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Five regular season games remain and it is now time “where the rubber meets the road” for Eastern Washington’s men’s and women’s basketball teams. Eagle hoops are in the rarest of atmospheres this season. Both EWU teams are on top of their respective standings and poised to take tandem titles to the Big Sky Conference tournament in Boise, March 9-13. The Eagle women, guided by Joddie Gleason, have worked their way back into a tie for the top with Northern Arizona following...
FEDERAL WAY - A Cheney High School junior has won back-to-back state diving titles. Alma Smith returned home from the 3A state diving championships last week with a gold medal after successfully defending the title he won in 2023. Smith easily outdistanced runner-up James Ferrier of Gig Harbor, 401.90 to 297.35 in the Feb. 15 competition at the King County Aquatic Center. Smith, who just began diving in 2021 and is coached by Aaron Gilfoyle from the Inland Empire Diving Club,...
There's a reason it's called March Madness. Besides the mad enthusiasm (and heavy betting) of partisan fans, the madness of underdog teams posting upset after upset to advance as far as the Final Four or even the championship game makes for compelling theater. Who doesn't love an underdog or, in March Madness parlance, a Cinderella? ATS.io compiled a ranking of the most surprising men's March Madness champions since 1982 (when "March Madness" was coined) using Sports...
TACOMA - Cheney's Trenton Moore made a move at Mat Classic XXXV last weekend, but it was not exactly where he wanted to be. A sixth-place finisher in 2023, Moore battled some high-end competition ending up fifth at 175-pounds, topping Mead's Caden Brooks, 8-2. Along the way Moore lost to the eventual third-place finisher, Ever Yamada (Edmonds-Woodway) 10-5 and fourth-place Garrett Goade (Bainbridge). "One-hundred seventy-five pounds was a strong bracket and second- to...
TACOMA — The best area girls could muster was a single win at the state Mat Classic XXXV wrestling tournament on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 16 and 17. Cheney Blackhawks Jennifer Tian and Jalisca Holmgren qualified in the girls 3A/4A division, and Liberty’s Kariyah Strobel qualified in the small school (1B-2A) division. This was the second state tournament for both Holmgren and Strobel. All three girls made it to the third round of the tournament, but were eliminated before rea...
BOYS BASKETBALL Cheney ousted in tie-breaker SPOKANE —The Cheney boys saw their basketball season end in a playoff tiebreaker last week following a loss in their final Greater Spokane League game. Cheney landed in a three-way tie with Ferris and Mead for the final playoff spot and played a tiebreaker Feb. 8 at Mead. Ferris topped Cheney 25-22 in one three-quarter tiebreaker game with Coleman Randles scoring 8 to lead his team. The host Panthers used a 17-10 second quarter to oust the Blackhawks in the second game, played for...
TACOMA – Cheney will send four wrestlers to Mat Classic XXXV in Tacoma this weekend, including one individual champion following 3A Region 4 competition Feb. 9-10 at University High School in Spokane. Topping the list is Trenton Moore who captured the 175-pound title and looks to improve on his 2023 trip to Tacoma where he was sixth. Mason Bennett participated in his first state competition last year as an alternate, but goes this time as runner-up at 144 pounds. C.J. B...
QUINCY – Two Medical Lake boys qualified for the state Mat Classic tournament after placing in the Top 4 at regionals Feb. 10. Wrestling at 215, True Cole brought home a third-place finish to qualify. And at 157, Carsen Buenzli finished fourth to secure the final spot. Cole's regionals saw him with pins over Lizando Sanchez of Cashmere in 49 seconds, D.J. Frerks of Quincy in 1:46 and Brady Martin of Riverside (Nine Mile Falls) in 2:49. His only lost was in the semifinals, wher...
