Local roundup
North Idaho College officials announced this week that they have hired Coeur d’Alene native Russell Grove as the new coach for the men’s and women’s golf teams.
Grove replaces Derrick Thompson, who led both teams to the National Junior College Athletic Association national golf tournament. Thompson has since taken the same position at Iowa Western College.
“Russell is an exceptional golf talent, and is highly respected as a professional golfer and instructor” NIC athletic director Al Williams said in a news release. “We have a talented group of returners and recruits, so the foundation appears to be set for Russell to lead our programs to continued success.”
Grove, the assistant golf professional at Avondale Golf Club in Hayden, attended Coeur d’Alene High School, where he was the valedictorian and helped the Vikings win the 5A State Golf Championship in 2004. He received a golf scholarship to the University of Idaho where he served as the team captain and led the Vandals to their best finish in the history of the Western Athletic Conference.
Soccer
Idaho soccer coach Derek Pittman announced this week that he has hired Josh Davis to assist his team as coach of the goalkeepers.
Davis comes to Idaho after spending the 2013 season as an assistant at Indiana University – Purdue University Fort Wayne.
“Josh is an experienced coach that will push our goalkeepers to be the hardest working players on the team and improve our team’s overall defensive organization,” Pittman said in a news release.
Davis replaces former assistant coach Ashley O’Brien, who accepted a coaching position at Brown University in June.
Softball
Four umpires from Spokane and three from North Idaho have been selected to work Amateur Softball Association national championships.
Three of them, Bryan Raschka of Spokane, Leanne Brenner of Sagle, Idaho, and Chuck Moreland of Coeur d’Alene, are umpiring in the ASA 14-U B Western National girls fast pitch tournament in Medford, Oregon, that winds up today.
Dennis Keys and Thomas Kirkpatrick, both of Spokane, also are in girls Western Nationals that end today – Keys in the 14-U A in Pasco and Kirkpatrick in the 10-U and 12-U A in Portland.
Cam Preston of Spokane will umpire in the Men’s D Slowpitch Western in Salem, Oregon, Aug. 29-Sept. 1, and Tony Luzzo of Coeur d’Alene will be in the Men’s A Slowpitch in Edmond, Oklahoma, Sept. 26-28.
It is the first national for Preston and Moreland, the second for Kirkpatrick and the third for Keys and Brenner, which make them eligible for the ASA National Indicator Fraternity, of which veterans Raschka and Luzzo are members.
Basketball
A Spokane team won the gold medal in 3-on-3 basketball at the Washington State Senior Games held July 26 at Tumwater High School.
The Papermill Printing team won in the 60 to 69-year-old age bracket. The team members are Jon Heimbigner, Jack Soliday, Dan Steward, Bill Maxey, Terry Souhrada, Mike Bourn, Dave Huss and Tedd Nealey.
On the way to the title, the Papermill Printing team dispatched teams from Bellevue, Tacoma and Seattle. It marked four out of the last five years that Papermill Printing team beat the Magnuson Park team from Seattle for the title.
Soliday also won the free-throw contest by hitting 24 of 25 shots.
In addition to the basketball title, Heimbigner tied for the gold medal in tennis with Dan Austad of Silverdale.
Golf
The men’s golf team at Gonzaga has been named one of 81 NCAA Division I teams to receive the Golf Coaches Association of America All-Academic Team recognition.
The Bulldogs posted a 3.21 GPA for the 2013-14 academic year. Freshman Ben DuBois posted a 3.70 GPA in engineering and junior Brendan Connolly has a 3.53 GPA in accounting.