Take a bow: The Olympian's All-Area fall players of the year

They were always the ones on center stage.

They were the fall attractions.

They were the ones scoring the winning goal in soccer, doing a flip turn in the pool for a dramatic finish in swimming or coming from behind to win in cross country.

In swimming, it was Olympia's Clara Heffernan, the determined sophomore who reached the 4A state podium in two events.

In cross country, it was Tumwater's Steven Acosta and Chehalis' Caroline Austin rising to the challenge and placing among the top five at state.

In volleyball, it was Tumwater's Amanda Warner, slamming shots to the floor for a point winner.

In soccer, it was Olympia's Kelsey Fuik, coming back from two broken wrists to lead the Bears to the 4A state playoffs.

They are The Olympian's All-Area athletes of the year for their sport in the fall season.

It was a season of championships. A season of fulfilled expectations. Tumwater won its first state title in volleyball, finishing with an undefeated record. Olympia and Black Hills both advanced to state in volleyball.

And Olympia advanced to state in soccer, overcoming injuries and adversity to reach the playoffs.

Clara Heffernan, Olympia swimming

It's 5:30 a.m. and Clara Heffernan is already in the pool, swimming lap after lap.

Six days a week, she swims, doing as many as 35,000 yards a week. Three times a week she's swims twice a day, hitting the pool for the early morning workout before school and again for an afternoon practice session.

She swims year around.

"I've grown used to the smell of chlorine," Heffernan said. "You get a whiff of it and you're at home. You feel comfy."

The 15-year-old Heffernan catches a ride to her morning practices with her dad, Mike. Her mom, Rebecca, drives her to the afternoon practices.

"My parents are awesome. They support me 100 percent," Heffernan said.

Three years ago as an eighth grader, Heffernan joined the Evergreen Swim Club and began swimming year around.

The two-a-day workouts paid off this season, her sophomore year. She advanced to 4A state in two events for the second straight year, placing fifth in the 200-yard freestyle and eighth in the 500 freestyle. Her personal bests are 1:54 in the 200 and 5:04 in the 500.

She qualified for state in the 100 freestyle, 200 freestyle, 500 freestyle, and 200 individual medley.

After every race, Heffernan reviews her races in her mind, critiquing every lap.

"I pinpoint places where I could have done better," Heffernan said. "Most swimmers who do long distances start off on a slower place and go faster at the end. I start out at a faster rate. I can't start out slow."

Although Heffernan was her team's top point getter and top performer, she wasn't satisfied.

"I expected to do better at state," she said. "I'll do better next year."

Caroline Austin, Chehalis cross country

She wanted to play soccer or basketball, not run cross country. Caroline Austin certainly wasn't interested in running run long distance races.

"I didn't even think of myself as a runner," Austin said.

But something unexpected happened when Austin first turned out for track as a sophomore at Chehalis to get in better shape for soccer. She discovered she was fast. Then her track coaches suggested she turn out for cross country.

"I was good in soccer, but it was mostly because of my speed," Austin said. "My soccer skills weren't all that great. I was better at running."

In just her second year of cross country, Austin surprised maybe even herself this year when she placed third at 2A state, defeating two runners who beat her the previous week at district.

"We went out at a faster place than I was comfortable with," Austin said.

Austin dropped back to eighth, maintaining that spot for much of the race. Then with less than 400 meters left in the race, Austin kicked on the last turn heading to the finishing line.

"Since I'm a sprinter, I used my kick," she said.

After her sophomore year, Austin stopped playing soccer to concentrate on running. She has the determination and the genetics to run. Her mother, Lola, and her father, Bobby, both ran track at Chehalis High School.

Before Austin discovered she was a distance runner, she tried running the 300-meter hurdles.

"I really like that event because it was tough," she said.

Her affinity for endurance and knack for a strong kick has helped her develop into one of the top high school runners in the state. At the Border Clash, where the top runners from Washington and Oregon compete, Austin finished 22nd.

Steven Acosta, Tumwater cross country

He knew he was hurt.

While making a cut at a soccer practice in October, Steven Acosta's left knee dislocated, sending a jolt of pain through his body. The injury jeopardized his season for both club soccer and cross country for school.

"It popped right back into place," Acosta said. "I was concerned how I'd be able to come back form the injury."

