Marchbanks scores 32 in losing cause ||

KENNEWICK, Wash. — It had everything you’d want in a championship game.

There were six lead changes. There were truly spectacular performances, and the game wasn’t decided until the final buzzer.

Yes, Tuesday’s NWAACC women’s title game had it all — except, unfortunately for Yakima Valley, a title itself.

Though the Yaks led Walla Walla by two with 1:14 to play, they succumbed to five last-minute free throws and fell to the Warriors, 75-72, in the Toyota Center.

And how ironic was it that Anna Marchbanks, who had nearly willed YVCC to victory with 32 points and 14 rebounds, was forced to take a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from the corner that missed?

“She’s so good,” said Walla Walla coach Bobbi Hazeltine, who was celebrating her second championship in 11 years with the Warriors and a triumphant end to a 28-1 season.

The loss, which came at YVCC on Jan. 20, was followed by 18 consecutive wins.

“She’s an outstanding player,” Hazeltine continued, regarding Marchbanks. “But we have some girls who played pretty well, too.”

Especially Kati Isham (pronounced EYE-sham).

Already a two-time Eastern Region most valuable player, the 5-foot-8 sophomore transfer from the Air Force Academy scored 15 of her 20 points in the second half and afterward was named the tournament’s MVP.

And her nothing-but-net, score-tying 3-point shot with 2:18 to play was described by both Hazeltine and Yakima Valley coach Cody Butler as the game’s biggest.

“Huge, probably the turning point of the game,” said a clearly disappointed Butler. “We tried to deny her the ball as much as we could, but she made some tough shots. So did their team. They just made big plays and big shots.”

As did the Yaks, who were down 55-45 with 11:07 to play.

But with the relentless, 5-11 Marchbanks and cat-quick point guard Rosetta Adzasu scoring 17 of YVCC’s final 22 points, Yakima Valley (24-6, with three losses coming to Walla Walla) gave itself a chance to win the school’s first women’s title since 1991.

Adzasu’s 3-pointer, on an assist from Lacie French, put the Yaks ahead 66-65 with 5:24 to play. And after French converted inside off a pass from Kate Urquhart and Marchbanks struck from the lane with the help of an Adzasu dish, YVCC led 70-67.

But Isham’s 3-ball, from left of the key, followed.

“She earned that,” Hazeltine said. “She made a really hard cut off a screen to get open, and then knocked the shot down.”

Marchbanks was called for a charge on the ensuing possession, and Isham, fouled at 0:59.7, made one of two free throws to put Walla Walla ahead 71-70.

After an Adzasu miss, the Warriors’ Jamie Berghammer was fouled while rebounding and, in the double bonus, made both at 0:34. Jocelyn Jones’ errant 3-pointer then went out of bounds off Marchbanks, and Walla Walla’s Layne Tucker was fouled with 10.9 seconds left. She made both.

“What we wanted to do on the last play was get a three for Nicole (DeRosier) or Lacie (who had hit two in the first half),” Butler said. “We were supposed to skip the ball to Nicole but didn’t, and I’m not sure why.”

Isham, bound for Boise State, also had a team-high eight rebounds and two assists despite the unremitting defense of Adzasu, who totaled seven assists and two steals.

Nancy Johnson also had 20 points for the Warriors, with 14 coming in a first half that saw WW lead 33-29.

Of Walla Walla’s 21-for-27 totals from the foul line compared with the Yaks’ 8 for 12, Hazeltine said, “Yakima plays very aggressively, and that’s how they win. But also when you play that way, you sacrifice fouls for steals, and they foul. We knew they would, and we knew we’d have to make free throws.”

Said Butler, “We had a great season. We won another Eastern Region championship (shared with the Warriors), we made it to the NWAACC title game and most of our sophomores are going on to play at four-year schools. So we can be proud of that.”

Marchbanks and Adzasu, who transferred from Central Arizona, have both received multiple NCAA Division I offers, Butler said, but neither has decided which to accept.

Through four tournament games, Marchbanks averaged 25 points and 12 rebounds.

WALLA WALLA — Tucker 2-5 3-4 8, Kati Isham 7-15 5-6 20, Nancy Johnson 8-11 4-4 20, Hutcheson 1-4 1-3 3, Berghammer 2-4 5-6 9, Dreadfulwater 3-6 0-0 6, Wolff 1-1 0-0 2, S. Isham 0-1 1-2 1, VanderEsch 1-2 0-0 2, Silverthorn 1-4 2-2 4. Totals 26-53 21-27 75.

YAKIMA VALLEY — Anna Marchbanks 14-21 4-6 32, Rosetta Adzasu 10-23 1-2 22, DeRosier 2-7 0-0 5, Urquhart 0-4 2-2 2, Fenumiai 1-2 0-0 2, Jones 0-1 0-0 0, French 3-6 1-2 9, Hull 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 30-65 8-12 72.

Halftime — WWCC 33, YVCC 29. 3-point goals — WWCC 2-7 (S. Isham 0-1, Tucker 1-2, K. Isham 1-3, Silverthorn 0-1); YVCC 4-24 (French 2-4, Marchbanks 0-4, Adzasu 1-8, DeRosier 1-6, Hull 0-1, Fenumiai 0-1). Fouled out — None. Rebounds — WWCC 40 (K. Isham 8); YVCC 27 (Marchbanks 14). Assists — WWCC 14 (Tucker 4); YVCC 12 (Adzasu 7). Turnovers — WWCC 18, YVCC 11. Total fouls — WWCC 12, YVCC 22.

KENNEWICK, Wash. — Unlike last year, when Yakima Valley’s men bounced back from a tough semifinal loss in the NWAACC Tournament to finish third, the Yaks on Tuesday suffered yet another narrow defeat.

After Ryan Dornik’s two free throws with 14.8 seconds left put the Yaks in overtime, YVCC committed some untimely turnovers in the extra session and fell to Tacoma, 81-79 in the Toyota Center.

The defeat left Yakima Valley 17-13 and sixth in the tournament. Third-place Tacoma, which came into the tourney ranked second, finished 25-4.

Freshman guard Jordan Kidd, who capped a stellar tournament performance with a game-high 23 points, scored the first basket of overtime but fouled out with 1:36 left.

