GALLERY: 2023 Basin football season recap
IAN BIVONA | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 2 years, 8 months AGO
Royal players and coaches smile for photos after winning the 2023 1A state championship at Husky Stadium in Seattle, Royal’s fourth state title in a row. The Knights went 13-0 this fall, defeating Lakeside (Nine Mile Falls) 49-7 for the 1A crown.
IAN BIVONA/COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD
ACH freshman Max Grindy (12) catches a pass against Concrete in the opening round of the 1B State Football Playoffs. ACH finished the year 9-3, earning a No. 6 seed in the state playoffs and defeated No. 11 Concrete 42-26 before falling in the quarterfinals to No. 3 Mossyrock.
Ephrata senior Hans Roberts (1) carries the football against East Valley (Yakima). The Tigers qualified for state for the second time in as many seasons this fall, finishing the year 6-4 after a 49-0 opening-round loss to North Kitsap. Ephrata and Othello tied for the CWAC title.
Othello defenders swarm to the ball during a game against Kelso. The Huskies ended the season 7-3, co-CWAC champions with Ephrata and qualified for the 2A playoffs where they lost 49-12 to Enumclaw
Moses Lake sophomore Brady Jay, left, scrambles with the football during a game against Davis. The Mavericks ended the season with an 8-2 record and in second place of the Columbia Basin Big 9.
MLCA/CCS sophomore Jonny Ferguson (5) looks to shake off a Bridgeport defender. The Lions went 7-2 in their inaugural season this fall, falling to the eventual 1B state champion Liberty Bell in their crossover game.
Lind-Ritzville/Sprague defenders tackle a Northwest Christian (Colbert) player. The Broncos went 5-5 this fall, missing the 2B state tournament after falling to Okanogan in their crossover game.
Soap Lake junior Jairo Lopez (1) carries the football against MLCA/CCS. After an 0-4 start, the Eagles rallied to finish the year with a 5-5 mark.
The Warden Cougars finished 2023 with a 4-6 record on the gridiron.
Wahluke senior Andrew Yorgesen drops back to pass during a game this fall. The Warriors ended the season with a 3-7 record.
Quincy improved on its record by finishing 2023 with a 5-5 mark, missing the 1A playoffs after losing to Freeman in its crossover game.
Ian Bivona serves as the Columbia Basin Herald’s sports reporter and is a graduate of Auburn University in Auburn, Alabama. He enjoys the behind-the-scenes stories that lead up to the wins and losses of the various sports teams in the Basin. Football is his favorite sport, though he likes them all, and his favorite team is the Jets. He lives in Soap Lake with his cat, Honey. | December 7, 2023 1:31 AM
COLUMBIA BASIN — A season of memories and highlights in Basin football concluded last weekend with the Royal Knights winning their fourth consecutive title, one of four local teams that made the state playoffs.
ACH freshman Max Grindy (12) catches a pass against Concrete in the opening round of the 1B State Football Playoffs. ACH finished the year 9-3, earning a No. 6 seed in the state playoffs and defeated No. 11 Concrete 42-26 before falling in the quarterfinals to No. 3 Mossyrock.
Ephrata senior Hans Roberts (1) carries the football against East Valley (Yakima). The Tigers qualified for state for the second time in as many seasons this fall, finishing the year 6-4 after a 49-0 opening-round loss to North Kitsap. Ephrata and Othello tied for the CWAC title.
Othello defenders swarm to the ball during a game against Kelso. The Huskies ended the season 7-3, co-CWAC champions with Ephrata and qualified for the 2A playoffs where they lost 49-12 to Enumclaw
Moses Lake sophomore Brady Jay, left, scrambles with the football during a game against Davis. The Mavericks ended the season with an 8-2 record and in second place of the Columbia Basin Big 9.
MLCA/CCS sophomore Jonny Ferguson (5) looks to shake off a Bridgeport defender. The Lions went 7-2 in their inaugural season this fall, falling to the eventual 1B state champion Liberty Bell in their crossover game.
Lind-Ritzville/Sprague defenders tackle a Northwest Christian (Colbert) player. The Broncos went 5-5 this fall, missing the 2B state tournament after falling to Okanogan in their crossover game.
Soap Lake junior Jairo Lopez (1) carries the football against MLCA/CCS. After an 0-4 start, the Eagles rallied to finish the year with a 5-5 mark.
The Warden Cougars finished 2023 with a 4-6 record on the gridiron.
Wahluke senior Andrew Yorgesen drops back to pass during a game this fall. The Warriors ended the season with a 3-7 record.
Quincy improved on its record by finishing 2023 with a 5-5 mark, missing the 1A playoffs after losing to Freeman in its crossover game.ARTICLES BY IAN BIVONA
Moses Lake boys qualify eight, girls send 11 to Mat Classic
MOSES LAKE -- Nineteen total Mavericks qualified to wrestle at the upcoming Mat Classic, with the Moses Lake girls team qualifying 11 wrestlers and the boys team sending eight wrestlers to the Tacoma Dome. The Moses Lake boys took second at districts, scoring 214.5 points at the tournament. Sunnyside won the district tournament with 278.5 points.
Basin wrestlers bound for state after districts
MOSES LAKE – District tournaments were held across the state on Friday and Saturday, where boys and girls wrestlers punched their tickets into next week’s Mat Classic in Tacoma.
Mavs defeat Sunnyside, finish third in league
Moses Lake enters districts with confidence as regular season fades
MOSES LAKE – The Mavericks closed out the regular season with a trip to Sunnyside on Thursday night, coming out on top of a closely contested game with a 67-66 win over the Grizzlies. “They’ve been playing better, scoring more,” Head Coach Craig Groth said. “We’ve been doing a little bit better job on defense in certain situations and winning games leading up to that. Even games we haven’t won, we’ve been in really close games. Our confidence is really good right now, we felt great going into the game.”