Local athletes receive honors

MOSES LAKE - Two standout Moses Lake Christian Academy basketball players received accolades last week for their stellar efforts over the 2012-13 season.

The first player to be recognized was First-Team AP All-Washington State freshman Anna Yarbro, who led the Lady Lions to a first place finish and a berth in the 1B Girls Regional tournament.

"This is an exceptional honor for anyone, but in particular a freshman," former coach Bryce McPartland said. "Normally, you'd expect a player to have a larger body of work, but Anna has worked extremely hard to become the kind of player that she is, and was this year. She was absolutely vital to our team having the success it did this year, and I am very pleased that her efforts were recognized in this fashion. I'm very happy for her and her family."

Yarbro was one of only two freshman in all six classifications named to an All-State team.

"Despite being the focus of every team's defensive scheme, Anna averaged 17.3 points and 13.7 rebounds per game," McPartland said. "She helped lead the team to a third consecutive undefeated league season, and a 20-4 overall record this year."

Yarbro was also asked to join the Northwest Express, and will be playing this spring and summer in tournaments all along the west coast.

Senior Lowell Kirkwood, who led the Lions in nearly all categories, was named Second-Team All-State. Kirkwood averaged 19.6 points per game, 9.4 rebounds and 4.5 assists this season.

"I have coached kids for 23 years now and I can tell you Lowell was one of, if not the hardest working player I have coached.  Not just during the season, but in the off season as well,' coach Duke Wood said. "Player's don't just become player's during the season, they become player's out of season.  That's when you work on your game, conditioning, ball handling, shooting and everything else that needs improvement.  Lowell has always kept himself in great shape all year long.  That alone, gave him an advantage over most kids."

Wood said Kirkwood didn't see much varsity action his first year on the team, but by the time he was a sophomore, he was ready for more minutes.

"We still had lots of upperclassmen that were playing, but I knew what I was going to get when I put Lowell in the game. I think some of the upperclassmen could see their minutes go down if they didn't put it in to third gear," he said. "As a junior he finally got his chance to show everybody he was ready to play at the varsity level.  We went 22-4 that year, won the district and regional titles and advanced to the state tournament. Lowell was voted First-Team All-Conference by the coaches."

As a senior, Kirkwood  led his team to a league title with a 13-1 record and another shot at a regional win. But the Lions but fell short with an overtime loss to Columbia Adventist from Battleground. His dedication and hard work earned him league Most Valuable Player status.

"As a coach, you are not always blessed with having a chance to coach a kid for four years," Wood said. "Lowell is a kid who every coach wishes he had on his team. He was not only was a privilege to coach, but was also a great student with a 4.0 GPA.  He will go down as one of the Lions greats both on and off the court."