Pasco native is bound for Europe after signing with German basketball team
Chiawana High School graduate Braydey Hodgins will continue with her basketball career by playing professionally in Europe.
Hodgins just completed her collegiate career at Boise State University, where the Broncos won four consecutive Mountain West Conference tournament titles.
Last week, Hodgins signed to play for the Saarlouis Royals in the Damen-Basketball-Bundisliga, which is Germany’s top women’s professional league.
The town is on the Germany-France border.
Hodgins is coming to a team that finished with a 4-17 record in the 2019-20 season, as the Royals placed tied for 11th out of 12 teams.
The season for the Royals begins in September.
Former Dust Devils cut by Padres
The San Diego Padres announced last week they would pay their minor leaguers $400 a month through the end of August, then hedged their bets by releasing 26 of them the next day.
A number of them were former Tri-City Dust Devils, including left-handed pitcher Dan Dallas — who was named a Northwest League all-star in both 2018 and 2019.
Outfielder Tre Carter, who spent three seasons playing at Gesa Stadium, also got the ax, as well as fellow outfielder Mason House.
Others who got cut included RHP Tom Coletti, C Nick Gatewood, C AJ Kennedy and INF Jason Pineda.
The Northwest League was originally scheduled to begin play this season on June 17, but that’s not happening.
With Major League Baseball unable to get its act together for some type of season in 2020, it’s highly likely that any minor league baseball will be played either.
Scorebook Live Washington
The high school sports website Scorebook Live Washington has been running a series on the best male and female athletes by county in Washington.
Last week, it mentioned the top female athletes in Benton County, and the Herald ran that list of athletes a few days after.
I used all of my memory skills to help the writers out with information. Alas, I failed them.
It took local reader Bob McBride to remind me of Carina Westover, a 1979 Kiona-Benton High School graduate. Of course, the lightbulb then went on, after the fact.
Westover was a five-time state high school champion in track and field, winning the pentathlon in 1978 and 1979. She won the high jump state titles for both of those years too, and also claimed the 80-yard hurdles title in 1979.
She held records at the Pasco Invite that stood for years.
On a national level, Westover was the top girls high school heptathlete in 1979 listed by Track and Field News — and the girl ranked No. 2 was Jackie Joyner, an eventual gold medalist Olympian.
Westover would then compete for Oregon State University, where she was an outstanding high jumper and heptathlete.
McKenzie Burgess of Kiona-Benton was already on that list that Scorebook Live Washington put out. But the omission of Westover was glaring.
• During my research of Westover, I forgot another athlete: Kamiakin’s Camille Harding.
In the Track and Field News listing of top national high school girls heptathletes, the Mid-Columbia has had a bit of riches.
Westover was ranked No. 1 in 1979, Harding was ranked No. 1 in 1983, and Prosser’s Kelly Blair was ranked No. 1 in both 1988 and 1989.
Pretty impressive.
MacBeth Report
Here are some of the latest updates on former Tri-City Americans who have been playing pro hockey in Europe.
The MacBeth Report keeps track of players overseas:
• Igor Bacek (with the Ams from 2005-08) inked a one-year contract extension with the Hannover Indians in the Oberliga Nord in Germany. This past season, Bacek scored 12 goals and 24 assists.
• Milan Bartovic (1999-2001 with both the Ams and Brandon) recently Announced his retirement from hockey.
Bartovic was the team captain, scoring 7 goals and 11 assists, for Dukla Trencin in the Slovakia Extraliga this past season.
• Parker Bowles (with the Americans from 2011-16) played with Orli Znojmo this past season in the Erste Banke Eishockey Liga (EBEL) in Austria. Orli is located in Czechoslovakia, but the team has already announced it is sitting out the 2020-21 season due to the coronavirus.
Bowles had a one-year contract with the team, scoring 6 goals and 18 assists.
• Justin Feser (with Tri-City from 2008-13) had 17 goals and 15 assists this past season for the Fischtown Pinguins Bremerhaven in the Deustche Eishockey Liga in Germany. This past offseason, Feser signed a one-year contract with a league rival, ERC Ingolstadt.
• Brooks Macek (with the Ams and Calgary from 2008-13) has signed a two-year contract extension with Russian team Avtomobilist Yekatarinburg that plays in the Kontinental Hockey League.
This past season with the team, Macek scored 24 goals and 22 assists, and he finished fourth in the KHL in total points.
• Ian McDonald (with the Ams from 2000-06) has retired from hockey. Last season, McDonald was an alternate captain for Selb in the Oberliga Sud in Germany. McDonald scored 24 goals and 59 assists. The 59 assists led the entire league, while his total points (83) was second in the league.
Signings
• Blaine Chavez, the Kennewick High senior whose football season was derailed by a leg infection last October, is going to continue playing football this fall as he suits up for Eastern Oregon University. Chavez could be listed as a quarterback or defensive back.
• Tim Gee, a Kennewick High grad who played at Walla Walla Community College this past season, is transferring to Whitworth University, where he’ll play baseball.
• Lourdes Torres, a Sunnyside High School senior, will be competing for the Eastern Oregon University women’s wrestling team this winter.