After the Titans snapped a 74-74 tie by scoring four of the next six points to take the lead, they left YVCC with a chance when Royal Tee Lexing missed two free throws with 12.7 seconds left. Caden Skelton’s deep 3-pointer missed, however, just prior to the buzzer.

“It’s always disappointing when you lose your last game,” Yaks coach Ray Funk said, “but it’s especially disappointing when you lose your last two by two points each.”

Yakima Valley had lost a Monday semifinal to Lower Columbia 72-70.

Terrell Evans came off the bench to score 20 points for the Yaks while Willie Blodgett had 12 and Dornik 11. Chris Holmes led Tacoma with 15 points and 13 boards.

“When you consider where we were at different stages of the season,” Funk said, “sixth in the NWAACC isn’t all bad. And we have some solid guys to build around next year.”

YAKIMA VALLEY — Willie Blodgett 4-8 2-2 12, Da. Wilson 0-4 0-0 0, Jordan Kidd 9-18 5-7 23, Ryan Dornik 3-13 4-4 11, Kirvin 3-5 1-4 7, Skelton 0-2 1-2 1, May 0-1 0-0 0, De. Wilson 2-4 0-2 5, Terrell Evans 9-14 2-2 20, Brown 0-1 0-0 0, January 0-4 0-0 0, Gream 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 30-74 15-23 79.
TACOMA — Enriquez 4-12 1-4 9, Royal Tee Lexing 3-6 5-8 14, Chris Holmes 5-11 5-5 15, Rasmussen 1-2 0-0 3, Darius Walker 3-8 9-12 15, Coby 3-5 0-0 7, Johnson 1-4 0-0 2, Hill 0-1 0-0 0,  Wilson 1-3 2-2 4, Derick Davis 5-13 2-5 12. Totals 26-65 24-36 81.
Halftime — YVCC 36, TCC 30. Regulation — YVCC 70, TCC 70. 3-point goals — YVCC 4-15 (Skelton 0-1, May 0-1, Blodgett 2-5, De. Wilson 1-2, Evans 0-1, Dornik 1-5); TCC 5-11 (Enriquez 0-1, Lexing 3-4, Coby 1-3, Wilson 0-1, Rasmussen 1-2). Fouled out — Kidd, Davis. Rebounds — YVCC 50 (Kirvin 10); TCC 42 (Holmes 13). Assists — YVCC 14 (Kidd 4); TCC 18 (Johnson 4). Turnovers — YVCC 20, TCC 14. Total fouls — YVCC 22, TCC 14.

Greyhounds, Wolves shooting for more long-range success ||

YAKIMA, Wash. — If Wapato and Grandview continue their recent ways, the SunDome could be a shooting gallery this week.

In their two CWAC postseason victories, which resulted in the program’s first district title in 33 years, Wapato fired in 26 shots from 3-point distance.

It was the last one — Jacoby Howe’s halfcourt heave at the buzzer — that lifted the Wolves to a stunning 78-76 title victory over second-ranked Ephrata and made Adam Strom’s crew a scary team to face in the Class 2A state tournament, which opens today.

Grandview has been on a similar tear, casting in 21 treys in loser-out wins over East Valley and Selah to claim the third state berth.

Wapato’s Rigo Alvarado, right, and the Wolves won the CWAC district tournament last weekend and are back in the state tournament. (Andy Sawyer/Yakima Herald-Republic file)

They will play in back-to-back openers today — Grandview (16-8) facing Fife (20-3) at 10:30 a.m. and Wapato (17-5) taking on Deer Park (15-7) at 12:30 p.m.

It may not be quite as necessary for Wapato to hoist that many outside shots since coach Adam Strom expects to have senior forward Matt Guevara back on the floor — to one degree or another — after sitting out the Ephrata game.

Guevara was averaging 18 points a game when he suffered a knee injury on Jan. 30. He came back for the district semifinal against Selah and tweaked the knee again.

“He woke up the next morning and the knee felt fine, not sore at all,” Strom said. “He’s ready to go. Matt’s a smart player and knows what he can and can’t do. He can overcome the injury with his mental game.”

That the Wolves are in this position at all is impressive, having graduated seven seniors and scoring star Willie Blodgett from last year’s state-qualifying team. The transition was obvious when Wapato started this season 3-3.

“Those early losses helped us break things down, figure out what to fix and move on,” Strom said. “We needed more role players than actual scorers, and early on we were playing 12, 13 kids. Once the roles were established things really came together.”

After the 3-3 start, Wapato put together an 11-game win streak and head to state having won 14 of its last 16. Strom has seen several players step up their offense during Guevara’s absence, most notably senior guard Rigo Alvarado, who averaged 15.0 before the injury and 19.7 after it.

Grandview’s Christian Schrank (21) was an all-CWAC selection this season. (Andy Sawyer/Yakima Herald-Republic file)

And beating second-ranked Ephrata twice — once without Guevara — proves the Wolves can play with anybody.

“We had our state berth and didn’t play Matt, but we told the kids Saturday to play for pride and play for the community,” Strom said about the district final. “It was a huge boost for the team. These kids have poise and confidence, and now momentum.”

Same goes for Grandview, which recovered from a rough patch in midseason to win nine of its last 11 with no shame in the two losses — both were to Ephrata.

“We’ve overcome some things and kept on fighting,” said coach Roy Garcia, whose team lost five of seven after a 5-1 start. “Physically we’ve been there, but mentally took some time with so many younger kids coming up. We changed our approach a little and let these kids play to their strengths.”

One of which is clearly shooting. In the two loser-out district games, the Greyhounds put up 87 and 80 points and shot 53 percent over eight quarters.

Six different players contributed to the 21 deep baskets, and junior Daniel Nielsen led the way with 10-for-16 accuracy from behind the arc.

“This week is just a bonus,” Garcia said. “We’ll be prepared and we definitely want to win. But we’ll have fun, too. The kids deserve this.”

YAKIMA, Wash. — When Squalicum’s boys walked off the SunDome floor a year ago with the Class 2A state championship trophy, everybody wondered the same thing.

What’s to stop them next year?

The Storm from Bellingham won its four state games by an average of 21 points and had just one senior on the roster.

Get ready for title two.

But wait, not so fast. Squalicum was dealt a major blow when state-tournament MVP Keith Stackhouse had two shoulder surgeries late last year, his entire senior season apparently lost. And the Storm looked vulnerable at times, edging 1A foes Nooksack Valley (64-60) and Meridian (68-66) and needing a last-second shot to beat Burlington-Edison 66-64 in February.

