Timberline's Shearry commits to NIC
 Timberline High School’s BJ Shearry, a first-team 5A All-State performer, has committed to North Idaho College in Coeur d’Alene, according to NIC head coach Jared Phay.
The 6-foot-5 forward was among the most athletic players in the state in 2007-08 and was named Most Valuable Player of the annual Idaho High School All-Star game after scoring 17 points, grabbing 10 rebounds, blocking 4 shots, and registering 4 steals.
Shearry was a key piece of the 17-8 Timberline squad that reached the 5A state tournament where he averaged 15.5 points and 5.5 rebounds in the Wolves' two games. He also posted some impressive numbers in the 5A District III tournament leading up to the state tournament, averaging 24 points and 12.6 rebounds per game.
He finished the season averaging 14.9 points and 10 rebounds per game.
He set the SIC single-season record with 99 blocked shots as a junior.
North Idaho College finished last season 20-12 overall and reached the semifinals of the Region 18 tournament. The Cardinals sent 4 players from the ’07-’08 team—Kene Anusionwu, Kerry Williams, David Johnson, and Daniel Brady—on to NCAA Division I institutions to continue their basketball careers.
Shearry competed in the state-wide North vs South all star basketball game at North Idaho College held on March 15th.
Click here to watch him in action, as well as him winning the dunk contest.
Pair of Idaho schools set to make World Series debuts
The College of Idaho and College of Southern Idaho softball teams are both headed to the southern corner of the United States for their respective World Series events this week.
CSI (45-20) has already arrived in Plant City, FL, in anticipation of it’s opening-round game against McLennan (TX) Community College on Thursday.
The Junior College World Series is a double-elimination format and there’s a chance that CSI could be eliminated on the first day. If the Golden Eagles lose their opener against McLennan, they’d face an elimination game later on Thursday.
The 2nd-year program is making it’s first-ever trip to the World Series.
 Like CSI, The College of Idaho (27-17) is making it’s first-ever trip to the NAIA World Series. The team will leave for Decatur, AL, on Wednesday. The NAIA tournament, unlike the NJCAA event that CSI will be participating in, is a round-robin format that guarantees the Lady ‘Yotes at least four games.
C of I will face Trevecca Nazarene (TN) to open pool play on Friday, then face Lubbock Christian (TX) later in the day. On Saturday, the ‘Yotes will play Friends (KS) and Olivet Nazarene (IL). Three wins in four games should get the team out of pool play and into the 8-team elimination format of the tournament.
Greene, Cheff tops in Region I
 After dominating Region I play during the season, the Lewis-Clark State College baseball team and coach Ed Cheff dominated the Region I honors, which were announced on Saturday.
LCSC senior third baseman Kyle Greene of Lewiston was named the Region I Player of the Year, while Cheff was named the Region Coach of the Year.
Also, LCSC had nine of the 17 players named to the all-Region I team, which is composed of players from College of Idaho, British Columbia, Concordia, Oregon Tech, Corban, and LCSC.
Greene and Cheff are now eligible for NAIA national Player and Coach of the Year honors, respectively.
Greene had an outstanding season and led the region with a .455 batting average, 16 home runs and 74 RBI. He was LCSC's nominee for the Region Player of the Week every week but once during the season, and also was named the NAIA Player of the Week during the season after he hit two grand slams and drove in nine runs in one game.
Cheff led the Warriors to a 50-5 record and the Region I championship on Saturday. LCSC is the two-time defending national champion and spent the first half of the season ranked No. 1 in the country before falling to No. 2 during the second half behind Lubbock Christian. Greene helped LCSC dominate the infield selections with teammates Ikaika Lester (first base), Brent Wyatt (shortstop) and Brian Ward (catcher) joining him on the all-region team.
He was joined in the infield by teammates Ikaika Lester (first base), Brent Wyatt (shortstop), and Brian Ward (catcher) on the All-Region team.
