for the final time this weekend as one of three top-ranked wrestlers in the CWAC district tournament at Ellensburg.

Coates is the top seed at 170 pounds, owns a 22-0 season record and brings in a run of eight straight pins.

Othello’s Joey Gomez, a two-time state runner-up, and Toppenish’s Raul Pech are ranked 1-2 in the state at 220. Pech is 21-1 but that one loss was to Gomez in the SunDome final.

Quincy’s Gabe Martinez is No. 1 at 106 pounds. He edged Selah’s Kyle Anson, ranked fourth, 3-1 in their dual last week.

First-round matches start today at 4 p.m. with competition resuming Saturday at 1 p.m.

Brackets can be found at www.cwac2a.com.

Coming of age ||

With so much youth getting heavy minutes, it’s not surprising that the Davis and Sunnyside girls basketball teams have had their struggles at times this season.

But lately there have been significant signs of that youth growing up.

The Pirates (4-6, 6-11), who start three sophomores and two freshmen, are heading toward the CBBN 4A’s No. 5 district seed after beating Moses Lake on the road Tuesday.

They played the league’s top two teams last week — Chiawana and Walla Walla — and the combined losing margin of 23 points was a far cry from the 72-point gap in the league’s first half.

“We’ve been focusing on some specific things and it’s made a big difference,” Davis’ first-year coach Erin Smith said. “We’re fixing little things like boxing out better and cutting down on turnovers.”

Sunnyside (6-6, 9-9) is tied with West Valley for fourth in the CBBN 3A and is led by freshman Jordan Rodriguez. The Grizzlies won five of seven league games during one stretch — not bad for a program that was 1-19 last season.

Swimmers aiming for state ||

The Class 4A, 3A and 2A-1A district boys swimming and diving meets will start today at Central Washington University and conclude Saturday with state-qualifying finals in all events.

The 4A meet advances its top two finishers to state in Federal Way on Feb. 17-18 while the 3A meet advances just winners — both the same as last season.

The 2A-1A meet, however, picked up a berth and will qualify its top two for state.

• Scott Spruill can be reached at 577-7686 or sspruill@yakimaherald.com

• Dave Thomas contributed to this report.

VALLEY POWER RANKINGS No. 6.
FINAL REGULAR SEASON

DISTRICT/SUB-REGIONAL
CBBN 4A at Chiawana, Friday, 4 p.m., Saturday, 10 a.m.
CBBN 3A at Hanford, Friday, 4 p.m., Saturday, 10 a.m.
CWAC at Ellensburg, Friday, 4 p.m., Saturday, 1 p.m.
SCAC West at Granger, Saturday, 10 a.m.
SCAC East at Connell, Saturday, 10 a.m.
North Central 2B at Lake Roosevelt, Saturday, 10 a.m.
Girls at Connell, Saturday, 10 a.m.

REGIONALS, Feb. 10-11
4A at Moses Lake, 3 to state.
3A at University, 3 to state.
2A at West Valley-Spokane, 4 to state.
1A at Zillah, 4 to state.
2B at Kittitas, 5 to state.
Girls at Wahluke, 3 to state.

VALLEY RANKING

106 POUNDS
1, Kyle Anson, Selah, jr.
2, Fidel Medina, Grandview, so.
3, Victor Almaguer, Granger, fr.
4, Jose Cienfuegos, Granger, so.
5, Berkley Aguilar, East Valley, jr.

113 POUNDS
1, Joshua Salcedo, Granger, jr.
2, Wyatt Scribner, Ellensburg, so.
3, Jesse Barajas, Sunnyside, so.
4, Ricky Almaguer, Granger, so.
5, Carlos Hernandez, Toppenish, jr.

120 POUNDS
1, Juan Diaz, Zillah, sr.
2, Andres Tereza, Highland, jr.
3, Santos Guerrero, Sunnyside, jr.
4, Steven Martinez, Toppenish, so.
5, Carlos Galvez, Toppenish, jr.

126 POUNDS
1, Nathan Gonzalez, Sunnyside, sr.
2, David Castaneda, Grandview, so.
3, Adrian Guererro, Granger, jr.
4, Dillon Dompier, Ellensburg, jr.
5, Jessy Gonzales, Zillah, jr.

132 POUNDS
1, Aaron Arredondo, Toppenish, sr.
2, Logan Merkle, East Valley, so.
3, Cortez Hernandez, Zillah, jr.
4, Daniel Guillen, Sunnyside, jr.
5, Marco Gonzales, Eisenhower.

138 POUNDS
1, Isaac Guerrero, Sunnyside, sr.
2, Kody Ergeson, Selah, jr.
3, Blake Haberman, Ellensburg, sr.
4, Sergio Sanchez, Zillah, sr.
5, Joesiah Sanders, Grandview, so.

145 POUNDS
1, Preston Baich, West Valley, sr.
2, Kamal Qteishat, Ellensburg, sr.
3, Shane McMurray, Zillah, jr.
4, Michael Ramsey, Naches Valley, sr.
5, Abel Morales, Granger, jr.

152 POUNDS
1, Austin Wagner, Davis, sr.
2, Roger Andrade, Eisenhower, sr.
3, David Vidales, Sunnyside, sr.
4, Tanner Wallace, Kittitas, sr.
5, Fabian Ruiz, Mabton, sr.

160 POUNDS
1, Anton Yates, East Valley, jr.
2, Nolin Bare, Goldendale, sr.
3, Jorge Alcala, Davis, sr.
4, Edwin Gudino, Eisenhower, so.
5, Jim Myers, Zillah, jr.

170 POUNDS
1, Tyler Coates, Ellensburg, sr.
2, Humberto Acevedo, Eisenhower, sr.
3, Braydon Ross, Goldendale, sr.
4, Ricardo Rodriguez, Wapato, jr.
5, Max King, West Valley, sr.