All of that, it appears now, was simply wishful thinking.

Not only has Stackhouse reappeared for the postseason, but the Storm geared up for its return to Yakima with a 92-65 trouncing of third-ranked Burlington-Edison in Saturday’s district final.

Derek Dickerson scored a career-high 32 points, Stackhouse contributed 16 points in just his third game back and the Storm poured in 16 shots from 3-point distance in the rematch of last year’s state final.

“Burlington is a very good team so for us to win by that much shows how well we played,” said Squalicum coach David Dickson. “We shot well, shared the ball, defended well — it was as good as we’ve played all season.”

So, intended or not, there’s your message, folks. Squalicum is ready to defend.

Not that there aren’t some major obstacles standing in the way of the Storm becoming the first back-to-back 2A state champion since Luke Ridnour’s Blaine teams did it in 1999 and 2000.

Ephrata, a possible semifinal opponent for Squalicum, is 20-2 with the return of WSU-bound Patrick Simon, who led the Tigers to the 2008 state title and then missed all of last season with a foot injury.

There’s also the possibly of a championship rematch with Burlington-Edison, which is 19-4 with two losses to 3A teams and two to Squalicum. But Saturday’s district score raises some questions about how competitive that rematch would be.

The primary difference between the Storm’s two-point thriller over B-E and the 27-point rout just 18 days later may well have been the return of Stackhouse.

“It’s just been a blessing and a bonus,” Dickson said. “We didn’t expect him back, but a month ago he came to me and said he thought he could do it. It’s been a challenge for him to get back in at this time of season, but Keith has done a nice job of contributing in ways that have allowed the team to stay in a flow.”

Stackhouse had 12 assists in his first two games, then picked up his offense in the district final with 16 points in Squalicum’s 92-point outburst.

With Stackhouse back, the Storm won district games by 46, 23 and 27 points.

“Keith found ways to help us defensively right away,” the coach added. “That’s been a focus of ours. In order to be as good as we can be, our defense needs to catch up to our offense and it’s getting there. That’s one of the big reasons we played so well Saturday and throughout district.”

History sure looks to be on the side of local girls teams ||

YAKIMA, Wash. — When applying bracketology principals to the Class 2A state girls basketball tournament this week, there’s one thing the last three years strongly suggests.

All three teams from the CWAC will trophy.

That, of course, is good news for Prosser, East Valley and Ellensburg, which open play today in the SunDome in a quest to keep that conference tradition alive.

CWAC player of the year Tamara Jones, shown here in a state game last year, leads Prosser into today’s first-round game against Kingston. (Sara Gettys/Yakima Herald-Republic)

All three have enjoyed impressive streaks, sometimes at each other’s expense. Prosser is currently on an 11-game run, East Valley reeled off 16 straight wins in midseason and Ellensburg started 8-0 — and all three are ranked in the top 10, a sign of the respect the CWAC is accorded.

For the second year in a row, Prosser (19-3) is the district champion coming in full steam. That’s not a shocker since the Mustangs had only one senior starter — albeit a very good one in Lacie French — on last year’s 23-3 squad that placed sixth.

That team was 19-0 before its first loss, and coach Mark Little thinks that was a steadily increasing weight that he’s relieved this team won’t carry.

“It’s hard in one respect because I think you become a little complacent, and that makes it harder to concentrate on some important things,” he said. “With Lacie gone, this team had some hard work to do and we lost a couple early games. But they’ve kept working hard and gotten a lot better.”

Tamara Jones, the CWAC’s MVP and a 1,000-point career scorer already as a junior, will be the Mustangs’ mainstay for a third straight state tournament. Kelli Wilson, Tayshia Hunt and Helen Petersen are also returning state starters, and Rachel Anderson has been the team’s most improved player.

“I’ve couldn’t be happier with how this team has grown together,” Little said. “We’ve got a nice run going, and we had a tough (overtime) win over East Valley on Saturday — just the kind of game you want heading into state.”

Prosser’s state draw is much the same as last year. The Mustangs are in the same time slot today — 5:30 p.m. — with a possible quarterfinal rematch with Elma.

For East Valley (18-4), the main goal this season was getting back to state. After 10 straight years of qualifying, the Red Devils narrowly missed out in 2008 and ‘09.

Andrea Bland, right, and her Ellensburg teammates meet Archbishop Murphy in today’s first round. (Sara Gettys/Yakima Herald-Republic file)

With Central-signee Annie Martinez anchoring the inside and all-league guards Kaylah Gonzales and Mary Orthmann scoring and defending, Robi Raab’s crew got the job done.

“Absolutely, getting to state is a big deal for us,” Raab said. “Looking at what other teams had back, and with us losing a very good player (Kaitlyn Walker) early to injury, I’m very proud of what this team has done.”

Almost immediately, East Valley found its identity on defense, which keyed the 16-game win streak after a season-opening loss to Granger.

“When we held a good West Valley team to 25 points (in the third game), the kids said, ‘OK, we can be a good defensive team,’” the coach added. “It gave our offense time to come around, and we’re still averaging 37 points on defense. I like our defense heading into state.”

The Red Devils have a formidable opener today at 10:30 a.m. against Pullman, which placed eighth last year and have  Gonzaga-commit Shelby Cheslek, 6-foot-5 junior.

Ellensburg (18-6) finished third in conference and held that position in district play for the final state berth, winning two loser-out games over Ephrata and Wapato.

East Valley’s Annie Martinez and the Red Devils open state play this morning against Pullman at 10:30. (Gordon King/Yakima Herald-Republic file)

These Bulldogs have carried on the strong survivors’ instinct so ingrained in Craig Faire’s program, which has now produced eight consecutive state-qualifying teams. Several of those teams went to state with the No. 3 seed and made all kinds of trouble at state, like last year when Ellensburg knocked off Black Hills, one of the tournament favorites, in the first round.

“One of the things that helps us is we’ve been here before, and the kids know how to battle. I can’t say enough about that,” Faire said. “When we started this run these kids were in what, fourth grade? They expect it and have the confidence and experience to get it done.”

