Knights to face stiff competition on the pitch
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 1 year, 12 months AGO
Vanessa Cedillo goes after the ball defended by Kylee Orth, with Ruby Hernandez looking on at Royal girls soccer practice Wednesday.
JOEL MARTIN/COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD
The Royal Knights girls soccer team gets some goalkeeping practice in Wednesday.
From left: Alejandra Orozco makes a run at the ball with Vanessa Bernal and Kamila Espino at Wednesday’s soccer practice at Royal High School.
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. | September 6, 2024 2:35 AM
ROYAL CITY — The Royal Knights are facing some tough opponents on the soccer field this fall, but Head Coach Jens Jensen isn’t too worried about it.
“We have a young team, for sure, just the two starting seniors at the moment,” Jensen said during practice Wednesday. “But the young girls, they're pretty strong, they've got good speed, and they've come with some playing experience.”
With the WIAA reshuffling teams for its 2024-28 reclassification cycle, Royal will face off against some schools in the Wenatchee Valley they haven’t played in the past, some of which are very good, Jensen said.
“Cashmere is coming into our league, and they’re really good,” Jensen said. “... Ki-Be should be good, Naches should be in the hunt. I would think that people would expect us to be in there … I think we've got a good chance of getting into districts, and then once we get there, we'd love to sneak out with one of those state spots. The chances of that, I don't think they’re terrible, but we would definitely be an underdog.”
Last year was kind of disappointing for the Knights girls, who were shot down in districts.
“We were one game away from state,” said senior Anyeliq Miron.
“The last round of districts was hosted here, and we lost against Ki-Be,” said Audrey Bergeson, also a senior. “A very sad game.”
Because of the restructuring of districts with the classification cycle, Jensen said, every game counts now, and with a young squad, they must get up to speed quickly.
“Every single one of our games counts. We don't have any non-league games,” Jensen said. “They're all must-wins, basically … So, what we're working on is just trying to get a sense of who we are and what we're going to be able to do.”
Bergeson and Miron are among the standout players on the team, Jensen said.
“Audrey scored quite a few goals for us last year,” he said. “She's pretty quick up top, and she's strong. Anyeliq, she starts the center of our defense, she just pulled a muscle, so I don't know how long she's going to be out, but she's really important to us. We've got a freshman goalkeeper who's showing some promise.”
Communication is important to the team, Miron and Bergeson said, and that’s something they need to focus on this season.
“Talking a lot, opening our mouths to be able to talk to each other and connect those passes,” Miron said. “We have solid girls on the team, so I think it's just talking so we're able to look at each other and receive the ball properly … When in doubt, talk more. Communication is key.”
“I feel like we're all, we're all pretty good friends,” Bergeson said. “Everyone gets along really good. We have a bunch of new girls, and they're doing great.”
The Royal Knights girls soccer team gets some goalkeeping practice in Wednesday.
From left: Alejandra Orozco makes a run at the ball with Vanessa Bernal and Kamila Espino at Wednesday’s soccer practice at Royal High School.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.