Washington Sports Network Blog

Davis

The Pirates came out with guns blazing and sending a message to all, bring you’re A game or don’t bother coming… The days of marking a win on your calendar is over! Deion (The Great) Wright put on one of the most impressive performances in Pirates history, throwing for 349 yards to break James Phillips’ 13-year-old school record.  For all those that didn’t know, now you know, the Pirates are for real!

Chiawana

This team won one game last year, and I’m here to tell you they will win a lot more than that this year.  Truthfully, I feel sorry for the teams that beat them last year, because this years’ version has the ability to make teams wish the game was just over, ask Hanford! Not only did they look impressive on the offensive side of the ball, but they looked just as impressive on Defense. If there is one Achilles heel with this team, it’s their ability to kick field goals and extra points, that is something they must fix before the big dogs come calling. With that being said I don’t see anyone in the Big 9 slowing down the Riverhawks. Pick your poison, stopping Luc Graff, Jordan Downing, or Miquayah Zamora?

Richland

All I can say is Defense, Defense, and Defense! This Richland team is very physical on both side of the ball; it will be very difficult task for teams to score on Richland this year. From everything we’re hearing about the game with Pasco, the Bulldogs will score a lot of points on teams this year, but couldn’t manage to do it against the Bombers. All I can say is bring a lot of ice for your team when playing Richland. Richland is one of those team that will beat you up when they’re on offense AND defense. With the physical running of Jake McKinney and a knock-the-snot-out-of-your-nose defense, the Bombers are all we thought they would be.

Sunnyside

The Sunnyside Grizzles came out roaring Friday and showed that they are a team to fear.  Andrew Daley threw 3 touchdowns and ran for 1 more; Daley was a one man wrecking crew and if he’s able to continue this pace until Israel Manzo returns, the Grizzles will be a tough out for anyone. Watch out Pirates here come the Sunnyside boys!

Hanford

The Falcons looked really young and inexperienced, but showed flashes of a team that will compete later in the years. One of the bright spots for the Falcons was Cameron Wagar; he rushed for 116 yard on 17 carries against a pretty good Chiawana defense.  Coach Oram will get these boys back on track.  Too bad they opened against 2 of the tougher teams in the Big Nine 4A, if not the 4A state!

Kennewick

This may well be the dark horse team this year. Kennewick looked very explosive on offense and showed a lot of speed on defense. Grant Woods showed that he can take some pressure off Drew Loftus by rushing for 111 yards and two touchdowns. Kennewick appears to be a balanced team and have a lot of horses that will give opposing coaches nightmares. This is arguably the most athletic team in the Big9!  Loftus is worth the price of admission, and defensively these boys fly around! Can’t wait to see how they perform this week against Hermiston!

Wenatchee

Wenatchee continues to do what they do best, and that is win. Cooper Helm and company came into Lampson field and smacked Southridge right in the mouth, with an early 17-3 half time lead, and were able to hold off a late charge by the Suns to squeak out a one inch victory in overtime (32-31). If Cooper Helm can stay healthy, Wenatchee should continue to win most games this year.  This team will only continue to improve!  The Panthers have a number of weapons, including some nice WR’s in Jared Jeager and Keaton Smith.

Southridge

Southridge is a team that despite their opening game loss to the Panthers of Wenatchee learned some valuable lessons in week 1.  Matt Mendenhall shook off some early jitters to turn in the weeks top passing performance.  With targets like AJ Henderson, Josh Richards, and TE Jon Buffington Mendenhall may put up the best numbers in conference.  Dual threat back Palmer and Haueter are as deadly as any.  Defensively Southridge will continue to improve as well, Chance White in particular was a surprise standout for the Suns.

Kamiakin

Talent, talent, and more talent.  The Brave were missing Tyler Holle on offense, and Drew Oord on defense and still managed to slap Prosser around after an early feeling out period.  We know they will be explosive on Offense, but these boys also like to pop on D.  The Big Nine is shaping up to be THE conference in the State this year, I dare anybody to tell us differently.  Joey Jansen will improve as the season progresses, and with the weapons he has at his displsal he can take his time.  AJ Griffiths, Tim White, and Zach Umemoto will take turns in the spotlight on Friday nights.

