Cougar offense looks to improve against Oregon State

PULLMAN – The Cougars scored 14 points in the first half against the University of Southern California Trojans, but failed to add on in the second half. A concoction of dropped passes, penalties and lost yardage played a significant role in the 30-14 loss to the Trojans.

“The whole thing was fun”

Gathering raises money for Youth Dynamics

MOSES LAKE — Skylar McKinsey is one of the reasons over 200 people gathered in the 4-H Building at the Grant County Fairgrounds last Saturday. “Youth Dynamics is where kids get together and we all can have fun times together, or play games or offline games,” the 13-year-old McKinsey said. It’s not just that, he said. It’s also the summer trips — time in the wilderness, away from the world, going down a river or hiking or, as McKinsey noted, riding an inner tube down a huge hill. “It was very fun,” he said. “The whole thing was fun.” The gathering, according to Youth Dynamics Moses Lake Director Sean Sallis, was to raise money for those activities — the camping, the hiking, the river rafting, the downhill tubing, all the “very fun” things Youth Dynamics does — and according to Sallis, the Saturday banquet and auction is the organization’s primary fundraiser for the year, with all of the proceeds going to support Youth Dynamics’ outdoor ministries. “All this activity here, all these generous people that are here, the funds from this event go directly to general operations, adventure trips and special projects,” he said. Zero money goes to salaries. Our staff within the ministry raise their own support.” ...

2 locals added to ag hall of fame

MOSES LAKE - Members of the Moses Lake Chamber of Commerce gathered at Pillar Rock Grill Tuesday evening for the organization’s annual meeting which included the induction of Mike Laplant and Frank Martinez into the Grant County Farm Bureau’s Agriculture Hall of Fame. “The Moses Lake Area Agricultural Hall of Fame was formed in the year 2010 to recognize and honor distinguished individuals that have made significant contributions to the ag industry in our community in the Greater Moses Lake Area,” said incoming Moses Lake Chamber of Commerce board chair and Grant County Fairgrounds Director Jim McKiernan before the awards were presented. Peter Dufault with the Grant County Farm Bureau gave out the awards to the two honorees after describing their contributions to agriculture in the region...

Knights smash College Place

Success in all three phases leads to 69-0 win

ROYAL CITY – The Royal Knights got it done in all three phases of the game in their 69-0 win on senior night over College Place Friday night, scoring on offense, defense and special teams. “You never know how it’s going to go, but it’s always nice to see the returns and obviously the defense played well,” Royal head coach Wiley Allred said. The Knights were up 14-0 before the offense even took the field, courtesy of senior receiver Edgar Delarosa’s two punt return touchdowns. “It feels good, it sets the tone pretty high,” Delarosa said. “It set the expectation that we just gotta get to it every single play, and I feel like that set the bar pretty high.” ...

Mattawa council delays annexation vote again

MATTAWA — The Mattawa City Council may decide whether or not to annex 40 acres of property into the city at its Dec. 8 meeting. Council members voted to continue the annexation application process to Dec. 8 at the regular meeting Thursday. The vote was 5-1, with council member Alex Heredia voting no. “I would ask that we make sure we stay to that date (for a decision), if at all possible,” Heredia said during the discussion before the vote. The annexation proposal was discussed at the Oct. 6 meeting, but council members delayed a vote after asking for more information. Rachelle Bradley of SCJ Alliance, the city’s planners, requested that the council delay the decision until Dec. 8 to allow planners to gather the information. Previously Bradley had recommended approving the application with the stipulation that an agreement be negotiated between the city and CAD Homes, the company requesting annexation...

Tigers grab 20-17 win in OT

Final hustle on the field changes rough pass to victory against Mustangs

EPHRATA — With the game in overtime, the Prosser Mustangs leading 17-14 and the Ephrata Tigers down to their last couple of chances, Ephrata quarterback Travis Hendrick took the snap. The football bounced away on the wet turf. Kiwanis Field was in pandemonium, players from both teams were scrambling for the ball, but Hendrick got there first. He scooped up the ball, ran out to the left and threw downfield. Running back Hudson Sager was in the end zone and caught the pass for a touchdown and a 20-17 overtime win for Ephrata. “It wasn’t the perfect throw, but (Sager) made the perfect catch,” Hendrick said after the game. “... I just try to keep calm.” ...

Learning to fly: Former refugee earns scholarship for Big Bend flight training.

MOSES LAKE — Victoire Wilondja is learning to fly because he wants to do something big with his life. “The freedom of dreaming big,” said Wilondja as he sat in the Flight Training Center at Big Bend Community College. “Something that I never thought I could do.” ...