182 POUNDS
1, Zach Goodpaster, Selah, jr.
2, Darion Taylor, West Valley, sr.
3, Perry Simpson, Ellensburg, sr.
4, Daniel Avalos, Sunnyside, so.
5, David Cantu, Granger

195 POUNDS
1, Kurt Wilkins, Goldendale, sr.
2, Miguel Guzman, Sunnyside, sr.
3, Abidan Duarte, Granger, jr.
4, Corbin Richardson, Ellensburg, jr.
5, Joey Rocha, Selah, sr.

220 POUNDS
1, Nate Sorensen, Kittitas, sr.
2, Raul Pech, Toppenish, jr.
3, Austin Carmen, Sunnyside, so.
4, Robert Koch, West Valley, jr.
5. Eli Curtsinger, Naches Valley, sr.

285 POUNDS
1, Josh Aho, Zillah, sr.
2, Martin Torres, Grandview, sr.
3, Justin Wilkins, West Valley, sr.
4, Pedro Recondo, Selah, jr.
5, Jerry Atkins, Zillah, jr.

Sunnyside to remain with Eisenhower, Davis ||

YAKIMA, Wash. — The split is coming after all. The Columbia Basin Big Nine, in its present form and for much of its long history, is seeing its last days.

Richland School District superintendent Jim Busey told the Tri-City Herald on Wednesday that he and the superintendents from Pasco and Kennewick will meet today to form a new league with the seven Tri-Cities schools.

That new league, which will include Walla Walla and begin play in the fall, will have a 4-4 split of Class 4A and 3A schools.

News of the Tri-Cities defection caused a conference call on Thursday between the five CBBN remnants — Eisenhower, Davis, Wenatchee, Moses Lake and Eastmont. The big question was, what would Sunnyside do?

The answer came late Thursday night when Sunnyside’s school board voted 3-2 in favor of staying with the CBBN as a 3A member.

“The feeling was let’s stay with the Big Nine and not walk away from it,” said athletic director Bill Daley, who indicated there was countering support for staying with the four 3A schools in the Tri-Cities. “Ultimately the decision was, let’s play where we’re at (and not opt up to 4A) and stay where we’ve been.”

The news of the Tri-Cities’ departure from the CBBN, despite gestures last week of staying together, didn’t come as a shock in Yakima.

“I’m not surprised the Tri-Cities’ schools are heading that way — that was my first reaction,” said Davis athletic director Bob Stanley. “My second feeling is just relief. We’ve been in a holding pattern unable to do any planning for the fall. Now we can begin the process.”

Technically, Eisenhower, Davis and Sunnyside will continue to reside in the CBBN with the same by-laws and procedures that have been in place, according to Yakima School District athletic director Jack Irion. The Tri-Cities schools and Walla Walla will secede from the CBBN and form an entirely new league.

Eisenhower and Davis do, however, have important procedural business as 4A schools. As members of District 5, the Yakima schools will likely petition the WIAA to join Wenatchee, Eastmont and Moses Lake in District 6. That would ensure those five schools could generate a state berth because the WIAA distributes state allocations based on districts and not leagues.

“That’s the next step,” Stanley said. “It takes just over four schools to get a state berth, and joining districts involves a multi-level process.”

The Class 4A landscape in Eastern Washington could see three districts with one state berth each and any regional alliance uncertain.

The CBBN would have five schools (District 6), the new Tri-Cities league would have four (District 5) and Spokane would have five (District 8). Spokane’s mixed league is going from a 6-4 split to 5-5 with Rogers dropping from 4A to 3A.

As for being the lone 3A school in the CBBN, Daley believes there would be enough non-league scheduling room with Kamiakin, Kennewick, Southridge and Hanford to make seeding for district manageable.

Both Pasco and Eastmont, currently 3A, are moving up to 4A in the fall. West Valley decided last week against opting up to stay 3A and will join the CWAC.

Based on WIAA enrollment figures used to determine classifications for the next two years, the scaled-down CBBN will still feature three of the state’s six largest schools — Wenatchee (2,108 students in the top three grades), Eisenhower (1,872) and Davis (1,819).

CBBN

Davis (4A)

Eastmont (4A)

Eisenhower (4A)

Moses Lake (4A)

Sunnyside (3A)

Wenatchee (4A)

New league

Chiawana (4A)

Hanford (3A)

Kamiakin (3A)

Kennewick (3A)

Pasco (4A)

Richland (4A)

Southridge (3A)

Walla Walla (4A)

YAKIMA, Wash. — Tuesday’s noisy, emotional Davis-Eisenhower wrestling match was a tough stage for anyone much less a 100-pound freshman girl. But, as most who follow Valley wrestling know by now, Isabell Nunez is not your average freshman girl.

Holding a 4-2 lead in the final period of the 106 match, Nunez, who competes for Ike and attends La Salle, eventually suc-cumbed to Angel Cotto, 7-4. That she was giving away pounds to a boy was of no particular con-solation — it was simply the business of competition

“I look at each match as trying to get the best out myself,” she said. “I did my best, but afterward I thought of things I could’ve done better. I did pretty well, Angel was just better.”

Nunez has been in Ike’s varsity lineup for three CBBN matches and she placed fourth in the Granger Ironman tournament. Against girls, she has been nearly unbeatable.

In three westside all-girl tournaments in December, Nunez was 9-1 with seven pins, winning two titles and losing only to Jessica DeHart of Hood River, Ore. That effort has elevated her to second in the 100-pound state rankings.

“I was surprised, shocked actually,” she said of all the success. “As a freshman I didn’t really know what to expect. It was all new to me.”

High school girls wrestling was new to her, but certainly not wrestling.

Nunez was a three-time Yakima Middle School city champion and she competed for Yakima Team Takedown for four years — all mostly against boys. She was also a member of Washington’s Junior National Freestyle girls team last summer.

Davis has a quality 100-pound girl in Aimee Silva, who has been in the state rankings as well, but Nunez is the only girl in Ike’s program. Her father, Tony, is an assistant for the Cadets.

“We took her to those westside tournaments because that’s where the competition is and, with her experience, we knew she could handle it,” Tony said. “She loves to compete.”