From Left; Miquiyah Zamora (Chiawana), Zachary Umemoto, Tyler Holle, Tim White, Joey Jansen (Kamiakin), Jacob Schmidt, and Troy Redmann (TC Prep)

7/14/10 Kennewick, WA–

We are reaching the mid-point of summer (already?) and for many kids across the state their summers have been chockfull of activities.

Most went right from spring sports into summer baseball, football and soccer. There was spring football, then team and individual camps at Boise State, Eastern Washington and Central. The Tri Cities teams held their own team camp and most schools have “voluntary” weight lifting and athletic development “camps”.

Even more have been honing their skills in a variety of ways including individual workouts and “Combines”, basically a skills showcase for bettering ones chances at a college scholarship.

WSN held its first combine and a small, yet talented group of locals turned out to compete. What did we learn? Well Kamiakin for one appears to be LOADED with talent and athleticism (check out our Football preview coming soon). Other schools including Chiawana and Tri-Cities Prep want recruiters to take notice too.

Here is a quick assessment of the participants and the Combine:

Tim White:  The creme of the crop that attended that day.  White led the league in both reception and receiving yards last year as a Junior, with 70 catches and over 1,000 yards.  Tim had attended other combines earlier this summer and was familiar with the drills so this played a huge benefit right from the start.  White has received recruiting interest from several colleges including  EWU, CWU, WSU.  We think he is D1 material, due to his quickness, precise route running and hands.  White performed well in the combine drills with top marks every event except vertical and bench.   Look for Tim to be one of the standout players in the Big Nine.

Zack Koons:  The only lineman that attended that day.  Koons is a 09 transfer from Connell.  Zack showed good mobility and athleticism.  This was his first combine and he settled in as we went through the drills.  Look for Zack to be a key contribute on a Kennewick team that needs to show toughness on the line this year to compete.

Troy Redmann:  Closing in on the top all-time receiving records  in the 8-man state history (already holding records for single game receptions (16), and single season touchdowns (25). Redmann has a “next level” frame and displayed great competitiveness and poise.  Redmann would be a starter on any team in the TriCities and should not be overlooked because he plays 8-man.

Miquiyah Zamora:  The athletic junior-to-be is reported to have participated in our combine with a broken foot.  According to those in the know, he is having his foot evaluated so as to maximize his potential in his junior year.  Despite the foot problems Zamora’s name routinely comes up as one of the top HS athletes in the TriCities, and his coaches absolutely gush over him.  He posted the top strength marks with 16 reps of 185lbs, which means if he gets his foot problems taken care of watch out.

Tyler Holle: Holle posted some impressive numbers overall and looks to be the breakout player in the Big Nine.  Deceptively fast at 6’2″ Holle’s laid-back demeanor belays the competitive fire that burns beneath.  Good vertical marks show his explosiveness.  Also a stand-out basketball player for Kamiakin, Holle should be fun to watch this year.

Joey Jansen: Listed at a generous 5’10 Jansen will compete for the starting QB spot on the Kamiakin Braves team.  A natural leader, Jansen turned heads in the quickness and explosiveness drills.  Most impressive was his day’s best vertical jump of 32in.  A star Baseball player in his own right, Jansen’s elusiveness may spell trouble for opposing defenses this year.  Though he probably leans toward baseball, if  he sticks with football he projects as a WR or DB.

Zach Umemoto:  Zach has a nice combination of power and speed that will serve him well this year as a starting RB for Kamiakin.  Umemoto’s name was called often in games we covered last year, as a sophomore.  Look for Umemoto to increase him combine numbers in the months to come.   His short-shuttle time alludes to his agility and balance, a good combination for a Big Nine back.

Jacob Schmidt:  Schmidt, just a Junior, showed quickness in each of the drills and looks to cause havoc alongside teammate Redmann in the B-8 ranks.  Schmidt did not participate in the bench-press due to a bad wrist.  With 2 years to develop prior to college expect to see Jacob improve his marks while helping Tri Cities Prep to another state run.

