Local girl wins big at state competition

LAKEWOOD - Taylor Padilla, a 12-year-old student at Moses Lake's Frontier Middle School, finished first for her age division at the Washington Parks and Recreation Association's state "Hot Spot" basketball competition.

Padilla, who has won Moses Lake's local competition several years in a row, competed at the state meet last Sunday. Competitors in the "Hot Spot" event shoot from five spots on the floor, scoring as many points as they can in one minute.

While Padilla's score from this year's meet was unavailable, she scored 71 points when she won state two years ago.

Padilla plays for the Moses Lake Wizards, a traveling AAU team, and aspires to play for the Moses Lake Chiefs one day. She and her father, Tony, train three days a week and Padilla shoots 100 "Hot Spot" shots each day.

-Staff report