Arrows and streaks of red were everywhere you looked amid the Mount Si cross country contingent, who hosted Bellevue and Interlake at Snoqualmie Elementary School Wednesday, Sept. 21.
Bailey Scott gave Abbey Bottemiller’s hair a splash of red Halloween hairspray moments before the big race. The two sophomores led the Mount Si contingent with fourth and fifth, consecutively, with 20:57 and 21:06 consecutively on the course, just over three miles.
“I like having Bailey to pace me and push me,” Bottemiller said.
The Mount Si women’s volleyball team delivered the wins in three games in short order Wednesday, Sept. 21, at home against Interlake.
The Wildcats hammed out two sets in quick succession, then hung onto a narrow lead in game three to take all the marbles, 25-10, 25-13 and 25-20.
It took a team effort, but the Mount Si veterans were in the forefront. Senior co-captain Sarah McDonald delivered nine kills from the net and four aces from the back, while senior Krista Galloway hammered five kills. Junior Lauren Smith led from the floor, with 14 assists and four kills of her own.
“Everyone needs a shout-out,” McDonald said. “Tonight was about coming into the court and playing out game, keeping a nice even keel with intensity.”
Records are falling for Mount Si’s Cameron Van Winkle, kicker for the Wildcat varsity football team.
In the last two weeks, the five-foot-10, 160-pound junior has blown through the career, single-game and season field goal records for the team, also making the furthest recorded kick.
“I feel confident for anything,” said Van Winkle Thursday, Sept. 15, the day before he kicked three against Lake Washington in a 42-0 ‘Cats blowout.
Cedarcrest High School’s girls soccer team looks to make strides forward from their middle-of-the-pack showing last season. Loaded with plenty of upperclasswomen, the Red Wolves should do well thanks to depth and an atmosphere of respect.
“I have an incredible amount of respect for our players this year,” said head coach Evan Hatch, starting his first season with the Cedarcrest women’s team.
A group of Valley soccer players with Cascade Football Club took home the 2011 Island Cup trophy in the U-10 boys division, in the tournament held August 26 to 28 on Bainbridge Island.
“When we began our tournament experience, we were all wondering what direction our fortune would take,” wrote coach Peter Rackers. “This was not only our first tournament, but our first game as well.”
It’s going to take a lot of hard work to earn that fourth state appearance. That’s why Sarah McDonald comes to the gym every day, ready to compete.McDonald, one of three seniors on the Mount Si varsity volleyball team, knows she has a younger team compared to the groups that took sixth at state in 2009 and 2010. “But everyone’s going to step up,” she said.
The name says “Cross Country,” but these young athletes were doing more than just running on the fourth day of practice.
Dozens were bouncing, doing push-ups and high-stepping during the Mount Si team’s drills at the home stadium. More were likely to join them in the days ahead, as the sport typically absorbs athletes cut from other programs but still needing to compete.
That’s what makes high school cross-country “awesome,” says head coach Christine Kjenner.
Bruce McDowell, helming the Cedarcrest trekkers for the 18th year, seeks a continuation of greatness: Championships in conference and districts and a state return.
Last fall was good for the Red Wolves Cross Country squads. The girls claimed a Cascade Conference Championship for the third consecutive season last fall, taking ninth at state.
The boys also had a quality season. It was the first time that the Red Wolf boys qualified for state, taking sixth and ending as the Cascade Conference Champions. Cedarcrest should compete with Lakewood for top honors in the league this season.
Expected to lead the girls this fall, sophomores Diana Carr and Amelia Anderson had solid freshman years in cross country and track, followed by a solid summer of training. McDowell is looking for good things from both.
In her fourth year as coach, Jessii Stevens is seeing the hard work of her first group of original freshmen, now seniors, pay off. Last year, Mount Si qualified two teams, Medium Varsity and Non-Tumbling Small Varsity, for the Washington Cheerleading State Championships. Both teams placed second in their divisions.
Two seniors, Chloe Villanueva and Meg Krivanec, have come a long way, said Stevens. “Both girls have grown so much,” she said.
Things are looking up this fall and far beyond for the Mount Si boys tennis team. Now in his fourth year as coach, head coach Jim Gibowski has six returners from 2010. Sophomore Camden Foucht is expected to hold the number one singles spot, followed by junior Josh Hamann at number two. Senior Azhar Khandekar should hold the number three singles spot, with Nate Popp claiming fourth.
A tennis vet since elementary school days, Foucht enjoys the experience of tennis.
“You get to play different people, there are different ways to play,” he said.
Last season was a learning experience for new coach Brandon Proudfoot. He’s better prepared this year to lead the Mount Si boys golf team to a winning season, and he has the players to do it. Mount Si went 6-1 last year and sent Jack Kelly to state. This fall, top returners, Sean Ballsmith and Mitchell Gardunia, both seniors, are counted on to lead with low scores.
Nick Gagner is among the seniors boosting the team spirit on the Red Wolf gridiron this fall. No slouch in 2010, the tight end seeks more touchdowns in 2011, and is also emphasizing brotherhood on the Cedarcrest team. “To me, brotherhood is the team coming together,” he said. “We’re able to share personal experiences, able to hang out as a team with freshmen and underclassmen.”
Senior team leaders Lauren LaBrosse and Katie Birum are sure about it: Volleyball is the single best part of their day.
“It’s a blast,” LaBrosse said of the sport. “I come to the gym every day after school. It’s the most relieving feeling, stress free.
“It’s definitely the most fun I have all day,” Birum adds.
The two Cedarcrest High School seniors hope to instill the same love in younger players in this fall’s varsity season. Birum said they’re already bonding as a result of a recent retreat. She wants to see Cedarcrest win lots and go as far as state.