Cougar
tennis seniors looks back on time in Pullman
WSU tennis
players from Europe look to finish season at NCAAs
Courts.
The game against Arizona resulted in a 6-1 win for the Cougars.
By TY
EKLUND, Evergreen May 3, 2019
Every
season, one of the hardest things for the players and coaches to do is to say
goodbye to their seniors. Thanking them for their time as players,
inspirations, and friends are some of the most valued farewell notions to make.
Head Coach
Lisa Hart said both girls have leading qualities, and they’ve really brought
this team up in wins and spirit.
“I think
our seniors have incredible leadership, both on the court and off the court.
Definitely the way in which they represent our program, the things that nobody
sees,” Hart said. “I think they’ve kind of just pulled everyone else along, and
I just can’t say enough good things about them.”
Despite it
being their last season, the two seniors should be proud of the success this
year.
The
Cougars beat UCLA for the second time since 2001, making their ranking the new
team highest at No. 15. WSU also got seeded into the NCAA bracket for the first
time since 2012.
Miksovska
is majoring in sport science, holding a 3.80 GPA. She said this is the best
team she’s played with so far since becoming a Cougar.
“I’ve seen
four different teams, and this is the best team so far, and I’m really thankful
that this is the last year,” Miksovska said. “We’ve been through a lot. We
started from the bottom, and now we made it. I’m so happy.”
In her
four years as a Coug, she hasn’t wasted the opportunity to put her name in the
team’s history book. She earned her 90th career single win earlier this year
against Brigham Young University, tying her for fifth in WSU’s all-time singles
win record next to Ekaterina Burduli (2004-08).
Since
then, Miksovska has gotten seven more wins, putting her total at 97 after the
first round Pac-12 championship win against Colorado.
The
fourth-year player now holds the fourth all-time singles win record, passing the
92 win record by Ksenia Googe (2009-13).
“Right
now, I’m just excited for NCAA’s,” Miksovska said. “Afterwards, I’ll be here
doing my internship and grad school, but right now I’m all about the NCAA’s.”
Mylonas,
though she has not been at WSU all four years, has left her mark and inspired
her team through her winning enthusiasm.
“I’m
really competitive if there’s a challenge. It can be tennis or anything. I’m
competitive. I want to win,” Mylonas said. “I don’t give up. I always bring my
team up, and I’m always smiling to everyone on my team to bring them up.”
Transferring
from the University of Louisiana Monroe, she’s become a dedicated Cougar
majoring in strategic communication. Her skill in singles and doubles have led
her on to be a team captain, and her competitive nature makes her a treat to
watch.
After
hearing of the news of her team’s acceptance into the NCAA Championships, she
reiterated that the first round wouldn’t be her team’s stopping point.
Being a
part of two great back-to-back tennis seasons, she has felt like she’s made a
great addition to her team.
“This team
has been so good to me, we’ve all worked together,” Mylonas said. “Last year,
we were one seed away from going to the NCAA’s, so this year we wanted it more
than anything.”
After the team
NCAA matches, Mylonas will be paired to play doubles with freshman Hikaru Sato
in the NCAA Individual Championships. This is the first time a WSU doubles team
has gone to this championship since 2002.
The
singles and doubles tournaments start after the NCAA team championships and
will be held from May 20 to May 25 in Orlando, Florida.
Since
coming to Pullman, Mylonas has been focused immensely on her team.
“Plans
after graduation, I don’t know yet,” Mylonas said. “I’m just focusing on tennis
first, the NCAA’s, then the sweet 16 and then whatever comes next.”
It’s been
a great time to be a Cougar, and the team will miss Mylonas’ and Miksovska’s
personalities and athleticism.
Their last
team appearances will be at the NCAA championship where they face University of
Miami noon Friday.
::::::::
Taking
stock of WSU men hoops roster, departures, rookies and more
By Jamey
Vinnick Cougfan.com
THE
SIGNING PERIOD ends in six days as Kyle Smith is inching ever closer to
(perhaps) finishing his first roster at Washington State. Smith would be just
about done to this point, but recent entries into the transfer portal have made
for a one step forward, one step back dance when it comes to finalizing the
roster. Here’s how things stand, and our projection of where things might be
headed.
THE
ROSTER:
WSU at
press time has nine scholarship players accounted for, with four scholarship
spots open.
It’s
unknown who and at which position Smith is charging after hardest down the
recruiting stretch, but the fact WSU has no player over 6-9 right would point
to a big focus on the bigs.
NOTE: With
so many holes still on the roster, it can't be said who will play exactly
where. Even more of a crapshoot would be to guess at how many minutes each will
play -- especially when you consider the large number of players listed below
could be used at multiple positions.
That said,
this is my reading of the positional tea leaves, with signees/verbals/additions
in bold:
PG: Jervae
Robinson (6-2, 185); Isaac Bonton (6-3, 185); Noah Williams (6-5, 192)
SG: C.J.