It’s in her family.

Cousin Ruben Navejas was a two-time state champ at Kentwood and Nunez watched him cap a 42-0 season last year at Mat Classic.

“It was so exciting watching that last year, and I got a chance to see the girls tournament,” said Nunez, who is also a soccer standout at La Salle and for the Sun City Strikers. “I wasn’t sure what to expect for me this season, but things have changed a lot. There’s a target on my back now, but I’m excited to have a chance to go to state.”

Number crunching ||

Looking over the WIAA’s classification numbers, which were approved by the Executive Board on Monday, the first thing that jumps out is how huge Eisenhower and Davis have become.

Numbers are based on the average of three census periods in the fall for the top three grades and Eisenhower (1,872) and Davis (1,819) rank fourth and sixth in the state.

That’s up considerably from two years ago when Eisenhower ranked 14th (1,677) and Davis was 26th (1,522). Wenatchee grew similarly, bumping from 1,842 to 2,108, and is now the state’s second-largest high school.

Some other tidbits:

• With former No. 1 Marysville-Pilchuck opening a new school in its district, South Kitsap regained the top spot at 2,447. SK claims to be the largest three-year high school west of the Mississippi River.

• Eisenhower has become so big the entire SCAC West and its seven schools is barely bigger by 51 students.

• Rainier Beach, currently ranked No. 1 in 3A boys basketball, has a smaller enrollment (317) than Granger (325). RB is one of 18 schools opting up to 3A.

• Lake Washington was 4A in 2010, dropped to 3A for the current two-year cycle and will be 2A in the fall.

Here are enrollment numbers for schools in the YH-R circulation area:

Eisenhower (1,872), Davis (1,819), Sunnyside (1,246), West Valley (1,036), Selah (819), Grandview (720), Toppenish (710), Ellensburg (697), Wapato (686), Prosser (680), East Valley (595), Naches Valley (372), Granger (325), Zillah (309), Goldendale (285), Highland (261), Cle Elum (239), Mabton (207), White Swan (187), Kittitas (135), La Salle (132), Riverside Christian (106), Lyle-Wishram (83), Trout Lake-Glenwood (59), Yakama Tribal (56), Sunnyside Christian (49), Thorp (33), Klickitat (31), Bickleton (19) and Easton (15).

Trimble a McD’s nominee ||

Davis senior David Trimble was one of 30 Washington players nominated for the McDonald’s All-American basketball game on March 28 in Chicago.

Final selections will be announced Feb. 9 on ESPNU.

Trimble, who’s averaging 13.8 points for the second-ranked Pirates, is up to 1,268 career points and should pass Mel Stubblefield (1,275) for fourth on Davis’ all-time list tonight at Walla Walla.

If all goes well for Davis (12-2) against Walla Walla and Chiawana at home on Saturday, the Pirates could move up to No. 1 next week. Top-ranked Bellarmine Prep (12-2) fell to Olympia 56-53 on Wednesday.

Big day for T-wolves ||

Weather postponements and some geographic issues did no favors for Goldendale’s wrestling team in the last week.

The Timberwolves ended up contesting half their SCAC West dual-meet season in one day, taking on Cle Elum, Naches Valley and Highland all on Tuesday in Cowiche.

Goldendale was originally going to host Cle Elum and Highland on Jan. 19, which would’ve been senior night. But that got snowed out and moved to Tuesday at Highland and lumped together, for logistical reasons, with a Goldendale-Naches Valley dual originally set for Thursday.

“It was kind of crazy but we managed to get through three matches pretty quick,” said Goldendale coach Omar Flores. “It was a bummer for our kids because we lost a home match and senior night.”

• Scott Spruill’s prep blog is at sportsyakima.com He can be reached at 577-7686 or sspruill@yakimaherald.com

Washington Prep Basketball Polls, Jan. 25
By The Associated Press

BOYS

Class 4A
School    Record    Points    Last    Week
 1. Bellarmine Prep (9)    12-1    90    1
 2. Davis    12-2    80    2
 3. Skyline    12-3    72    3
 4. Snohomish    12-2    56    5
 5. Redmond    12-2    47    T6
 6. Union    11-4    45    4
 7. Central Valley    10-3    43    8
 8. Garfield    9-4    31    T6
 9. Gonzaga Prep    8-5    16    9
10. Kent Meridian    10-4    10    10
Others receiving votes: Roosevelt 3. Bothell 2.

Class 3A
School    Record    Points    Last    Week
 1. Rainier Beach (9)    14-1    90    1
 2. Kamiakin    15-0    81    2
 3. Mountlake Terrace    14-0    69    3
 4. Seattle Prep    13-2    64    4
 5. University    10-3    52    5
 6. Lincoln    11-3    33    6
 7. Columbia River    14-2    24    7
 8. Franklin    12-3    22    10
 9. Wilson    11-2    17    9
10. Foss    10-2    16    8
Others receiving votes: Bellevue 7. Kennedy 6. Mount Si 5. Mountain View 2. Lake Washington 2. Lakes 2. Kennewick 1. Decatur 1. Ferndale 1.

Class 2A
School    Record    Points    Last    Week
 1. Lynden (8)    11-2    89    1
 2. Clover Park    11-3    75    3
 3. Squalicum    11-2    66    4
 4. Pullman    12-2    59    2
 5. West Valley (Spokane) (1)    13-1    52    7
 6. Sehome    10-3    49    5
 7. Sumner    13-2    45    6
 8. Toppenish    12-2    27    8
 9. White River    11-4    17    9
10. Ellensburg    11-3    8    10
Others receiving votes: North Thurston 6. Kingston 2.

Class 1A
School    Record    Points    Last    Week
 1. Cashmere (6)    12-2    84    1
 2. Bellevue Christian    11-3    69    3
 3. Naches Valley    14-2    63    2
 4. Granger (1)    13-2    60    T4
 5. King’s (1)    14-2    54    6
 6. Lynden Christian (1)    11-2    50    T4
 7. Zillah    13-2    48    7
 8. Okanogan    14-2    31    8
 9. Toledo    12-2    20    9
T10.Cascade Christian    8-5    9    NR
T10.Freeman    10-7    9    10
Others receiving votes: Life Christian 4.

