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Meg Wochnick writes The Olympian’s South Sound Sports blog, covering the area high school and college sports scene, and community activities. She can be reached at: mwochnick@theolympian.com.
Assistant Sports Editor
Adam Thaler
253-597-8512
athaler@theolympian.com
Sports Reporter
Meg Wochnick
360-754-5473
mwochnick@theolympian.com
The 2011-12 high school sports season officially wrapped up Saturday with the conclusion of spring sports.
Here's a recap of Saturday's action:
• 2A FASTPITCH IN SELAH: W.F. West tops Tumwater, 15-3, in 2A state title game
-- (Championship game photo gallery)
-- (Semifinals photo gallery)
• 3A FASTPITCH IN LACEY: Weber State-bound pitcher powers undefeated Kamiakin to 3A state title
-- (Day 1 photo gallery)
• TENNIS: Olympia's Hunter Wood and John Stormans repeat at 4A boys doubles champions
• 2A SOCCER: Tumwater places fourth for highest finish in school history
• 4A/3A/2A TRACK AND FIELD: Andrew Brown sets 2A record in 400
-- (Day 1 photo gallery)
• 1A/2B/1B TRACK AND FIELD: Northwest Christian's Lucas Graham sweeps 800, 1,600 and 3,200
Class 4A
Boys: At Columbia Basin Racquet Club, Richland
South Sound qualifiers: Doubles -- Hunter Wood, sr., Olympia and John Stormans, jr., Olympia
Tumwater becomes the fourth Thurston County-area program to reach the state semifinals in boys soccer. A win over Fife Friday night sends the Thunderbirds to the state championship game, which has been done by only two other programs Elma and North Thurston.
STATE TRACK AND FIELD
4A/3A/2A Star Track XXX: Today-Saturday, Mount Tahoma Stadium, Tacoma
1A/2B/1B state meet: Friday-Saturday, Roos Field, Eastern Washington University, Cheney
Six South Sound golfers placed in the top 10 of their respective state boys and girls golf tournaments, which wrapped up Wednesday at golf courses around the state. Elma's Keating sisters, senior Alexis and freshman Lauryn, finished 2-3 at The Home Course in DuPont to give the Eagles the 1A state team title with 48 points. Alexis Keating won the 2A individual title as a sophomore and is runner-up at 1A for the second consecutive year.
Tumwater's Seth Nickerson had the best day at state golf of any boys South Sound golfer Tuesday, and sits tied for third at the Class 2A state tournament at The Classic in Spanaway. Nickerson fired a 3-over 75.
Class 4A
Boys: At MeadowWood Golf Course, Spokane
South Sound qualifiers: Dominick Franks, sr., Olympia; Brendan McCauley, so., Olympia; Alec Martinson, jr., Shelton; Zach Lund, jr., Shelton
Notable: The Stanford-bound Francks looks to capture his second 4A individual title after shooting a two-day total of 141 at Qualchan Golf Course in Spokane a year ago.
Offensive MVP: Juanito Lopez, jr., MF/F, Aberdeen
Defensive co-MVPs: Nathaniel Gundersen, sr., MF, Tumwater; Dieckman, sr., GK, Tumwater
Coach of the year: Bryan Winkler, Tumwater
31st annual Capital City Marathon
Marathon winners -- Men: Jesse Stevick (2:33.35); Women: Jenny Stevick (3:o7.26)
Half-marathon winners -- Men: Francis Reynolds (1:11.26); Women: Ann Steffen (1:30.00)
5.2-miler winners -- Men: Ted Knudsen (29.59); Women: Linda Huyck (30.58)
Olympia native Jesse Stevick won his sixth Capital City Marathon Sunday with a winning time of 2 hours, 35 minutes and 33 seconds to set a new record for most victories at Capital City by a male runner.
TUMWATER As much excitement as the Tumwater Thunderbirds poured over their Class 2A state boys soccer quarterfinal victory Saturday over Franklin Pierce to earn the programs first-ever berth into next weekends state semifinals, they know still theres more left to be done.
CENTRALIA April Wells hard lineout to W.F. West third baseman Kaitlyn Girardin to end Fridays 2A District IV fastpitch title game told the story of the day for the Tumwater Thunderbirds.