Courtesy: Bert Sahlberg, LC State Sports Information
Idaho's Owen sets WAC pole vault record
 MOSCOW – University of Idaho pole vaulter Melinda Owen saved her best for last on Saturday at the Vandal Jamboree, as the senior cleared 14-5.25 in the women's pole vault to break her own school record, break the Western Athletic Conference record and move into first in the NCAA so far this year.
"That was a good feeling. It's been a long time coming," Owen said. "One of the best feelings is that my family was here to see it. I was telling my teammates before the meet that I've gone to Boston for U.S. Nationals and other big meets and I wasn't as nervous as I was this morning for our Vandal home meet."
Owen's winning height of 14-5.25 (4.40m) broke her previous school record of 13-7.25 from a week ago and breaks the former WAC record of 14-3.5, previously held by Melissa Price of Fresno State from 1998. The height is the fourth-best outdoor mark in the United States this season and gives Owen a No. 11 world ranking in the event.
Idaho men's vaulter Mike Carpenter also broke his own school record with a vault of 17-1, to bump up his lifetime best by a quarter of an inch and move up to 20th in the NCAA and seventh in the West Region in the event.
Also on the day, men's thrower Beau Whitney became Idaho's 19th NCAA Regional qualifier with a throw of 169-9 (51.73m) to win the discus throw and punch his first career West Regional ticket.
"Beau had a great weekend with three personal bests yesterday and today," Idaho throws coach Julie Taylor said. "To finally get that Regional mark is huge. He's been throwing in the 160's for the past couple years and he's been so close, so it was great to see him hit it."
The Vandals will now look forward to next weekend's WAC Outdoor Championships, which run Wednesday through Saturday, May 14-17 at Boise, Idaho.
Courtesy: Spencer Farrin, University of Idaho Sports Information
Coyote softball team qualifies for first-ever NAIA World Series
 The College of Idaho softball team earned its first-ever trip to the NAIA World Series on Thursday, clinching the Region I title with a 6-3 win over Oregon Tech.
The Coyotes (27-17) head to the event next weekend in Decatur, AL.
The team set a program record with four home runs-- two by Dani Villyard-- in the win. Katie Zillner, just hours after being named the Region I Player of the Year, added a 2-run bomb as did Danae Carroll for the Coyotes.
Zillner pitched her 20th complete game of the season en route to her 17th win.
The team expects to be back in the Treasure Valley in time to walk in the annual Susan B. Koman Race for the Cure on Saturday. The tentative plan has the Coyotes leaving for the World Series on Wednesday with the tournament beginning on Friday.
The College of Idaho is the first Cascade Conference team to reach the NAIA softball World Series since 2001, when Concordia qualified.
C of I women reach Regional championship
The College of Idaho is one win away from a berth in the NAIA women's softball World Series after picking up a pair of wins on Thursday.
The Lady 'Yotes upset 14th-ranked Simon Fraser and then toppled 20th-ranked Oregon Tech, 12-7, to reach the Region I championship game Friday afternoon.
Simon Fraser and Oregon Tech will meet in a loser-out game Friday morning. The winner of that game advances to a 1:30 (Pacific) matchup against the Lady 'Yotes.
The College of Idaho only has to win one game to claim the region's automatic berth into the NAIA World Series. But whoever wins the loser-out game must beat the Lady 'Yotes twice due to the double-elimination format.
Cascade Conference Pitcher of the Year Katie Zillner was outstanding in the opener, pitching a 4-hitter for the 'Yotes. She started the second game and got relief help from Kuna's Brooke Judy to nail down the championship berth.
H-Bowl set for December 30
 Boise, ID – The 2008 Roady’s Humanitarian Bowl will be played on Tuesday, December 30, at 2:30 p.m. (MST) on ESPN. The game, the 12th since the bowl was founded in 1997, will feature a matchup between teams from the Atlantic Coast Conference and the Western Athletic Conference.