Class 2B
School    Points    Last    Week
 1. Northwest Christian (Colbert) (7)    70    1
 2. Bear Creek 63    2
 3. Adna    55    T3
 4. White Swan    50    T3
 5. Dayton    42    5
 6. LaConner    34    6
 7. Toutle Lake    28    7
 8. Colfax    18    8
 9. Davenport    11    9
10. Raymond    5    NR
Others receiving votes: Lake Roosevelt 4. Wahkiakum 3. Riverside Christian 2.

Class 1B
School    Points    Last    Week
 1. Colton (6)    68    1
 2. Valley Christian (1)    64    2
 3. Moses Lake Christian 57    3
 4. Almira Coulee-Hartline    49    4
 5. Sunnyside Christian    30    5
Others receiving votes: Cascade Christian 9. Mt. Rainier Lutheran 6.

GIRLS

Class 4A
School    Record    Points    Last    Week
 1. Central Valley (8)    13-0    80    1
 2. Mt. Rainier    14-0    72    2
 3. Lake Stevens    14-0    64    3
 4. Woodinville    13-1    55    4
 5. Stanwood    13-1    49    5
 6. Jackson    13-2    34    T6
 7. Skyview    13-2    31    T6
 8. Emerald Ridge    12-1    24    8
 9. Auburn Riverside    13-1    18    10
10. Gonzaga Prep    10-3    12    9
Others receiving votes: Kentwood 1.

Class 3A
School    Record    Points    Last    Week
 1. Prairie (6)    15-1    78    1
 2. Kamiakin (2)    14-0    73    2
 3. Cleveland    13-2    58    3
 4. Auburn Mountainview    12-3    47    4
 5. Holy Names    11-1    45    5
 6. Wilson, Woodrow    10-2    43    6
 7. Seattle Prep    12-3    35    7
 8. University    10-3    32    8
 9. Juanita    12-2    20    9
10. Shorecrest    12-2    7    10
Others receiving votes: Lakes 2.

Class 2A
School    Record    Points    Last    Week
 1. East Valley (Yakima) (6)    14-0    78    2
 2. Clarkston    12-1    65    3
 2. White River (2)    13-1    65    1
 4. Burlington-Edison    11-2    53    5
 5. Chehalis    12-1    52    4
 6. Lynden    10-3    37    6
 7. Wapato    13-1    29    7
 8. North Thurston    11-2    23    9
 9. Sehome    10-3    21    8
10. River Ridge    9-5    5    NR
Others receiving votes: Deer Park 4. Black Hills 3. Eatonville 2. East Valley (Spokane) 1. Blaine 1. Archbishop Murphy 1.

Class 1A
School    Record    Points    Last    Week
 1. Freeman (7)    17-0    70    1
 2. Cashmere    15-0    63    2
 3. La Salle    11-1    47    4
 4. King’s    12-2    42    5
 5. Cascade Christian    11-1    40    3
T6. Castle Rock    14-0    34    7
T6. Elma    11-2    34    6
 8. Okanogan    13-3    20    9
 9. Granger    12-3    16    8
10. Connell    12-2    12    10
Others receiving votes: Goldendale 2. Tenino 2. Onalaska 1. Lynden Christian 1. Cedar Park Christian (Bothell) 1.

Class 2B
School    Points    Last    Week
 1. Reardan (6)    60    1
 2. Napavine    54    2
 3. Brewster    46    3
 4. White Swan    38    4
 5. Lake Roosevelt    30    6
 6. Northwest Christian (Colbert)    29    5
 7. Adna    26    8
 8. North Beach    22    7
 9. Colfax    13    10
10. Pe Ell    12    9

Class 1B
School    Points    Last    Week
 1. Colton (6)    60    1
 2. Sunnyside Christian    51    2
 3. Hunters    50    3
 4. Rosalia    41    4
 5. Almira Coulee-Hartline    32    5
Others receiving votes: Neah Bay 6.

The WIAA Executive Board has finalized and approved classifications for the upcoming 2012-13 and 2013-14 enrollment cycle. Go to www.wiaa.com to see the full breakdown. Eisenhower and Davis are the fourth and sixth largest high schools in the state.

VALLEY POWER RANKINGS No. 5, Jan. 23

Weather wiped out most of last week’s action so there aren’t many changes. The final posting will be Jan. 30 to close out the regular season. Send updates, comments and season records to sspruill@yakimaherald.com

106 POUNDS
1, Kyle Anson, Selah, jr.
2, Fidel Medina, Grandview, so.
3, Victor Almaguer, Granger, fr.
4, Jose Cienfuegos, Granger, so.
5, Berkley Aguilar, East Valley, jr.
Notes: Aguilar avenged a Westberg loss to Homer Romero, 5-3, on Saturday.

113 POUNDS
1, Joshua Salcedo, Granger, jr.
2, Wyatt Scribner, Ellensburg, so.
3, Jesse Barajas, Sunnyside, so.
4, Ricky Almaguer, Granger, so.
5, Sergio Morales, Toppenish, so.
Notes: Granger is doubling up Almaguer-Cienfuegos at 106 and Salcedo-Almaguer at 113 for the postseason. … R. Almaguer md. Mireles in dual at 126. Salcedo (28-0) is one of three Valley unbeatens along with Tyler Coates and Nate Sorensen.

120 POUNDS
1, Juan Diaz, Zillah, sr.
2, Andres Tereza, Highland, jr.
3, Santos Guerrero, Sunnyside, jr.
4, Carlos Hernandez, Toppenish, jr.
5, Carlos Galvez, Toppenish.
Notes: Diaz 1st at Mid Valley.

