The Front Row with MARK NELKE Dec. 1, 2011
If the Coeur d’Alene High girls basketball team hopes to bring home the championship trophy from the Nike Northwest Invitational in Beaverton, Ore., the Vikings will likely have to operate smoother than a Mercedes.
Mercedes Russell is a 6-foot-5 junior for Springfield (Ore.) High, which won the state 5A championship last season. Coeur d’Alene will play against Russell and Springfield on Friday at 8:30 p.m. on the second day of the tournament.
The winner of that game advances to the championship game Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
Russell is the No. 1 ranked prospect in the ESPNU HoopGurlz Super 60. She has drawn recruiting interest from women’s basketball heavyweights Tennessee and UConn, among others. Last summer, she helped the USA claim gold at the FIBA U16 Americas championship in Mérida, Mexico.
COEUR d’ALENE OPENS tourney play today at 3:15 p.m. against Wilsonville, Ore., which went 24-4 last year.
The bracket is kinda funky looking, in part because of a coaching change at host Southridge High. Trying to put on an eight-team tournament, the new coach was able to find six teams (Coeur d’Alene, Springfield, La Grande, Ore., Southridge, Issaquah, Wash., and Central Catholic from Portland) that would commit to three games. Five other teams (including Wilsonville) will play one game each.
So no matter what Coeur d’Alene does in its first game against Wilsonville, the Vikings will play in the semifinals vs. Springfield.
“These should be good solid opponents,” Coeur d’Alene coach Dale Poffenroth said.
The Vikings were also invited to a tournament in Florida this year, but due to concerns over costs and unfamiliarity with tournament organizers, opted not to go. Poffenroth said a Viking booster is working on getting the team into a tournament in Southern California next year.
Poffenroth said as long as the tournament at North Idaho College over the holidays keeps attracting strong teams, the Vikings will continue to play in that one.
“I would love to play five or six GSL (Greater Spokane League) teams and not travel, but that seems to be impossible because of their schedule and their choice to not play us,” Poffenroth said.
Stung by a rash of forfeits in North Star League football in the fall, the league has made some changes for next season.
Because of a shortage of players, Mullan forfeited twice to Wallace and once to Lakeside, and Clark Fork forfeited once to Kootenai and once to Wallace.
Kootenai, Mullan and Clark Fork are in the smaller 1A Division II. Wallace and Lakeside are in 1A Division I.
That meant Wallace only got to play six regular-season games before heading into the state 1A Division I playoffs, where the Miners reached the semifinals.
Starting next year, the five NSL teams will only have to play each other once in league play. If they want to play a second, nonleague game, they’re welcome to.
In recent years, the North Star teams played each other twice, so each school was guaranteed eight regular-season games. Some were able to find a nonleague game to make it nine, but coaches say it’s hard to find nonleague foes in the area.
Kootenai will return a game at Lacrosse-Washtucna (Wash.) next season, and Lakeside plans to do the same with Northport.
Kootenai football coach and athletic director Doug Napierala said he plans to continue to schedule Wallace and Lakeside twice.
Lakeside football coach Ron Miller said he might be able to schedule a couple of District 2 teams for next year.
But as for filling out the rest of the schedule ...
“We’re beating the bushes trying to fill our schedule,” Miller said.
Added Napierala, “When you’re looking for nonleague games, you better be the first on the phone.”
Mark Nelke is sports editor of The Press. He can be reached at 664-8176, Ext. 2019, or via e-mail at mnelke@cdapress.com. Follow him on Twitter at CdAPressSports.