The injury didn't slow him down for long.

He rested Sunday and Monday, then ran in a cross-country meet at Elma and placed third. His knee continued to improve and he continued to rush the recovery.

Getting stronger every week, he won both the league and district meets. At 2A state, he placed fifth, passing seven runners in the final 200 meters of the race.

"I've had my knee pop out before, but I've never taken so short a time off," Acosta said. "I was a little worried."

Acosta's accomplishments and commitment in cross country are unexpected because soccer is his primary sport. His purpose for running cross country is to get in better shape for soccer.

Over the summer, Acosta's conditioning was limited to soccer practices, doing two practices a week for soccer. He didn't run on his own. But during the school season, Acosta ran between 50 to 60 miles a week. Even through cross country was only a secondary sport, he stayed focused.

"I got close to my coach, Rich Brown," Acosta said. "He always believed in me. I tried to do my best for him."

After finishing 55th at state last year, this season was an inspiring final hurrah to Acosta's high school career.

"It was my last race," Acosta said. "I wanted to give it everything I had."

Next year, Acosta will play soccer at Whitworth College in Spokane.

Kelsey Fuik, Olympia soccer

Eventually, her doctor consented, giving in to Kelsey Fuik's persistence.

On July 28, Fuik fell during a soccer tournament, breaking both wrists. She worried her senior year in soccer was lost.

"I didn't think I'd be able to play," Fuik said. "The doctor told me I'd be out three months."

Rather than pout, Fuik continued to workout with her team to stay in shape. And she kept nagging her doctor.

"I kept complaining and kept trying to convince him I could play," Fuik said. "He let my back seven weeks early."

With casts on both hands, Fuik was totally reliant on her mother, Wendy. For the first week while wearing bigger casts, Fuik's mom fed her, drove her and dressed her.

"My mother did it for me all," Fuik said. "She was amazing."

Despite missing the first three games, Fuik still scored 11 goals, including a hat trick in a win against Foss. She finished with 32 career goals and 30 assists.

Olympia finished 14-5-1 and reached the state playoffs, losing to Skyline 1-0. Skyline went on to win the state 4A title.

"It was an amazing season," Fuik said. "We tried to make a turnaround from last year. Our seniors got together and started to believe. It was totally opposite from what we went through."

Fuik began playing club soccer 10 years ago when she was 8. Yet she until last year, she was a three-sport athlete, also playing basketball and track. To stay in shape for soccer, she turned out for track last year and on a whim entered the javelin. She ended up qualifying for state and placed 14th.

But soccer is her favorite sport. Her broken wrists this summer reminded her of that.

"Sometimes you take things for granted," Fuik said. "This year was so fun. I looked forward to going to practice. It was like hanging out with friends and then we got to play games. It was amazing."

A starter since she was a sophomore, the 5-foot-10 Fuik was first-team All-Narrows League on offense. She was second team last year on both offense and defense. She's sad to see her high school career end, but she still hopes to play in college.

"I love my coach. I know I'll always stay in touch with her," Fuik said. "I couldn't have asked for a better season."

Amanda Warner, Tumwater volleyball

Since she was an eighth grader, Amanda Warner has played volleyball year around, going from club teams to school teams.

A starter since her freshman year, Warner put a Hollywood-like finish to her high school career as Tumwater went undefeated and won a 2A state championship.

"This year was flawless," Warner said. "Every girl competed. This was supposed to be a rebuilding year. We weren't supposed to be good."

Warner played a key role in Tumwater's success. As an outside hitter, she was voted her team's MVP, the Evergreen Conference's MVP, and team's most inspirational. She was also on the league's all-academic team.

Early on, Warner realized volleyball was her sport. Basketball and fastpitch didn't have the same zing.

"I was bored with fastpitch," she said. "In basketball, I wasn't that confident. I was just better at volleyball."

For the second straight year, Tumwater met Selah in the state championship game. Except this time, Tumwater came out on top, winning 4-1 after losing the first game.

"We weren't going to lose," Warner said. "We had the determination that we were going to win. It was mental."

Warner couldn't have asked for a better finish to her high school career. From the team unity camp last summer to the final point against Selah in the state championship game, Tumwater played as a team.

"It was the ideal year. It was wonderful," Warner said. "What was weird was having little freshmen and remembering what it like."