“The Roady’s Humanitarian Bowl continues to be a wonderful tradition in the state of Idaho,” said Executive Director Kevin McDonald. “We are extremely happy to have a committed local title sponsor in Roady’s Truck Stops and an exclusive time spot on ESPN. This year’s game should be another great success.”
Fresno State, the WAC representative, defeated ACC representative Georgia Tech 40-28 last season.
(Courtesy: Danielle Brazil, Roady's Humanitarian Bowl)
LCSC, C of I set to begin postseason play The baseball teams for Lewis-Clark State and the College of Idaho are both north of the border, ready to open the 2008 NAIA Region I tournament in Vancouver, British Columbia.
The University of British Columbia is hosting the 4-team tournament at Nat Bailey Stadium.
The winner of the Region I tournament will meet the Region II winner in a "Super-Regional" next week. The winner of the Super-Regional earns a spot in the NAIA World Series in Lewiston later this month.
The stakes are higher for the College of Idaho than they are for LC State. LC State, by virtue of hosting, already has an automatic bid to the World Series. The Coyotes don't have that luxury and will have to score upset victories in the Region and Super-Region tournaments to reach the event.
LC State, the top seed, opens the tournament against 4th-seeded Concordia at 2 PM (Pacific) on Thursday. Host British Columbia, seeded 2nd, battles the 3rd-seeded Coyotes at 6 PM.
The double-elimination tournament will be decided on Saturday with the championship game(s). LC State, the 2nd-ranked NAIA baseball team in the country, comes into the tournament as the overwhelming favorite.
LC State is also the defending national champion.
Former LCSC hurler moves to 5-0 in Orioles system Brian Parker picked up his fifth win of the young season for the Delmarva Shorebirds of the South Atlantic League Tuesday night, going 1 2/3 innings of the team's 5-3 win over West Virginia.
Parker, a Lewiston resident and product of Lewis-Clark State College, is 5-0 in 9 relief appearances for the Shorebirds (Class-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles) with a 2.12 ERA iin 17 innings pitched. He has struck out 14 and held opposing batters to a .167 batting average overall. Right-handed batters have found the sledding particularly tough against Parker, hitting just .116.
He has been victimized by some shoddy defense early in the season as he's already seen 9 unearned runs scored against him.
Other Idaho natives in the minor leagues:
P Rick Bauer (Centennial HS): Off to dominant start at AAA Buffalo (Indians) with 6 saves and 0.73 ERA in 12 appearances. The right-hander has allowed just 6 hits in 12 innings, with opposing batters hitting .146 against him.
P Ryne Reynoso (Wood River HS): The 23-year-old right-hander has a 3.90 ERA in 6 starts for the Myrtle Beach Pelicans, Class-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves. He has struck out 30 batters in 30 innings.
P Zach Simons (Glenns Ferry HS): Recently traded by the Colorado Rockies organization to the Detroit Tigers, Simons has yet to pitch for his new team, the Lakeland Flying Tigers of the Florida State League. He had a 2.70 ERA with 14 strikeouts in 7 relief appearances in Modesto before the trade.
C Kiel Thibault (Jerome HS): Has not appeared for the Northwest Arkansas Naturals (AA, Kansas City Royals) since April 6 after being placed on the disabled list. Had started 2-for-11 at the plate before injuring his back.
