An invisible line causing much ado

The news early last week that Hermiston (Ore.) High was being allowed to join the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association starting with the 2018-19 school year brought back a few memories.

Hermiston, located less than 10 miles from the Washington border, will join the Mid-Columbia Conference as a 3A school, and play teams mostly in the nearby Tri-Cities and elsewhere in south-central Washington.

The alternative was for Hermiston to remain in the Oregon School Activities Association, where due to reclassification the Bulldogs would have road trips of nearly 400 miles round trip. In the MCC, its road trips would be roughly 80 miles round trip.

COEUR d’ALENE HIGH can empathize with Hermiston.

In the 1980s up through the 1990 season, Coeur d’Alene (and Lewiston) played football in a league with schools from the Boise area — roughly 400-450 miles one-way, depending on route.

In 1987, for example, Coeur d’Alene played at Meridian, hosted Borah and Centennial, traveled down to Nampa, and hosted Capital and Lewiston in league play.

In 1988, the Vikings opened at home vs. Borah, traveled to Centennial, hosted Meridian, traveled back down to Capital, and traveled to Lewiston for its league games. (By that time, the Lewiston trip must have seemed like a cross-town jaunt).

In 1989, Coeur d’Alene opened at home vs. Centennial, traveled to Meridian, hosted Capital, traveled to Borah, hosted Lewiston, and played Boise at the Kibbie Dome in league play.

In 1990, the Viks opened league play at Centennial, hosted Borah, traveled to Boise, hosted Capital and traveled to Lewiston. Coeur d’Alene’s shortest road trip that season was a game at Moscow.

Depending on the route it chose, Coeur d’Alene could have traveled through Hermiston on its way south to play the Boise teams.

BEFORE THE old City League in Spokane became the Greater Spokane League in fall 1976, Mead was part of a Border League with Central Valley, University and, I believe, Coeur d’Alene. The Panthers also played Sandpoint and Lewiston, but I don’t remember if they were also in the league. In ’76 the GSL debuted as a nine-team league, with the six City League schools (Ferris, Lewis and Clark, Gonzaga Prep, Rogers, North Central and Shadle Park) as well as Mead, CV and U-Hi.

The Border League was revived in 1997 in basketball with a mixture of North Idaho and some of the bigger non-GSL schools in eastern Washington. But it was mostly to help teams fill their schedules. Still, games seemed to mean a little more when they were “league” games. Lake City and West Valley, in particular, seemed to develop quite a boys basketball rivalry due to league play.

In the first year, 1997-98, the Border League consisted of Coeur d’Alene, Lake City, Lewiston, Post Falls, Sandpoint, Cheney, West Valley, East Valley and Clarkston.

Since everyone advanced to the state playoffs, all league games determined playoff seeding on each side of the border.

Coeur d’Alene’s boys won the Border League in 1998, and West Valley won it the next two years. West Valley and Cheney tied for the league title in 2001, and Lake City won it in 2002, the final year of Border League hoops.

On the girls side, Lake City won the Border League title in 1998, Moscow and Coeur d’Alene tied for the league title in 1999, Coeur d’Alene won in 2000, Post Falls won in 2001, and Lake City and Post Falls tied for the title in 2002.

From 1999-2001, there was also a Border League in football.

The first two years, the league consisted of Lake City, Coeur d’Alene, Post Falls, Sandpoint, Moscow, Cheney, Clarkston, Colville and West Valley. By 2001, West Valley and Colville had dropped out due to reclassification in Washington.

(Lakeland was still in the 3A Intermountain League at the time. Lewiston was the lone 5A school in the North; the others were 4A).

All three years, they crowned a Border League champion, but in ’99 and ’01, they also kept separate Inland Empire League standings to determine playoff teams.

In 2000, all Border League games were used to determine playoff berths for Idaho schools. Sandpoint beat Lake City but lost to Coeur d’Alene, and Lake City beat Coeur d’Alene. But an early season loss to Cheney ultimately kept Sandpoint out of the Idaho playoffs, as Lake City and Coeur d’Alene finished 7-1 in league, Sandpoint 6-2.

Lake City won the Border League in ’99 and ’01, and shared the title with Coeur d’Alene in 2000.

THE DIFFERENCE, of course, is that North Idaho teams weren’t trying to win state championships in Washington, though it makes sense what Hermiston is doing — though it will still seem a little weird when the first Hermiston individual or team wins a state title.

But over here, it wasn’t like Sandpoint was going to play Shadle Park for a state title in volleyball, or Coeur d’Alene playing Gonzaga Prep in the state football title game.

Then again, who knows? How often have we heard someone float an idea of eastern Washington and North Idaho joining together to form a 51st state?

Sounds crazy, I know.

Kinda like that Sand Creek Bypass that was talked about for half a century.

Or the return of two-way streets in downtown Sandpoint.

Or Ironman coming to Coeur d’Alene.

Or Ironman leaving Coeur d’Alene.

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@CdAPressSports.