Two-year CWAC first-teammer Deaira Gordon is the scoring anchor with over 1,000 career points, and all-league sisters Andrea and Shannon Bland combined for 59 points in the two loser-out district games.

The Bulldogs once again drew a tough opener, facing ‘09 state runner-up Archbishop Murphy tonight at 9.

“With our seed we knew it would be a tough draw,” Faire said. “We’ve got work to do. But with what we’ve done at state, we won’t be taken lightly.”

Group of 11th-graders lead unbeaten West Valley ||

YAKIMA, Wash. — Being unbeaten this deep into the season isn’t overly worrisome for Lorin Carlon, coach of Spokane’s West Valley High girls basketball team. It’s just a simple matter of staying loose and focused on the game at hand.

“This bunch really does stay loose and that’s a big help,” said Carlon, whose Eagles bring a 22-0 record to the SunDome for the Class 2A state tournament. “As coaches we use that, and remind them that the most important game is the next game.”

In a tournament as deep and loaded as many can remember in recent years, one would think a 22-0 team filled with juniors might be in for a rude awakening.

With these juniors, think again.

When they were mostly sophomores last year, the Eagles flew into the SunDome under the radar and quickly made a name for themselves with a third-place trophy, losing only to eventual champion Lynden in the semifinals.

Bouncing back from that semi loss, West Valley defeated Prosser 63-49 with all but four points coming from underclassmen.

“Prosser was an excellent team and for our kids to respond like that really carried into this season,” Carlon said.

The Eagles, led by the 6-foot junior tandem of Shanique Nilles and Hannah Love, has three wins over ’09 state placer Pullman, the most recent coming in the district final, 41-35.

“Every Pullman game came down to the last minute and a half,” Carlon noted. “The kids have shown they’re pretty tough in those situations. But there are so many good teams — Archbishop Murphy, River Ridge, Elma — they’re all very capable in my eyes.”

Archbishop Murphy (21-2) started the season with losses to 3A Mercer Island and 4A Kamiak and haven’t dropped one since.

The Wildcats were 26-0 last year before losing the state-title game to Lynden and they graduated three starters. But coach John Barhanovich reloaded with five senior starters, including college-bound Shelby Lyman (Cornell) and Samantha Pettinger (Pacific).

“They’re an experienced group and very unselfish — that’s been the driving force behind our record,” Barhanovich said. “We played extremely well in district and in the final (beating Burlington-Edison 53-43) I’m not sure if we played a better game all season. As a coach you wonder, can we keep that going?”

Trouble is, West Valley and Archbishop Murphy play in the final two games tonight, meaning they could meet in Thursday’s quarterfinals.

Which is good news for River Ridge (22-1), which plays in today’s 9 a.m. opener and resides in the opposite semifinal bracket from the evening heavyweights.

The Hawks, who were 2A state champs in 2007 and ‘08, started 18-0 before taking their lone loss of the season against Chehalis. River Ridge was 0-2 at state last year but returned all five starters under new coach Tom Kelly, who took over after 20 years at White Pass.

The fast-paced Hawks own three wins over Elma (19-4), which placed fourth last year and returns WSU-bound Brandi Thomas.

YAKIMA, Wash. — Central Washington and Western Washington have a long and storied men’s basketball rivalry, but Friday night, they’ll do something they’ve never done before.

Friday’s NCAA Division II West Region quarterfinal game will mark the first time these programs will face each other in a D-II postseason game.

The 7:30 p.m. contest at Sam Carver Gymnasium in Bellingham will mark the 241st meeting between the schools, but the last time they met in the postseason was 1998, when Central defeated the Vikings 88-84 to qualify for the NAIA National Tournament.

The next season, both teams made the jump to D-II.

Central (16-10) will also be trying to end Western’s recent run of dominance in the series. The Wildcats lead the all-time series 151-89, but they have lost nine of the past 12 meetings, and 10 of the past 11 games played in Bellingham.

That includes two losses to the Vikings (25-5) this season — 84-70 on Jan. 23 in Ellensburg, and 90-86 on Feb. 28 in Bellingham.

Friday’s winner will play the winner of the 5:30 p.m. quarterfinal featuring Cal Poly Pomona (22-6) and Dixie State (20-5) in one of Saturday’s semifinals. The region championship is at 7 p.m. Monday.

The other first-round pairings have GNAC champion Seattle Pacific (22-5) facing Pacific West Conference co-champion Brigham Young-Hawaii (20-5) at 12:30 p.m., and California Collegiate Athletic Association foes Cal State San Bernardino (22-7) and Humboldt State (22-7) meeting at 2:30 p.m.

NCAA DIVISION II WEST REGION

Friday’s games

Seattle Pacific (22-5) vs. Brigham Young-Hawaii (20-5), 12:30 p.m.

Cal State San Bernardino (22-7) vs. Humboldt State (22-7), 2:30 p.m.

Cal Poly Pomona (22-6) vs. Dixie State (20-5), 5:30 p.m.

Western Washington (25-5) vs. Central Washington (16-10), 7:30 p.m.

Saturday’s games

Seattle Pacific–BYU-Hawaii winner vs. Cal State San Bernardino-Humboldt State winner, 5 p.m.

Cal Poly Pomona-Dixie State winner vs. Western-Central winner, 7 p.m.

Monday’s game

Regional Championship, semifinal winners, 7 p.m.

YAKIMA, Wash. — Former Ellensburg High standout Sarah McNamee, playing at Montana State Billings, shared GNAC newcomer of the year honors with Alaska Anchorage’s Kelsie Gourdin as part of the all-GNAC women’s basketball team that was announced Tuesday.

Central Washington sophomore Sophie Russell was named honorable mention.

Russell led the Wildcats in scoring with a 13.9 per-game average, and their third-leading rebounder (4.5 per game). She started all 26 games, and led the GNAC in minutes played (34.2).

In other honors, Seattle Pacific’s Daesha Henderson was named player of the year, Northwest Nazarene’s Heather Adams was freshman of the year, and Julie van Beek was coach of the year.

WOMEN’S ALL-GNAC TEAMS

Player of the Year: Daesha Henderson, Seattle Pacific.

Newcomer of the Year: (tie) Kelsie Gourdin, Alaska Anchorage and Sarah McNamee, Montana State Billings.

Freshman of the Year: Heather Adams, Northwest Nazarene

Coach of the Year: Julie van Beek, Seattle Pacific.

