Northwest Notes May 5, 2020
Gilkey, Carlson honored among top ADs in Idaho Chiefs’ Beckman receives Bob Clarke Trophy NAIA to add women’s flag football as sport
Todd Gilkey of St. Maries High was named 2A Athletic Director of the Year for 2020 by the Idaho Athletic Administrators Association.
It’s the sixth AD of the year award for Gilkey, who also won 2A honors at St. Maries in 2017 and ’19, 5A honors in 2009 and ’14 at Coeur d’Alene and was 3A AD of the year in 2005 at St. Maries.
Other AD winners were Troy Rice of Rocky Mountain (5A), Ted Reynolds of Twin Falls (4A), Kirby Bright of Kimberly (3A), Randy Spaeth of Raft River (1A Division I) and Lee Jay Cook of Carey (1A Division II).
Brian Carlson of Post Falls Middle School shared Middle School Athletic Director of the Year honors with Matt Lassen of Filer Middle School.
Athletic directors across the state vote on the awards.
CALGARY, Alberta — The Western Hockey League announced Spokane Chiefs forward Adam Beckman has been named the recipient of the Bob Clarke Trophy.
The Minnesota Wild prospect was the lone WHL skater to crack the 100-point plateau this season, posting 107 points (48 goals, 59 assists) in 63 WHL regular season games.
Beckman led the WHL in goals and finished tied for third in assists. He was second in the WHL with 16 power-play goals and second with nine game-winning goals.
The 6-foot-1, 174-pound forward is the first Chief to win the award since Mitch Holmberg (118 points, 2013-14) and just the third overall when including Ray Whitney (185 points, 1990-91).
The Bob Clarke Trophy is awarded annually to the WHL’s top scorer. Clarke played two seasons in the WHL with the Flin Flon Bombers and captured the WHL scoring title in both those campaigns. From there, he played 15 seasons with the Philadelphia Flyers, winning two Stanley Cup championships.
Women’s flag football will become a varsity sport for NAIA schools by next year, the organization announced Monday.
The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics has secured a two-year partnership with the NFL and its NFL FLAG arm, and Reigning Champs Experiences (RCX). The NAIA will develop league infrastructure and operations for the first women’s flag football competition governed by a collegiate athletics association.
“Football is for everyone,” NFL Executive Vice President of Football Operations Troy Vincent said. “This groundbreaking and historic joint venture provides an opportunity for the values, fun and competitive environment of football to be enjoyed as a varsity sport by female student-athletes attending NAIA institutions across America.”
The NAIA will host its first showcase open to female football athletes in late summer or early fall. The first competitive season will be held next spring, and the NAIA will host an emerging sport or invitational championship in the spring of 2022. An emerging sport in the NAIA is defined as at least 15 participating institutions, while an invitational is at least 25. A sport must have a minimum of 40 participating schools to be considered for full championship status.
— From staff and wire reports