CALEB PEREZ

More Basin athletes head to the state meets

MOSES LAKE — Track and field athletes from all around the Basin are competing in state track meets this weekend. Here are more athletes who qualified for the championships during their district meets last weekend.

Warriors end season in second day of state

YAKIMA — The Almira/Coulee-Hartline Warriors finished their softball season during the second day of state with a loss against DeSales in the consolation bracket semifinals. Warriors Head Coach Faye Butler said that the girls battled well throughout the tournament. “As a whole, I think the girls did really great and put everything out there,” said Butler. The Warriors started off their state bid Friday with a first-round bye as the third seed putting them into the quarterfinals against the Colton Wildcats. ACH started off strong by scoring three runs in the first inning, but as the game went on, Colton gained momentum and scored three runs in the third inning and five runs in the fourth inning.

Othello tennis finishes out season in state

SEATTLE — The Othello Huskies sent three girls to the 2A State Tennis tournament at Nordstrom Tennis Center over the weekend with senior Olivia Harris competing in singles and seniors Shaylee Freeman and Faith Risenmay competing in doubles. All three Huskies had successful seasons and were happy with the opportunity to compete at state. “I think we’ve all worked very hard for four years, so it was fun to be able to all go together because we’re all best friends, and to be able to play at state,” said Risenmay. “We all did really well.”

Huskies, Jacks and Tigers athletes qualify for state track championships

QUINCY — The Ephrata Tigers, Othello Huskies and Quincy Jackrabbits competed in the 2A District 5 Track meet last week to determine which athletes will be heading to the state tournament in Tacoma. After the events were finished, all three teams saw athletes qualify for the championships.

Soap Lake senior Xavier Ewing takes second in state tournament

YAKIMA — The 1B/2B State Tennis tournament came to a close Saturday as Soap Lake Eagles senior Xavier Ewing made the championships and took second place. Ewing said he was very happy with what he accomplished in his senior season and what it meant for the program. “I want to leave behind that I’m the first to make it to the finals for Soap Lake history for a fat minute,” said Ewing. “It’s been a long time since someone has made it to the finals for a state championship in any sport.”

Warden boys take fifth in state golf tournament

LIBERTY LAKE — The Warden Cougars boys’ golf team competed in the 2B state championships, where they finished fifth overall as a team. Cougars Head Coach Tim Carlberg said this was a solid conclusion for the young team’s season. “I thought overall it was a great season for us. It didn’t end the way the guys wanted it to, but that’s sports. Sometimes you come up short,” said Carlberg. “I think placing fifth overall as a team is an awesome accomplishment and we can set our goals a little higher next year.”

Cougars conclude season in state tourney

YAKIMA — The Warden Cougars’ softball season came to a close Friday in the quarterfinals of the 2B State Tournament after falling in a tight matchup against Rainier 13-10. Even with a loss the Cougars were proud of the successes they made this season. “It went well,” said Head Coach Randy Wright. “We’re a young team; we hung right in there in both games, but in the end the mistakes kind of cost us. We played well, but they had some big innings against us.”

Eagles’ Ewing and Knights’ Orth compete at state tennis

YAKIMA — The 1A and 1B State Tennis tournaments began Friday morning and Xavier Ewing from the Soap Lake Eagles and Cael Orth from the Royal Knights each began their bid as they looked to battle through the bracket. Full stories on both players will be published at a later date.

ACH falls into consolation bracket in state softball tournament

YAKIMA — The Almira/Coulee-Hartline Warriors fell 5-8 in the quarterfinal bracket to the Colton Wildcats during the 1B State tournament. With this loss, the Warriors continue their state bid in the consolation bracket as they battle for a chance at third place. “We came out strong as we needed to, got three runs in that first inning, and we shut them down,” said Warriors head coach Faye Butler. “Then I think the nerves and all the excitement got to us, did a couple overthrows and they had a good rally on us.” The Warriors started off strong with the three runs in the bottom of the first inning to gain a substantial lead over their opponent. ACH maintained this lead until the third inning as Colton tied up the score with three runs of their own.