126 POUNDS
1, Nathan Gonzalez, Sunnyside, sr.
2, David Castaneda, Grandview, so.
3, Adrian Guererro, Granger, jr.
4, Dillon Dompier, Ellensburg, jr.
5, Vicente Mireles, Mabton, jr.
Notes: Mireles 1st at Mid Valley.

132 POUNDS
1, Logan Merkle, East Valley, so.
2, Daniel Guillen, Sunnyside, jr.
3, Jessy Gonzales, Zillah, jr.
4, Christian Ruiz, Sunnyside, jr.
5, Marco Gonzales, Eisenhower.
Notes: Merkle (25-2) p. Ruiz in Saturday dual while Sunnyside’s No. 2, Guillen, d. Gonzales in Mid Valley semis.

138 POUNDS
1, Aaron Arredondo, Toppenish, sr.
2, Cortez Hernandez, Zillah, jr.
3, Isaac Guerrero, Sunnyside, sr.
4, Kody Ergeson, Selah, jr.
5, Blake Haberman, Ellensburg, sr.
Notes: Hernandez 1st at Mid Valley.

145 POUNDS
1, Preston Baich, West Valley, sr.
2, Kamal Qteishat, Ellensburg, sr.
3, Sergio Sanchez, Zillah, sr.
4, Abel Morales, Granger, jr.
5, Isidro Ramirez, Sunnyside, sr.
Notes: Sanchez 2nd at Mid Valley.

152 POUNDS
1, Austin Wagner, Davis, sr.
2, Roger Andrade, Eisenhower, sr.
3, Shane McMurray, Zillah, jr.
4, David Vidales, Sunnyside, sr.
5, Tanner Wallace, Kittitas, sr.
Notes: McMurray 3rd at Mid Valley. … Wallace 1st at Coyote Classic.

160 POUNDS
1, Anton Yates, East Valley, jr.
2, Nolin Bare, Goldendale, sr.
3, Jorge Alcala, Davis, sr.
4, Edwin Gudino, Eisenhower, so.
5, Jim Myers, Zillah, jr.
Notes: Yates was 4-0 in duals to improve to 25-2. … Myers 2nd at Mid Valley.

170 POUNDS
1, Tyler Coates, Ellensburg, sr.
2, Humberto Acevedo, Eisenhower, sr.
3, Braydon Ross, Goldendale, sr.
4, Ricardo Rodriguez, Wapato, jr.
5, Emilio Mireles, Mabton, sr.
Notes: Coates (20-0) inactive last week with postponements. … Mireles md. Jason Ornelas 12-1 in dual.

182 POUNDS
1, Zach Goodpaster, Selah, jr.
2, Abidan Duarte, Granger, jr.
3, Darion Taylor, West Valley, sr.
4, Perry Simpson, Ellensburg, sr.
5, Daniel Avalos, Sunnyside, so.

195 POUNDS
1, Kurt Wilkins, Goldendale, sr.
2, Miguel Guzman, Sunnyside, sr.
3, Jesus Chavez, Toppenish, jr.
4, Joey Rocha, Selah.
5, Jason Glenn, Ellensburg, so.

220 POUNDS
1, Nate Sorensen, Kittitas, sr.
2, Raul Pech, Toppenish, jr.
3, Corbin Richardson, Ellensburg, jr.
4, Austin Carmen, Sunnyside, so.
5, Robert Koch, West Valley, jr.
Notes: Sorensen (7-0) 1st at Coyote Classic with two pins.

285 POUNDS
1, Josh Aho, Zillah, sr.
2, Justin Wilkins, West Valley, sr.
3, Pedro Recondo, Selah, jr.
4, Jerry Atkins, Zillah, jr.
5, Mario Cervantes, Toppenish, so.
Notes: Aho (29-2) 1st at Mid Valley, Atkins 2nd.

YAKIMA, Wash. — Stay humble, stay focused.

That’s the message Joseph Mesplie has been directing at his Toppenish boys basketball team as the Wildcats head into the second half of the CWAC season in an unfamiliar position.

First place.

Riding an eight-game win streak, the ’Cats are ranked eighth in Class 2A and own a one-game lead over Grandview with eight con-ference games remaining.

Heady stuff for a program that went 2-16 in the CWAC two years ago and upped that to 8-10 last season.

“It’s all new for the kids and new for the program,” said Mesplie, who’s in his fifth season at Top-Hi. “We periodically talk about how to handle it. Be humble, work hard and focus on getting better — that’s what we keep telling them.”

With eight seniors, Toppenish hasn’t lost since Dec. 10 and that was no shame, falling 69-59 to 12-1 West Valley of Spokane. The team has avenged an early league loss to Ellensburg and beaten Grandview in the regular season for the first time in 15 years.

“Having our core back from last year helped us a lot with how cohesive we’ve been,” the coach said. “We’ve been able to mix things up, keep teams guessing and handle the pressure so far.”

The Wildcats do handle pressure because the average winning margin during their win streak is just 11 points. They gritted out five-point wins at Wapato and at home against Grandview.

Mesplie knows the minefields are many heading down the stretch, like a visit to Grandview on Feb. 3. But being the lead dog after 10 of 18 games has Top-Hi thinking about its first conference title in 25 years.

“There’s a long way to go,” Mesplie said, “but it’s been nice to see the kids respond this way.”

Burns done until fall

West Valley’s multi-talented Lindsay Burns, the state’s fastest 400-meter runner last track season and one of the nation’s best defenders in soccer, will have to do something she’s completely unaccustomed to athletically.

Nothing.

Suffering a torn ACL in a basketball game last week, Burns, a junior, will undergo surgery next week and will miss the entire track season.

The good news for Burns is that, after six months of rehab, she’s expecting to be ready for her senior soccer season. A three-time first-team CBBN defender, Burns has already accepted a soccer scholarship offer from Baylor.

Burns is also a premier track athlete, having run the 400 in 55.74 seconds and long jumped over 18 feet as a freshman and sophomore. She also received second-team and all-defense honors in basketball as a sophomore.

But how many sports she does as a senior is now uncertain.

