| Young Timberwolves in the same boat as most of the league
Andrew Christiansen
Reporter
Usually when a team cycles from experience to youth, expectations are subdued with an eye to the future. Goldendale's baseball team is in one of those cycles, losing five starters to graduation, but Coach Lyle Stevens is fairly optimistic about the team's chances.
"I think we can do well in the league," says Stevens. "Naches Valley will be tough, but others have lost key players and Cle Elum lost their coach."
Last year's team was 17-7 and had a win in the State tournament before bowing out. The team that sent them packing was Naches Valley, who went on to place fourth in the State one year after placing second.
Much of the pitching duty will lie in the hands of Reed Lindhe, Trevor Fields and Jose Briseno. But there are other young arms that will also see action, including sophomores J. D. Moss, and Kaden Milliren, and junior Cody Herin.
There are 29 players out for baseball this year and not all are inexperienced. Stevens will be looking for leadership from last year's leading hitter, Aaron Cochran (.533 BA, 5 HR, 43 RBI). Also returning are players who were key to last year's success, including Justin Garrigus, John Bartkowski, and Blake Lesko. Lesko had a dramatic, two out pinch hit that sent the Wolves to State in a loser out game against Ki-Be.
The season has been off to a sputtering start due to a below normal cold spell and plenty of rain and snow. Conditions were so cold last week, that the team held batting practice with tennis balls so as not to damage the aluminum bats.
The scheduled opener against Columbia High School on Monday was postponed, as was the softball game in White Salmon. Both teams are scheduled to play Columbia on Thursday, the girls in Goldendale and boys in White Salmon.
Bickleton has array of athletes among 1B favorites in track
Andrew Christiansen
Reporter
There are 22 out for high school track at Bickleton. Most of the team was still working out in the gym last week, as snow piles were melting away and the track was almost soupy from the many wet days of March.
Bickleton will contend in field events this year and has reason to be optimistic about scoring some points in the running events as well. The Pirates return accomplished athletes in boys and girls pole vault, discus, and distance events.
Patrick Maeder is the top pole vaulter in 1B this year, with a personal best of 12 feet, Maeder is certain to top the school record 12-6 this year and has a personal goal of exceeding 13 feet. The state 1B meet record is 12-9, set last year by TLG's Kristian Rubesh, who also set the league record in his only year of jumping last year, clearing 13-3.
Maeder's teammate, Star Kibby holds the school record of 9-1.25, set at last year's league meet in Glenwood. Kibby is setting her sights on the State meet record of 9-6, also set by a TLG vaulter last year, when Kindra VanLaar posted the mark on a rainy day at Cheney.
Eddie Molina will chase the 1B discus mark set last year by teammate Eric Hess. Hess won with a toss of 135-1. Molina had a personal best 131 feet last year.
The State 1B record for girls will be hard to beat. Annie Hess set the mark of 146-10 back in 2005. Among the hopefuls for Bickleton are Alejandra Molina, who had a 104-9, Katelynn Clinton a 96-5, and Nakai Kibby a 88-10 last year.
TLG thrower, Dave'y Lumley won the district with a throw of 113-8, last year.
On the track, the Pirates' best hope is Junior Hernandez who showed he is ready to emerge from the shadows of Hershel Sanchey, who graduated from Klickitat last year. Hernandez had a great year in cross country last fall and will be among the favorites in the 1600 and 3200 events.
Danielle Raschko looks to finish her senior year at Bickleton as the school's premier runner over the past several years, and is certain to score points for the Pirates who qualify for team status in girls and boys events.
Another area of strength for the Pirates is boys high jump. Andrew Venema set a personal record 6-0 at the State meet in Cheney, last year, good enough for fourth place and just three-inches behind the winning and record setting jump of 6-3.
The girls record is 5-2, and Bickleton's Clinton had a 4-8 at one of the early meets last year.
Wolves looking for a title in track and field
Andrew Christiansen
Reporter
Goldendale is the place to be if you want to see track and field action, as Barthlow Field is the site of four track meets this year, and the home cooking just might help the Timberwolves capture a team title or two.