ACH falls into consolation bracket in state softball tournament

YAKIMA — The Almira/Coulee-Hartline Warriors fell 5-8 in the quarterfinal bracket to the Colton Wildcats during the 1B State tournament. With this loss, the Warriors continue their state bid in the consolation bracket as they battle for a chance at third place. “We came out strong as we needed to, got three runs in that first inning, and we shut them down,” said Warriors head coach Faye Butler. “Then I think the nerves and all the excitement got to us, did a couple overthrows and they had a good rally on us.” The Warriors started off strong with the three runs in the bottom of the first inning to gain a substantial lead over their opponent. ACH maintained this lead until the third inning as Colton tied up the score with three runs of their own.

Lions and Eagles compete in NCW Championships

CASHMERE — The Moses Lake Christian Academy/Covenant Christian School Lions and Soap Lake Eagles competed in the 1B District 5 North Central Washington Track and Field Championships Tuesday afternoon. By the end of the competition both teams competed strong and will be sending athletes to the state competition next weekend.

GALLERY: Spring sports highlights

MOSES LAKE — Though the spring sports season is not over yet, there have been many highlight moments from this season across the Basin. See below some of the highlight moments captured by the Columbia Basin Herald this season.

Lions’ Johnny Ferguson signs with EOU

MOSES LAKE — Johnny Ferguson, a student at Covenant Christian School and a football and basketball star with the Moses Lake Christian Academy/Christian Covenant School Lions, signed his letter of intent to continue his basketball career at Eastern Oregon University in La Grande, Oregon. While attending EOU, he will also focus on a degree in business administration. “I’m just really excited,” said Johnny. “It took a while to make the decision and I’m happy with the decision I made.” His decision to play for EOU came from the success that their basketball program has shown over the years. This season the EOU Mountaineers finished 22-9 and secured a Cascade Collegiate Conference Regular Season Co-Championship.

WA COLLEGE SPORTS SCHEDULE: May 21-29, 2026

MOSES LAKE — The final competitions for college athletes are underway as athletes move closer to the end of their seasons. Check out where the remaining teams will be heading this week.

UW upsets Ohio State in first Big Ten Tournament win

OMAHA, Nebraska — The 11th-seeded University of Washington Huskies (24-31) kept their postseason alive as they earned an 8-6 victory over the sixth seeded Ohio State Buckeyes (30-24) Tuesday in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament. Both the Huskies and the Buckeyes traded two-run blows throughout the game, according to a release from UW Athletics, but ultimately UW found themselves able to gain the advantage in the bottom of the ninth. Neither team scored in the first two innings, but UW got on the board first in the top of the third with two runs on two bases-loaded walks. This put the Huskies at 17-9 when scoring before their opponent.

Two Tigers make baseball all conference

EPHRATA — The 2026 Central Washington Athletic Conference Baseball All-Conference team was announced Monday and two Ephrata Tigers made the listing. Mitchell Johnson, a sophomore, earned second-team honors, and Cooper Vasquez, a sophomore, made the honorable mention list. “Any time you get players recognized by the other coaches in your league, that speaks really highly of them, not only as players, but as members of your program and what you’re trying to build,” said Tigers Head Coach David Tempel. “Really proud of those two guys and the efforts that they’ve done in the offseason and throughout this season.” Vasquez had just come off an injury sustained during the football season and worked hard to get ready to return for the start of the baseball season. The sophomore returned to have a stellar season on the pitching staff, and Tempel said he was proud of how Vasquez handled his business on the plate every day.

Knights send Cael Orth to state tournament

ROYAL CITY — After a tough battle through the 1A District 5 tournament, Cael Orth from the Royal Knights qualified for the state tournament. The Knights competed hard throughout the season and as a team made a deep push into the district tournament. “I think districts went well,” said Knights Head Coach Rodrigo Fajardo. “Just making it to day two and day three, it’s already hard as it is and the ultimate goal is to try to punch a ticket to state.” By the final rounds, Royal had sent 13 of their 16 varsity tennis players to the third day of the district tournament. Unfortunately, by the end of that third day, many of the Knights had fallen short and were eliminated from the competition.

