Quincy EP&O levy to go to voters

QUINCY — Quincy School District voters will be asked to accept or reject a four-year educational programs and operations levy in a special election in February. If it’s approved, it would replace the levy approved by voters in 2022. District superintendent Nik Bergman said money raised through the levy accounts for about 16% of the district’s budget. “The state doesn’t fully fund a lot of programs,” Bergman said. “It’s used to fund our highly capable (program) and STEAM enrichment. Some of it is used to fund special education, early learning, the arts, music. We have a music program that is just flourishing right now, and I can connect that to the community support of the levy.”

Steven L. Gilbert

1958 – 2025

Steven L. Gilbert, devoted husband and father, passed away peacefully on November 23, 2025. Steve lived heroically with the debilitating effects of Parkinson’s for 18 years, but it never daunted his loving spirit and sense of humor. Steve was a gentle giant and leaves a legacy of strength during trial, humor in hard times and an enduring love of God, family and ice cream.

Plan early for dementia care

MOSES LAKE — Having dementia can seem like the end of everything. But in some ways, it’s only the beginning. “The most important thing (for) people with dementia is planning for the future,” said Dr. A. Carroll Hayman, a Seattle physician who specializes in Alzheimer’s and other dementias, at a symposium in Pasco in October. “In fact, if we can do an early diagnosis that gives people an opportunity to plan (and) also allows the patient themselves to be involved in some of that planning. If we wait too long they can’t say what they want anymore, then we’re just sort of guessing what they wanted rather than involving them.” As much as we might wish otherwise, dementia isn’t going to go away, and it isn’t going to be cured. How long it could last varies widely from one patient to the next. The patient will have medical, legal and social needs to work out, and they can’t do it alone. Starting early is key, Hayman said.

Seahawks can build on strong defensive showing in loss to Stafford and the Rams

SEATTLE (AP) — Sam Darnold's four interceptions and the Seahawks' failure to convert in the red zone overshadowed another strong performance by Seattle's defense. The Seahawks held Matthew Stafford and the Rams to 249 yards in Sunday’s 21-19 loss. That's the second-lowest total of the season for Los Angeles. “Our guys fought incredibly hard,” coach Mike Macdonald said. “I thought we executed well, gave them some tough spots. That’s what we talk about.”

Big Sky Now: Vandals frustrated after officiating error, Cat-Griz preview

On this episode of Big Sky Now, we recap Montana’s strong finish to conference play, Montana State’s statement win at home, Idaho’s tough loss on the road, and key performances from Eastern Washington, Sacramento State, and Northern Arizona.

Young Devils team plans on statement season

WILSON CREEK – The Wilson Creek Devils girls basketball team is bringing a young, but talented group of players onto the court this season. Jeff Sackmann returns as the team’s head coach and plans to build off of last year’s successes. “We had a great group of girls and really had a mixture of a couple seniors that had played a lot and a few other girls who had never played before,” said Sackmann. “We just really kind of came together as a team and had a lot of fun.” The Devils finished the last season with a 13-9 record earning third in the Central Washington B league and made a deep run in the postseason. Their success in the regular season allowed for Wilson Creek to host Entiat where they would win 36-27.

Warriors fall short in home opener

MATTAWA — The Wahluke Warriors (0-1) were defeated 67-43 by the Tri-Cities Prep Jaguars Tuesday in their return to the hardwood. Wahluke Head Coach Anfernee Cortez said some of the loss may be attributed to first-game jitters. “We started too flat and just kind of dug ourselves into a hole early. Against a team like Tri-Cities Prep, it’s tough to catch up at that point,” Cortez said. A slow start by the Warriors allowed Tri-Cities Prep to take hold of the momentum early and build a commanding lead. In the first half, the Warriors struggled to knock down shots and attack the rim. The Jaguars carried their momentum into the second half to run away with the game. Wahluke had a stronger second-half showing, but Cortez said it was not enough to get back in the game.

Ephrata PD achieves full staffing on paper, officers still being trained

EPHRATA — The Ephrata Police Department Chief Erik Koch announced that the department is officially recognized as fully staffed, although he emphasized that this achievement comes with a caveat.

Balanced Attack Lifts Eastern Washington Past Eastern Oregon

CHENEY – Eastern Washington picked up its first win of the season on Monday night, defeating Eastern Oregon 91–73 behind balanced scoring, strong rebounding, and improved second-half defense. The Eagles were led by Isaiah Moses with 22 points and Straton Rogers with 17 points and 10 rebounds—EWU's first double-double of the season. Kiree Huie added 14 points, JoJo Anderson scored 13, and Alton Hamilton IV chipped in 10. EWU shot 52.2% and outrebounded the Mountaineers 42–31.