“My goal is to play soccer in the fall when I am healthy,” she said. “I’m waiting to make a decision about the other sports for next year. I want to continue to play for West Valley, but I don’t want to jeopardize my recovery and my soccer scholarship.”

Beetchenow inducted

George Beetchenow, who coached at Moxee, Davis and Eisenhower spanning four decades from the 1950s to 80s, was inducted into the Washington State Track and Field Coaches Association’s Hall of Fame on Jan. 14 in Everett.

Beetchenow was a throws specialist and he coached the state’s first 60-foot shot putter — Moxee’s Bill Buchanan, who in 1957 won the state title with a still-standing Valley record of 60-7.

Beetchenow also coached the still-standing school-record holders in the discus at Eisenhower (Mike Garrison, 173-4) and Davis (Dan Oaks, 167-1).

NORDSTROM ALSO HONORED: In addition to the Hall of Fame inductions, the WSTFCA also announced coach of the year awards for 2011 and West Valley’s Jamie Nordstrom received the boys honor. Nordstrom will enter his 13th season as West Valley’s boys and girls track coach this spring.

Benner’s charity work

When Justine Benner sank 19 of 22 free throws in a SCAC West game on Jan. 6, it made me wonder if lightning struck or she’s just that good at the foul line.

Turns out she had night’s like that before, hitting 9 of 10 against Goldendale and 7 of 8 against Riverside Christian. For the season, coach Janell Coons reports that Benner is 83 of 120 — which means she’s getting to the line more than nine times a game.

Benner’s SCAC-leading scoring average is 19.0 as she closes in on 1,000 career points (942) and she’s averaging 8.6 rebounds a game.

Postseason arrives

With its bowl-off victory over Wenatchee on Tuesday, Kennewick will host the 4A and 3A-2A district championships on Wednesday at Spare Times Lanes.

The 4A team finalists are Wenatchee, Eisenhower, Chiawana and Moses Lake and they will compete for one state berth. Two individual spots are also available.

Two state berths and four individual spots are up for grabs in the 3A-2A tourney, which includes Kennewick, West Valley, Pasco and Selah.

The state tournament will be held at Narrows Plaza Bowl in Tacoma on Feb. 3-4.

• Scott Spruill can be reached at 577-7686 or sspruill@yakimaherald.com

YAKIMA, Wash. — And the turmoil continues.

With the Columbia Basin Big Nine trying to hold itself together with some creative scheduling and compromise, West Valley decided on Wednesday against opting up this fall to Class 3A and will instead join the Class 2A CWAC.

West Valley’s school board, reversing a previous vote late last year that favored opting up, voted unanimously to accept its status as Class 2A for the two-year enrollment cycle that includes the 2012-13 and 2013-14 school years.

“This has been a long process,” West Valley superintendent Mike Brophy said in a district release. “We believe that the decision made this morning best reflects what will be best for West Valley.”

West Valley was under pressure to make a decision this week because the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association will finalize classification numbers for the new cycle at its Executive Board meeting on Sunday and Monday in Renton.

With an average of 1,036 students in the top three grades, West Valley will be among the three largest 2A schools in the state. Port Angeles will be at the top of the 2A range at 1,069.

West Valley was in the same situation two years ago but the school chose to opt-up to 3A and stay in the 15-team CBBN.

“I imagine some people will be surprised by this, and it does mean a big change,” said West Valley athletic director Joe Coscarart. “There’s been new information just about every week through this, but all along our numbers have been 2A.”

The CWAC will remain a 10-team league with West Valley replacing Quincy, which is dropping to 1A. The multi-class CBBN, however, will drop to 14 schools with an expected split of nine 4A schools and five 3A schools.

While a seven-member CBBN committee is meeting in Yakima next week to explore scheduling formats that could keep the league intact, there remains a possibility it could split into two leagues. Seven Tri-Cities’ schools and Walla Walla have expressed a strong desire to form their own division.

If a North/South split happened in the CBBN or two separate leagues were formed along those lines, West Valley and Sunnyside would have been the only 3A schools in the North. Sunnyside has made it clear it wants to remain closely associated with the 3A schools in the Tri-Cities.

West Valley sensed isolation and uncertainty and that was a big factor in Wednesday’s decision, according to Brophy’s release. That, and joining the CWAC will rekindle relationships with former Mid-Valley League neighbors.

“I think we’re going to see bigger crowds at home, and our fans and kids will be going to places like Selah and East Valley as opposed to the Tri-Cities,” Coscarart noted. “That’s great for rivalries and school spirit.”

Coscarart will attend a regional meeting with the CWAC and Great Northern leagues on Monday in Moses Lake.

The Columbia Basin Big Nine lives on.
The outcome of a superintendents meeting in Yakima on Tuesday to discuss the future of the 15-school conference was to buy more time and make an effort to avoid fracturing into two leagues.
Representatives of the conference’s 10 school districts decided to convene a seven-member committee on Jan. 25 and 26 — again in Yakima — to work on scheduling models that would address geographic issues and keep the CBBN together.
“There was a unanimous desire to remain together as one league,” said Sunnyside superintendent Rick Cole. “Getting together like this, listening to each others needs and understanding the issues better — that’s what we needed.
“The first and most important question was do we want to be in the same league? All 10 districts said yes.”
That sentiment represents efforts coming together rather than splintering in different directions, as was the feeling in the past month.
School districts in the Tri-Cities called for the formation of North and South divisions starting this fall with the WIAA’s next classification cycle. The CBBN currently uses divisions based on enrollment with seven Class 4A schools and eight 3A schools.
Motivated by budget issues and wanting to reduce travel costs, school districts in the South wanted to form a division with seven Tri-Cities’ schools and Walla Walla. CBBN principals held a vote last month and it favored a North-South alignment by an 8-7 count, directly along the regional split.
Schools in the North, which include Eisenhower, Davis, West Valley, Sunnyside, Wenatchee, Eastmont and Moses Lake, protested the move and fought against it. Schools in the Tri-Cities stated publicly they were adamant about the divisional realignment and would secede from the CBBN if necessary.
But Tuesday’s meeting slowed what appeared to be a charge toward separation.
Next week’s committee will include representatives from seven school districts — Yakima, West Valley, Wenatchee, Moses Lake, Kennewick, Richland and Walla Walla — and John Miller and Brian Smith from the WIAA. The committee will include three superintendents, two assistant principals and two athletic directors.
When the committee feels it has a schedule that addresses the issues of travel, long-standing rivalries and student time away from class it will then submit it to the districts for review.
Such a schedule still represents a significant challenge and there’s no guarantee the CBBN won’t ultimately split. But WIAA Executive Director Mike Colbrese, joining Tuesday’s meeting via conference call, told the superintendents that a decision on a league split was not required before the WIAA’s Executive Board meeting on Sunday and Monday.
What is required before that meeting in Renton is West Valley’s decision whether or not to opt up from Class 2A to 3A. West Valley’s school board, which has previously voted for the opt up but withdrew it pending the issues in the CBBN, is meeting this morning.
“I’m very optimistic this can be worked out and the league will have a future together,” Cole said. “In a 15-member league nobody is going to get 100 percent of what they want. But today was an indication that we can stay together and figure this out.”

