Monday, July 30, 2018

News for CougGroup 7/30/2018


Excessive Heat Warning issued for the Palouse

Pullman Radio News

An Excessive Heat Warning has been issued for the Palouse. The National Weather Service warning is from 11:00 this morning until 8:00 Tuesday night. Temperatures are predicted to run about 10 to 15 degrees above normal with highs in the upper 90's to triple digits.
WSU COUG CHANELLE MOLINA TAKES HOME WOMEN'S BASKETBALL GOLD IN BRAZIL

~Junior point guard from Kailua Kona, Hawaii, helps lead Team USA to victory at the FISU America Games~

News from WSU Sports Info 7/30/2018

SAO PAULO, Brazil – Playing for her country for the first time, Washington State rising junior Chanelle Molina helped guide Team USA to a gold medal over the week at the inaugural FISU America Games in Brazil. Molina and the Americans went a perfect 4-0 at the games, defeating Mexico, Uruguay, Chile, and Brazil of the week long event to secure the top of the podium.

Molina joins a handful of Cougar athletes to earn gold for Team USA over the summer, as WSU volleyball stars, Alexis Dirige, Molina's cousin, and Taylor Mims won gold at the 2018 Global Challenge in Croatia.

Throughout the four-game tournament the Americans were dominant, defeating their opponents by an average of nearly 44 points per game. Team USA' s largest win came in game two against Uruguay as the Americans cruised to a 116-33 win. In the last and what would be the default championship game, Team USA won a hard-fought battle with the host country Brazil, taking the gold with a 59-42 victory.

Molina enters her junior season as the Cougars' third-leading scorer from a season ago. In two seasons, Molina has averaged 9.5 points and 3.2 assists per game while shooting 44.2% from the field. She begins her third season at WSU under new head coach Kamie Ethridge on November 2 when WSU hosts Warner Pacific in exhibition play at Beasley Coliseum.
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Colton residents can use water again while boil order remains in place

By Pullman Radio News

People in Colton can use water again while the boil order remains in place. A city well went down over the weekend prompting officials to issue the boil order and call for water conservation. The pump has been fixed allowing Colton residents to water their lawn, shower, wash clothes and dishes and flush the toilet. The boil order remains in effect until tests of the water from the new pump confirm that it's safe to drink.
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Go to this URL …

https://news.wsu.edu/2018/07/30/yellow-butterfly-boom/?utm_source=WSUNews-enewsletter&utm_campaign=wsunewsenewsletter&utm_medium=email

… to read WSU News’ story, “‘Very active’ yellow butterfly boom in Washington state.’ But, beware there is a photo accompanying the story featuring goldish yellow and purple colors.
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Expect roadwork, delays and detours on way to Pullman for fall semester

July 26, 2018 WSU Insider

A portion of State Route 26 runs above railroad tracks east of Othello and that bridge deck needs to be replaced after years of patching.

PULLMAN, Wash. – The drive to and from Pullman for most students will take a bit longer starting next month.

Needed bridge repairs along State Route 26 will shut down a portion of one of the most popular routes to Pullman for students, faculty and staff traveling from western Washington. A detour will be available but state transportation officials advise travelers should plan on extra time when making the trip.

In a new blog post

https://wsdotblog.blogspot.com/2018/07/heads-up-wsu-travelers-repairs-on-sr-26.html

from the Washington State Department of Transportation, the agency said the work should start mid-August, but an exact date will be released in the coming weeks due to final access permits being sought. The project is expected to last six weeks.

The blog post suggests official state detours will only add about 15 minutes to the total drive, but because of the detour and possible delays, adding extra time to your travel isn’t a bad idea.

WSDOT said the repairs were originally going to take place in 2019, but re-evaluation meant the project needed to be completed before Winter 2018.
Read the WSDOT blog post for additional maps and photos of the affected area.
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Distinguished Young Women of Washington participants arrive in Pullman Tuesday for annual scholarship program

From Pullman Radio News

Eleven young ladies from around the state will arrive in Pullman Tuesday for the annual Distinguished Young Women of Washington Program. The high school seniors will compete for thousands of dollars in scholarships during the program Saturday night.

The local teens taking part are Tayma Vanek of Colfax, Emily Schultheis who won the Colton/Uniontown program and Daphne Felsted of Pullman. The judging panel includes one local resident, Babs Pfaff of Oakesdale who won the Washington title in 1973. The Pullman and Washington winner from 3 years ago, Rose Jao, will emcee the program with Colton/Uniontown's 2017 Distinguished Young Woman Kendyl Druffel who also won state.

The winner will advance to the national program to be held next Summer in Mobile Alabama. The Distinguished Young Women of Washington Program starts at 7:00 Saturday night at the Pullman High School Theater. Tickets are available at the door.
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A pet out of its element: WSU vet school officials create a temporary home for alligator confiscated in Asotin County
Mon., July 30, 2018, 11:45 a.m.