Elleby (6-6, 200); Ryan Rapp (6-5, 180)
SF: Aljaz
Kunc (6-8, 198); Deion James (6-6, 220); Daron Henson (6-7, 210)
PF: Jeff
Pollard (6-9, 240)
C: ???
(WSU also
has two walk ons expected to join the program: 6-foot-9 Brandon Chatfield out
of Clarkston High, and 6-foot-3 Carter Sonneborn from mighty Gonzaga Prep).
THE
DEPARTED:
Entering
the transfer portal does not necessarily mean they are guaranteed to be leaving
-- Pollard did so and returned to WSU. That understood, my reading of the tea
leaves after talking to various sources is that Cannon, Ali, Wade are gone (as
is walk on James Streeter).
Meanwhile,
Carter Skaggs and Chance Moore are definitely gone, as is former signee Ryan
Murphy. Skaggs and Murphy tweeted Wednesday they’re headed to UNC Wilmington
and Pitt, respectively, while Moore indicated Wednesday on Twitter the decision
to leave Wazzu wasn’t his idea.
THE
RETURNING:
WSU has
only two seniors in Pollard and Robinson, plus Cougar rookie James is a
graduate transfer.
Elleby
remains in the NBA draft and has until May 29 to withdraw if he is to return to
WSU -- the overwhelming expectation is that he will be back. He’s a highly
talented player headed into Year 2 but doesn’t appear on any mock draft boards.
While it makes all the sense in the world for him to go this route -- so he can
get evaluated by NBA scouts -- it would seemingly make far less sense for him
to actually go pro after one season.
Kunc will
be a second-year sophomore who showed fire and ongoing improvement his rookie
year -- he might be one to flourish under Smith. Point guard figures to be a
battle royale with Bonton and Williams expected to challenge Robinson.
THE NEW
KIDS IN TOWN:
Smith has
added five new faces for 2019-20.
Colorado State grad transfer James was the first to sign, followed by
JUCO guard Isaac Bonton. Henson reaffirmed his signed LOI to WSU and Australia
native and San Francisco signee Rapp has said he’s coming with Smith to the
Palouse. Noah Williams, son of sleek Cougar point guard Guy Williams, signed
with WSU on Tuesday.
All five
are eligible to play immediately, though Rapp might benefit from a year in
development as a redshirt. Then again, that decision could depend on how the
roster fills out.
THE
WAITING:
Smith is
believed to still have at least five known offers out there, after F Kuany
Kuany (6-10) chose Cal over WSU and Nevada earlier today. They are:
SG Jeremy
DowDell (6-3, 180)
SG Gary
Harris Jr. (6-6, 285)
SF Ronnie
DeGray III (6-7, 220)
C Fardaws
Aimaq (6-11, 245, Mercer transfer)
C Nigel
John (6-9, 250, WSU signee)
:::
New Coug
Isaac Bonton says changing the culture begins with D
By Barry
Bolton Cougfan.com
ISAAC
BONTON is a scorer, yes, averaging 21.4 points per game this past season. But,
the 6-3, 185-pound point guard out of Casper College who signed with Washington
State tells CF.C he spent considerable time on his official visit talking about
something else with head man Kyle Smith.
Bonton
said he and Smith didn’t go into specifics about his role, instead talking
about his playmaking, scoring ability and being a winner ... but they did talk
about the importance of defense.
“They’re
definitely big on defense, they want to change that from last year,” said
Bonton. “We’re going to get a starting
point and work on building off that ... I feel like success will come from
having a defensive mentality.”
Smith and
WSU have a desperate need to revamp the D. The Cougs this past season ranked a
cringe-worthy 284th out of 351 teams in Ken Pomeroy’s adjusted defensive
efficiency ratings.
Related:
Tracking the moving pieces of WSU hoops roster and recruiting
THE VISIT
TO Pullman resonated with Bonton, who played his prep ball in Portland. He’s
known WSU assistant coach Jim Shaw, a longtime basketball fixture in the state
of Oregon (stints at Oregon State, Western Oregon and Portland), since he was
in middle school.
“When I
went on the visit and met the coaching staff … I saw what they were about in
their program and where their mindset is, what they want to do moving forward.
I thought they could help me develop individually as a player. That kind of moved me a lot … Coach Smith and
Coach Shaw, wherever they’ve been they’ve been successful and been able to
change things around real fast,” said Bonton.
Bonton
said during his visit Smith talked to him about his own history, showed him a
slideshow having to do with his philosophy and talked all about his
analytics-based approach, all things that Bonton said appealed to him.
“And I’m
just excited to be a Coug. I’m ready to change the culture and it starts with a
winning attitude and a winning mentality,” said Bonton.
Bonton
said he will arrive at WSU next month to begin taking summer school classes.
He chose
WSU over the three others in his final four: Fresno State, New Mexico State and
Montana State. As a sophomore this past
season at Casper, Bonton was named NJCAA All-America second team after shooting
43 percent from the field, 36 percent from beyond the arc. He started all 31
games, averaging a team-best 21.4 ppg, 5.6 apg, 1.8 steals and 5.5 rpg.
