Royal ends season at 1A state tournament

YAKIMA — A bad day rebounding and shots that wouldn’t quite fall ended the Royal High School boys basketball season with a 55-40 loss to Riverside (Chattaroy) at the state 1A basketball tournament Wednesday in Yakima. Royal Coach Greg Jenks said the rebounding made the difference. “We knew they were a good rebounding team, and found out they were a really good rebounding team,” he said. The Knights played intense defense throughout, holding Riverside scoreless in the second quarter. The Knights forced Riverside into a 30-second violation early in the first quarter, but struggled with turnovers in the early going. Riverside took a 12-8 lead with about 2:19 left in the first quarter, getting the rebound and converting the second chance. Jenks said that was the story of the game.

Cougars open state tournament with win over Davenport

SPOKANE — The No. 2 seed Cougars snapped a two-game skid with Wednesday’s Round of 12 win over No. 10 Davenport, defeating the Gorillas 64-49 in the 2B Girls State Basketball Tournament. “We went back to basics,” Warden Head Coach Josh Madsen said. “I think we got a little bit too much into our heads. We want to be prepared, but not so much so that we forget to just go play basketball. We went back to some pretty simple stuff at practice, trying to build the girls back up – high-energy, fast, intense – and the girls responded really well.” Warden opened the game with its full-court press defense, but soon shifted philosophies after the Gorillas found players down the floor. After starting the game on a seven-point run, the Cougars led 17-11 after the first quarter.

‘Shadow of the Erdtree’ DLC for ‘Elden Ring’ release date set

TOKYO – Bandai Namco and FromSoftware have announced a June 21 release date for the long-anticipated “Shadow of the Erdtree” downloadable content for the “Elden Ring” video game, according to a FromSoftware press release.

Basin sports schedule Feb. 28-March 5

COLUMBIA BASIN – Royal, Warden, Almira/Coulee-Hartline and MLCA/CCS all hit the court this week for state basketball play.

'It was like a dream come true'

Warden’s Hernandez wins state title at Mat Classic

TACOMA – Being a two-time state placer, along with previous wrestling experience against some of the other top wrestlers in her bracket, Warden senior Jada Hernandez’s confidence heading into the Mat Classic was through the roof.

Newhouse visits Moses Lake egg facility, discusses fed budget

MOSES LAKE — Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Wash., was in town Tuesday for a ribbon-cutting at Willamette Egg Farms’ expanding Moses Lake facility and to chat with community members about what’s happening in Congress. “I so hate to put a pall on a happy day, but I’ve got to be in Washington, D.C. tomorrow morning,” Newhouse said.

Concrete next phase of QVMC construction

QUINCY — Construction crews will start pouring the concrete slab at the site of the new Quincy Valley Medical Center sometime next week.

Othello Food Bank doing well, finances stabilized

OTHELLO – Othello Food Bank Board Chair Adam Janes, pastor of Othello Christian Church, spoke to the Othello City Council during Monday’s regular meeting to provide an update on the organization and its financial status heading into 2024.

Othello banquet raises money, honors community members

OTHELLO – Friday evening’s annual Greater Othello Chamber of Commerce Awards Banquet went very well, Chamber Manager Jackie Wilhelm said. The event is the chamber’s only fundraiser each year and is also a chance to honor annual community award recipients.

Removing the pressure: Royal’s Villa wins a state title at the Mat Classic

TACOMA – Having placed in the top three on the podium at the 2022 and 2023 Mat Classics, Royal senior Emma Villa knew she had one more shot to leave the Tacoma Dome with a state championship.

Economic Revenue and Forecast Council provides updated state forecast

OLYMPIA — Dave Reich, executive director of the Washington Economic Revenue and Forecast Council, provided an updated economic forecast for the state during the council’s regular Feb. 14 revenue review meeting in Olympia. “I think that's probably the main message, is it's not a recession,” Reich said. “That's not part of our base case, but just a slowly growing economy.” Reich elaborated on what it means to forecast a slow-growth economy. “Nationally that means slow employment growth, it means inflation will continue to trend down slowly from where it is now and it means GDP, or economic growth, will just be slower, sort of in the 1%-2% range,” Reich said. “For Washington, we are also expecting the same to happen here, slower employment growth, but also not a huge spike in unemployment, just fewer job ads pretty much. We also expect, of course, inflation will fall here.”

