Big Bend women’s wrestling prospects looking up this year
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 1 year, 9 months AGO
Big Bend Community College sophomore Natalie Johnson grapples with a teammate at wrestling practice. The Viking women’s program has a full roster this year, according to Head Coach Desiree Alejandro.
COURTESY PHOTO/BIG BEND COMMUNITY COLLEGE/SAVANNAH SIGNORELLI PHOTOGRAPHY
Big Bend Community College sophomore Natalie Johnson shows some of the aggressive spirit her teammate Abby Varady said the team is working to build.
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. | November 27, 2024 3:30 AM
MOSES LAKE — Big Bend women’s wrestling bobbled a little at the beginning but picked up quickly, according to head coach Desiree Alejandro. The Vikings lost their first dual Nov. 16 against Umpqua Community College 30-9, but got their own back the next day at the Mike Clock Tournament.
“We were ranked second in the tournament, (and) as far as (junior colleges) go, fourth overall,” Alejandro said. “We had two finalists, two fifths and a fifth, a fourth and a third. They (showed) significant improvement versus the dual … We beat some of the girls that had beat us the night before.”
Last year wasn’t nearly so rosy, Alejandro said.
“We had seven girls on the team and finished with five,” she said. “We did not do well at all. We didn't go to nationals, we didn't participate in postseason at all, and I just focused on recruiting most of the year.”
Women’s wrestling is one of the newer sports on the roster, having started at Big Bend in 2018, the same year that the men’s wrestling program was revived after a 23-year hiatus. It became a sanctioned Olympic sport in 2004. Washington became the third state in the country to offer girls wrestling in high schools in 2007, although girls had been wrestling on coed teams before that.
Alejandro was one of those, she said.
“I started when I was 4 and I’m 26,” she said. “I first started to wrestle boys, but I wrestled girls all through high school and college. It’s definitely growing. This is Big Bend’s first year in the (National Junior College Athletic Association) for both men’s and wrestling.”
Wrestler Abby Varady is optimistic about the team’s prospects.
“Just the energy in our practice room, there's a big difference going from last year to this year,” she said. “It's a lot more motivating when you have a lot of teammates in the room that all have the same goal. I think that we're going to do really well this season. We already look a lot sharper than we did coming into the year. So I think that our goals are achievable.”
It’s going to take some work to get to that point, Varady added, especially where attitude is concerned.
“The girls are all really positive, but they don't have a lot of grit,” she said. “They don't like to push through the hard stuff; they kind of let their mind get the best of them. And I think that that is a really big part of wrestling, so that is what we need to work on. Also, just a lot of shot defense and being (on the) offensive, always on the attack.”
“We have a full lineup this year, so that's also always a plus,” Alejandro said. “I'm hoping for great things out of this year. I think we have at least a top 10 team, at least that’s my goal.”
Big Bend Community College sophomore Natalie Johnson shows some of the aggressive spirit her teammate Abby Varady said the team is working to build.ARTICLES BY JOEL MARTIN
Quincy National Night Out scales down
QUINCY — Quincy’s National Night Out was more compact this year, which worked out well, said QPD Sgt. Joe Westby, who’s in charge of event planning for the Quincy Police Department. “National Night Out is a big event, and the fact that we’re able to shrink it up is like a breath of fresh air,” Westby said. “If you're always doing the same thing, it's kind of nice to switch things up and see how it works.” National Night Out took place Thursday on the block of C Street next to the police station, a shift from previous years when it was held at Lauzier Park. The smaller space meant fewer emergency vehicles for children to explore, but it also meant less walking for attendees. Grant County Fire District 5 brought a fire truck, and the Grant County Sheriff’s Office had a patrol boat. Renew, the Grant County behavioral health agency, had a booth and so did Quincy Partnership for Youth. Veterans Operation Creation sang the national anthem, and the Quincy Animal Shelter brought kittens that piled over each other making friends with passersby. As before, the QPD served grilled hot dogs.
Quincy Police retirements leave big shoes to fill
QUINCY — There are some big shoes to fill at the Quincy Police Department. “We’re losing 48 years of experience between them,” Quincy Police Chief Ryan Green said at the retirement party for Capt. Jorge Trujillo and Det. Damon Powell Thursday. Trujillo, who grew up in Sunnyside, has been with QPD for 19 years, he said, coming on as a patrol officer fresh out of the military. From there he served as a field training officer, a detective and finally captain. “I consider him my left-hand man,” Green said. “He runs the operations side of the house … He knows the agency very well, and he knows the community.” Trujillo has some projects around the house to tackle now that he’s retired, he said.
Big fun on a small scale
Wheat Land Communities’ Fair opens Thursday
RITZVILLE — The Wheat Land Communities’ Fair isn’t as big or as flashy as some of the county fairs around central Washington, but the folks who keep it going like it just the way it is. “It’s somewhere you can go and get an old-time traditional feeling, and you’re comfortable letting your kids roam the grounds and experience all that it has to offer,” said Board Member Lori Williams. “It’s more of a feeling than (one) specific thing,” The fair starts Thursday in Ritzville and runs through Sunday. Starting Friday, the 56th Ritzville Rodeo will take place alongside the fair at the rodeo grounds. This year the entertainment budget was expanded, Williams said, to be able to offer more fun that’s covered by the cost of admission. For the kids, there’s face painting, balloon art, Lego crafts, races, contests and games. Children can also ride on a little train towed around the fairgrounds behind a tractor.