New Othello police chief wants to continue 'path of success'

OTHELLO — Dave Rehaume said the Othello Police Department is going in a positive direction, and he wants to continue and enhance that. Rehaume was hired as OPD chief last week. Rehaume, a 34-year veteran with the OPD, started as a patrol officer. He was hired for the interim job in May, replacing retiring chief Phil Schenck, and hired for the permanent position July 3. He had been assistant chief for eight years prior to being hired as chief...

MLB announces 2024 schedule

SEATTLE – The MLB announced the schedule for the 2024 season on Thursday, setting dates for Seattle’s opponents next season.

Soap Lake fire causes evacuation notice

SOAP LAKE — A level 3 evacuation notice was issued for the 3000-4000 block of Road 20 Northeast near Soap Lake Wednesday evening, according to a statement from Grant County Fire District 13. A level 3 evacuation means “Leave now,” the statement added...

Bonds form the basis of CWU sculptor’s work

ELLENSBURG - Every artist can point to an inspiration behind their work. For Kate Im, it’s the power of human connections. The CWU Art + Design professor’s lifelong focus on interpersonal bonds often reveals itself in her artwork, although her passion is equally evident in her teaching and relationship-building...

Hoppy hunting

George Easter egg hunt brings out energetic crowd

GEORGE — The official count was 133 children at the George Easter egg hunt Saturday morning, but it looked like twice that many, possibly because they were so excited they couldn’t stay in one place. The weather had been nasty the day before, but Saturday the sun was shining and the wind was negligible. The Georgettes, the local women’s service organization that organized the event, had a stand set up with coffee and doughnuts for the adults. The lawn outside the George Community Hall was scattered with about 1,000 eggs, according to Georgette Jeannie Kiehn, one of the organizers...

Othello Food Bank requests county funds

OTHELLO – Jose Garza, lead facilities director at the Othello Food Bank, went before the Adams County Board of Commissioners during last Wednesday’s meeting to workshop potential options for funding and support for the food bank and its programs. “Without funds, you can’t operate, you can’t move, you can’t buy equipment,” said Garza, who joined the Othello Food Bank in August 2022...

Red, White & BOOM

Moses Lake and visitors celebrate Independence Day

MOSES LAKE – Citizens of Moses Lake gathered on Saturday in Sinkiuse Square and McCosh Park for the Red, White, & Boom Independence Day celebration, hosted by the Moses Lake Museum and Art Center and the city’s Parks, Recreation, and Cultural Services Department. Dollie Boyd, superintendent of the Museum and Art Center, explained the motivation behind the event. “We wanted to do not just fireworks, but we wanted to bring back the summer concert series. We did some surveying around town, and that was the number one thing that people wanted to see.” ...

Larry Ray Harmon

Larry, 73, was born Oct. 20, 1949, in Yakima, Washington to Jim and Carol Harmon, along with his twin brother, Gary. The twins were born 6 weeks premature, which resulted in an extended hospital stay and additional time spent with grandparents in Wapato, Washington. When they were strong enough to travel, the twins, their older brother Mike and their mother Carol rejoined Jim who was in the U.S. Navy stationed in Norfolk, Virginia. From there they traveled to many places including Guantanamo Bay, Cuba where they were stationed for three years and then on to Brunswick, Maine for four years where the family welcomed his little sister, Karen. At this point Jim had a chance to move his family back to Washington with the Navy as a recruiter, which allowed them to be closer to grandparents and extended relatives. Larry started his schooling in Wapato. The family moved to Moses Lake in 1957 and he continued his elementary through high school education; he was part of the Moses Lake High School class of 1969. These years were challenging for Larry as he navigated having dyslexia during a time where learning disabilities were very misunderstood and unrecognized. Larry joined the U.S. Navy in 1969 and was stationed aboard the USS Hornet, which landed him as part of both Apollo 11 and Apollo 12 recoveries.

Soup on Saturdays

Moses Lake woman finds calling in volunteer project

MOSES LAKE — Trinette Mullineaux said she’s seen some hard times herself, so she wanted to do something to help the people that use the Open Doors Sleep Center in Moses Lake. That’s why she started her volunteer project Soup on Saturdays. “It’s near and dear to my heart to help the homeless,” she said...

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...

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.” ...

Amazing Shake participants put their skills to the test

MATTAWA — Wahluke Junior High Principal John Muchlinski said the idea behind the Amazing Shake is that communication skills are as crucial to young people as academic skills. “Whatever (career) you choose, you’re going to have to interact with people, and you’re going to have to carry on conversations. And that’s what this is about, is being able to interact with people, be polite, carry on conversations, know follow-up questions, and those kinds of things that you don’t necessarily get in your standard academic class,” Muchlinski said...

Royal girls take third at Mat Classic

Three Knights place, Morales takes second straight title

TACOMA – Just like last year, Royal senior Alondra Morales returned to Royal City with a state championship after defeating Toppenish freshman Islah Alcala in the 145-pound finals of the girls 2A/1A/2B/1B Mat Classic...