Eagles’ Xavier Ewing on to state after team takes district title

SOAP LAKE — The Soap Lake Eagles will be sending senior Xavier Ewing to the state tournament this weekend. Ewing earned first in district singles, and through the efforts of each player, the Eagles boys team claimed the District 5 title for the first time in program history. “I’m happy it happened; it couldn’t have happened with a better group of kids,” said Eagles Head Coach Lee Leavell. “Kind of shocked it happened, I just didn’t think that was even a possibility, honestly. Kind of funny how it all turned out, but happy it happened.”

ACH softball enters state as third seed

COULEE CITY — After a hard-fought battle through the 1B District 6 tournament, the Almira/Coulee-Hartline Warriors finished out as third in districts and punched their ticket into the state tournament. Entering as the third seed, the Warriors look to continue their success into the coming weekend. “It’s pretty great, we’re feeling pretty good,” said Warriors Head Coach Faye Butler. “We had conversations at the beginning of the season like, ‘What’s your goal for this year,’ and they’re like, ‘We want to get to state,’ and I said, ‘What do you want to do at state,’ and we came to the conclusion that we want to be in the top four teams. It gives us a lot of confidence that we can totally do this, so super exciting, we’re super thrilled.”

BASIN SPORTS SCHEDULE: May 19-23, 2026

COLUMBIA BASIN — The brackets for state play are set, and the remaining Basin teams prepare to compete in the final weeks of the season. See where each local team will be playing this week.

MLHS Pals graduates class of 2026

MOSES LAKE — Moses Lake High School hosted the 2026 graduation ceremony for the Pals Club Friday inside the high school theater. The ceremony saw 14 graduates take the stage to receive their diplomas and be honored for their academic achievements. “I feel great and I’m happy,” said Jocelyn Dominguez-Gomez, one of the graduates from the Class of 2026. Following graduation, Dominguez-Gomez said she is looking forward to going to work and to the summit where she will meet more people and will get assistance in finding a job.

Cougars send four golfers to state

WARDEN — The Warden Cougars completed their run at the 2B District 5 golf tournament Wednesday at Colockum Ridge with four of their athletes qualifying for the state tournament. For the boys Jaden Hernandez, Everett Cox and JJ Madsen, and for the girls, Amaya Erickson, will all head out to Liberty Lake Golf Course to compete in the state tournament. “I was really proud of all the kids,” said Cougars Boys Coach Tim Carlberg. “Overall, we’re extremely happy to get all four of them through.”

Huskies send three girls to state tournament

YAKIMA — After a tough battle through the 2A District 5 tournament, the Othello Huskies girls tennis team became district champs. Along with the title, the Huskies will be sending Shaylee Freeman and Faith Risenmay for girls doubles and Olivia Harris for girls singles to the state tournament. “It just feels so surreal,” said Huskies Girls Coach Priscilla Tovar. “From the beginning of the season, I knew I had a strong team and I knew any of them could make it to state.” On the doubles side, Othello sent three teams to the district tournament, which included Shaylee Freeman and Faith Risenmay, Alexa Peterson and Hazel Roylance and Amber Freeman and Addie Roylance.

Huskies claim third in districts with home win

OTHELLO — The Othello Huskies (20-4) overcame East Valley Tuesday afternoon to earn a 4-1 victory and claim third in the 2A District 5. The Huskies continue their postseason bid with one more game before state. “I felt like it went well,” said Huskies senior RJay Garza. “We had a couple of tough moments there during the game, but we stayed in it, stayed together and we fought through it all and came out on top.”

