PORT ANGELES — Everyone knows the Moss sisters are a package deal.
Cherish and Cierra Moss were among seven Peninsula College basketball players who are moving on to play at four-year universities.
The Mosses are taking their sister act to Lawrence, Kan., where they will play at Haskell Indian Nations University.
Cierra was certain that wherever they went, she and Cherish would be going together.
“Oh, yeah. I knew,” Cierra said. “I was getting calls from colleges, and it was like, ‘Yeah, I can’t go without my sister.’”
The sisters played together at Neah Bay — Cherish graduated in 2012, and Cierra in 2014 — and for two years at Peninsula, so it’s not a shocker that they’re both heading to Haskell, an NAIA Division II school.
“There were moments during the season where we would kind of joke around, where we were like, ‘We’re not going to play with each other anymore,’” Cherish Moss said Wednesday after signing a letter of intent.
“But deep down inside, everyone knew, like even our coach talked to us, like, ‘You guys are going to play together, we can’t see you separating.’
“And we’re like, ‘Yeah, we can’t see it, either.’ We do everything together.
“This was one of the schools that really wanted both of us and were really supportive towards us.”
Other players’ next steps
Other Peninsula women’s basketball players signing letters of intent Wednesday at the school’s Port Angeles campus were Zhara Laster and Amanda Hutchins.
Imani Smith, who was in California on Wednesday, has committed to play at San Francisco State University, as reported by the Peninsula Daily News last month.
Peninsula men’s players Ryley Callaghan and Deonte Dixon signed letters of intent at Wednesday’s ceremony.
Laster is going to the University of Alaska-Anchorage.
The Seawolves, which featured Port Angeles High School graduate Jessica Madison, just made a run to the NCAA Division II championship game, in which the lost to Lubbock Christian last week.
Laster seems like an ideal fit for the “mayhem” style employed by Alaska-Anchorage coach Ryan McCarthy.
McCarthy phoned Laster in October and said one of his assistants had seen her play.
“So he checked me out, too, and he thought I’d really fit in with their program,” Laster said.
“And I saw them play the year before, and I was like, yeah, I like their style of play, fast placed and a really defensive-set team.”
“So I was like, yeah, why not?”
As with Smith, Laster’s commitment was reported by the PDN last month.
Hutchins will play at Central Methodist University in Fayette, Mo.
Former Pirates Taylor Larson, Peninsula’s all-time leading scorer, and Jesse Ellis both played at Central Methodist, an NAIA Division I school.
Hutchins, from Wasilla, Alaska, knows Larson and Ellis and other players who have played for the Eagles, as well as one of the team’s assistant coaches.
“I never really planned on playing after [Peninsula College]. I was kind of fine with being done [after] two years,” Hutchins said.
“But they called me up and said, ‘Hey, are you interested,’ and I went on a visit and I really liked the campus and the coach, and it seemed like a good fit for me.”
Dixon, of Bremerton, will play at Ave Maria University, an NAIA Division II school in Southwest Florida.
Callaghan, of Port Orchard, is moving on to play at the University of Hawaii-Hilo, an NCAA Division II school on the Big Island.
He is the latest player from Washington to sign with Hawaii-Hilo head coach GE Coleman, who was an assistant coach at Central Washington before becoming the Vulcans’ head coach in 2013.
Another of those Washington players during his time is Salim Gloyd, who played at Peninsula for most of the 2012-13 season and finished his college career at Hawaii-Hilo this year.
Callaghan said the coaches offered him a scholarship in December and did so again when he visited recently.
While he’s excited for his two years in Hawaii, Callaghan also is appreciative of his time in Port Angeles and glad that he chose to play at Peninsula.
“Oh, man, I enjoyed it so much,” Callaghan said.
“There was a fork in the road, and I chose Peninsula, and I’m so grateful for all that the coaching staff has done. And the community, I can’t thank the community enough.
“I recommend it to anybody that’s looking to go to an NWAC school. Peninsula College is, it’s the best experience, I think.”
Head coach Mitch Freeman said this will be the first signing day for the Peninsula men. As many as four other players are close to deciding their basketball futures.
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Sports Editor Lee Horton can be reached at 360-417-3525 or at lhorton@peninsuladailynews.com.