First Team

Lindsay Brady, Sr., Northwest Nazarene; Amanda Dunbar, Jr., Western Washington; Daesha Henderson, Sr., Seattle Pacific; Nicci Miller, Sr., Alaska Anchorage; Jessica Summers, Sr., Western Washington; Katie Torland, Sr., Western Oregon.

Second Team

Willow Cabe, Sr., Western Washington; Tamar Gruwell, Sr., Alaska Anchorage; Megan Hoisington, Sr., Seattle Pacific; Kayla Ryan, Jr., Montana State Billings; Dara Zack, Jr., Saint Martin’s.

Honorable Mention

Kelsie Gourdin, Jr., Alaska Anchorage; Kristin Hein, Sr., Northwest Nazarene; Hanna Johansson, So., Alaska Anchorage; Janee Olds, Sr., Northwest Nazarene; Sophie Russell, So., Central Washington.

ELLENSBURG, Wash. — Eisenhower’s Ashlyn Keller is one of seven high school seniors signing letters of intent to play soccer at Central Washington University starting this fall.

The other signees are Cedarcrest’s Kori Butterfield, Tumwater’s Caitlin Calnan, Tahoma’s Tarah Duty and Kaylee Osterman, Montesano’s Rebecca Lane, and Kentwood’s Mackenzie Meyers.

“We have found girls who have either played in systems similar to ours, have played together for a long time, or have ties to Central through their coaches,” coach Michael Farrand said.

Keller, an outside midfielder, was a first team all-Columbia Basin selection this past season when she collected 14 goals and 12 assists.

“I have always liked her desire to compete, Farrand said. “She is fast, tenacious, and will bring added depth and competition to the outside midfielder position.”

KENNEWICK — Nicole DeRosier has a secret.

And she’d like to keep it for the next 24 hours.

The Yakima Valley sophomore, whose second-half marksmanship keyed the Yaks’ 75-64 defeat of Clackamas in an NWAACC semifinal Monday night in the Toyota Center, was asked afterward if she had a favorite location from which to launch her laser-like 3-pointers.

“I can’t tell you that,” she said, smiling, “because then everyone would know.”

For the record, it didn’t seem to matter once DeRosier got going.

Scoring 17 of her 18 points in the second half, the 5-foot-8 guard led fourth-ranked YVCC’s surge into today’s 4:30 p.m. championship game against second-ranked Walla Walla.

Point guard Rosetta Adzasu was her typical mercurial self with 20 points and five assists, and forward-center Anna Marchbanks had a third straight standout game with 17 points, 11 rebounds and six steals.

But DeRosier, hitting five 3-balls and adding a pair of free throws over the final 20 minutes, made the Yaks (24-5) an equation which the third-ranked Cougars (23-5) were unable to solve.

With YVCC leading 26-24 at halftime, DeRosier connected from the top of the key for a 29-24 advantage.

And while Clackamas led 42-40 with 11:46 to play, Yakima Valley took the lead for good in the see-saw affair with an 8-2 run punctuated by an emphatic Marchbanks swat of a Cougar layup attempt.

The Yaks steadily increased their edge until the 1:50 mark, when DeRosier got nothing but net with a 3-ball from the corner.

“She was right in front of me when she took that shot,” coach Cody Butler said. “And I told her, hit that and the game’s over.”

And it was, essentially, since the shot put YVCC up 66-57.

“You can tell the shots are having an effect on the other team,” DeRosier said. “After awhile they were bickering among themselves. That’s when I knew we had them on the run.”

Providing ample help in Yakima Valley’s first title game berth with Butler — the Yaks are making their fourth final four appearance in six years under his tutelage — was 6-2 Highland sophomore Kate Urquhart, who totaled seven points and six rebounds as YVCC amassed a 41-28 advantage on the glass.

“Kate got a lot of really big boards for us,” Butler said. “She was active and real strong in there. Down the stretch she pretty much limited them to one shot.”

Melair Holterhoff and Rylee Peterson, two of the Cougars’ top regular-season threats, scored 15 points each.

Yakima Valley, which shot only 37 percent during the first half, hit at a 58 percent clip over the final 20 minutes.

More of the same will probably be needed to subdue Eastern Region rival Walla Walla (27-1), which one two of three regular-season meetings with the Yaks. The teams shared the region title with 13-1 records.

“They have two of the best players in the NWAACC,” Butler said. “We’ll have to try limit Kati Isham’s touches and keep Nancy Johnson off the boards.

“It feels good to have gotten to this point. But I told the girls to not celebrate too much, because we’ve still got more work to do.”

And a secret for Nicole DeRosier to keep.

CLACKAMAS — Meyer 0-2 0-0 0, Peterson 7-12 1-2 15, St. Paul 2-4 0-0 4, Kapua 4-8 0-0 11, Holterhoff 5-8 3-5 15, Powell 3-8 1-2 8, Filipetti 0-0 2-3 2, Martine 1-3 0-0 3, Ball 3-10 0-0 6. Totals 25-55 7-12 64.
YAKIMA VALLEY — Jones 2-4 2-3 6, French 1-6 0-0 3, Marchbanks 8-14 1-2 17, Adzasu 7-13 5-8 20, DeRosier 5-11 3-4 18, Urquhart 1-3 5-6 7, Hull 0-0 0-0 0, Fenumiai 2-5 0-0 4. Totals 26-56 16-23 75.
Halftime—Yakima Valley 26, Clackamas 24. 3-point goals—Clackamas 7-24 (Kapua 3-5, Holterhoff 2-5, Powell 1-3, Martine 1-3, Mayer 0-1, St. Paul 0-2, Ball 0-2, Peterson 0-3), Yakima Valley 7-16 (DeRosier 5-9, French 1-2, Adzasu 1-4, Marchbanks 0-1). Fouled out—Peterson. Rebounds—Clackamas 28 (Peterson 7), Yakima Valley 41 (Marchbanks 11). Assists—Clackamas 14 (Ball 5), Yakima Valley 12 (Adzasu 5). Total fouls—Clackamas 18, Yakima Valley 17. Turnovers—Clackamas 23, Yakima Valley 24.

KENNEWICK — During the second half of Yakima Valley’s NWAACC Tournament semifinal with Lower Columbia on Monday night, Red Devils coach Jim Roffler shouted, “Marcus — stay home!”