Eagles’ Ewing and Ortega on to districts

SOAP LAKE — The Soap Lake Eagles competed in their 1B league tournament over the weekend to decide which players would qualify for the district tournament. At the end of the competition, the Eagles are sending seniors Xavier Ewing and Francisco Ortega on to the district tournament. “I was pretty happy with everybody,” said Eagles Head Coach Lee Leavell. “It seemed like everybody really played hard and some advanced and some it just didn’t work out for (them).” Ewing had a strong showing at leagues as he earned a win over Liberty Bell’s Gavin Blank, who he had lost to in the state tournament last season but fell to Manson’s Ben Rasmusson in the finals. Overall, Ewing took second in the league tournament.

Huskies softball concludes season in district tournament

OTHELLO — The Othello Huskies (9-12) finished their 2026 season Saturday afternoon in the 2A District 5 tournament after falling in the second round to Ellensburg 1-18. Huskies Head Coach Dominique Martinez said this was a great season of growth for the young team. “A good takeaway would be them knowing what the other teams bring to the plate,” said Martinez. “They got to see it happen because we did those different situations and we talked to them about what to do and then them seeing it, I thought they did really good executing it.”

Fire burns around 2,200 acres along SR 24

MATTAWA — A nearly 2,200-acre fire briefly closed state Route 24 Sunday evening. Grant County Fire District 8 Chief Matt Hyndman said firefighters were informed of the fire at about 8:16 p.m. with local fire departments working together to get the flames under control.

Basin Sports Schedule: May 12-18, 2026

COLUMBIA BASIN — Postseason play has begun in the Columbia Basin and local athletes are competing in districts to qualify for state. Check out where the local teams will be heading this week.

Tigers split games to move into final round of districts

EPHRATA — The Ephrata Tigers (11-13) split their games over the weekend in the district tournament, winning 17-4 over Prosser and falling 4-20 against Selah. The Tigers prepare for one final game of districts to qualify for the district crossover. “I think the majority of our focus is going to be on communication and just situational softball,” said Tigers Head Coach Lesa Trevino. “Definitely clean defense, at this point in the season, everybody can play. The difference comes down to handling pressure in situations, eliminating mistakes and responding quickly.” After coming off a tough loss to East Valley in the first round of the tournament last Wednesday, the Tigers entered the next round against Prosser with new energy. In the bottom of first inning Ephrata put up six runs with a single from Ella Piturachsatit scoring a run, a single from Bailey Falconer scoring another run, Piturachsatit scoring after tagging up, Bayleigh French singling for two runs and Cami Martinez singling for a run.

Brush fire closes Hwy 24

OTHELLO — A large brush fire has broken out along Highway 24 near Hendrix Road south of Othello. The area was blocked off around 8:30 p.m. while fire crews work to put out the flames. The roadway reopened at around 1 a.m., but units from Grant County Fire District 8 were dispatched once again as the fire started back up again Monday morning. This is a developing story and updates will be made as they become available.

Vehicle fire sets two cars ablaze

MOSES LAKE — A vehicle fire destroyed one car and ignited a second one on Parkway Avenue Northeast in Moses Lake early Friday morning.

Knights claim district win over Okanogan

ROYAL CITY — The Royal Knights (14-1-2) got the best of Okanogan Thursday evening with a 2-1 victory as they move on to the next round of the district tournament. The game was tight in the beginning, but the offensive efforts from the Knights allowed them to claim a win. “It was competitive; we had a close game,” said Knights junior Brayan Miron. “We had a couple of mistakes, but we got back and we just fought to the end.”

Knights fall to Connell in district first round

ROYAL CITY — The Royal Knights (12-9) fell just short of victory Thursday afternoon after a 2-4 loss against Connell. Despite taking a loss, the Knights prepare to get back on track Saturday for the next round of districts. “We started out a little slowly, we had close plays and just didn’t get the ball to bounce our way,” said Knights Head Coach Tony Jenks. Connell was the first on the board in the top of the first as they earned a single run and the Knights were unable to respond in the bottom of the inning. Both teams went scoreless for the next three innings, until Connell put up an additional three runs in the fifth inning.

