There’s plenty of Lewis County athletes currently continuing their careers at four-year universities. Here’s a look at how a few of them are doing as we get close to the end of the 2018-19 basketball season.
Men’s Basketball
• Jordan Thomas, a freshman from W.F. West, recorded his third-straight double double on Sunday with 16 points with 14 rebounds for Pacific Lutheran University in a 74-55 win over Lewis & Clark. Thomas, a guard, was coming off a season-high 27-point outing in a loss to Pacific on Friday, during which he shot 8 of 14 from the floor and 11 of 16 from the foul line with 17 rebounds and three blocked shots. On the season, Thomas is averaging 10.8 points and 6.8 rebounds a game for the 8-14 Lutes, who host Whitworth on Friday.
• Matt Poquette, a 6-foot-6 freshman from Morton, scored nine points on Thursday for Central Washington University in a 91-86 loss to Western Washington. Poquette, who moved into the starting lineup in late January, is averaging 9.7 points and 3.9 rebounds a game for the Wildcats (9-13), who host the University of Alaska-Fairbanks on Thursday.
Women’s Basketball
• Julie Spencer, a 6-foot-2 senior out of W.F. West, scored 11 points with four rebounds on Saturday for the University of Portland in a 93-62 loss to Gonzaga. An All-West Coast Conference honorable mention pick as a junior, Spencer is averaging 14.8 points on 43 percent shooting with 7.7 rebounds a game for the 10-13 Pilots, who play at BYU on Thursday.
• Nike McClure, a senior and W.F. West graduate, grabbed five rebounds and blocked two shots on Wednesday for the University of New Mexico in a 61-59 loss to San Diego State. The 6-foot-3 forward, who transferred from Washington State University, has started all 22 games for the 19-3 Lobos, averaging 6.6 rebounds and 3.3 points a game with a team-high 56 blocks — which leads the Mountain West Conference by 24.
• Madi Crews, a junior guard from Centralia by way of Lower Columbia, scored five points with nine assists on Saturday for Eastern Oregon University in an 84-38 win over Multnomah. Crews is averaging 7.3 points and 2.9 rebounds a game, with 131 assists (second in the Cascade Collegiate Conference) and 35 steals. The Mountaineers (24-2, 18-0 conference) have won 24 straight and clinched the CCC regular-season championship. They play at Oregon Tech on Friday.
• Katie Hankins, a fifth-year senior out of W.F. West (and Lower Columbia College), scored a season-high 16 points with six rebounds for the University of Lethbridge on Friday as the Pronghorns beat Manitoba, 99-60, in a Canada West women’s basketball play-in game. Lethbridge (13-8) will face Alberta in the quarterfinals on Thursday.
• Alyx Fast, a sophomore out of Centralia, scored 7 points with four assists on Feb. 5 for Northwest University in a 58-51 win over Evergreen. Fast, who started her college career at Minot State University, is averaging 7.2 points and 2.8 rebounds a game for the Eagles (10-18), who play at Warner Pacific in Portland on Friday.
• Melissa Lee, a freshman from Napavine, scored two points on Saturday for Oregon Tech in a 49-39 win over then-No. 19 Corban. Lee, a forward, is averaging 5.4 points and 4.5 rebounds a game. The win improved the Lady Owls to 20-8 on the season and 14-4 in Cascade Collegiate Conference play, and will host Eastern Oregon University on Friday in Klamath Falls.
• Mollie Olson, a freshman from Napavine, scored five points for Western Washington University on Saturday in a 60-57 loss to Concordia in Portland. Olson is averaging 3.5 points a game for the Vikings (11-11), who play at St. Martin’s University on Thursday.