By Eric Barker Lewiston Tribune

News flash: you can’t keep “potentially dangerous animals” in Washington without a permit from the director of the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife.
That law, adopted more than 10 years ago, led to a 3-foot long, 8-pound alligator being confiscated from an Asotin County man earlier this month.
Officers from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife took possession of the reptile after its owner was unable to provide such a permit. The alligator is now being housed at the Washington State University Veterinary Hospital, where officials there are looking to find it a permanent home in a proper facility.
Officer Grant Silver said the owner claimed the animal was in Washington for only one day and that he had legal possession of it in Idaho. However, Silver said he worked with the Idaho Department of Agriculture to verify that claim and was unable to do so. Idaho also requires a permit for alligators.
The man has not been cited, and the case remains under investigation. Silver said the law calls for fines of as much as $200 for every day the animal is possessed in the state.
At WSU, the alligator is being kept in a small enclosure, about the size of a closet, and is being fed dead mice. That’s a nutritional upgrade from its prior diet, which consisted largely of chicken nuggets, Silver said.
“These guys are designed to eat a whole-prey diet,” said veterinarian Macia Logsdon as she held the alligator, which was placid but occasionally hissed at her and other humans.
“In order for them to get complete nutrition, they need everything,” said Charlie Powell, public information officer for the vet school. “They need the intestinal contents, the liver, the spleen, the muscle, et cetera, and feeding them steak is going to malnourish them – or chicken nuggets.”
They are not sure exactly how old it is or whether it’s a male or female. Logsdon said after consulting with a number of experts they estimate it is between 5 and 9 years old. The various markers used to determine age are highly dependent on quality and quantity of diet.
“Without having known what has gone on in this little guy’s life for the last five to nine years, we can’t really get much more specific,” she said.
But it has the potential to get much larger.
“Even if he was a little stunted to begin with, he’s got a lot of growing to do,” she said, estimating it could easily reach 10 to 14 feet in length on a proper diet.
Alligators of course are not native to the Northwest, and any illegally released in even the relatively warm climate of the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley would have zero chance of surviving, Logsdon said. The winters are far too cold, and they require swamplike habitat instead of rivers or lakes.
In its temporary home, the alligator does have access to water.
“We have a little enclosure for him that has a kiddy pool so he can get in and out of the water,” Logsdon said. “We also have some supplemental heat back there for him as well and a UV light so he can get some artificial sunlight.”
As officials seek a facility that can take the animal, it is winning fans at the school.
“I like your eyes buddy,” said Logsdon while holding the animal. “They are awfully beautiful.”

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FOOTBALL Pac-12 preview: Washington State Cougars

By Ryan Thorburn, Eugene R-G

Posted Jul 29, 2018

Mike Leach’s program enters the 2018 season mourning the death of quarterback Tyler Hilinski

Editor’s note: The fourth in a series of articles previewing the Pac-12 football teams in reverse order of their predicted finish in the preseason media poll. Today, No. 9 Washington State.
Pac-12 media day is mostly a jubilant event as the assembled coaches and players look forward to the coming season with hope and optimism.

The start of fall camp will be bittersweet at Washington State, a program still mourning the death of Tyler Hilinski.

Hilinski, the team’s projected starting quarterback, committed suicide on Jan. 16. An autopsy revealed the 21-year-old suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a degenerative brain disease cause by repetitive brain trauma.
“We all have very fond memories of Tyler. We’re proud that we had the opportunity to know him,” coach Mike Leach said. “We believe, anyway, or I do, that he’d want us to move on and have productive lives and elevate what we can do.”

The Cougars went through grief counseling after Hilinski’s death. The athletic department provided a second formal mental health screening to its athletes to help identify those who might be at risk for mental health issues and has hired a full-time clinical psychologist.

“It affected me a lot. Tyler was my best friend,” safety Jalen Thompson said. “But at the same time, I had to get my players back into it, get their minds right and get going, you know. The season is almost coming up. ...


“Anybody we needed to talk to, they had somebody that was there for us. Now it’s just about creating a new normal. Going out there, this is our new team now moving forward.”

Hilinski delivered a memorable performance last season, coming off the bench to throw the winning touchdown in the Cougars’ 47-44 triple-overtime win over Boise State. He was carried off the field after the game.

“We all had a deep connection with Tyler because that’s what kind of person he was,” wide receiver/punter Kyle Sweet said. “He was just an incredible guy to be around. It didn’t really hit me harder than anyone else. i think it affected us all greatly in its own way because everyone had their own relationship with Tyler. It was just a difficult thing for everybody.”

As difficult as it may be to move on, the Cougars are shifting the focus to the 2018 season. Washington State is picked to finish fifth in the North Division of the Pac-12 media poll.


Four-year starting quarterback Luke Falk passed for 3,593 yards and 30 touchdowns as a senior. The Tennessee Titans rookie also broke the Pac-12 career record for total offense previously held by new teammate Marcus Mariota.

Redshirt juniors Trey Tinsley and Anthony Gordon began the competition to replace Falk and Hilinski during spring practice. East Carolina graduate transfer Gardner Minsheew and true freshman Cammon Cooper joined the fray over the summer.
“The challenge for us is going to be to select the right guy,” Leach said. “I think we’d probably have three or four choices, all of which would do a really good job.”