Tigers fall in first round of districts

YAKIMA — The Ephrata Tigers (10-12) fell in a tough district tournament game against East Valley Wednesday afternoon, going 0-10 against the number one seed. The season is still alive for Ephrata as they continue on the road to Selah High School. “We just didn’t play aggressive softball,” said Tigers Head Coach Lesa Trevino. “We were hesitant at times, especially offensively and against any good team like East Valley, you can’t sit back.”

Mavs prepare for district play after tough end to regular season

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake Mavericks boys and girls teams finished out the regular season with a tough schedule as they went from the Inland Empire Tournament to three back-to-back meets against competitive league rivals. The Mavs now prepare for the postseason as 12 players head to the district tournament Saturday. “I think they’re feeling well,” said Mavs Head Coach Mark Thompson. “They are looking ahead to districts and what we’re going to do there.”

Eagles and Huskies compete in final meets of the regular season

CHENEY — The Eastern Washington Eagles and the University of Washington Huskies wrapped up the regular season with the teams splitting up to compete at the Desert Heat Classic in Arizona and the OSU High Performance Invite in Oregon. “Championship time is here, and we ended the regular season with a bang,” said Erin Tucker, the Director of Track and Field at EWU.

Huskies 10-run Toppenish to win district play-in

OTHELLO — The Othello Huskies (9-11) move on in the 2A District 5 tournament after earning a 10-0 win over Toppenish during a windy Wednesday afternoon. With this victory, the Huskies head into a two-game series on the road in Yakima. “I think it went well; everyone had their spirits up and their energy, so it was a good game,” said Huskies senior Maylen Valdez. “Obviously with the weather we had a lot of errors, but we picked up and we did good in the end.” Both teams had a slow start as neither Othello nor Toppenish scored in the first two innings. The Huskies finally got on the board in the bottom of the third as Evony Gomez grounded out and Alizay Pruneda doubled with each scoring a run.

WA COLLEGE SPORTS SCHEDULE: May 7-14, 2026

MOSES LAKE — College athletes are in the final stretch of their seasons as they battle for new records and championship titles. Check out where your favorite teams will be heading this week.

Cougars earn dominant victory over Goldendale in district tournament

WARDEN — The Warden Cougars (13-8) earned a 14-0 victory over Goldendale in the first round of the Eastern Washington Athletic Conference tournament Tuesday afternoon. The Cougars now prepare for Friday’s games to determine their seeding for the 2B District 5 tournament. “It went well, pretty much like I thought it would,” said Cougars Head Coach Randy Wright. “It was a good tune (up) for Friday’s game against Kittitas.” The game started out slow as neither team scored in the first two innings. After holding Goldendale scoreless once again in the top of the third inning, Warden came up with 10 runs in the bottom of the third to claim a steep lead over the opposition.

Huskies victorious in first round of districts

OTHELLO — The Othello Huskies (18-3) came out victorious over the number four seeded Selah in the first round of the District 5 2A tournament Tuesday afternoon. With their 9-2 victory, the number one-seeded Huskies get to host their opponents once again Saturday. “Down 2-0 in the first four innings, came back, nine runs at the end of the game. That’s what the best team in the state does,” said Ryan Martinez from the Huskies. The Huskies had a slower start during Tuesday’s game as Selah put up two runs in the top of the first inning. Othello stayed persistent throughout the next four innings but was unable to score any runs.

Grant County hosts household hazardous waste collection events

MOSES LAKE — Grant County Public Works is hosting two household hazardous waste collection events this weekend. The first will be taking place May 8 from noon to 4 p.m. at Lauzier Field in Quincy and the second is May 9 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Grant County Road District Shop in Moses Lake.

ACH claims victories on the road over Lions

MOSES LAKE — The Almira/Coulee-Hartline Warriors (12-6) earned two victories over the Moses Lake Christian Academy/Covenant Christian School Lions (4-13) Monday afternoon. This game marked a key learning experience for both teams as they prepare for the league tournament this weekend. “I think we did really good today,” said ACH junior Madison Brink. “Our pitchers were really good, our hitting was really good. Overall, I think we did a really good job today.” The Warriors got off to a strong start in game one as they went up eight runs in the top of the first inning. The Lions worked to close the gap as they put up three runs in the bottom of the inning.