Though the coach wanted Marcus Bell to stay near the basket on defense, YVCC’s Yaks no doubt wished the instructions regarding the Red Devils’ 6-foot-7 freshman center had been literal.

Because while Yakima Valley had found an answer to nearly everything third-ranked LCC had done en route to an early 17-point lead, it did not find one for Bell in a 72-70 loss in the Toyota Center.

“What happened,” said YVCC coach Ray Funk, “was we dug ourselves such a big hole early (the Yaks trailed 20-3 with 13:12 left in the first half) that we had to go to a smaller lineup.

“We were able to handle their other guys. But we weren’t able to handle him.”

Bell, the NWAACC’s regular-season rebounding leader at 12.8 per game while also scoring 15.7, totaled 24 points and 12 boards on this occasion.

His relentless inside play dropped Yakima Valley (17-12), playing in its third straight final four, into a 2 p.m. game today with Tacoma (24-4) for third and sixth places.

YVCC, which won the title in 2008, was third last year.

In spite of Bell’s heroics, and 36 LCC free throws of which the third-ranked Devils (25-3) made 22, the Yaks had a shot at victory.

Down 72-66 with 34.6 seconds to play, Yakima Valley got two free throws from Damar Wilson and a putback by Derrick January to make it 72-70 with 7.5 seconds left.

LCC’s Kekoa Carvalho missed two foul shots with 5.2 to go, and after a timeout YVCC’s Caden Skelton hustled the ball into frontcourt and handed off to Willie Blodgett for a deep and hurried three that was well short at the buzzer.

Jordan Kidd led the Yaks with 18 points while Ryan Dornik had 15 and January came off the bench for 13.

Guard Jeray Key backed Bell with 19 points and eight boards.

“We would have liked a different outcome,” Funk said, “but I’m really proud of the way our guys battled. Coach Roffler said afterward he was really impressed with how hard our team played, especially after getting down that much early. So we’ll just try to come back tomorrow and win one more.”

YAKIMA VALLEY — Skelton 3-7 1-2 8, Blodgett 0-5 0-0 0, De. Wilson 0-5 0-0 0, Da. Wilson 1-8 4-4 6, Evans 2-6 0-2 4, Kidd 3-5 10-14 18, Brown 1-1 0-0 2, Dornik 6-13 1-1 15, January 5-14 3-5 13, Kirvin 2-2 0-0 4. Totals 23-66 19-28 70.
LOWER COLUMBIA — Hoff 0-1 0-0 0, Key 5-19 8-11 19, Burgoyne 3-9 0-0 8, Ritchie 1-4 1-4 4, DeGraaff 0-0 0-0 0, Stores 3-5 4-6 10, Bell 10-16 4-8 24, Carvalho 1-5 4-5 6, Moreland 0-1 1-2 1. Totals 23-60 22-36 72.
Halftime—Lower Columbia 32, Yakima Valley 26. 3-point goals—Yakima Valley 5-25 (Kidd 2-4, Dornik 2-8, Skelton 1-3, January 0-2, Blodgett 0-4, De. Wilson 0-4), Lower Columbia 4-15 (Burgoyne 2-6, Ritchie 1-4, Key 1-5). Fouled out—Da. Wilson, Kidd, Stores. Rebounds—Yakima Valley 46 (January 9), Lower Columbia 45 (Bell 12). Assists—Yakima Valley 5, Lower Columbia 13 (Stores 6). Total fouls—Yakima Valley 27, Lower Columbia 19. Turnovers—Yakima Valley 16, Lower Columbia 13.

Junior guard JC Cook was named the newcomer of the year and joined two Central Washington University teammates on the Great Northwest Athletic Conference’s men’s basketball all-conference team announced Monday.

Cook averaged 14.7 points during the regular season, ranked ninth in conference scoring and eighth in 3-pointers with a team-high 50.

Cook was also named to the all-conference second team along with Central’s junior center Chris Sprinker. Senior point guard Jon Clift earned honorable mention.

The Wildcats begin play in the NCAA Division II West Region tournament on Friday in Bellingham against an opponent to be announced.

Seattle Pacific’s Chris Banchero was named the GNAC’s player of the year.

Player of the Year: Chris Banchero, Jr., Seattle Pacific.

Newcomer of the Year: JC Cook, Jr., Central Washington.

Freshman of the Year: Tarance Glynn, Western Oregon

Coach of the Year: Ryan Looney, Seattle Pacific

First team

Morris Anderson, Sr., Western Washington; Chris Banchero, Jr., Seattle Pacific; Brandon Larrieu, Sr., Seattle Pacific; Blake Poole, Jr., Saint Martin’s; Brandon Walker, Jr., Alaska Anchorage; Derrick Webb, Sr., Western Washington.

Second team

DeAndre Chambers, Jr., Montana State Billings; JC Cook, Jr., Central Washington; Drew Eisinger, Jr., Northwest Nazarene; Chris Sprinker, Jr., Central Washington; Blair Wheadon, So., Western Oregon; Derrick Wright, Sr., Montana State Billings.

Honorable mention

Zach Bruce, Sr., Western Washington; Jon Clift, Sr., Central Washington; Rob Diederichs, Sr., Seattle Pacific; DaVell Jackson, Sr., Montana State Billings; Emmanuel Jenkins, Sr., Alaska Fairbanks; Nashorn Maynard, Jr., Alaska Fairbanks; Rico Myles, Sr., Western Oregon; Casey Robinson, Jr., Alaska Anchorage.

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PREP GOLF

Rams 2nd at Pasco Invite

PASCO — West Valley’s Eric Gravbrot was second on a tiebreaker and led the Rams to a runner-up finish in the Pasco Invitational at Sun Willows Golf Course.

Gravbrot shot 69 for a first-place tie with Walla Walla’s Drew Reinland, who won medalist honors on a second-hole tiebreaker.

Southridge clipped West Valley by a stroke, 312-313, for the team title.

Team scores: Southridge 312, Kamiakin 313, West Valley 313, Hanford 318, Richland 324, Othello 324, Mt. Spokane 326, Walla Walla 331, Eastmont 335, Wenatchee 345, Moses Lake 351, Ferris 359, Kennewick 362, Chiawana 373, East Valley 376, Eisenhower 391.

