Kamiakin grad earns Big Sky Conference women’s soccer award
Former Kamiakin grad Maddie Morgan had a great season this fall for the Eastern Washington University women’s soccer team.
Morgan was named the Big Sky Conference Co-Offensive Most Valuable Player, and the Co-Golden Boot Award for scoring the most points in conference matches.
Morgan, a junior forward, had 10 points in Big Sky matches: 4 goals, 2 assists for 10 points.
Morgan finished her season with 14 points (5 goals, 4 assists), and was named first-team all-conference.
She also led the Eagles — which finished 2-3-3 in conference play, 5-8-5 overall — with 38 shots, and 14 shots on goal.
Baseball
Dust Devils outfielder D’Shawn Knowles, who hit .262, had 2 home runs, and 49 RBIs this past summer with the Tri-City team, is playing this spring with Great Britain in the World Baseball Classic.
Knowles is 21 and was born in the Bahamas.
Great Britain will be in Pool C, which is set for March 11-15 in Phoenix. Canada, Colombia, Mexico and the United States are also in Pool C.
▪ Former Dust Devils manager Andy Schatzley, who was the team’s skipper in 2021, was named the 2022 Southern League Manager of the Year recently. Schatzley managed the Los Angeles Angels’ Double-A team in Alabama, the Rocket City Trash Pandas, to an 81-57 record to win its division. The Trash Pandas lost in the playoff semifinals.
▪ Early warning: The Tri-City Dust Devils open the 2023 Northwest League season on April 6 at home against the Hillsboro Hops.
▪ Hanford High grad Isaac Benard is a member of the Nicaraguan squad that will be competing in the upcoming World Baseball Classic.
Benard, 26, is an outfielder who at one time was in the Tampa Bay Rays system.
But most recently he was with the Gateway Grizzlies of the independent Frontier League. Last summer, Benard hit 23 home runs for the Grizzlies in 90 games.
Benard was born in Scottsdale, Ariz. But he’s able to play for the Nicaraguan team because he’s the son of former major-league outfielder Marvin Benard — who was born in the Central American country.
Nicaragua will be in Pool D, and play runs March 11-15 in Miami. Other teams in Pool D are the Dominican Republic, Israel, Puerto Rico and Venezuela.
▪ Dust Devils trainer Dylan Culwell was named the Northwest League’s Trainer of the Year this past season.
College basketball
Kobe Young, the Chiawana grad who is a redshirt freshman on the Boise State University men’s basketball team, scored a career-high 16 points in Tuesday night’s 91-50 win over New Orleans University.
Young played a career-most 18 minutes in the win, shooting 5 for 8 from the floor (including 3 for 5 from the 3-point line).
Leon Rice, the men’s head basketball coach, is a Richland High grad.
Spartan games
Rylee Morris is a member of the Richland High School girls swim team.
But Morris may eventually get more publicity for another sport — Spartan competitions.
Morris and her father, Andy Morris, went to Abu Dhabi earlier this month to compete in the Spartan World Championships.
Competing in the Spartan Beast 21K — a race in which not only do competitors complete the length of the event (basically a half marathon), but also have to clear 30 obstacles during the route — Rylee Morris was the only athlete entered in her group, Female 14-17.
She crossed the finish line out in the desert in 5 hours, 15 minutes, and 37 seconds.
Meanwhile, dad Andy Morris was 18th out of 48 competitors in the Male 40-44 division.
He finished in 4:02.51.
Prep football
Keegan Bishop had a great senior year while playing for Liberty Christian’s football team.
The senior quarterback was named the Southeast 1B Offensive Player of the Year, as he led the Patriots to a 10-1 record.
Liberty Christian’s run to the 1B state title ended Thanksgiving weekend, when it lost 82-24 to Neah Bay in the state semifinals.
Bishop ended the season with theses stats: 119 completions on 237 attempts, for 2,732 yards. He tossed 47 touchdown passes against 6 interceptions. Together, with his rushing yardage, Bishop had 3,398 total offensive yards.
In addition, Bishop was also named a first-team linebacker in the Southeast 1B.
LC dominated the all-star team, as senior linebacker Sam Culver (94 tackles, 21.5 of them for loss; 9 quarterback sacks, one interception, and three fumble recoveries) was named Southeast 1B Defensive Player of the Year.
Culver was also a first-team WR/TE/RB on offense.
The Patriots’ Craig Lukins was also named Head Coach of the Year.
Other Patriots first-teamers are junior Cole Alexander at offensive lineman; sophomore Charlie Branning at defensive back; senior Magnus Hayden at WR/TE/RB; and senior Drew Ott at WR/TE/RB and defensive lineman.
DeSales athletes on the Southeast 1B first team are junior offensive lineman-defensive lineman Remy Arceo; senior quarterback-linebacker Joe Baffney; and senior Jack Lesko at WR/TE/RB and defensive back.
Two Sunnyside Christian players made the team: senior linebacker Dash Bosma, and junior WR/TE/RB Buddy Smeenk.
Touchet sophomore Thad Krumbah was a first-team selection as kicker/punter/athlete.
▪ Connell senior Cade Clyde, a tight end and defensive end for the Eagles, has been offered a chance to play for Weber State University.
This story was originally published December 14, 2022 at 12:07 PM.