The Front Row with MARK NELKE Dec. 8, 2011

North Idaho College and its fans enjoyed having a national wrestling tournament close to home so much, the Cardinals are looking to bring another national tourney to the area.

NIC, with help from the Spokane Regional Sports Commission, is submitting a bid this week to host the NJCAA volleyball tournament for the next three-year cycle — which would be in 2013, 2014 and 2015. The NJCAA will select a site at the group’s annual meeting in March in Colorado Springs.

NIC landed the NJCAA wrestling tournament in February, which by all accounts was a rousing success at the Spokane Convention Center. So much so that NIC was awarded the national tourney again in 2014.

IF NIC gets the volleyball tournament, it plans to hold it at the HUB Sports Center in Liberty Lake.

NIC athletic director Al Williams said the HUB is adequately sized to host the tournament, with five wood courts and temporary bleacher seating for at least 3,000 fans.

West Plains, Mo., will host nationals in 2012 for the third straight year. West Plains plans to bid to keep the tournament, and Casper (Wyo.) College and perhaps Jacksonville, Fla., are also expected to bid.

The College of Southern Idaho and Salt Lake Community College last week abandoned their plans to bid on a joint hosting of the tournament in the Las Vegas area. But two things important to a bid — a lot of volunteers, and a fan base from a nearby junior college — were lacking. The College of Southern Nevada, which is in the Las Vegas area, does not offer volleyball.

KUDOS TO NIC for working to bring these tourneys closer to their fans.

And the Cardinals don’t do it for financial gain — in reality, they have to work hard to not lose money, when you factor in the costs of the bid fee to the NJCAA and the costs of running the tournament.

“Primarily it’s a break-even venture unless you get sponsors to partner with you,” Williams said. “As the tournament grows we hope to get more sponsors involved and then it will become a fundraiser for the programs. We submit a bid to host to promote the sport in our region, so our supporters can see a national tournament that other regions can easily travel to.”

Last season, NIC wrestling coach Pat Whitcomb said he enjoyed the fact other teams had to make the long trek to nationals, after NIC had done the same for so many years. Last year in Spokane, NIC finished second to Clackamas Community College of Oregon City, Ore., and had two individual national champions.

Of course, NIC has won 13 national titles and was second 11 other times before last year.

NIC’s best finish at nationals in volleyball was fifth, in 2010. And the NIC women’s basketball team won a national title last year in Kansas, so Cardinal teams can shine anywhere.

But if they get a chance to shine a little closer to home — make that a lot closer to home — even better.

“The combined travel savings, Spokane Regional Sports Commission contribution, and ticket sales bring you close to break-even, but the NJCAA gets a guarantee bid fee and that’s why sponsorships are needed so it’s not a financial loss,” Williams said. “The host school does not get anything from the NJCAA for hosting, except home field advantage.”

Mark Nelke is sports editor of The Press. He can be reached at 664-8176, Ext. 2019, or via email at mnelke@cdapress.com. Follow him on Twitter at CdAPressSports.