The
Lakes Lancers had the most to celebrate on National Signing Day last week.
They had eight players sign letters of intent. The high school held a celebration to honor the massive class. This is becoming a bit of a habit for the Lancers. Coach Dave Miller, who has coached 10 years at the school, had 11 players sign two years ago, but other than Kavario Middleton (who went to Washington), most went to small schools.
Three players are signing with Washington: defensive lineman Sione Potoa'e, wide receiver Jamaal Kearse and linebacker Darius Waters. A fourth, Willis Wilson (RB), is an invited walk-on at Washington. Also going Division I are WR/DB Blue Kearney, who is off to Army, CB Fudarrell Maggitt (Hawaii) and LB John Goldwire (Eastern Washington).
Three players, Teddy Cotton (RB), Martin Smitherman and Tyler Rogers, are headed to D-II Central Washington. Jordan Patterson (linebacker) is headed to D-III Linfield. For a complete list of state signees, click here.
2. Mat Classic loses an icon: Ed Aliverti, the longtime announcer of Mat Classic, the state's massive wrestling tournament, died last week in Seattle after a long battle with pancreatic center. He was 77. Aliverti, who lived in Edmonds, announced wrestling tournaments for 50 years and even announced at the Olympics. Alverti is the only announcer enshrined in the national wrestling Hall of Fame.
Joshua Smith, Kentwood
File photo by Dennis Lee
3. Kentwood falls to Oregon power: In an inter-state battle of teams with top-ranked national players, Jefferson of Portland beat Kentwood of Covington 42-39. Jefferson's 6-foot-9 forward Terrence Jones, a 6-foot-9 player generally considered one of the top 20 players in the nation, had 20 points, four rebounds, four assists and four steals. Kentwood's 6-9 big man Joshua Smith had nine points, 11 rebounds and nine blocks. Jefferson handed nationally ranked Federal Way its only loss this season.
4. Six Eastlake players sign: It was signing day for soccer last week, too. And no team in the state likely had more players sign than Eastlake. Six Wolves put their names on Division I letters of intent. Allie Beahan and Lindsay Elston signed with Washington. Courtney Pixler is headed to Alabama, and Emily Hurd is going to Penn State. Kellie Shreve signed with Gonzaga and Candie Osei-Ogyemang is headed to Penn.
5. State bowling: Emerald Ridge of Puyallup and Mark Morris of Longview won the girls state bowling titles over the weekend. Complete results are available here.
Top performers
Carys Bailey (Klahowya bowling): The junior from the Silverdale school won the Class 3A/2A state bowling title with a six-game series of 1,143, the best of any classification. Her high round was 257. She's just the second athlete in school history to win a state title.
Shannon Dextor (Emerald Ridge bowling): Dextor rallied in the final round to win the Class 4A state title, bowling a six-game series of 1,088 and winning by two pins.
Connor Hamlett (Meadowdale basketball): The 6-7 senior scored 22 points, pulled down 20 rebounds and blocked four shots as the Mavericks beat Edmonds-Woodway 61-53.
Patrick Simon (Ephrata basketball): The Washington State-bound player had a big week. First he had 27 points and 12 rebounds and than had 38 points and 16 rebounds.
Upcoming events
The winter postseason continues this weekend. Regional wrestling tournaments are Saturday, the final step before state. District gymnastics and swimming meets are also this weekend (a few swim meets have already been contested) as the last step before state. The weekend of Feb. 20-21 is one of the busiest of the year as all three hold their state tournaments.
One of the top basketball tournaments in this state is this weekend. The Metro League tournament runs this week. The Class 3A state champion hails from the league nearly every year. The Metro has won eight straight and nine of the last 11.
Nate's notes
Wrestling is a funny sport. I'm not sure there is a high school sport that's more exclusive. You're either part of it or you're not. I've never claimed to be on the inside, but I've observed from afar. The thing that strikes me is how small towns create top programs. That's not normally the case with many other sports. I'm reminded of this fact as I read about Lake Stevens winning its 11th straight district title. Lake Stevens has won three straight Class 4A state titles. Orting, a Class 1A school, is the top-rated team in the state. Look at past state winners, and it's Lake Stevens or Moses Lake or Sedro-Woolley. Small towns. Don't know what it is.
Nathan Joyce has been a sports writer in Washington for 12 years. He currently works at the Kitsap Sun in Bremerton.