BBCC eyes budget and spring enrollment

MOSES LAKE — During Big Bend Community College’s April 30 board meeting the college President, Sarah Thompson Tweedy, shared the counts for spring enrollment and Full Time Enrollment numbers for Spring of 2026 along with updates on where the budget sits. “We still have some work to do in terms of systematically going through our expenses and seeing how much of the requests that we have before us, how many of those we can put off,” said Thompson Tweedy. “There’s the opportunity to close that gap by reducing our expenses, but the challenge is, we’ve also had some expenses go up.” As of April 15, 2026 the spring quarter head count was up nearly 18% from 2025, but total FTE’s and state-funded FTEs were down 6.9% and 11.6% respectively, according to the board agenda.

Huskies best Tigers in OT

Othello moves on to second round of districts

OTHELLO — The Othello Huskies (11-5) extended their postseason push after earning a close 2-1 victory in overtime against the Ephrata Tigers (7-10) in the first round of the 2A district tournament. The game winning goal came in second overtime when Othello sophomore Samuel Marroquin knocked the ball into the back of the net. “It was a tough game, Ephrata is definitely a tough opponent, but I feel like we had prepared well for the week,” said Marroquin. “We definitely had a good game plan and we just gave everything. We knew if this was our last game we were going to go out with a bang.” The game was a tight battle from the very beginning as the Tigers and Huskies battled under the hot sun. Othello scored in the first half and maintained their lead in throughout, going into halftime 1-0.

BASIN SPORTS SCHEDULE: May 4-11, 2026

COLUMBIA BASIN — The postseason has begun for high school athletes in our area with teams gearing up to compete against the best of the best. Check out where our local teams are heading this week.

Huskies best Toppenish in senior night doubleheader

OTHELLO — The Othello Huskies (8-11) had an exciting end to the regular season Friday where they earned a pair of victories over Toppenish during their senior night. The Huskies were dominant in both their matchups, winning 6-0 in the first game and 13-3 in the second. “I know it definitely felt a little rocky. We always start off kind of rough, but then toward the end of the game we’re always strong and hype each other up,” said Huskies senior Alizay Pruneda. In game one, the Huskies went up three in the bottom of the first with a double by Alizay Pruneda, a dropped third strike and a double by Jena DeLeon. Othello extended their lead in the bottom of the third when Alexa Prochet stole home.

Huskies victorious on senior night

OTHELLO — The Othello Huskies boys (12-4) and girls (16-0) tennis teams secured victories on senior night. The Huskies boys secured a 3-2 victory and the girls 4-1 to add onto their undefeated season and secured a league championship. “I’m so proud of my girls,” said Huskies Girls Coach Priscilla Tovar. “We’ve been talking from the beginning; the team goal was to be league champs again. I’m just so proud of them showing up every day.”

BBCC’s Franz and Richards given Trustee Emeritus status

MOSES LAKE — During Big Bend Community College’s April Board of Trustees meeting Thursday, Anna Franz and Juanita Richards were given Trustee Emeritus status.

Mavs earn home victory over a formidable Selah

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake Mavericks (12-1) gained 9-3 a home victory Wednesday afternoon against the Selah Vikings in a non-conference matchup. Selah is one of the top teams from the Central Washington Athletic Conference, sitting second in their league rankings. “We’re super excited about getting a win against a super high-quality opponent,” said Mavs Head Coach Mike Hofheins. “They’re a solid club, they’re probably going to place at the 2A state tournament, which is exactly why we wanted to play them.”

WA COLLEGE SPORTS SCHEDULE: April 30-May 7, 2026

MOSES LAKE — College athletes head get ready for postseason appearances as the final weeks of the season draw near. See where your favorite teams will be competing this week.