Othello kids have a summer to remember

OTHELLO — Man, I’m still grasping at straws, trying to hang on to one last summer day. It seems like every year we get cheated out of August with all the wildfire smoke pushing the air quality fun meter over the 280, making the sun look like a second moon in “Star Wars.” But I would like to catch up on some of the cool stuff coming out of Othello during the Dawg Days or in this case the Huskie Daze of Summer. Isaiah Cano Garaza put his topwater bait to good use this summer. Actually, I don’t know what Isaiah was working. I’m just fascinated with bass. I swear you could drag a dead skunk across the water and they’d come up to hit it if it got too close to the lily pads. But anyway, back to Garza, the Othello Husky was named the Angler of the Year for the Washington state B.A.S.S. Bassmaster High School schedule. Garza was the top fisherman in two events and the runner-up in two others to bring in the big haul. Garza and his partner qualified for the national championships in Tennessee where they placed 33rd in the 337-boat field. Keep on turning young man, but remember when all else fails, chum and dynamite works every time. Then there’s Othello striker Juan Tapia, who had a chance to play soccer in the big city and bright lights of Las Vegas back in February. The Huskies 2018 team offensive most valuable player plays with a select team called Washington East out of Spokane and had the chance to play in Indiana this summer when the guys let the country know East Side got game. Tapia was leading scorer for the Huskies last season with 15 netted balls, which earned him an all-CWAC selection and an honorable mention in the 2A all-state voting. Maybe his most donning accomplishment was his participation on the Othello Unified Soccer state championship team, which earned a gold medal in the Special Olympics USA Games in Seattle. Having covered Juan for the past couple of seasons, I fully expect him to carry the torch on the Reese Jones front flip after every goal scored this season. Got one last Othello kid who needs a little love. Patrick Azevedo had a junior golf summer to remember. Azevedo, who won the Washington Junior Golf Association District 4 championship at Moses Lake Golf Club earlier in the summer, qualified for the Rocky Mountain Junior Golf Tour Cup in Las Vegas in November. Azevedo, who won three events and finished runner-up in another, also qualified for the North American Junior Am in Arizona in December. Arizona in December? I’m thinking the lad needs a caddie, but I’m not all that interested in carrying the bag or walking the course. The Rocky Mountain Junior Player of the Year certainly doesn’t need my input on which stick to swing. Pat’s also a leadership/ASB student at Othello High School. OK, now that we have that covered it’s time to move into the fall season. Let the games begin.