Longtime SWX All-Star Classic to feature many Tri-Cities players this week at CBC
There is still a little basketball left to be played in the Tri-Cities, as the SWX All-Star Classic will be played at Columbia Basin College on Saturday.
The two games will feature some of the top boys and girls high school basketball players from the Tri-Cities area against their opponents from the Yakima Valley region.
Proceeds from the event will go to the Boys & Girls Clubs.
Tip-off for the girls game is at 5 p.m., while the boys start at 7 p.m.
The SWX All-Star Classic is a continuation of the all-star series that began in the early 1990s, started by the Tri-City Herald and the Yakima Herald Republic.
For those who can’t attend, the games will be broadcast on SWX.
Here are the rosters of all four teams, as well as those players who were invited to play but are unable to attend:
Tri-Cities boys — Andrew Dearman, Hanford; Peter Dress, Kamiakin; Jack Forbes, Richland; Jonah Gebers, Kennewick; Cole Jordan, Tri-Cities Prep; Javier Sideregts, Kamiakin; Kade Smith, Chiawana; Will Sullivan, Walla Walla; Jesse Tijerina, Southridge; Charlie Tipke-Henry, Kennewick; Josh Woodard, Richland; Donovan Young, Chiawana.
Players invited but cannot attend: Isaac Corey, Hermiston; Tristan Frimodt, Columbia-Burbank; Michael Lenke, Columbia-Burbank; Grant Olsen, Hermiston; Quincy Scott, Columbia-Burbank; Luke Westerfield, Richland.
Yakima boys — Finnegan Anderson, Davis; Emmet Fenz, Ellensburg; Aiden Garza, Zillah; Julian Garza, Grandview; Cesar Hernandez, Davis; Brent Maldonado, Sunnyside; Koby McClure, Prosser; Kory McClure, Prosser; Luke Navarre, Zillah; Josh Perez, Toppenish; JJ Reyes, Prosser; Shane Rivera, Toppenish.
Players invited but unable to attend: Landon Birley, West Valley-Yakima; Noah McNair, Sunnyside; Jackson Pepper, Selah; Levi Pepper, Selah.
Tri-Cities girls — McKaila Balcom, Tri-Cities Prep; Dylyn Dress, Kennewick; Ellie Heideman, Hermiston; Jadyn Holdren, Southridge; Haylee Johnson, Kennewick; Mireyah Lopez, Pasco; Cami Martin, Walla Walla; Lynnea Moran, Hanford; Maddy Rendall, Kamiakin; Malia Ruud, Chiawana; Izzy Simmons, Hermiston; Presley Smith, Tri-Cities Prep;
Players invited but unable to attend: Kaia Foster, Chiawana; Kylee Fox, Richland; Macie Milum, Richland; Nikole Thomas, Kamiakin.
Yakima girls — Mya Alvarado, East Valley-Yakima; KK Bass, Wapato; Lay’lee Dixon, Prosser; Esmeralda Galindo, Davis; Laiken Hill, West Valley-Yakima; Rylee Leishman, Ellensburg; Baylee Maldonado, Sunnyside; Jada Mendoza, East Valley-Yakima; Adriana Milanez, Prosser; Naveah Patterson, Davis; Jazmine Richey, Grandview; Natalee Trevino, Grandview; Trinity Wheeler, Wapato.
Players invited but unable to attend: Olivia Anderson, Ellensburg; Mia Hicks, Zillah.
Baseball
The Columbia Basin College baseball team swept Big Bend in Pasco on Wednesday, winning 4-2 and 7-0.
In the opener, starting pitcher Dylan Berry (Southridge) picked up the victory, going 7 innings, striking out 7 batters and surrendering 4 hits and 3 walks.
Steven Meier went 3-for-3 at the plate with two doubles and scoring two times. Teammate Will Baker (Sammamish Skyline) tripled.
In the nightcap, starter Cameron Soliz (Texas) went 7 innings, striking out 7 batters, giving up just one hit and two walks for the victory.
Christian Jarocki (Mt. Si) had two RBIs, while Wyatt Lizama (Hawaii) and Hayden Matray (Glacier Peak) added two hits each.
The two wins put CBC into a tie for second place in the latest NWAC East Region standings.
Standings through April 12:
Spokane 9-1 East, 16-12 overall
CBC 7-3, 20-12
Walla Walla 7-3, 13-9
Yakima Valley 5-5, 11-21
Blue Mountain 4-6, 14-14
Wenatchee Valley 3-7, 13-19
Treasure Valley 3-7, 8-20
Big Bend 2-8, 10-18
Wednesday, April 12 — Blue Mountain 5-3, Treasure Valley 1-5; CBC 4-7, Big Bend 2-0; Spokane 6-8, Wenatchee Valley 0-0; Walla Walla 12-1, Yakima Valley 2-4.
Saturday, April 15 —Blue Mountain at Treasure Valley (2), noon; CBC at Big Bend (2), 1 p.m.; Spokane at Wenatchee Valley (2), noon; Walla Walla at Yakima Valley (2), 1 p.m.
▪ CBC’s Cameron Soliz was named NWAC pitcher of the week for his play last week (not counting what he did on Wednesday). Teammate Steven Meier was named NWAC hitter of the week for what he did last week, making it a clean sweep for the awards this week for the Hawks.
Hockey
Tri-City Americans forward Parker Bell was signed to an amateur tryout contract with the Calgary Wranglers of the AHL. The Wranglers are an affiliate of the National Hockey League’s Calgary Flames.
Bell is a fifth-round pick of the Flames from the 2022 NHL Draft.
The 19-year-old forward played in 55 games this season for the Americans, scoring 25 goals and 39 assists.
The Wranglers have three games remaining on their regular-season schedule.
Bell has one year of eligibility remaining in the Western Hockey League.
Meanwhile, Bell’s Americans teammate, Jalen Luypen, was assigned to the AHL’s Rockford IceHogs for the team’s three games left on its schedule.
Luypen was a 2021 selection by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2021 NHL Draft. The Americans traded for him last summer with the Edmonton Oil Kings, and he also signed a three-year, entry level contract with the Blackhawks last August.
The 20-year-old forward had surgery and didn’t join the Americans until late December. But he still finished the season strong, scoring 18 goals and 21 assists in 38 games for Tri-City.
▪ Former Tri-City American defenseman Juuso Valimaki finished the season with the Arizona Coyotes with a 1-year, $1 million contract extension.
The 24-year-old played in 77 games for the Coyotes, scoring four goals and 30 assists.
Jeff Morrow is former sports editor for the Tri-City Herald.