NOTABLE
NOTE:
WSU
officially announced this week what Smith said back on April 22: WSU will be
part of the Cayman Islands Classic running from Nov. 25-27. Also taking part
will be Colorado State, George Mason, Loyola Chicago, Nebraska, New Mexico
State, Old Dominion, and South Florida. “With this field, we will be tested to
say the least. In addition, I love to snorkel,” quipped Smith.
:::
WSU
Spokane News: WSU scientist studies link between poor sleep and PTSD
Neuroscientist
Willie Vanderheyden uses fluorescent microscopy to identify sleep promoting
cells in the dorsal part of a rat brain.
By Judith
Van Dongen
Office of
Research, WSU Health Sciences Spokane
At any
given time, an estimated 7.7 million American adults suffer from post-traumatic
stress disorder (PTSD), a psychiatric condition that occurs in people who have
experienced or witnessed a traumatic event. Though PTSD can affect anyone who
lives through trauma, it is especially common among military veterans returning
from combat zones.
The
effects of PTSD can be debilitating. It’s one reason why neuroscientist Willie
Vanderheyden—an assistant research professor in the WSU Elson S. Floyd College
of Medicine—has set out to better understand the condition and its ties to one
of his other research interests: sleep.
“Up to 90
percent of people who have experienced trauma suffer from some type of sleep
disturbance, whether it’s fragmented sleep, difficulty falling or staying
asleep, or nightmares,” Vanderheyden said.
These
sleep disturbances may be the result of PTSD, but Vanderheyden says it’s also
possible that they are part of what is causing PTSD.
“We have
troops that are out on patrol for multiple days and may or may not be getting
any sleep during that time,” he said. “I’ve hypothesized that if veterans are
experiencing sleep loss prior to experiencing trauma, it might increase their
susceptibility to getting PTSD.”
With
funding from a $280K grant awarded by the U.S. Department of
Defense-administered Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs,
Vanderheyden is conducting a study that uses a rodent model of PTSD to test
this hypothesis. As part of this research, he will also look at whether
improving sleep following trauma exposure could help ease the behavioral
symptoms seen in PTSD.
“This
study could potentially, down the line, affect how veterans will be treated
when they come back from combat,” Vanderheyden said.
If his
hypotheses hold up, he envisions that veterans could someday be given
sleep-inducing drugs to help them defend against the negative consequences of
trauma exposure. Survivors of other types of traumas could similarly benefit
from such strategies. As Vanderheyden points out, trauma survivors are often
hospitalized and get poked, prodded, and tested to such a degree that it
disrupts their sleep. The next goal would be to better understand the
underlying mechanisms.
“Not only
are the mechanisms of sleep not well understood, but how trauma interacts with
sleep is very poorly understood,” Vanderheyden said.
:::
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
‘She was
always there for me’
Baseball
players reflect on what their moms mean to them, sacrifices they made in life
By ISAAC
SEMMLER, Evergreen April 12, 2019
This Mom’s
Weekend, WSU baseball will take on Oregon in a three-game series with their
mothers in attendance.
For the
majority of players on the team, it’s an exciting time as it brings back
memories of their Little League days where it all began.
Junior
infielder Dillon Plew said he’s always been inspired by how hard his mother,
Laurie, works. He said this pushes him to go the extra mile on the baseball
field and continue to grow as an individual.
“My mother
pretty much came from dirt,” Plew said. “She worked incredibly hard to get to
where she is today and the really impacted me because as a baseball player, you
never stop working.”
Freshman
outfielder and left-handed pitcher Tyson Guerrero said he feels lucky to have
his mom, Lisa, because she inspires him to be great at what he does.
Guerrero
said what he loves most about his mom is how supportive she is, even though
sports isn’t her particular area of interest.
“My mom
has never really been a sports lady, but she’s always at my games cheering me
on,” Guerrero said. “No matter how rough of a game I had, she was always there
for me.”
Plew said
whenever he has a tough time at the plate or on the field his mom lets him know
that he still did an awesome job.
What has
impacted these two players the most is the morals their mothers instilled in
them that have carried onto the baseball field.
“My mom
turned me into a respectful young man, which has helped me become a leader,”
Guerrero said.
Sophomore
outfielder Collin Montez said he’s fortunate that his mother, Joliene, shaped
him into a great all-around person.
Montez
said he’s thankful for everything his mom has sacrificed for him to get where
he is today.
“My mom
has bought me a lot of gear over the years,” Montez said. “I appreciate all of
that because equipment and club teams can cost quite a bit.”
Plew said
that his mom has always made sure he was kind and respectful to everyone.
He also
said his mother helped him become more vocal on the field, which has allowed
him to become a leader to the younger players on the team.
“My mom is
definitely the loud talker of the family,” Plew said. “In order to talk you
have to out-talk her and talk louder. I can guarantee that is what has made me
louder on the field.”
:::