CHENEY – The Cheney girls basketball team ended the season on a positive and in the direction the program will trend following a 53-41 win over North Central on Feb. 9. In the battle for who avoids the basement in the Greater Spokane League, a decisive fourth quarter in which the Blackhawks outscored the Wolfpack 14-9 allowed Cheney to grab its lone league win to finish 1-8 (5-15 overall). The trio of Kiah Klauss, Natalie Richards and Mia Ashcroft each scored 10 points, sendin...
CHENEY – The Blackhawks’ budding girls wrestling program had big growth in 2023-24. That continues this weekend when the team doubles its Mat Classic attendees. Jalisca Holmgren will wrestle at state in the 125-pound class and Jenny Tian at 110 pounds. Meanwhile, Liberty’s Kariyah Strobel will wrestle at state at 140 pounds and Medical Lake’s Lyla Heinemann will be an alternate at 130 pounds. “Last year, we took one and this year Cheney builds on that and gets two girls int...
SPOKANE - Cheney advanced nine wrestlers to the next stop on the road to Mat Classic, including two individual champions, from the Greater Spokane League 3A tournament at the Spokane Convention Center, on Feb. 2-3. Mason Bennett was a champion at 144 pounds and Trenton Moore won at 175 as the Blackhawks finished fourth as a team behind Mead, University and Mount Spokane. That pair, as well as Camron Bogle (132-pounds/3rd), Wyatt Wells (175/4th), Gauge Seubert (190/4th), Aiden...
It’s been just about three weeks since the Northeast A League shrunk from a size-7 to a much trimmed-down size-4. Had this been a human-driven weight loss program, it might have been a welcome outcome. However, this is high school athletics. And when a conference loses that much weight, that fast, it generates potentially unhealthy side effects. NEA athletic directors knew in advance what was about to hit when the board of directors of the Washington Interscholastic A...
CHENEY -Eight area girls are heading to regional wrestling tournaments on Saturday, Feb. 10. Four Cheney girls will compete at the 3A/4A girls regionals in Sunnyside on Saturday, Feb. 10. And in the girls small school (1B-2A) division, three Liberty (Spangle) wrestlers and one Medical Lake girl will are heading to Quincy. Cheney Blackhawks Cheney has the largest local girls contingent moving on. The Blackhawks girls wrestling program emerged from subregional competition at...
MEDICAL LAKE — Peaking at the right time in sports is critical to success and if winning three of their last four games in any indicator the Medical Lake boys basketball team is doing just that? The Cardinals engineered a notable turnaround over this time a year ago, splitting their final two Northeast A League games and nabbing not only a playoff spot, but getting a home game to boot. Medical Lake lost Jan. 30 at Freeman, 68-46, but dished up a fitting Senior Night p...
CHENEY - The Blackhawk boys collected a pair of basketball wins last week topping Rogers 66-45 in the "Railroad Rumble" rivalry game and then 50-43 over University in their next-to-last game. The Blackhawks (3-5 GSL, 9-10 overall) looked to cap the 2023-24 basketball season with a win at home, Feb. 6 vs. North Central (5-3, 14-5). Led as usual by Evan Stinson and his 24 points, Cheney raced to a 40-25 halftime lead in the non-league game with Rogers (5-1, 11-4). Liam Carver...
SWIMMING Local swimmers advance WALLA WALLA — Twelve Cheney swimmers have qualified for the 2024 District Swim and Dive meet Feb. 9-10 here. “I have not yet completed the line up since some swimmers are qualified in more than the maximum two events” Coach Jennifer Hochwalt wrote in an email. Cheney swimmers include Isaac Bishop, Elijah Carpenter, Henrey Gipple, Anthony Gonzalez, Arthur Huacuz, Sam Larson Tanner Nelson, Christian Samson, Alma Smith, Ian Smith, Artem Sokolov and Travis Strimback State swimming is Feb. 15-17 at...
