Top Mid-Columbia athletes getting snapped up by colleges for 2021 play
Wednesday marked a college signing day for high school seniors, and names of Mid-Columbia kids are starting to come in.
Over the next few days and weeks, we’ll mention those athletes who’ve signed with four-year schools when we receive them.
If you have an athlete who has signed, please let us know at sports@tricityherald.com.
Two standout girls soccer players signed this week are Richland’s Ashley Tonthat and Hanford’s Hailey Virgen.
Tonthat, who was a first-team All-Mid-Columbia Conference selection in 2019 as a midfielder, signed with Gonzaga University.
“Ashley has the technical skill and work rate to excel at the Division 1 level,” said Gonzaga head coach Chris Watkins. “As a midfielder, she understands and can dictate the rhythm and flow of the game. She loves to go forward and willing to step up and defend when needed.”
Meanwhile, Virgen was an honorable mention MCC pick in 2019 for the Falcons.
She signed with Montana State University Billings.
“Hailey is a versatile player who can play in both the midfield or outside back position,” said MSUB coach Stephen Cavallo. “She is skilled on the ball but also possesses a great motor and is not afraid to get stuck in. Despite her quietness off the field, she certainly has a very loud game on it.”
More signing announcements to come.
NWAC
• The Northwest Athletic Conference, which is the community colleges, is starting to announce letter-of-intent signings for the 2021-22 sports season.
Columbia Basin College and Yakima Valley College have grabbed a number of Mid-Columbia baseball players already in signings announced through Nov. 11.
For CBC, those signed already include Eric Bauman (Hanford), Dylan Berry (Southridge), Kellen Hobson (Tri-Cities Prep) and Ryan Jundt (Richland).
Those players signed by YVC are Cesar Blanco (Chiawana), Rustin Edmiston (Hermiston), Gavin Mattson (Kennewick) and Ryker Stevens (Southridge).
• The NWAC Executive Board approved that student-athletes, regardless of the amount of games or matches played for the 2020-21 school year, will not be charged a year of eligibility.
Awarding of a grant in aid or tuition waiver, along with the waiver, is solely at the discretion of each member college.
Returning sophomores who are granted a season waiver/grant-in-aid tuition waiver will not count towards the maximum allowable grant in aid awards per sport for 2021-22.
• Walla Walla Community College is bringing students back onto its campus in January, meaning that 32 of the 36 NWAC colleges will be on campus and that much closer to begging winter sports, says NWAC Executive Director Marco Azurdia.
Wrestling
Some of Washington’s best high school wrestlers traveled last month to Myrtle Beach, S.C., to compete in a national tournament called the 2020 Super 32.
The field of the tournament held Oct. 24-25 was littered heavily with standouts from Pennsylvania and the South.
But Washington sent a contingent of 27 wrestlers to compete too, and 10 of them were from this region.
Sunnyside sent a trio of senior Elijah Barajas (106 pounds), sophomore Alex Fernandez (126) and senior Andrew Macias (132).
Chiawana also had three representatives in three juniors — Aidan Villarreal (160), Darion Johnson (170) and Isaiah Anderson (195).
Four others — Prosser Junior Reyden Huizar (113), Grandview senior Jesus Sanchez (126), Kamiakin senior Gilbert Marquez (182), and Connell senior Mark Bonilla (195) – also competed.
Each weight class had at least 64 competitors, while some had 128.
Chiawana’s Anderson, who verbally committed last month to wrestling for Oregon State University, was the highest local placer, finishing eighth.
The finish gave him new status nationally by the website TheOpenMat, which ranked him 20th in the nation in his weight class after the tournament.
Notes
• Tri-City American Sam Huo, on loan right now to the Coquitlam Express in the British Columbia Hockey League, scored a hat trick last Saturday night in the Express’ 5-2 win over the Chilliwack Chiefs.
On Monday of this week, British Columbia’s Provincial Health Officer announced new regulations based on the rising number of coronavirus cases. Because of that, the BCHL is being shut down for the next two weeks.
• Pasco High School is looking for a new head boys basketball coach for the upcoming season. Jamelle Juneau was the Bulldogs’ head coach last season.
• Kamiakin’s Caiden Thomsen announced last month that he was verbally committing to pitch for the University of Portland.
• Former Tri-Cities Prep quarterback Dante Mauiri, who transferred to Hellgate High School in Missoula this summer in order to guarantee getting a football season for his senior year, has been getting some offers to play college football next fall.
Mauiri has received offers from Pacific University in Oregon, St. Ambrose University, Culver-Stockton College and Whittier College.