Training for marathons is time-consuming. Between family time and a busy schedule of coaching track and field and cross country at Olympia High School, Jesse Stevick has found a way to make a training regimen part of his daily life.
Of the nearly 2,100 runners registered for the Sunday's Capital City series -- marathon, half-marathon and 5.2-miler -- Malcolm Brookes will be the runner who traveled the most miles to Olympia to run in Sunday's 31st annual event.
MVP: Cabe Reiten, sr., SS., Olympia
Pitcher of the year: Nick Gagliardi, jr., Gig Harbor
Coach of the year: Chuck Peterson, Stadium
Tournament schedules for the 4A, 3A and 2A district fastpitch tournaments, which begin Thursday and Friday.
After 14 years coaching boys soccer at his high school alma mater, longtime Timberline coach John Hayes announced his resignation Wednesday night. Hayes said he began missing too many of his sons and daughters baseball and fastpitch games while coaching the Blazers during the spring boys soccer season.
KELSO North Thurston sophomore Olivia Lowe shot a sizzling 1-under-par 35 on the front-nine for an 18-hole total of 78 Tuesday afternoon to win the Class 2A District IV girls golf tournament individual title at the Three Rivers Golf Course.
North Thurston sophomore Olivia Lowe is the leader after Day 1 of the 2A District IV girls golf tournament at Three Rivers Golf Course in Longview on Monday.
Black Hills shooting guard Izzy Campbell has given a verbal commitment to play womens basketball at Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Ore. The 5-foot-6 Campbell is a 3-point specialist and averaged 15.4 points per game this past season, earning second-team all-2A Evergreen Conference honors. She topped 21 or more points in five games.
CHEHALIS No matter what level of baseball, the excitement of a game-winning play usually comes on the offensive side with a walk-off hit and run scored.
For the third consecutive spring, Capital's boys track and field team won the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association's academic state champion award for Class 3A boys track. The Cougars, coached by Jerry Miller, posted a 3.730 grade-point average this spring. Capital also was academic state champions in 2010 and '11.
3A Narrows
Thursdays games
Game 1: Yelm vs. Foss, 3 p.m. (loser-out)
Game 2: Timberline vs. Lincoln, 3 p.m. (loser-out)
MVP: Nick Mailhot, sr., OF/P, Northwest Christian
Coach of the year: Pete Donlon, Naselle
Sportsmanship: North Beach
AUBURN There was no doubt Wednesday the Timberline Blazers were ready for their postseason to begin.
MVP: Mitch Gueller, sr., W.F. West
Coach of the year: Jon Rooklidge, Centralia
UNIVERSITY PLACE Throughout their run to the 4A Narrows League regular-season title, only once did the Olympia Bears trail late in a game and needed a comeback.
The all-Southwest Washington 1A Evergreen Division teams, as selected by the league's coaches ...
Baseball district tournaments begin Monday and Tuesday. Here are the schedules for the next few days.
BATTLE GROUND After a scoreless first half, North Thurston put up three second-half goals en route to a 3-0 upset win over 2A Greater St. Helens League champion and top-seeded Hockinson Saturday night in the first round of the 2A Southwest District IV boys soccer tournament at Battle Ground Stadium.
Olympia recorded 206 points to win the combined boys and girls team title during Friday's 48th annual Bob Shaner track and field Invitational at Tumwater High School. Host Tumwater was runner-up followed by Timberline in third at the 12-team meet.
Player Michael Fairchild is out to assure Vietnam War hero Bruce Crandall gets more recognition.
For the second straight season, Capital and North Thurston will play a non-league baseball tilt at Cheney Stadium, home of the Triple-A Tacoma Rainiers, at 1 p.m. Saturday.
Saturday is the start of the 2A District IV boys soccer tournament with four games taking place at four separate stadiums. Two 2A Evergreen Conference teams -- Tumwater and Centralia -- will host a first-round game Saturday.
When Kevin Weyand stepped onto United States soil for the first time in September, he barely knew English. Common phrases were all he understood before he entered Tumwater High School as a senior exchange student from Baumberg, Germany, about 10 miles from Dsseldorf.