West Valley scores: Eric Gravbrot 69, Kameron Lamb 78, Steven Snipes 82, Matt Mickelson 84, Jerrod Daily 86.

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GOLF

Woodard scores ace

Nic Woodard recorded a hole-in-one on the sixth hole at the Yakima Country Club on Sunday.

Woodard used an 8-iron on the 168-yard hole. Barry Woodard, Randy LaRiviere and Cody LaRiviere witnessed the shot.

Until her 36th year, Susan Ershler had never climbed anything more rigorous than a flight of stairs. Now she has climbed to the top of the world.

Phil and Susan Ershler enjoy the view from atop Mount Everest, the last of the couple’s “Seven Summits” ascents that they will reprise in a fundraising event Friday for Central Washington Mountain Rescue. The event begins at 7 p.m. at Hanford High School. (Courtesy photo)

Although she was physically fit, outdoors to Susan in those days was basically where her car lived.

“I had three brothers in Boy Scouts. They did a lot of hiking and stuff,” she says. “But it just wasn’t on my radar.”

Neither was Mount Rainier.

Nor, certainly, were peaks much more daunting like McKinley in Alaska, Aconcagua in the Andes or Mount Everest in Nepal.

The woman who had never been a climber has reached the summit of the tallest mountains on each of the seven continents, always alongside her husband, renowned expedition guide Phil Ershler, one of the directors of International Mountain Guides.

And, surprisingly, the driving force was not the guy with four decades as a mountain guide, the guy who will do a photographic presentation of the experience — and that career spent at high altitude — at 7 p.m. Friday at Hanford High School as a fundraiser for Central Washington Mountain Rescue.

Not even close.

“She had to do some convincing of me. It wasn’t the other way around,” says Phil, 58. “Make no mistake: Everest was not my idea.”

No, it came from the drive and vision of the woman who, that first year they met, spent some time thinking Phil might be dead.

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That was in 1992. It was the deadliest year on record upon Mount McKinley, with treacherous storms and accidents taking the lives of 11 climbers.

Earlier that year, Susan had met Phil on a blind date. They were already smitten when, that summer, he headed off to guide some clients up McKinley.

“I remember opening the paper, and people were dying like crazy,” recalls Susan, 53. “Phil always told me, ‘Don’t ever expect a call when I’m on a climb, because if you get a call, it’s gonna be bad news.’ That helped, because the worst thing would be expecting a call every day or any time and then not getting it.”

Phil’s reasoning was simply to keep her from sitting and waiting by the phone. If something bad happened, she was sure to find out anyway.

“Nobody’s busting their tail to get good news out,” he says. “Bad news, on the other hand, travels at the speed of light.”

The media reported the death on McKinley of an unidentified but well-known mountain guide, an American who was 40 years old — an apt description of Phil Ershler.

“Well, it wasn’t him,” Susan says. “But I didn’t get a call.”

Phil and Susan Ershler were the first husband and wife tandem to climb the Seven Summits. They will speak Friday in Hanford. (Courtesy photo)

“He really made an effort to make it as comfortable as he could for me, and he also made it exciting and fun,” Susan recalls. “He helped me a lot when I wasn’t feeling well. For us, what was so exciting was you get to the top and you’re there with somebody you love.”

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Two months later, they traveled to Africa and ascended Mount Kilimanjaro — not a particularly technical climb but, at 19,340 feet, certainly a trip into thin air. The next year, they climbed Europe’s highest peak (Elbrus, in Russia), and in 1995 they reached the top of McKinley.

Major peaks all. Susan Ershler, the erstwhile non-climber, was finding out things about herself — like, for example, that heights and exposure on mountain faces did not faze her.

“I have climbed with people who have a fear of heights and, boy, it’s just uncontrollable, and I admire what they’re doing because it must be very, very difficult,” she says. “But I really don’t have that fear at all, and my balance is pretty good. I was in gymnastics when I was growing up, and that’s helpful because in the mountains you sometimes have to cross crevasses on ladders.”

By the time they climbed Aconcagua, South America’s highest peak, in 1996, Susan had already decided she wanted to do the Seven Summits with her husband.

Phil, the one who had to be convinced, couldn’t come up with any reasons why she shouldn’t.

“Even the first trip, Kilimanjaro — the first summit, her first trip out of the country on any kind of climbing trip, and certainly her first trip to altitude — to see that she dealt with all of that well was a real A-HA moment for me,” he says. “I knew then: I can take Susan high, she can handle altitude, she’s comfortable with people of different cultures, and that was that first door opening.

“Both the McKinley and Aconcagua trips, again, were great reinforcers to me of her abilities at altitude … that she could persevere, could deal with storms, she could sit and wait in the tents. She had the patience and stick-to-it-iveness that make expeditionary climbs work.”

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Having crested the top peaks in Antarctica in 1998 and in Australia in 1999, Everest was all that remained.

Phil’s health issues — a bout with colon cancer, an operation and then post-surgical complications — kept the Ershlers from a planned attempt at climbing the world’s tallest peak in 2000. They tried in 2001 and got as high as 27,600 feet — within 1,335 vertical feet of the summit — before they were turned back by something Susan had never heard of and Phil had never believed.

His eyes froze.

“I’ve heard of it happening with a couple of people but never believed it could actually happen,” said Phil, who described the feeling as “like looking through wax paper.” They had reached a location known to Everest climbers as “the Balcony,” where climbers typically switch to a new oxygen bottle for the final push.

Phil couldn’t see well enough to put on a new bottle.

He confided with another guide and decided he and Susan would head down. She had mixed feelings about not reaching the summit, but was having such a hard time with the ferocious Himalayan winds that in some ways she was relieved.

“I wasn’t sure I could make it anyway,” she says. “We had that jet stream blowing, that snow, so you’re getting whipped in the

face with that wind, and it’s cold. He turned to me and said, ‘I can’t take you up in this storm, I need to take you down. And he said, ‘Can you live with that?’ He had already summited Everest (in 1984), but the way he is, it was probably everything for him to get me there.”

She didn’t know he was having vision difficulties until she saw him stumbling badly on the way down, clearly unable to assess his surroundings.

“He asked me if there was something wrong with his eyes,” she recalls. “He had these icicles hanging down from his eyelids, and his pupils were kind of this purplish, hazy color. It was strange. He could not see.”

