THE FRONT ROW with MARK NELKE, March 27, 2014
Gonzaga losing to top-seeded Arizona last weekend in the second - er, third - round of the NCAA tournament wasn't a total surprise.
Losing by 23 points was a little bit of an eye raiser, though. Even more of an eye raiser was that the Zags appeared to shrug off the loss with another "Oh, well, they were just a better team," attitude.
Time to change that attitude, Zags, especially if you really want to be accepted as a national player, and shed the cuddly, mid-major, Cinderella perception which makes you cringe.
Lower seeds whip higher seeds all the time in the NCAA tournament. Just last week Mercer, a No. 14 seed, beat No. 3 Duke, for goodness sakes.
Wichita State, a No. 1 seed and undefeated at the time, lost to No. 8 Kentucky last weekend. The same Wichita State team which, as a No. 9 seed last year, beat the Zags when they were a No. 1 seed.
I'm sure San Diego State isn't going to feel good if the Aztecs lose to Arizona by 23 points in the Sweet 16 tonight.
THIS IN from Coeur d'Alene High football coach Shawn Amos on a couple of his senior standouts from last fall's state 5A championship team:
In Scout's 2014 Recruiting Yearbook magazine, Chase Blakley was listed as the No. 2 NFL prospect, and the No. 1 skill position player in the 2014 recruiting class for the Mountain West Conference. Blakley, a tight end, signed with Boise State after originally committing to Washington.
Also, Shawn's son, quarterback Gunner Amos, is listed as the No. 2 quarterback recruit in the Sun Belt Conference, and is one of the top five recruits in Idaho's class. Gunnar, who signed with the Vandals, plans to greyshirt this fall, and enroll in January 2015.
In addition, Drew Berger, a linebacker/running back who will be a senior at Coeur d'Alene this fall, has been offered by Boise State as an inside linebacker.
YOU KNEW they probably weren't going to go undefeated this season, with star pitcher Casey Stangel now playing at Missouri. But it's still worth noting when a winning streak comes to an end, and
Lake City High's softball win streak ended at 29 when the Timberwolves lost to Kamiakin of Kennewick, Wash., last Saturday in the Tri-Cities. Lake City went 28-0 last season, en route to its second state 5A title in three seasons, and won its season opener this year.
Speaking of milestones, Lake City softball coach Laura Tolzmann-Fierro hit the 200-win mark for her career when the T-Wolves beat Lakeland in the season opener. In her 10th season at Lake City, Tolzmann-Fierro was 203-49 heading into Wednesday's game at Lakeland.
Lake City began this season ranked No. 40 in the country in the preseason Student Sports FAB 50 national rankings. The T-Wolves were 20th in last year's final rankings.
Lake City senior second baseman Vanessa Shippy, who has signed to play next season at Oklahoma State (not Arkansas, as at least two prep websites have reported), is listed as a preseason All-American by MaxPreps.
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.