POWER RANKINGS No. 4, Jan. 16
Next posting: Jan. 23. Send updates and comments to sspruill@yakimaherald.com

106 POUNDS
1, Fidel Medina, Grandview, so.
2, Kyle Anson, Selah, jr.
3, Victor Almaguer, Granger, fr.
4, Jose Cienfuegos, Granger, so.
5, Homer Romero, Sunnyside, so.
Notes: Medina 2nd at Foss, 2nd at Grandview. … Anson 2nd at Westberg. … Almaguer 1st at Reynolds, teammate Cienfuegos 3rd at Reynolds. … Romero 3rd at Westberg.

113 POUNDS
1, Wyatt Scribner, Ellensburg, so.
2, Jesse Barajas, Sunnyside, so.
3, Ricky Almaguer, Granger, so.
4, Sergio Morales, Toppenish, so.
5, Juan Lopez, Davis, jr.
Notes: Scribner 2nd at Westberg (p. Mitchell, Barajas). … Barajas 3rd at Westberg. … Almaguer 3rd at Reynolds. … Morales 1st Wapato. … Lopez 5th at CK Matman.

120 POUNDS
1, Joshua Salcedo, Granger, jr.
2, Juan Diaz, Zillah, sr.
3, Andres Tereza, Highland, jr.
4, Santos Guerrero, Sunnyside, jr.
5, Carlos Hernandez, Toppenish, jr.
Notes: Unbeaten Salcedo (26-0) 1st at Reynolds. … Diaz 1st at Wapato (d. Hernandez 4-3 in final). … Tereza 1st at Naches Ranger. … Guerrero 3rd at Westberg. … Hernandez 2nd at Wapato.

126 POUNDS
1, Nathan Gonzalez, Sunnyside, sr.
2, David Castaneda, Grandview, so.
3, Adrian Guererro, Granger, jr.
4, Dillon Dompier, Ellensburg, jr.
5, Vicente Mireles, Mabton, jr.
Notes: Gonzalez 1st at Westberg (d. Dompier 10-1 in final). … Castaneda 1st at Foss, 1st at Grandview (d. Mireles 3-2 in final). … Guerrero 1st at Reynolds. … Dompier 2nd at Westberg, 3rd at Ed-Woodway. … Mireles 2nd at Grandview.

132 POUNDS
1, Logan Merkle, East Valley, so.
2, Jessy Gonzales, Zillah, jr.
3, Christian Ruiz, Sunnyside, jr.
4, Marco Gonzales, Eisenhower.
5, Jon Cruz, Selah, sr.
Notes: Merkle 2nd at Westberg, 1st at Naches Ranger. … Gonzales 1st at Wapato, d. Tereza 6-4 (OT) in SCAC dual at 132. … Gonzales d. Cruz 3-2 in Westberg 3rd-5th match.

138 POUNDS
1, Aaron Arredondo, Toppenish, sr.
2, Cortez Hernandez, Zillah, jr.
3, Isaac Guerrero, Sunnyside, sr.
4, Kody Ergeson, Selah, jr.
5, Blake Haberman, Ellensburg, sr.
Notes: Arredondo 1st at Wapato (d. C. Hernandez 4-2 in final). … Guerrero 1st at Westberg (d. Haberman 1-0 in semis). … Ergeson 3rd at Westberg. … Haberman 3rd at Westberg, 1st at Ed-Woodway.

145 POUNDS
1, Preston Baich, West Valley, sr.
2, Kamal Qteishat, Ellensburg, sr.
3, Michael Ramsey, Naches Valley, sr.
4, Sergio Sanchez, Zillah, sr.
5, Abel Morales, Granger, jr.
Notes: Baich 1st at Foss (MVP of lower-half weights), 1st at Grandview. … Qteishat 1st at Westberg, 1st at Ed-Woodway at 152. … Ramsey 3rd at Royal, 1st at Naches Ranger, d. Sanchez and Morales in duals. … Sanchez 1st at Wapato. … Morales 2nd at Reynolds.

152 POUNDS
1, Austin Wagner, Davis, sr.
2, Roger Andrade, Eisenhower, sr.
3, Shane McMurray, Zillah, jr.
4, David Vidales, Sunnyside, sr.
5, Emilio Mireles, Mabton, sr.
Notes: Wagner 2nd at CK Matman (lost final 5-4 in OT), 1st at Wapato (p. Andrade in final). … Andrade 3rd at Westberg at 145, 2nd at Wapato (d. McMurray 4-2 in semis). … McMurray 3rd at Wapato. … Vidales 5th at Westberg (d. Wallace 4-2). … Mireles 1st at Grandview (d. Ruiz 11-7 in final).

