Haynes, Zalk earn All-Conference honors

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A pair of former area high school football standouts were recently named to the All-Great Northwest Athletic Conference first team after playing this season at Central Washington University.

Kevin Haynes, a 2013 graduate of Battle Ground High School, and Jess Zalk, a 2012 graduate of Prairie High School were each named to the All-Conference team.

Haynes was named to the first team as a linebacker. On Sept. 20, the sophomore contributed a season-high 15 tackles and one pass breakup in a 36-34 loss at Western Oregon University. On Nov. 1, the defensive star returned an interception for a 73-yard touchdown in a 17-14 victory at home against Lincoln University in Ellensburg. For the season, he finished with team highs in tackles (99) and interceptions (five).

Zalk was named to the first team as a kick returner. For the season, the junior finished with a team-high 1,138 all-purpose yards with 611 yards coming from 21 kick returns.

On Oct. 11, Zalk with a season-high 210 total yards and a 23-yard touchdown reception to lead Central Washington to a 61-34 victory at South Dakota School of Mines and Technology. On Nov. 8, he returned a kick for a 90-yard touchdown in a 49-17 trouncing of Dixie State University. In the season finale, he delivered an offensive highlight reel that included and 84-yard touchdown reception in a 40-27 triumph at Simon Fraser University. In that game, he ended with a season-high 143 yards and two touchdowns from his eight receptions.

For the season, Zalk finished with 456 yards and seven touchdowns from his 43 receptions.

Men’s basketball

Serg Ovchinnikov (Battle Ground, 2012 graduate) has 10 double-digit scoring efforts for the season as a guard for the Lewis & Clark College men’s basketball team. On Jan. 2, the junior posted his third 20-point scoring performance in a 77-62 loss at home to Whitman College. In the game, he had 21 points, six rebounds, two assists and two steals. For the season, he’s averaged 12.8 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game.

Jake Belford (Battle Ground, 2012) had a season-high 20 points as a starting forward for Davidson College in an 86-51 victory at home against Campbell University on Nov. 18 in Davidson, NC. In the game, the junior added three rebounds, two assists and two blocks. Recently, he had six rebounds, five assists and three points in a 92-86 victory at home against the University of Charlotte on Dec. 3. For the season, he’s averaged 7.5 points, four rebounds and 2.2 assists per game.

Grant Sitton (Prairie, 2011) collected a season-high 18 points, five rebounds, one assist and one steal as a forward for the University of Victoria Vikes in a 71-58 loss at home to the University of the Fraser Valley on Oct. 19 in Victoria, Canada. Recently, the junior had nine points, three rebounds and one assist in an 88-75 triumph at the University of Manitoba on Jan. 9 in Winnipeg, Canada. For the season, he’s totaled 2.6 points and 2.1 rebounds per game.

Jamie Ford (Battle Ground, 2014) scored more than 20 points for the third time this season as a guard for Lower Columbia College men’s basketball program in an 85-71 victory against the Lower Columbia College alumni team on Dec. 28 in Longview. In the game, the freshman finished with a game-high 25 points, eight rebounds, one assist and one block. Recently, Ford had eight points, four rebounds and three assists in a 78-75 loss at South Puget Sound Community College on Jan. 3 in Olympia. For the season, he’s averaged 14.7 points, 3.6 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game.

Damien Ford (Battle Ground, 2014) had 10 points, four steals, three rebounds and two assists as a guard for Lower Columbia College (9-6) in an 85-71 victory against the Lower Columbia College alumni team on Dec. 28 in Longview. For the year, the freshman has totaled 1.8 points and 1.6 rebounds per game.



Sam Landerholm (Ridgefield, 2013) had four points, three rebounds, three assists and three steals as a forward for Whatcom Community College in an 85-61 loss at home to the Community College of Spokane on Jan. 3 in Bellingham. For the season, the sophomore has tallied 4.8 points and 1.7 rebounds per game.

Press Brooks (Prairie, 2013) contributed two assists and one rebound as a guard for Multnomah University in a 75-70 loss at Walla Walla Community College on Jan. 5 in College Place. For the season, the sophomore has averaged 3.5 points and 1.5 rebounds per game.

Willie Bratcher (Battle Ground, 2013) collected five points, four rebounds and four assists for Clark College (8-4) in an 82-68 victory against the Community Colleges of Spokane on Dec. 18 in Clackamas, OR.

For the season, the sophomore has averaged 2.4 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game.

Women’s cross country

Chantalle Blundell (Hockinson 2012) qualified for the NCAA Division II Women’s Cross Country Championships with the University of Tampa program. On Dec. 6, the junior had the No. 1 performance for the Spartans by finishing 69th with a time of 22 minutes, 42.5 seconds in Louisville, KT.

Men’s swimming

Callum MacKintosh (Hockinson, 2011) finished runner-up with the 200-yard medley relay with a time of 1 minute, 35.39 seconds at the Husky Invitational for Whitworth University on Dec. 6 in Federal Way.

Wrestling

Miguel Simon (Battle Ground, 2012) led Warner Pacific College to an 18-15 victory against the University of Alberta by scoring a win by pin at the 1:38 mark of his match on Jan. 4 in Atherton, CA.

Shawn Speer (Battle Ground, 2012) has a 3-5 record at 141 pounds for the season for Pacific University.