Soap Lake ends season with 78-71 state tournament loss

MOSES LAKE — The season ended for the Soap Lake boys basketball team with a 78-71 loss to Summit Classical Christian Academy in the first round of the state playoffs Friday at Moses Lake High School. Soap Lake and Summit were tied at the end of the first quarter and Soap Lake stayed close throughout the game, but Soap Lake Coach Daniel Simon said one factor made the difference. “They just shot the lights out tonight,” he said. “Sometimes it’s just out of your control. It’s part of the game of basketball.” The Archers took a quick 4-0 lead, but Soap Lake came back, hitting two three-point shots to cut the lead to 10-9. The Eagles took the lead with about three minutes to play, but Summit hit a three-pointer with three seconds left in the quarter to take the lead. A foul called right before the first-quarter buzzer allowed Soap Lake to tie the game at 19.

Knights fall in regionals to Annie Wright

TACOMA — A 27-point halftime deficit was too much for No. 6 seed Royal to overcome in Saturday’s 1A regional loss to Annie Wright, as they eventually fell to the Gators 79-51 at Tacoma Community College. The Knights opened the game with back-to-back three-pointers from senior Caden Allred and freshman Grant Wardenaar, but Annie Wright stormed back into the game by capitalizing off of Royal miscues. “They’re a really good team – very clear that they’re a very good team, and their ability to turn us over, rush shots and get long rebounds got them out in front,” Royal Head Coach Greg Jenks said.

Fostered passion: Scholarship remembers woman committed to foster children and adoptive families

MOSES LAKE — Patty Honsowetz liked children, all children, and thought all of them deserved a chance. When her husband Rick and their children decided they wanted to do something in her honor, they thought about that. “I started talking to my kids about ways that we could, yes, honor her legacy, but also benefit something she was passionate about,” Rick Honsowetz said. “Which was children, specifically foster children and children from the foster system that had been adopted.”

STEM focused

Warden CWU fellows fostering science, technology, engineering and math program, events

WARDEN – Warden School District will soon host events designed to develop the district’s Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics program. Central Washington University student teachers will be visiting Warden classrooms Feb. 29 and Warden High School will be hosting a Post-Secondary STEM Day on March 14.

Climate Commitment Act impact: $30 million refunds fall short of farmers’ $150M estimate

OLYMPIA - Budget writers in both the Senate and House have suggested allocating $30 million for refunding farmers impacted by the Climate Commitment Act. With the climate program, fuel used for agricultural purposes was supposed to be exempt.

Weather for the week of Feb. 26, 2024

Weather for the week of Feb. 26, 2024

March 2024 Basin Events

COLUMBIA BASIN – As always, the Columbia Basin has a lot going on next month. As spring moves a bit closer to being official, here are several opportunities to get out of the house, have some fun, and maybe support a good cause. This listing is noncomprehensive and event details may change or events may be canceled at the organizers’ discretion. Readers are encouraged to call ahead or verify the information below online prior to the event.

ACH falls to Crosspoint in 1B girls regionals

TACOMA – Facing off against a tough defensive team in No. 4 seed Crosspoint, the No. 5 Almira/Coulee-Hartline Warriors fell 53-29 in Saturday’s 1B Girls State Basketball Tournament regional round.

Cougar comeback bid falls short

Warden falls to Brewster in 68-63 loss in Richland

RICHLAND – Despite coming back from a 17-point second-half deficit, the No. 2 seed Warden Cougars were unable to take over the No. 7 Brewster lead in Friday’s 2B Girls State Basketball Tournament regional matchup, falling to the Bears 68-63. “I thought we had a good week of practice, thought we had a good plan,” Warden Head Coach Josh Madsen said. “Ultimately, we didn’t execute it at times as well as I thought we could have. (Brewster) hit some big shots, and we just didn’t respond.”