News

Northwest Sports Update: M’s start homestand in division lead, Bells open season, Vikings rowing team prevails at nationals and more

Northwest Sports Update: M’s start homestand in division lead, Bells open season, Vikings rowing team prevails at nationals and more

Photo courtesy of WWU Athletics Photo: Contributed


Mariners News

The Mariners are back at home tonight for the start of a three-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

The M’s are coming off a series sweep of the Athletics that vaulted them to first place in the AL West.

They have a chance to push their record above .500 this weekend for the first time since late March. But it won’t be easy against an Arizona squad that’s won five straight games and 10 of its last 11.

It will also be a reunion with former M’s closer Paul Sewald, who just notched his 100th career save on Wednesday with the D-Backs.

George Kirby is on the mound for tonight’s series opener. Coverage begins at 6:00 and first pitch is at 7:10 on KPUG

Bells News

Whatcom County’s favorite summer sports attraction is kicking off its season tonight.

The Bellingham Bells are opening their season in Kelowna with a three-game weekend series against the Falcons. Tonight will be new head coach Alan Regier’s first game at the helm after taking over for Ed Knaggs, who took a job at Gonzaga after leading the Bells to a championship last year in his first season with the team.

The Bells will play their home opener at Joe Martin Field on Tuesday, which will feature a celebration for last year’s West Coast League title.

NBA/NHL News

The Western Conference Finals are heading to a Game 7 in the NBA Playoffs.

The San Antonio Spurs beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 118-91 last night to force a decisive Game 7 in OKC tomorrow. The winner will move on to face the New York Knicks in the finals.

Meanwhile, the Carolina Hurricanes are looking to book their trip to the Stanley Cup Finals tonight when they host the Montreal Canadiens in Game 5 of the East Finals.

Montreal will try to keep its season alive, trailing the series 3 games to 1.

WWU Vikings News

Western’s rowing team added another national championship to its collection today.

The Vikings won their 10th national title this morning in Gainesville, Georgia.

Inclement weather forced the two-day championship to be just a one-day event.

Prep Boys Soccer News

Spring prep sports are coming to a close this weekend with the final two rounds of the state boys soccer tournament.

Whatcom County has three teams that are still alive.

2nd-seeded Squalicum blanked Columbia River 3-0 earlier this afternoon to advance to the 2A championship game. There, they’ll face the winner of 12th-seeded Sehome and top-seeded Bainbridge, who are playing at Federal Way Memorial Stadium at 3:00.

The Storm’s title game takes place at 2:45 tomorrow, again from Federal Way.

Over in the 1A tournament, 12th-seeded Meridian is facing off against 16th-seeded Wahluke in Federal Way at 7:00 tonight. The winner moves on to the title game, where they’ll play either Cedar Park Christian or Vashon Island at 5 pm.

Prep Basketball News

One of the top prep hoops stars in Whatcom County is taking his talents to the next level.

Lummi Nation senior guard Jerome Toby Jr. announced that he’s committed to play basketball at South Puget Sound Community College next season.

Toby was named the 1B State Player of the Year in each of the past two seasons while helping lead the Blackhawks to back-to-back state titles.

He finished his career as Lummi’s all-time leading scorer, racking up over 2,300 points.

Recent Headlines

5 hours ago in Entertainment

Prada serves up luxury fashion’s version of pasta pomodoro at Milan Fashion Week

Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons reimagine jeans-inspired basics in leather and technical fabrics for the latest Prada collection unveiled Sunday during MilanFashion Week, saying they wanted menswear looks for people on the street, not just fashion insiders.

5 hours ago in Entertainment, Trending

In Taylor Swift’s beach town, every clue becomes a wedding rumor

When a large tent appeared next door to Taylor Swift's Watch Hill estate this week, it didn't take long for speculation about the superstar's impending nuptials to ripple through the affluent New England seaside village — and the internet.

5 hours ago in Entertainment, Trending

‘Toy Story 5’ rakes in the biggest box-office debut of the year with a franchise-best $160 million

"Toy Story" still has a friend in moviegoers. The fifth installment in the Pixar series debuted with $160 million in domestic ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday, easily setting a new franchise record and notching the biggest opening weekend of the year.

5 hours ago in Entertainment, Music

Clive Davis, music industry starmaker, has died at 94

Clive Davis, the record company lawyer who became one of the music industry's most powerful figures, launching or resurrecting the careers of such superstars as Janis Joplin, Whitney Houston, Carlos Santana and Alicia Keys, has died, his family confirmed. He was 94.

5 hours ago in Sports, Trending

Lionel Messi becomes top scorer in World Cup history with two more goals for Argentina

Scoring goals and breaking records is what Lionel Messi does, and it's what he did again Monday at the World Cup. The Argentina captain, who many consider the greatest player of all time, scored two more World Cup goals on Monday in his team's 2-0 victory over Austria. That gave him a record total of 18 at the world's biggest tournament.