COLUMN: Huskies enter Big Ten strong

The first weekend of college football is in the books. Fans were treated to highly competitive matchups like Ohio State versus Texas, Miami versus Notre Dame or LSU versus Clemson. While each of those top matchups delivered on their hype, I was also paying attention to another situation.

BASIN EVENTS

COLUMBIA BASIN — This is a busy week in the Basin, with a fair, community festivals, art, live music and more. Here are some things to check out:

Courtright takes over as CBCCA president

MOSES LAKE — The gavel has been passed at the Central Basin Community Concert Association, as Caren Courtright succeeded Frances Irwin as president last week.

‘Softball saved me’

Ciarrah Knoll discusses her unwavering love for softball

MOSES LAKE – Ciarrah Knoll’s journey through softball is full of twists and turns to say the least. However, her love for the sport was never lost. In fact, she said the sport has somewhat saved her. “Softball was definitely my escape,” she said. “It was my way to just put my mind at ease. I would always ask my dad, like, ‘Hey, can we just go to the fields? Even if it's just for two buckets of BP, like whatever it may be, can we just go to the fields?’ And he was always willing to do that with me.”

WARDEN SCHOOL BOARD: Candidate Q&A

WARDEN – There are two candidates running for the Warden School District Director District 5 position. These candidates are incumbent Shawn Clausen and candidate Ryan Arredondo. Both candidates were given the questions below and given identical deadlines and word count restrictions for their answers.

‘A Tortured Land’

Moses Lake Museum exhibit showcases the stark beauty of the Columbia Basin

MOSES LAKE — Central Washington artist Don Nutt will return this month to the Moses Lake Museum & Art Center after a long time away, according to an announcement from the museum. “It’s been over a decade since we had the pleasure of showing his work in our space,” Museum Communication Coordinator Natalia Zuyeva wrote in the announcement.

BASIN SPORTS SCHEDULE: Sept. 3-10, 2025

COLUMBIA BASIN – School has officially started back up, and with that comes the first week of sports. See where your favorite basin sports team is headed for their first game of the year below.

Columbia Physical Therapy debuts new pool in open house

OTHELLO — Columbia Physical Therapy has finally realized a longtime dream. “We just added the pool,” said physical therapist Ken Jones, who shares the clinic with physical therapist Nate Stott. “That year-long construction project was just finished.”

Wahluke School District Board candidates discuss future goals

MATTAWA – A forum was held on August 28 at Wahluke High School, bringing together the three candidates for the Wahluke School Board: Luke Jenne, Elia Mendoza and Nick Trejo. Incumbents Jenne and Trejo are seeking re-election, while Mendoza is challenging Jenne for Director Position 5.

Ephrata Police Department logs for Sept. 4, 2025

Ephrata Police Department logs

Ephrata boil notice to extend at least to Thursday

EPHRATA – The City of Ephrata has issued a boil advisory for residents after a water line leak was discovered Monday near the old juvenile detention building. “They are currently grabbing the samples for the test results right now,” City Clerk Katie Kapalo said Tuesday morning. “They're going into the different parts of town and making sure they're getting an accurate sample of the whole city. Then those are being taken to the state lab.”

EWU to offer law enforcement leadership program

CHENEY — Eastern Washington University plans to launch a Law Enforcement Leadership & Practice program in the fall of 2026 to help working police officers build practical skills, advance in their careers, and meet the evolving challenges of modern policing, according to an announcement from the university.

Legals for September, 2 2025

Anchor AS becomes majority shareholder in REC Silicon

MOSES LAKE — Enough shareholders responded to an offer to buy outstanding shares of REC Silicon to increase the proportion of shares owned by Anchor AS to more than 50%. Anchor AS is a subsidiary of the Hanwa Group, which owned about 45% of REC Silicon previously.

BASIN SENIOR EVENTS: September 2025

COLUMBIA BASIN — The grandchildren are back in school, the summer family visits are done and there are plenty of things to get out and do this month. Here are a few:

Ephrata residents asked to boil water, minimize water use due to broken water pipe

EPHRATA – The City of Ephrata issued a boil water advisory Monday morning after a primary water line broke on the west side of the irrigation canal behind the juvenile facility, according to City Administrator Ray Towry.

Wenatchee Valley Symphony unveils 2025-26 season schedule

WENATCHEE — The Wenatchee Valley Symphony Orchestra’s 2025-2026 season will be entitled “Season of Hope,” according to an announcement from the orchestra. Under the leadership of Music Director Nikolas Caoile, the season will offer a dynamic mix of timeless masterpieces and bold contemporary works, showcasing the talent and versatility of the orchestra, the WVSO announcement said.

Cougars rally behind new coach ahead of fall season

WARDEN — The Warden Cougars are striving to go above and beyond this season and bring up a new love for football in the community. “I’m ready to get some dubs, have some good times with my teammates and make lots of memories,” said junior Kameron Jensen, Cougars quarterback. For senior tight end Hunter Golladay, this season will be about returning to full swing following an injury that took him out of the final three weeks last season. He said that he broke his kneecap and irritated an old tear in his meniscus and made a full recovery in the spring, just in time to prepare for the fall season.

Lions look forward to increased roster for ’25-26 season

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake Christian Academy/Covenant Christian School Lions are preparing for the upcoming football season with high expectations as they enter their third year of the school’s football program. “We have most of our team back, only lost a few seniors, so looking to build our team chemistry and do good this year,” said Johnathan Ferguson, Lions quarterback. Athletic Director and Head Coach Josh Kast said the team ended its previous season 5-5, earned second in the Central Washington 1B league, and played in the state tournament. “(We) ended up having a tough matchup first round,” Kast said. “We got beat up pretty good over against Naselle in the playoffs.

Eagles set sights on state

SOAP LAKE — The Soap Lake Eagles are preparing to come back into this season after ending last year with a 5-4 record and being two points away from making the state playoffs. “(We) had a couple of costly fumbles in a couple of different games,” said Eagles Head Coach Garrett Devine. “We were right there, but the top three from our league go to state and we ended up fourth.”