Young but talented Mavs hit the course
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 2 years, 7 months AGO
From left: Moses Lake High School golfers Christian Mathis, Mason Bradford and Isaiah Patino practice their chipping at the Moses Lake Golf & Country Club Tuesday.
JOEL MARTIN/COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD
Ella Palmer, right, and Hayley Hardebeck work on their drive game at Moses Lake Golf & Country Club Tuesday.
Joel Martin has been with the Columbia Basin Herald for more than 25 years in a variety of roles and is the most-tenured employee in the building. Martin is a married father of eight and enjoys spending time with his children and his wife, Christina. He is passionate about the paper’s mission of informing the people of the Columbia Basin because he knows it is important to record the history of the communities the publication serves. | March 13, 2024 1:00 AM
MOSES LAKE — It’s a young group of Mavericks on the links this year.
“We have one senior is all,” said Terry Melbye, the Moses Lake High School boys golf coach. “We have one senior; all the rest of them are freshmen, juniors and a couple of sophomores.”
“I’ve got two returning seniors,” said girls coach Lonny Brown. “Decent players, but great kids, Addison Nighswonger and Jayda Redford. They’re good leaders. I’ve got a couple of other returners from last year … I've got a sophomore, Lili Roylance, and then a junior, Rhylee Humphrey. So those top four players right there, we took second last year and so our expectations are good this year. We'll see if we can do it again.”
Two players who went to state last year are back this year, Melbye said, one of whom, a sophomore, shoots under par pretty consistently.
“Mason Bradford, he’s our number one player,” Melbye said. “He’s been working hard on his game even from last year, and he was our number one player then too. He’s dropped five, six strokes on a round pretty easily … He'll be on his tee box and he can drive it to the green. He’s got a really good short game and he’s a good chipper. So yeah, he’s got the potential.”
“We look really strong as a team right now,” said junior Isaiah Patino. “I think we can go really far. Individually, I feel good, feel confident in my swing.”
“We focus on the short game, like we do a lot of the 40, 50 yards in, pitching, chipping, putting. That's where the scoring is. ... If you can eliminate some mistakes around the green your scores definitely can be better. And that's really what we focus on.”
“This is a great bunch of kids,” Melbye said. “I couldn’t have hand-picked them any better.”
Joel Martin may be reached via email at [email protected].
Ella Palmer, right, and Hayley Hardebeck work on their drive game at Moses Lake Golf & Country Club Tuesday.ARTICLES BY JOEL MARTIN
Endless battle
Noxious Weed Control Board works to keep invasive plants under control
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BASIN EVENTS: Oct. 16-24
COLUMBIA BASIN — Whether you feel like shopping, crafting, learning or seeing a show, there’s something happening for you this week in the Basin. Oct. 16 ‘My Family (Mi Familia)’ screening Spanning three generations, “My Family (Mi Familia)” is a heartfelt drama that follows the Sánchez family as they build their lives in East Los Angeles. Through love, hardship, triumph, and sacrifice, the film explores the immigrant experience, the strength of family bonds, and the traditions that connect one generation to the next. Lowrider show and taco truck before the screening. Sponsored by Columbia Basin Allied Arts, EDUBS C/S and the Moses Lake Creative District. $12 per person. Doors open at 6 p.m., film begins at 7 p.m. at the Moses Lake Civic Center Auditorium, 401 S. Balsam St. Tickets and info: www.cba-arts.org.
Moses Lake author encourages women to look beyond church culture norms
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