160 POUNDS
1, Anton Yates, East Valley, jr.
2, Nolin Bare, Goldendale, sr.
3, Jorge Alcala, Davis, sr.
4, Tanner Wallace, Kittitas, sr.
5, Edwin Gudino, Eisenhower, so.
Notes: Yates 1st at Westberg, 1st at Naches Ranger (d. Bare 6-2 in final). … Alcala 3rd at CK Matman, 1st at Wapato (d. Gudino 9-3 in final). … Wallace, back from an ankle injury, went 2-2 at Westberg at 152. …Gudino 2nd at Westberg, 2nd at Wapato.

170 POUNDS
1, Humberto Acevedo, Eisenhower, sr.
2, Braydon Ross, Goldendale, sr.
3, Ricardo Rodriguez, Wapato, jr.
4, Jason Ornelas, Granger, sr.
5, Jim Myers, Zillah, jr.
Notes: Acevedo 2nd at Westberg (lost to Coates), 1st at Wapato. … Ross 1st at Naches Ranger, d. Ornelas 6-3 in dual. … Rodriguez 3rd at Westberg (loss to Coates in semis). … Ornelas 4th at Reynolds. … Myers 2nd at Wapato.

182 POUNDS
1, Tyler Coates, Ellensburg, sr.
2, Zach Goodpaster, Selah, jr.
3, Darion Taylor, West Valley, sr.
4, Perry Simpson, Ellensburg, sr.
5, Daniel Avalos, Sunnyside, so.
Notes: Unbeaten Coates (20-0) 1st at Westberg at 170 (4 pins), 1st at Ed-Woodway. … Goodpaster 2nd at Westberg. … Taylor 3rd at Foss, 1st at Grandview. … Simpson 5th at Westberg.

195 POUNDS
1, Kurt Wilkins, Goldendale, sr.
2, Abidan Duarte, Granger, jr.
3, Miguel Guzman, Sunnyside, sr.
4, Jesus Chavez, Toppenish, jr.
5, Joey Rocha, Selah.
Notes: Wilkins 1st at Naches Ranger, p. Duarte in dual. … Duarte 1st at Reynolds. … Guzman 3rd at Westberg (d. Rocha). … Rocha 5th at Westberg.

220 POUNDS
1, Nate Sorensen, Kittitas, sr.
2, Raul Pech, Toppenish, jr.
3, Corbin Richardson, Ellensburg, jr.
4, Austin Carmen, Sunnyside, so.
5, Robert Koch, West Valley, jr.
Notes: Sorensen 1st at Westberg (d. Carmen 13-1 in semis), 1st at Warden. … Pech 1st at Wapato. … Richardson 2nd at Westberg at 195, 2nd at Ed-Woodway. … Carmen 3rd at Westberg. … Koch 2nd at Foss, 1st at Grandview.

285 POUNDS
1, Josh Aho, Zillah, sr.
2, Justin Wilkins, West Valley, sr.
3, Pedro Recondo, Selah, jr.
4, Jerry Atkins, Zillah, jr.
5, Mario Cervantes, Toppenish, so.
Notes: Aho 1st at Wapato. … Wilkins 2nd at Foss, 3rd at Grandview. … 3-4-5 very jumbled: Recondo 1st at Westberg but pinned by Cervantes in dual, Atkins 2nd at Wapato with semi win over Cervantes.

The Columbia Basin Big Nine Conference is on life support, and if a significant change in conciliatory thinking doesn’t happen next week the plug will get pulled.
The seven schools in the Tri-Cities plus Walla Walla don’t want any part of the CBBN any more — except for non-league scheduling considerations — and apparently are prepared to secede from the 15-team conference. District superintendents from Richland, Kennewick, Pasco and Walla Walla held a conference call with WIAA Executive Director Mike Colbrese on Thursday to discuss exactly that.
So can anything be done to save the league? The ostracized remnants of the CBBN, including Davis, Eisenhower, West Valley and Sunnyside, hope so. But that hope has dwindled to the outcome of a superintendents meeting to discuss the issue in Yakima next Tuesday.
 Athletic directors convened this week for a regularly scheduled meeting and the sense is a split is imminent.
“My feeling is not a positive one,” said Davis athletic director Bob Stanley. “We’re holding out hope the league can come back to the table and work this out, but the sense is the South has made up its mind.”
When CBBN principals voted last month to switch divisions from Class 4A-3A to North-South — a vote that was 8-7 and split exactly along the proposed geographical divisions — the South ignored conference by-laws on two points.
First, any amendment requires a super-majority (12 votes). The North’s appeal on that procedural issue was upheld on Tuesday by the YVIAA.
Second, the by-laws specifically state “there will be no consideration for a North-South geographical division” and call for “an effort to equally balance travel across the league.”
And that’s the crux of the matter: The South wants to reduce its travel costs and doesn’t give a hoot about what the North gets saddled with. In a far-flung league that agreed to work together to share such burdens as transportation and students’ time away from class, one group is throwing the other under the bus.
If there’s to be two separate leagues — a plan that needs to be settled by the WIAA’s Executive Board meeting on Jan. 22-23 — then more issues are in play. Most notably, how many schools would be in the North?
The five 4A schools are Eisenhower, Davis, Wenatchee, Eastmont and Moses Lake. West Valley has held off on declaring its opt-up from 2A to 3A to see what happens with the CBBN, and Sunnyside has been adamant about staying closely tied to the other 3A schools in the Tri-Cities.
Whatever the number of schools, you might ask what the logic is behind the North resisting the South’s power play? The North either agrees to the new divisions or finds itself in a new league with those same castaway schools.
But the uncomfortable fact is — regardless of whether the South intented such a consequence — who wants to feel like a second-class citizen leveraged into a direction you don’t want to go? Either a league works together as a whole, as the CBBN’s original charter dictates, or it’s not a league.
And that’s where we’re headed. Consider what Hanford principal Ken Gosney told the Tri-City Herald this week:
“There’s got to be North-South divisions,” he said. “If (the split) is turned down, I feel the only option is to look at an entirely new league.”