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Phil’s eye issue having been temporary, the couple headed for Everest again a year later. This time, though, it was just the two of them, their porters and two climbing Sherpas, the high-elevation, strong-lunged Nepalese natives who assist Western climbers on Himalayan expeditions.

“We decided this is probably going to be our last chance, so why not stack the odds in our favor as much as possible,” Susan says.

And everything worked out. Their acclimation process to the thin-air altitude went smoothly; despite the numerous teams on the mountain, there were no backups at critical junctures; and the weather on summit day was still and sunny, not a howling windstorm.

As they took the final steps up the summit ridge, Susan’s years of climbing “flashed in front of me — everything I did to get up there. I was screaming on the inside, ‘You’re going to stand on top of the world.’

“And I thought, ‘This is for all the times in your life that you quit. This is for my parents.’ And, of course, it was for Phil. I really wanted to stand up there for him.”

So on the morning of May 16, 2002, Phil and Sue Ershler enjoyed 25 relatively balmy minutes taking in the view from the top of the world, as the first husband and wife to complete the Seven Summits.

And they had no idea they had achieved that status.

“The thought had never crossed our mind that this was a first anything,” Phil says. “After we got home, people started contacting us and saying, ‘Do you know that …?’ It was kind of irrelevant to us that it was a ‘first.’

“The big thing was, it was a first for us. The Seven Summits is a great excuse to go see the world. They’re not the seven most difficult climbs in the world. They’re not the seven most interesting climbs in the world.

“But it’s a great carrot to put in front of you to get you to go see some really interesting places.”

• Outdoors editor Scott Sandsberry can be reached at 509-577-7689 or ssandsberry@yakimaherald.com.

If you go

WHAT: A photographic presentation by Phil and Sue Ershler, the first husband-and-wife couple to climb the “Seven Summits,” the highest peaks on each of the seven continents.

WHEN: 7 p.m. Friday.

WHERE: Hanford High School, 450 Hanford St., Richland.

WHY: It’s a fundraiser for Central Washington Mountain Rescue.

HOW MUCH: $10 admission at the door.

HOW TO GET THERE: Follow Interstate 82 southeast and take Exit 102 (I-182/U.S. 12 toward Richland/Pasco). Take the Wellsian Way/Vantage exit, and after not quite 5 miles, turn left onto Stevens Drive; go 0.3 miles, turn right onto Snyder; go 0.6 miles, turn left onto George Washington Way, go another 0.6 miles and turn left onto Hanford Street.

OF NOTE: The Ershlers will be bringing copies of their book, “Together on Top of the World,” signed by both, that can be purchased at the event.

Used to be, every now and then you would stumble on an old shed elk or deer antler while hiking in the hills, or chasing a grouse around in September.

I remember as a kid finding a shed antler here or there and thinking it was pretty neat. That doesn’t happen much any more. Most shed antlers are found by shed hunters long before anyone might casually come across one.

Never in my wildest dreams did I think shed antler hunting would become a pursuit that draws just about as many avid participants as does the hunting of the animals themselves.

In fact, shed hunting might draw the most avid participants of any outdoor pursuit.

I was at the elk feeding station in January and as I looked at the dozens and dozens of branch-antlered bulls munching away on their daily feeding of hay, I automatically had visions of one of the big bulls sneaking through a patch of timber next fall with me close behind, a special any-bull tag in my pocket.

As I stood there daydreaming about those possibilities, I overheard a couple of guys discussing their plans for the upcoming shed-hunting season. They drooled over several of the big bulls and hoped they might get a shot at finding a set of horns like those when they hit the hills this spring.

“Man, I’d give my right arm to get my hands on one of those,” the first guy said, pointing to a rather heavy-horned bull standing in a pile of straw.

“You mean, your hand,” the other guy said.

“What?”

“You said you would give your right arm to get your hands on those antlers,” the second guy said. “But if you gave your right arm, you would only have one hand, so you couldn’t get your ‘hands’ on it. Besides, I would have probably found it first. ”

They argued back and forth for a few more minutes, and then relived a few tales of past shed-hunting trips — like the time they spotted a shed across a canyon and almost killed themselves running to get to it before it was spotted by some other avid shed hunter.

They told of waiting at the gate of one of the roads leading into the Oak Creek Wildlife Area in the dark hours before midnight on May 1, when the area officially opens to shed hunting.

Listening to these guys talk, I started thinking about maybe giving shed hunting a try for myself. A few years ago I was walking along a little overgrown road while turkey hunting up by Colville and stumbled across a matching set of five-point elk antlers. The big bull dropped one, and then walked about 30 yards and dropped the other. They are beautiful, heavy antlers that sit on my fireplace hearth to this day.

And I have found dozens of shed deer antlers of various sizes over the years while out hunting deer. It is always fun to find those.

But I’ve just never gotten caught up in the craze of specifically going out and hunting sheds. I know — for deer, anyway — it can be a great way of determining what size and quantity of deer might be in the general vicinity come hunting season. And some shed hunters do it for profit, selling the shed horns to buyers who in turn make them into chandeliers and tables and belt buckles and knife handles.

Some areas are open for shed hunting right now. But others, including the Oak Creek, L.T. Murray, Wenas Wildlife Areas in Yakima County and Whiskey Dick and Quilomene Wildlife Areas in Kittitas County are closed until May 1, to protect the animals from being bothered coming out of winter.

Some people are so into it they teach their dogs to help find the antlers. Others ride horses or four-wheelers to cover more ground. But, according to some shed hunters I’ve talked with, the best way to find sheds is to cover the ground on foot.

It does sound like a good way to spend a day outdoors. I’m just not sure I’m willing to give up one of my turkey hunting days, or my spring salmon fishing days to go out looking for shed antlers.

I don’t when shed hunting became so popular. It seems to have happened overnight. The elk and deer are just now starting to drop their antlers. And there is one thing for sure, the shed hunters won’t be far behind.

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

• Area and road closures at Oak Creek Wildlife Area remain in effect until May 1 to limit disturbance to elk and other wildlife. There are also vehicle gates at other entry points to the wildlife areas that remain closed through April 30, including Mellotte Road into the Wenas, the Robinson Canyon and Joe Watt Canyon roads into the L.T. Murray, and certain roads into the Whisky Dick and Quilomene wildlife areas.