The offense loses leading rusher Jamal Morrow and standout offensive lineman Cody “The Continent” O’Connell to graduation. Wide receiver Tay Martin, who led the team with 831 yards receiving and nine touchdowns, is back, along with running back James Williams, who had 420 yards rushing and 482 yards receiving with four total touchdowns last season.

Leach, who serves as his own offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, has a proven track record of successfully replacing key players and continuing to rack up impressive statistics every year in the Air Raid offense.

“So run the quarterback meetings, then install the offense, then of course putting the game plan in,” Leach said of his weekly in-season duties. “That’s a long, long Sunday night, a real long Monday night. Then you go through debates. The debates honestly aren’t as much on what to run, it’s limiting what you run. Because we think all of our ideas are very clever.”

Leach lost six assistants, including defensive coordinator Alex Grinch, after last year’s 9-4 finish. Standout defensive lineman Hercules Mata’afa also left early for the NFL.

The defensive staff, which had to replace defensive line coach Joe Salave’a in 2017 when he left for Oregon, has three new coaches — defensive coordinator Tracy Claeys, safeties coach Kendrick Shaver and cornerbacks coach Darcel McBath.

“For the most part it’s pretty much the same thing. We’re still a speed D,” said Thompson, who led the team with 73 tackles and four interceptions last season. “We still run to the ball and we still try to make plays out there.”

Washington State plays two Mountain West teams (Wyoming, San Jose State) and FCS Eastern Washington before opening Pac-12 play on Sept. 21 at USC.

The Cougars have a three-game winning streak against Oregon, which visits Pullman on Oct. 20.

Hilinski’s parents will attend the home opener on Sept. 8, and the players are wearing bracelets to support the Hilinski Hope Foundation, a non-profit set up by the family with the goal of keeping his memory alive and generating the funding necessary to support programs that will help de-stigmatize mental illness.

“I see these wristbands every day, I think about him every day,” said Sweet, who was wearing a wristband at the Pac-12 media day event. “I just try to model myself and carry myself the way that he did every day. I do that by looking at these.”

WASHINGTON STATE COUGARS
Coach: Mike Leach, seventh year (38-38 at WSU, 122-81 overall)

Key players: LT Andre Dillard, RB James Williams, WR Tay Martin, DE Nnamdi Oguayo, LB Peyton Pelluer, S Jalen Thompson

2017 record: 9-4 overall, 6-3 coJerry Thompson
2018 projection: The Cougars are picked to finish fifth in the North Division in the Pac-12 preseason media poll

Nonconference opponents: Wyoming, San Jose State, Eastern Washington

Plays Oregon: Oct. 20 in Pullman

Full schedule: Sept. 1 at Wyoming, Sept. 8 vs. San Jose State, Sept. 15 vs. Eastern Washington, Sept. 21 at USC, Sept. 29 vs. Utah, Oct. 6 at Oregon State, Oct. 20 vs. Oregon, Oct. 27 at Stanford, Nov. 3 vs. California, Nov. 10 at Colorado, Nov. 17 vs. Arizona, Nov. 3 vs. Washington
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WSU Police said of 7/23/2018, “We are saddened by the line-of-duty death of former Cougar and Kent Police Officer Diego Moreno. Our heartfelt sympathies go out to his family, friends, and Kent PD. He will always be a Coug.’

Memorial for Kent police officer killed in high-speed chase to be held Tuesday

Originally published July 30, 2018 at 9:27 am Updated July 30, 2018 at 1:17 pm

Kent Police Officer Diego Moreno, a decorated eight-year veteran, was killed when struck by another Kent police officer who was chasing a pickup truck.

By Christine Clarridge Seattle Times staff reporter
A memorial service will be held Tuesday for Diego Moreno, the Kent police officer who was killed this month during his involvement in a high-speed chase.
The service is set for 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. at the ShoWare Center in Kent, according to a statement from the Kent Police Department.

The 35-year-old officer, who was originally from Venezuela, was married and had two children. He had been a member of the Kent police force for eight years. On July 22, while laying a strip of spikes to slow a fleeing truck, Moreno was struck and killed by another officer involved in the chase. Shortly after driving over the spikes, the truck flipped over on Highway 516, police said.

Emiliano Garcia, 16, who was driving the truck, was arrested last week and charged as an adult with second-degree felony murder. That’s when a defendant commits a felony and, as a result of that crime, or fleeing from that crime, causes the death of another person. Prosecutors said in charging documents that Moreno’s death was a direct result of Garcia’s actions.

Before Tuesday’s memorial service, there will be a procession of police vehicles through Kent, starting around 11:15 a.m.

Public viewing areas will be located along the procession route on Fourth Ave between Willis and James streets.

“This is a sad time for Officer Moreno’s family, the Kent Police Department, the City of Kent family and the community,” said Kent Police Chief Rafael Padilla. “We hope everyone will join us as we remember Diego and pay our respects to his family.”

James Street between Lincoln and Fourth Avenue will be closed between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. Fourth Avenue between Willis and James will be closed between 10:45 a.m. and 1 p.m.