REDMOND HIGH SCHOOL
• Head coach: Stephen Thornsberry, 1st year
• Last year: 4-6 4A Kingco League
• 2012 turnout: 32
KEY RETURNERS
• Sr. Sarah Du: No. 1 singles player and team co-captain looks to get out of Kingco this year and nail down her first state berth.
• Sr. Sophia Xu: Fellow talented singles player will push Du to excel and retain her top spot.
• Sr. Marissa Craig: Team co-captain will be at No. 1 doubles and is the squad’s vocal cheerleader.
Working in the community newspaper industry for nearly four years, I’ve always been one to embrace change.
While my duties as a sports writer for the Redmond and Bothell-Kenmore Reporter Newspapers have changed slightly over the years, one thing has never changed: My commitment to covering the local high school sports scene to the best of my ability.
The perennially strong Redmond High School girls’ golf team, which hasn’t lost a league match since 2003, had every reason to begin their 2012 season with lessened expectations.
The team graduated seven seniors last year, including most of their state tournament finalists, and head coach Jake Crowley just wasn’t sure if the Mustangs’ winning tradition would last.
Previews for Redmond’s three track and field teams: The Redmond High boys and girls’ squads and The Bear Creek School.
The 2012 Redmond High fastpitch season will be a test of quality over quantity.
For reasons unknown to third-year head coach Parris Mamon, only 11 girls tried out for the team this year, but nearly all of them are returners with previous varsity experience.
Head coach: Mike Davidson, 11th season
• Last year: 8-4, 3rd place 1A Emerald City League, 12-8 overall
• 2012 turnout: 28
What a difference a year can make.
For the Redmond High baseball program and head coach Dan Pudwill, this season’s team represents an entirely different group of players from his 2011 squad that placed fourth at the state tournament, but he has the same goal in mind – a Kingco championship.
In a tough football league like Kingco 4A, success for a certain program over another often comes down to a numbers game.
The Redmond High School team, which has not had a winning season since 2007, had only slightly more than half the turnout as powerhouse Bothell High, which has won the league title five times in the last 10 years.
The numbers don’t lie – the Cougars turned out 164 players last fall in grades 9-12, the Mustangs just 85.
The Bear Creek girls’ basketball team had a rough time at the 2B state tournament last weekend, losing twice to get eliminated before Saturday’s trophy round.
The Grizzlies, making their first state appearance since 2007, opened up the tournament at Spokane Arena on Friday against powerhouse Reardan, ranked No. 1 in the state, and were held to their lowest point total of the season in a 49-24 rout.
After being ranked in the top 10 for much of the season and having visions of a state-tournament run, the Redmond High boys’ basketball season ended far too soon on Tuesday night after a stunning 45-42 overtime loss to Roosevelt in the consolation semifinals of the 4A Kingco Tournament at Juanita High School.
The injury-riddled Redmond High gymnastics team performed well at the Sea-King District meet at Sammamish High School last Saturday, but failed to advance anyone to the 4A state meet this weekend.
Team captain Ally Garcia, battling a foot injury she suffered last week during a vault, toughed it out to score a 9.025 in the floor, her best Districts performance in her prep career.
Unfortunately, Garcia placed ninth, just 0.025 of a point shy of her first state berth.
It was a decision Marceil Whitney described as “bittersweet.”
The 16-year boys’ and girls’ tennis coach at Redmond High School decided to step down from her position in December to realize her lifelong dream of opening up an indoor public tennis facility on the Eastside, with a focus on serving at-risk and low-income kids.
With their season on the line, the Overlake boys’ basketball team (5-7, 10-11) staged a remarkable comeback victory against University Prep in a loser-out, winner-to-districts game at Seattle Academy Wednesday night.
After a slow start on offense, the Owls were down five at the half, and were still down heading into the fourth quarter, when senior Dean Poplawski took over.
The Redmond High boys were down but not out on Tuesday night at home in their 4A Kingco Tournament opener against Ballard. After storming out to a 17-10 lead, the Mustangs’ shooting turned ice-cold, but the Mustangs were able to right the ship in the fourth quarter to pull off a 55-51 comeback win, sending them to the tournament semifinals on Friday against Garfield at 6:30 p.m.
The Redmond High gymnastics squad performed well at last Saturday’s 4A Kingco Gymnastics Championships at Roosevelt High, placing eighth overall and qualifying a number of individuals for this weekend’s District meet at Sammamish High.
Starting out on the beam, Kaylee Borms (7.975) and Ally Garcia (7.475) both had a fall and major deduction, but both still qualified for districts, as did Rachel Lovitt with 7.25.
After Tuesday night’s brutal 60-56 loss to No. 3 Skyline, the Redmond High boys’ basketball needed a bounce-back win Wednesday against Issaquah on the Eagles’ home court.
And they got it.
Redmond held a 26-16 lead into halftime before the Eagles clawed their way back and eventually took the lead briefly in the fourth quarter, but the Mustangs were able to come up with clutch shots down the stretch to secure a key 58-52 Kingco 4A win.
It’s always said that records are made to be broken.
But for Redmond teen Zach Sweetser, it’s safe to say his record will stand for good.
The 17-year-old recently became the youngest to ever earn a certified sport pilot’s license, having taken the test on Dec. 23, his birthday, and passing with flying colors.
Apparently, Bear Creek boys basketball head coach Scott Moe does not heed the old adage, “pick on someone your own size”.
In just the past couple weeks, the Grizzlies, who play in the Sea-Tac 2B League, made state history by being the first small-school 2B team to knock off a 4A squad in basketball when they beat South Kitsap, 75-60, in the opening round of the Bellevue College Tournament.
At a small school like Redmond’s Bear Creek School, one will often find that the sports programs there are very close-knit, like a family.
For four pairs of Grizzly sisters, however, they take that meaning quite literally.
During the 2011-12 school year, the Jones, Isbell, Englestone and Fernandez families each have two girls that not only attend Bear Creek, but also get to spend time on the fields, courts and tracks together as teammates – and best friends.
From the middle or high school athlete looking to gain that competitive edge, to the busy Microsoft professional or the stay-at-home mom looking to shed a few pounds, Redmond’s newest gym has something for everyone.
Electro Fit, located inside the Sammamish Baseball Academy (SBA) facility at 18047 Northeast 68th Street, Suite B-130 in Redmond, has been open for a little more than one month and has already received many new clients.
The 2011-12 Redmond High boys’ swim team may not be the most talented or fast team head coach Julie Barashkoff has ever coached, but they are certainly one of of the most diverse.
A solid turnout of 40 swimmers this year includes a fairly equal mix of seniors, juniors and sophomores, with impact athletes coming from each grade level, in addition to a pair of promising freshmen.
Much like the flu bug that has hit schools and offices with a vengeance in the winter season, the injury bug has already bitten the Redmond High gymnastics team.
The one positive is that it’s early in the season, and the upcoming winter break will allow the ailing top Mustang gymnasts a chance to rest, recuperate, and make a push towards making the state meet in late February.
In any sport, it’s always a kid’s improbable dream to get to meet an Olympic medalist.
That dream became a reality for a big group of young gymnasts on Wednesday night at Redmond’s Emerald City Gymnastics, as superstar gymnast Jonathan Horton, who earned two medals from the 2008 Beijing Olympics – a silver on the high bar and a bronze team medal – visited the club to speak to the more than 50 kids in attendance.