So letter of intent day has come and gone. What do you guys think? Here is a rundown of Football, if we missed any (big or small) let us know.

Football:

Eisenhower:
Joe Fuerst – CWU
Seth Kline – Air Force
Ryan Watson – Eastern Oregon Univ

Wenatchee:
Mike Marboe – Idaho
Jacob Sealby – WSU walk on
Lucas Sealby – WSU walk on

Southridge:
Brent Anderson – WSU walk on

Pasco:
Marques Avery – Army

Hanford:
Dylan Dikes – Southern Virginia Univ

Walla-Walla:
Zach Summerlin – Air Force

Ellensburg:
Eathan Sterkle – CWU

So we just finished our first ever week (for us it was 4 days) at the Tri-Cities Team Football Camp and our vote is a resounding yes!

The camp was the brain-child of former Kamiakin, now Vermillion Catholic Head Coach Craig Beverlin.  Basically, coaches grew tired of giving the colleges their players money, trying to corral teenagers in a college dorm, and  being miserable for a week.

Actually, it wasn’t all that bad, but this is one idea that I would have to say is win-win.  Players get to sleep in their own beds, spend less money, compete against the kids they will line up against in the fall, and probably get 70% more sleep.  Parents get to actually come out and watch their kid when they get off of work, save money, and maybe catch a late dinner with johnny when its all said and done.

Some of the teams participating in this years camp were:

Richland, Pasco, Kennewick, Southridge, Chiawana, Hanford, Kamiakin, Ki-Be, Connel, Waitsburg-Prescott, Eastmont, Walla-Walla, Hermiston, & Riverview

Our early, and we mean early,  thoughts on a few teams (Note: Every team had at least a few players missing.  Many were either hurt, playing baseball, or taking a well needed vacation).

Kennewick:  The Lion’s have some hosses.  Trent Brown looks good and threw some nice balls.  The Lions are young and big up front, with some good skill players rounding out the bunch.  Should be vastly improved over last seasons 2-8 record.

Pasco:  Coach Lamb looks the part.  I got a good vibe from their staff that they mean business.  The bulldogs have some play makers on both sides of the ball including sprinter Marques Avery.  Their athleticism (Austin Wilborn) should pay big dividends in the fall.

Kamiakin:  From a distance new head coach Scott Biglin may seem like still waters, but “Bigs” can bring the ruckus, and expects 100% effort and no mistakes.  Look for the Braves to use numerous weapons (Tim White), in the spread offense and have another stout defense.

Southridge: All-Airport Team for sure, these guys look like they mean business and may be (gulp) better than last year?  With a cast of skill and power including SR QB Stephen Garcia the “Suns” will definitely shine.  I overheard they have nicknamed their skill guys “Earth, Wind, and Fire” we’ll see if they are Dancin’ in September or Yearnin’ Learnin’.

Chiawana: Brand-new Riverhawk program will definitely take their lumps but may also dish a few.  QB Luc Graff is steady in the pocket and has a nice touch.  With summer jerseys made them look like Penn State, and no Seniors this year, some young players may be thrust into the mix early.  One young player that will not have a hard time adjusting is All-Everything Super-Soph-To-Be Miquiyah Zamora, the buzz surrounding this kid is off the charts, but so is his play…

Richland: Let’s not forget about the Bombers.  They lost some great players in Rowe, Jacobs, and the boyz, but return their quarterback Sr. Haden Hilty.  A Senior quarterback is always nice to have and the Bombers have a good one.  Look for some under the radar players to make their mark.

Walla-Walla:  The devils in the details, and Coach Yonts has some nice size and a great player in TE Gary Winston.  OL Ryan James and Cascade Division standout Zach Sumerlin anchor the line.  Some of their Wr’s impressed us too.  Should be a great year for Big Nine Football.

Look for much more from us in the coming weeks as we do a full break-down of each team in the Big Nine.