Coach Dave Stelljes believes his team has a shot at league titles for boys and girls this year. "Track is a numbers game," says Stelljes. "It should be a good year for us."
The source of that optimism is the big bump in numbers on the Goldendale team, which sports 21 boys and 15 girls. The more entries a team can make, the better the odds of collecting top eight place points.
"There is a good class of hardworking freshmen and great returners [this year]," says Stelljes.
Among the new faces are seniors Steven Bischoff and Tyler Hunziker. Bischoff is one of several pole vaulters, in an event that had no Timberwolves, last year. What the group lacks in experience, they make up in athleticism and the potential for points.
Stelljes believes Hunziker could be a four event qualifier at District this year.
On the girls side of the pole vault, Hannah Swigart is experienced and eager to set new personal records. "I want to set a new P.R. over the 10-foot mark," says Swigart, whose current best is 8-6.
"Throwers will be dominant," says Stelljes. It is particularly true of the girls who will have Sienna Gray and Sadie Shattuck join Nikki Williams in shot, discus and javelin. Williams will be beyond the 100-foot mark in the javelin this year and was a qualifier for shot put and javelin at District last year.
Shattuck provided a hint of her capability with a 29-8.5 shot put at Eisenhower jamboree on Saturday, good enough for sixth place. Williams finished eighth, but reversed the roles in the discus with an 89-1 toss for sixth while Shattuck placed ninth.
The girls' team was also impressive on the track with fifth place finishes by freshman Sarah Lancaster in the 100, and sophomore Irene Goble in the 600. The team of Goble, Lancaster, Carlee Wheelon and Lexy Knowlton placed second in the 4x400 relay, just a little more than two seconds behind the winning team from Eisenhower.
Tyler Hunziker had the best finish among the boys, jumping 19-6 for second place in the long jump. Nathan Bischoff placed fifth in the long jump, with Juan Alarcon and Riley Redding finishing seventh and eighth, respectively. Braydon Ross placed third in the javelin and eighth in the shot put. Freshmen Brady Conway and Patrick Golding placed sixth and eighth in high jump.
Brewer to lead Klickitat girls in team competition
Andrew Christiansen
Reporter
Klickitat's track coach, Jim Reed was happy to announce that he has two bona fide teams this year, in both girls and boys events. The Vandals have familiar faces that weren't involved in track last year, with Kali Fargher joining the girls team and Michael McConville added to the boys' team. McConville, a senior had a 130 feet plus, javelin throw as a freshman, but wasn't on the team last year.
Other talented newcomers who might be searching for the right event, are Caleb Keys, Wade Ramsey and Alan Blake. Blake, a freshman, might be the leading candidate in the sprints, while Keys is likely to find success in shot put and discus.
The top returner on the boys' side is Jeromie Mason. Mason who will have a more difficult time playing two sports this year, due to Klickitat baseball joining Columbia High School this year, is one of the state's top long jump and triple jump athletes. Mason was third at State in 2008, with several triple-jumps beyond 40 feet.
Chris Lambert could surprise in distance and javelin, following his fifth place finishes in steeplechase and javelin at last weekend's Eisenhower jamboree.
The Vandals have the team minimum of five girls, but they are certain to be competitive. The girls are led by versatile Samantha Brewer, a sophomore who had three podium finishes at last year's State 1B meet. Last week she was a dual winner at Eisenhower in the hurdles and high jump, matching her 5-foot jump at State.
Zoe Lindner will battle Bickleton's Clinton and Molina for dominance in the discus now that TLGs Dave'y Lumley is out of the picture due to graduation. Lindner finished fourth at Eisenhower with a toss of 92-8. Lindner was also eighth place in the javelin at the Eisenhower jamboree. Charice McConville should also challenge in the throwing events. McConville broke Lindner's middle school record in the discus. The other two girls are a determined Brenda Lambert, who will compete in throwing and distance events and Kali Fargher. Fargher, a senior, is new to track this year and brings versatile athleticism and a competitive attitude to the team. |