Huskies plan to make a statement this season

OTHELLO — The Othello Huskies boys basketball team is returning to the court this season with a new fire lit underneath them as they look to come back from a winless season. Head Coach Juan Ramon Garcia said it was rough, but the team has made great strides since then as they work to improve.

Lions basketball returns with experience

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake Christian Academy/Covenant Christian School Lions are returning to the court this week with a team of experienced players after having no seniors last season. This year, Lions Head Coach Josh Kast said the team is going to use their experience to advance further. “They’re a young group and they’ve been doing nothing but progressing,” said Kast. “That’s the cool thing about a young group of kids is they’re going to grow and they’re going to learn significantly throughout their eighth-, ninth-, 10th-grade seasons and by the time they’re juniors and seniors they’re able to compete at a higher level.” The Lions concluded the previous season with a 13-9 record, qualifying them for the district tournament where the team won in the first round against Cascade Christian Academy, but fell in the second round against Soap Lake.

KJ Gilman competes at USA Grand Nationals

MOSES LAKE — On Dec. 5 Kalem “KJ” Gilman returned home from the USA Grand Nationals BMX competition held in Tulsa, Okla. After placing top eight in the 13 intermediate group, he became one of the first riders from Moses Lake to advance to the finals.

BASIN EVENTS: Dec. 12-20

COLUMBIA BASIN — It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas out there, and there are holiday goings-on galore in the Basin. Here are a few things to make your spirits bright:

Conservation key to extending use of existing Moses Lake water system

MOSES LAKE — There are water conservation measures that the city of Moses Lake can do now that will help it meet anticipated future demand, according to the city’s draft water system plan. Ryan Withers, consultant with RH2 Engineering, Richland, told Moses Lake City Council members that water conservation now can buy the city some time.

Awareness helps prevent porch pirates’ success

EPHRATA — At least 58 million packages were stolen in the U.S. last year, with about 25% of Americans being the victims of theft, according to the United States Parcel Service. At the local level, there are thefts occurring regularly as well, but that doesn’t mean that you’re stuck being the victim, authorities say. “The experience of the Grant County Sheriff’s Office is that package theft happens regularly,” said GCSO Public Information Officer Kyle Foreman. “It is a crime of opportunity. When someone’s out looking to try and make a quick buck, they may drive through a neighborhood looking for unattended packages on the front porch.”

Mavs set to bounce back this season

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake Mavericks girls basketball team is getting back on the court this week and is setting their goals for what they hope to accomplish this season. Mavs Head Coach Matt Strophy said the team is striving to bounce back after a tough end last season. “We had our fair share of struggles. We had a solid league, take a look at Davis high school as the state champions last year and they returned just about everybody,” said Strophy. “I know when it came to win-loss record, it was not what we are used to at Moses Lake High School for girls' basketball, so it was challenging for sure.”

Eagles look for a successful senior-led season

SOAP LAKE – The Soap Lake Eagles girls basketball team anticipates another successful season after finishing 12-9 last year. The Eagles return with another strong squad and a desire to earn a district title. “Last year we had a really good season,” said Eagles Head Coach Leonard Lundgren. “We were one game away from going to state.” At the end of last season, the Eagles made it into the second-place game at districts where they ultimately fell to Pateros to take third in the Central Washington B league. While this was an earlier end to their season last year, it leads to strong prospects as they enter this season.

MLIRD, Port of Moses Lake enter cooperation agreement

MOSES LAKE — The Port of Moses Lake and the Moses Lake Irrigation and Rehabilitation District have approved a memorandum of understanding with the intention of pooling their efforts when it comes to projects of mutual interest. Port Commissioner Darrin Jackson said working together should be both more effective and more cost-effective.

Cougars compete in big meets to start season

WARDEN – The Warden Cougars wrestling team competed in their first wrestling tournaments of the season with the girls heading to Liberty High School for the Lady Lancer Invitational and the boys heading to the Ocosta Tournament at Ocosta High School. “I thought we had a really good weekend; it was the first time we took a trip like that, (a) six hour bus ride,” said Cougars Boys Head Coach Johnny Hernandez. The boys had nine scorers on the weekend with seven of those making top four placements, he said. Overall, the team finished third at Ocosta and were only four points away from taking first place.

Roberts scores four touchdowns as ACH rolls past Entiat

COULEE CITY – The Almira/Coulee-Hartline Warriors (9-1) defeated the Entiat Tigers 57-14 at home to advance to the quarter finals of the 1B state football tournament. Head Coach Brandon Walsh said his team has come together recently.