Last chance to see best in Tri-Cities area basketball. SWX All-Star Games are Saturday

Jeff Morrow
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Here we are deep into the high school spring sports season, but this weekend prep basketball fans will get one last chance to watch smoke of the region’s best athletes lace up the sneakers one last time.

The SWX All-Star Game is actually two games — one boys and one girls — that will take place on Saturday, April 20, at Sunnyside High School.

The all-star games pit some of the top players from the Tri-Cities against the best from the Yakima area.

The series began in 1994 when Yakima Herald-Republic sports editor Jim Scoggins approached Tri-City Herald Sports Editor Jim Riley about starting an all-star series.

The first games were labeled a success, and over the next 30 years, the games have continued — with the exception of a few COVID years.

Over the last few years, KNDU/SWX has picked up the slack and organized the games.

If you can’t make it to Sunnyside, SWX will be televising the games, with the girls contest tipping off at 3 p.m., while the boys will start at 5 p.m.

All proceeds will be donated to charity.

Here are Saturday’s rosters:

TRI-CITY GIRLS: Journee Brooks, Pasco; Lay’lee Dixon, Prosser; Hailey Jamison, Columbia-Burbank; Haylee Johnson, Kennewick; Jordan Maiden, Chiawana; Gianna Medelez, Chiawana; Macie Milum, Richland; Lynnea Moran, Hanford; Azlyn Pariera, Columbia-Burbank; Aryn Sloot, Southridge; Emaunii Smith, Kamiakin; Mia Tijerina, Chiawana.

YAKIMA GIRLS: Mya Alvarado, East Valley-Yakima; Lili Briones, Sunnyside; Tatiana Camacho, Toppenish; Jordan Espinoza, Wapato; D’Ana Esquivel, Zillah; Esmerelda Galindo, Davis; Mia Hicks, Zillah; Laken Hill, West Valley-Yakima; Kobe Johnson, Wapato; Neveah Lopez, Eisenhower; Brooke Ravet, Ellensburg; Esmerelda Sanchez, Mabton; Trinity Wheeler, Wapato; Alana Zavala, Mabton.

TRI-CITY BOYS: Jack Forbes, Richland; Dane Gardea, Walla Walla; Ken Higgins, Walla Walla; Trevor Kaiser, Hanford; Blake McClure, Tri-Cities Prep; Grant Olsen, Hermiston; Caden Ross, Columbia-Burbank; Quincy Scott, Columbia-Burbank; Will Sullivan, Walla Walla; Collin Sweezy, Tri-Cities Prep; Jesse Tijerina, Southridge; Luke Westerfield, Richland; Gage Williams, Chiawana; Josh Woodard, Richland.

YAKIMA BOYS: Finnegan Anderson, Davis; Omar Arizpe, Wapato; Lino Armendariz, Grandview; Jaxton Caffrey, La Salle; Cameron Draculan, Grandview; Gunner Fenz, Ellensburg; Cesar Hernandez, Davis; Koby McClure, Prosser; Kory McClure, Prosser; Noah McNair, Sunnyside; Amir Mitchell, Eisenhower; Nic Navarre, Zillah; Lucas Stevens, Eisenhower; Dekker Van de Graaf, Zillah.

Spring prep sports

I’ll be the first to say that the WIAA’s Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) isn’t the be-all, end-all when it comes to determining the best teams in the state.

But it is a measuring tool to give us all an idea of who is playing well.

An according to the RPI, baseball teams in our region are very loaded.

In fact, four of the six No. 1 teams in the various classifications are from the Mid-Columbia.

In Class 4A, Richland is the top team, while Kamiakin is ranked second — making next week’s Mid-Columbia Conference doubleheader between those two that much bigger.

In Class 3A, Kelso is No. 1, but Kennewick isn’t far away at No. 4.

Othello is the top 2A team in the state, while Naches Valley in Yakima is ranked No. 1 in Class 1A.

In Class 2B, River View in Finley is the No. 1 team in the state, while the Panthers’ Eastern Washington Athletic Conference rival, Tri-Cities Prep, is No. 3.

And in Class 1B, Liberty Christian of Richland gets the call at No. 1. DeSales of Walla Walla is ranked seventh, while Dayton is No. 10.

▪ In boys soccer, our area has some highly ranked squads.

Chiawana is No. 2 in Class 4A, while Pasco sits at No. 4.

Wahluke is No. 2 in Class 1A, while the Warriors’ rival, Royal, is sixth.

Union (4A), Edmonds-Woodway (3A), Sehome (2A), Cascade-Leavenworth (1A), and Friday Harbor (1B/2B) are all No. 1 teams.

▪ The Tri-Cities has two teams ranked No. 1 in RPI for fastpitch softball.

Hanford, sitting at 11-0, is No. 1 in Class 4A; while Kiona-Benton is the top team in Class 1A.

Richland is ranked No. 10 in 4A; College Place is seventh in 1A; while DeSales (No. 2), Liberty Christian (No. 6), Dayton (No. 8) and Sunnyside Christian (No. 9) all sit in the 1B rankings.

Bonney Lake (3A), Port Angeles (2A), Liberty-Spangle (2B) and Inchelium (1B) all are ranked No. 1 in their respective classifications.

MLB

After looking at all Major League teams’ rosters, here is who is on an MLB on opening day coaching staffs who have ties to either the Tri-Cities or Eastern Washington:

  • Ben Fritz (Dust Devils manager 2016-17) is the bullpen coach for the San Diego Padres.

  • Ron Gideon (Dust Devils manager 2002-2005) is the first base coach for the Colorado Rockies.

  • Ethan Katz (Dust Devils pitcher in 2005, 2006 and 2008; 58 games) is the pitching coach for the Chicago White Sox.

  • Mike McCoy (Dust Devils manager in 2018 and 2019) is an assistant hitting coach for the San Diego Padres.

  • Dave McKay (played at CBC in 1969 and 1970) is the first base coach for the Arizona Diamondbacks.

  • Pat Murphy (pitcher in 1985 for the Tri-City Triplets; player-manager for Triplets in 1986) is the manager for the Milwaukee Brewers.

  • Pat O’Sullivan (Dust Devils hitting coach in 2018 and 2019) is an assistant hitting coach for the San Diego Padres.

  • Anthony Sanders (Dust Devils hitting coach from 2007 to 2012) is the first base coach for the Baltimore Orioles.

  • Mel Stottlemyre, Jr. (Yakima-Davis grad) is the pitching coach for the Miami Marlins.

College basketball

Senior Nick Gutierrez (Pasco, CBC) finished his college basketball career by starting 12 games for Hannibal-Lagrange College in Missouri.

Gutierrez averaged 5.7 points for the Trojans, who finished with a 7-18 record.

Teammate Malakai Munoz (CBC) averaged 6.2 points and 3.4 assists (tops with the team) while starting in 21 games.

Jeff Morrow is former sports editor for the Tri-City Herald.

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