Locally: Former East Valley standout Brie Holecek earns top defensive honor in Cascade Collegiate Conference
From staff reports
Former East Valley standout Brie Holecek capped an impressive regular season on the Eastern Oregon University women’s basketball team with a pair of conference honors.
Holecek was named the Cascade Collegiate Conference co-Defensive Player of the Year on March 5, along with being named to the all-conference first team.
The 5-foot-10 junior forward transfer from Walla Walla Community College finished the regular season with 174 rebounds, averaging 6.2 per game.
Holecek was also an offensive force, ranking sixth in the conference with 16.1 points per game, 18th with a field-goal percentage of 44.3%, and sixth with a 3-point percentage of 37.4%.
Holecek and the Mountaineers earned an at-large bid to the NAIA Tournament and will play second-seeded Providence (Montana) at 4 p.m. Friday in Great Falls.
Brie’s brother and fellow East Valley grad Luke Holecek also earned postseason honors in the Northwest Athletic Conference, being named the East Region Freshman of the Year and named to the East Region first team for Walla Walla CC.
Luke averaged 16.1 points while shooting 52.9% from the field in his first collegiate season.
Hall of fame
A former pro football front office administrator for four decades, one of University of Idaho’s most decorated track athletes, and two individuals who have had a big influence on high school sports in northern Idaho are the 2024 inductees into the North Idaho Athletic Hall of Fame, NIAHF officials announced.
Randy Mueller, who has worked for seven professional football teams; Olympian Jackie Ross-Mattox, who still holds UI track records; former Deary High athlete, football coach and school administrator Darrah Eggers; and retired high school and college basketball official Bill Bopp are the honorees this year.
The four will be inducted during the Idaho Athletic Hall of Fame Banquet, set for April 6, at the Coeur d’Alene Resort. Tickets for the banquet, which also features the North Idaho High School Awards, are $39 each and can be purchased online at www.nihof.org after Tuesday by clicking on the “Purchase Tickets” brown box. Reserved tables for eight also can be purchased for $400. Former University of Idaho and NFL standout Mark Schlereth will be the featured speaker.
College swimming
Washington State swimming sophomores Dori Hathazi and Emily Lundgren are headed back to the NCAA Championships.
The championships are set for March 20-23 in Athens, Georgia.
The sophomore duo is the first set of Cougars teammates to qualify for the NCAA Championships in back-to-back seasons in program history and gives WSU an NCAA Championship qualifier in the past five seasons with seven swimmers qualifying over that stretch.
College football
Eastern Washington University head coach Aaron Best announced March 5 that Tamarick Pierce has joined the Eagles’ staff as the team’s running backs coach.
Pierce, originally from Oakland, California, played running back for the Eagles in 2015-21, appearing in 51 games and starting six while piling up 1,648 yards and 24 touchdowns on 285 career rushes.
College wrestling
Former Coeur d’Alene and current Minnesota wrestling standout Drew Roberts earned a spot into the NCAA Championships with a ninth-place finish at 149 pounds in the Big Ten Tournament on Sunday in College Park, Maryland. Roberts will learn his bracket during Wednesday’s selection show. The event takes place March 21-23 in Kansas City, Missouri.