Basin sports schedule Feb. 8-14

COLUMBIA BASIN – Postseason contests are in full swing here in the Basin, with athletes from all 12 schools competing to move on in pursuit of district and regional championships. Check out this week’s Basin sports schedule, which will be updated online at www.columbiabasinherld.com as teams progress through their brackets...

Wahluke falls in SCAC districts to Naches Valley

MATTAWA – A cold shooting night plagued Wahluke in its 61-39 loss to Naches Valley on Tuesday night, the opening round of the South Central Athletic Conference district playoffs. “We could do a lot better than we did tonight,” Wahluke Head Coach Clayton Buck said. “I think tonight was probably our worst game of the season. We came out and battled against them last time – same thing, shots didn’t fall.” ...

Huskie boys send 22 wrestlers to regionals

OTHELLO – The 2023 Central Washington Athletic District champion Othello Huskies are riding a significant amount of momentum into the regional round of the postseason, bringing 22 wrestlers to Saturday’s regional tournament at East Valley (Spokane). Twenty wrestlers qualified for regionals, with two others qualifying as alternates. “Showing up with 22 (wrestlers), it’s nice to see because all year we’ve had a lot of depth,” Othello Head Coach Rudy Ochoa II said. “We’ve had high numbers here in Othello for a while now, so much so that we have to split the tournament just because we can’t get our guys in. It’s nice to show the depth.” ...

Fire destroys home south of Warden

WARDEN — An early morning fire on Tuesday gutted a house on Road 9 SE south of Warden, according to Warden Police Chief Rick Martin. Martin said no one was injured in the early morning fire, and the owners of the house were out of town.

Wipes bill clears House floor

OLYMPIA - A bill, sponsored by State Representative Alex Ybarra (R-Quincy), regarding compliance with labeling requirements for wipes, passed the chamber on Monday. “It was a really simple bill,” said Ybarra. “Basically, those wipes that you can't flush, they have to put a do not flush label on the packaging and that do not flush label has to be approved by the federal government.” ...

Ephrata High threat determined non-credible

EPHRATA – A social media threat led to the Ephrata School District excusing student absences Tuesday morning after it was reported to authorities. The threat was determined not to be credible by investigators. “In this instance, we were able to track down and find the subject who we thought was responsible relatively quickly and we were able to contact the subject and his parents,” said Ephrata Police Department Chief Erik Koch...

Mattawa annexes roughly 40 acres

MATTAWA — A new housing development could begin construction this spring on 40 acres annexed into the city of Mattawa. Members of the Mattawa City Council approved the annexation application and a development agreement between the city and CAD Homes, Moses Lake, at the regular meeting Feb. 2. The vote was 6-0; Council Member Wendy Lopez did not attend the meeting...

Spud sales volume down but values up in 2022

DENVER — While the overall volume of U.S. potato sales fell slightly in 2022 when compared with 2021, the value of those same sales rose 14.4% to $15.5 billion, according to data published by Colorado-based PotatoesUSA, a marketing organization of U.S. potato growers...

Open Market

Weekend event offers opportunities to shop for Valentine's Day, have fun

MOSES LAKE — If you’re looking for a place to maybe get that special someone a Valentine’s Day gift, Paul Carney has just the place – Open Market and Mimosas at Rick’s in Moses Lake. “It’s the first open market where you’re able to drink mimosas while you shop,” Carney said. “And maybe do some last-minute Valentine’s Day shopping as a couple. I think it’s cool because I’ve been to a few events where you can stroll and you can shop and it’s kind of romantic.”...

Coyotes take 4th in Winter Classic

MOSES LAKE — The 2023 Moses Lake Youth Hockey Association’s Winter Classic concluded on Sunday, with the hometown Coyotes placing fourth in the tournament. Moses Lake defeated Tacoma 5-3 on Friday, then tied 2-2 with Castlegar and defeated Seattle Jr. 4-2 on Saturday. The Coyotes fell to Eugene 5-0 in Sunday’s third-place game...

Back when...

A look at Washington's past

WASHINGTON D.C. - While many industries and organizations are looking to the future, sometimes it is important to look to the past to see how much has changed. Below are a series of black and white photographs taken in the early to mid 1900s across Washington State available through the Library of Congress. Most captions are provided by the Library of Congress record with slight editing for clarity...

One dies in Quincy accident

QUINCY - Grant County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a one-vehicle accident in the 10000 block of Winchester Road NW near Quincy at about 11:20 p.m. Friday evening after a nearby homeowner called 911 after hearing a crash...

Tigers, Jacks come out on top of D6 girls tournament

QUINCY — Ephrata and Quincy finished first and second, respectively, in Saturday’s 2A/1A/2B District 6 Girls Sub-Regional, and the Tigers and Jackrabbits combined to send 26 wrestlers to Saturday’s regional competition...

Mavs take 2nd at swimming Districts

MOSES LAKE - The Moses Lake Boys Swim and Dive Team took second at the district meet held in Moses Lake over the weekend. “The meet itself actually came down to whoever won the 400 Free(style) Relay,” said Moses Lake Head Coach Jason Hart...

ACH Warriors send 8 wrestlers to regionals

COULEE CITY — The Almira/Coulee-Hartline Warrior boys wrestling team will send eight wrestlers to the 1B/2B regional competition in Reardan this weekend after placing inside the top five at Saturday’s Northeast B Wrestling Championships...

Safe Streets for All funds local programs

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Department of Transportation has awarded a total of about $9.2 million to communities in Washington through the Safe Streets for All program. Grant County will receive a portion of those funds.

Top of the pyramid

Mavs take home titles in 3A/4A Tumbling, Game Day cheer

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake Mavericks successfully defended their state championships in last weekend’s WIAA State Cheerleading competition, taking home the title in 3A/4A Game Day Coed and 3A/4A Tumbling Coed...

Wash. seeking proposals to help wildlife impacted by wildfires

OLYMPIA - The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, Washington State Conservation Commission and Washington State Department of Natural Resources are seeking project proposals to benefit wildlife affected by wildfire in eastern Washington.

50 years of flying

Retired BBCC instructor reflects on a long career

MOSES LAKE — When John Swedburg made his first solo flight on March 24, 1971, he decided to keep a souvenir of the event. The tail from the shirt he wore that day, complete with the date, the plane he flew, and the aircraft’s tail number. “My wife asked me one day when I was going through my fireproof box early in the early years of our marriage,” Swedburg said last Saturday in front of a class of pilots at Big Bend Community College. “I had this shirttail there and some other aviation memorabilia in there. And she said, ‘where is our marriage license?’” ...

UMANI Festival offers BBCC scholarships

MOSES LAKE — Moses Lake’s UMANI Festival, which debuted last September, has funded a new scholarship for Big Bend Community College students, according to a statement from the festival committee...