5 Tri-Citians enter NCAA basketball portal. Von Oelhoffen, Bilodeau lead the contingent
It’s a different day and age when it comes to college sports, especially with the transfer portal.
Players can enter the portal, get picked up by another school, and play immediately, according to NCAA rules.
That’s just the way it is now. WSU has seen a number of it’s men’s basketball players head into the portal.
There are currently five Tri-Citians who have entered the portal in the past two weeks.
The biggest name is Chiawana grad Talia von Oelhoffen, who just helped her Oregon State University women’s basketball team get to the Elite 8. Von Oelhoffen is set to graduate from OSU this spring, and she has one season of eligibility remaining as a grad student.
She was joined a day later by Oregon State junior Tyler Bilodeau, a starter for the Beavers’ men’s basketball team.
Also entering the portal is Chiawana grad Kobe Young, who has two seasons of eligibility left after spending three seasons with Boise State University’s men’s basketball team.
The previous week saw Chiawana grad Cooper Dewitt transfer out from IUPUI, and Kamiakin grad Maddy Rendall transferring from Idaho State. Dewitt has one season remaining, while Rendall has four.
▪ Kennewick High grad Madeline Gebers led the Northwest Nazarene women’s basketball team in scoring this season at 13.7 points a game. Gebers also averaged 4.0 rebounds as the team finished with a 9-15 record.
Gebers was also second on the team in steals with 32.
The junior is also throwing the javelin for the NNU women’s track and field team this spring.
▪ Former Tri-City Dust Devils play-by-play broadcaster Chris King was recently named the Idaho Broadcaster of the Year recently by the National Sports Media Association.
King does play-by-play for the University of Idaho’s football and men’s basketball teams.
▪ Freshman Natalee Trevino (Grandview) averaged 8.0 points and grabbed 3.7 rebounds for the Walla Walla University women’s basketball team this past season. WWU finished the season with a 9-18 record.
Girls basketball
Royal junior Audrey Bergesen and College Place sophomore Lucinda Weaver were named co-players of the year in the 1A South Central Athletic Conference East Division girls basketball all-conference team.
Royal’s Farrah Wardenaar was named Coach of the Year.
Joining Bergesen and Weaver on the first team are two other Royal athletes: sophomore Briana Cedillo and senior Kenia Orth.
Connell senior McKenzie Clyde and College Place junior Kenadie Schreindl were also named first-teamers.
College track and field
Brayden Freitag (Kamiakin) scored a first-place finish in the men’s pole vault for WSU at the Whitworth Buc Scoring Invite on March 21-22 in Spokane.
Freitag cleared the bar at 16 feet, 0.75 inches.
Jake Hisaw (Walla Walla) helped the Idaho men’s 4x100 relay team cross the finish line first, as the Vandals clocked in at 41.32 seconds.
WSU’s Caden Hottman (Hermiston) had two second-place finishes, tossing the men’s hammer in 196 feet, 1 inch; then throwing the discus 153 feet, 8 inches.
In the women’s 800 meters, Gonzaga’s Bailee Carr (Richland) placed third in 2 minutes, 12.15 seconds.
Offers
Kamiakin center Landon Biglin, currently a junior, has received his first college football scholarship offer this spring. It comes from Grinnell College.
That’s an NCAA Division III school in Iowa.
Boys soccer standings
2A CWAC
Through games of April 3
East Valley-Yakima 5-0 CWAC, 8-1 overall
Othello 5-1, 6-3-1
Selah 3-2, 4-5
Ellensburg 3-3, 3-6
Grandview 2-3, 2-5
Ephrata 1-4, 2-5-1
Prosser 0-6, 1-9
1A SCAC EAST
Through games of April 3
Wahluke 5-1 SCAC East, 8-1 overall
Royal 5-1, 6-2
Connell 4-2, 4-4
Mabton 3-3, 3-4
Warden 2-3-1, 4-3-1
College Place 1-4-1, 2-4-2
Kiona-Benton 1-5, 1-5
Prep baseball standings
2A CWAC
Through games of April 3
Selah 5-1 CWAC, 8-2 overall
Othello 3-1, 9-2
East Valley-Yakima 4-2, 6-6
Ephrata 3-3, 6-5
Prosser 2-2, 5-7
Ellensburg 1-7, 1-10
Grandview 0-4, 3-6
Jeff Morrow is former sports editor for the Tri-City Herald.