Report from Meridian Speedway
Story and photos: Brian Losness
People who race are the biggest bunch of never say die people you will ever find. If there is time, there is a chance. That statement never held true more that on Saturday evening at Meridian Speedway for Sean Smith of Nampa, driving the family owned Heartland Development Chevy J&J Sprinter. Smith who during the intermission decided to put on a smoke show (a circle track version of a funny car burnout) with his dirt track racing compadre , Brandon “the Idaho Outlaw” Johnson. As the two started into turn three to begin their five laps exhibition, the Smith driven sprinter was suppose to slide sideways through the corner and smoke the rear tires, but the car didn’t get that memo, and instead of sliding sideways through the left hand corner. The car shot straight into the center of turns three and four concrete retaining wall and destroyed the front end of his black and red racer. Sean emerged without injury, but the same could not be said for his racecar.  Smith who’s more at home on dirt, which usually means a six to ten hour drive to get to the nearest dirt bull ring that runs sprint cars. With diesel prices now well over $4.50 per gallon, the family has decided to try to make the change from dirt to asphalt. Which is much easier said than done. It is not just bolting on a set of slick Hoosiers instead of having the grooved dirt style. It has a lot to do with suspension and even at times, more tubing must be either welded in or bolted in to “stiffen” up the car to handle the riggers of running on the higher traction asphalt.
As stated earlier, if there is time there is a chance. The Smith crew swarmed over the car, along with the help of other teams and the began by assessing the damage and putting together a game plan on what was needed to fix the car, and who would do what. The team would have to replace the entire the front suspension, front brakes, front axle and new front tires, new front wing, plus the other routine maintenance that is required to run a sprint car.
As the other main events took place, the group over at Team Smith continued to thrash on the wounded sprint car. As the final main event began to line up, Team Smith were still putting on the front tires, the cars were being pushed off and starting to warm up, the final car to be pushed out of the pit area was the black and red sprinter. Sean strapped into the roll cage, and in his mind he was wondering how the car would handle. “ We only had the left front brake working in the front, but you really need that right front to help settle the car going into the corner, so I wasn’t sure where the car might go going down into the first turn. So I decided to just hang back and see what happened” That would be a fortuitous game plan.
 On lap 10 Sierra Jackson running in the 25 Owens Corning J& J sprinter and Jimmy Hamilton Jr. in the 97 Monster Energy Drink Sprinter got together off of turn four and down the front stretch, and then they collected Jimmy Hamilton Sr, in his number 9, Kenny Hamilton in the Vista Auto Sales 01, and the family owned 7v of Cody Veenstra. The damage to all car was extensive, and to add insult to injury, Jimmy Hamilton Jr, reaggrevated the injury to his already cracked ribs, from a crash in the first race of the year, which garnered him a ride in the ambulance to be checked over, he was treated and released, but not moving very fast. Cody Veenstra was somewhat perplexed at how his car was handling all night. “ It felt as though I was running on a thin coating of Pam all night long, I don’t know how else to describe it.” As far as the accident went, he stated, “I came out of four, there were cars stopped and followed Jimmy (Hamilton Sr.) into the mayhaiem and then locked them (brakes) up and just along for the ride. I tried to avoid it but there were so many cars, and it happened so quick, I really do not know what happened. I should have been looking ahead but I was fighting with the 14 (Brandon Johnson) and then saw the smoke and cars parked, and that’s about it”. Sierra Jackson stated, “I was trying to pass Jimmy Hamilton Jr on the inside and we got together, and I was along for the ride, and I’m backwards against the fence. It totaled the car, its junk, so we’ll have to get out our USAC car and run that.”
After about a 15-minute clean up, the race resumed and four laps in to the restart Brandon Johnson gets into the back stretch wall and goes for a wild ride, that totals his car. Brandon flung the steering wheel out of the car and marched back to his hauler, very much annoyed at his out come for the evening.
With all the carnage, this put one driver into a prime position to get his first ever sprint car main event win… on asphalt. That is right Sean Smith took control the remaining laps and went on to take that first ashapht sprint car win. “I can’t thank my crew and all the people who came by to help us out. After I tried to do that smoke show and screwed that up, I just wanted to stay in the car, cause I was so embarrassed about what happened, I couldn’t face all those fans. But my guys believed they could do it, and we hand enough time, and they just got the job done and it is a great win for us.” When asked if he would come back to Meridian, he said, “Absolutely, it’s really nice to race, win and be home in about twenty minutes, and not have a ten hour drive."
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