The Cheney girls earned their first basketball victory of 2024 amidst the memorable setting of the school's rivalry game on Jan. 31. The Blackhawks used a solid second half to put distance between themselves and the Rogers Pirates to win 61-44 in their part of the "Railroad Rumble" played at Eastern Washington University's Reese Court. That ended a 10-game losing streak dating back to Dec. 22. Cheney capped the week with a 65-38 loss at home to University in a Greater Spokane...
MEDICAL LAKE — The Medical Lake girls snapped a two-game Northeast A League losing streak with a notable win and in the process earned a home playoff game. The Cardinals did something they had not accomplished in five seasons by beating Freeman 43-29 on Jan. 30 and finished out the regular season with a 35-29 loss at home to Lakeside on Senior Night. In the process Medical Lake (5-7, 12-9) earned a first-round home playoff game — a rematch with Freeman — that was played on Fe...
The 2023-24 basketball season is winding down for the Blackhawks. Pictured, Blackhawk Macey M.Richards tries to block a shot by Ridgeline's Emma Myers in a 49-26 loss Jan. 23....
CHENEY - Gymnastics took some big leaps in the 2023-24 season, and that was before they got on the floor in competition. The team features 10 athletes, seven from Cheney and three out of Medical Lake. "I'm excited for this season because our team has doubled in size since last year," head coach Melissa Linton said earlier in the season. Cheney gymnastics had its birth in 2015 with its first coach hired just days before the start of competition. That inaugural season produced...
CHENEY — The Cheney boys may have let post-season play slip through their fingers following a pair of Greater Spokane League basketball games last week on the road. The Blackhawks (2-5 GSL, 7-10 overall) let a possible victory slip away Jan. 23 at Ridgeline where the Falcons used a 21-7 fourth quarter to erase a Cheney lead in a 62-50 loss. Then, Cheney kept GSL leading Mount Spokane in check before falling 56-52, Jan. 26. “Ridgeline (4-3, 13-4) is a team that doesn’t quit, an...
CHENEY — The Cheney girls’ basketball team remained winless in Greater Spokane League play following losses on the road last week to Ridgeline and Mt. Spokane. The Blackhawks’ streak increased to seven following setbacks to Ridgeline, 49-26 on Jan. 23 and 42-29 to Mt. Spokane, Jan. 25. “This last week of basketball brings with it more highs and lows, similar to how our entire season has played out so far,” head coach Meredith Richards wrote in an email. While not winning m...
By PAUL DELANEY Cheney Free Press CHENEY — A pair of strong second-half performances led to a sweep of a Big Sky Conference road trip for the Eastern Washington men’s basketball team, keeping both their winning streak and league lead in place. Outscoring Idaho State 17-0 in the opening minutes of the second half led Eastern to a 79-67 win at Idaho State on Jan. 20. Earlier, the Eagles overcame an eight-point halftime deficit, outscoring Weber State 41-31 on the way to an 80-78 victory at Dee Events Center in Ogden, Utah. Eas...
By PAUL DELANEY Cheney Free Press The Cheney boys’ basketball team found itself on the disappointing side of a pair of Greater Spokane League basketball games last week. The Blackhawks watched as Mead’s Bryce Lynd hit a game-winning 3-pointer in a 71-68 loss Jan. 16 and then Lewis and Clark’s third quarter turned things in the Tigers 68-60 overtime victory, Jan. 19. “I was proud of how we fought ‘til the end and sometimes you’re on the wrong side of a buzzer beater, give credit to Mead for hitting some big shots,” hea...
Blackhawks toppled by Mead, Lewis and Clark By PAUL DELANEY Cheney Free Press CHENEY – Girls basketball had yet another tall task in its Greater Spokane League schedule last week. The Blackhawks finished their run through the top four teams in the league with losses Jan. 16 to Mead 67-31 and Lewis and Clark 46-33 on Jan. 19. Combined those teams are 47-14. Against LC (3-1 GSL, 9-6 overall), Cheney got off to a good start, leading 23-17 at halftime but came out of the break to watch the Tigers win the quarter 20-4. “The gir...
