When 60 prospective players showed up for soccer on the first day of spring practice, second-year Falcons Coach Joel Gerlach was pleasantly surprised.
“After 12 seniors graduated last year, I was a little concerned but this crop of players has demonstrated better skills, though as a group they’re not as big,” he said.
Last season, new Falcons girls fastpitch softball head Coach Chuck Burton had to deal with a variety of problems — new players trying to understand game fundamentals and some internal team dissension — and it resulted in a 5-15 record.
On any given afternoon, Waterman Field is jumping. Literally.
This spring season 60 athletes tried out for the various events on the track and field menu offered by South Whidbey High School — boys and girls teams are divided into running, jumping and throwing events.
When Debbie Wilkie walked into the Island Dance studio last week, there was a moment of uncertainty.
The large room, set up for the Island Dance Gymnastic team, was dark and Coach Wilkie wondered where her students might be.
Now in her waning months as a South Whidbey High School cross country and track star, senior Katy Gordon has a few things on her mind.
Which comes as no surprise to her friends, for Gordon has a penchant for being outspoken.
Starters Teah Wanamaker, Lindsey Newman, Samantha Pope, Allison Wood and Cayla Calderwood took to the court Wednesday night for their final stand, a crossover playoff game with the Lynden Lions.
At stake was the chance to move forward in district playoffs.
Senior Ben Morgen battled tough opponents, a bloody nose and a thief on his way to place sixth in the 145-pound weight class last weekend during state finals at the Tacoma Dome.
At the 8 a.m. weigh-in on Friday, Morgen followed the official’s instructions to leave his gym bag in the corner. It soon came up missing.
It was senior night for the South Whidbey girls basketball team in Erikson Gym Tuesday. As it turned out, the celebration of the three graduating girls — Natalie Martinovic, Meagan Rawls and Teah Wanamaker — was the high point of a low-scoring game.
Five South Whidbey wrestlers will head to state finals in Tacoma this weekend, based on their performance Saturday at the 2A Region 1 meet in Mount Vernon.
Since it was built in 1955 the venerable, funky Bulldog gym has witnessed thousands of young high school athletes struggling to do their best in basketball, gymnastics and wrestling.
It came as quite a shock to Kings Coach Eric Rasmussen when Lady Falcon Cayla Calderwood picked up the first two points — with a fine assist from Lauren Sandri — during Tuesday’s contest in Erikson Gym.
The South Whidbey girls basketball team gave their opponents, coaches, fans and fellow athletes Friday night a textbook case of why you never, ever give up.
In the final five minutes, the lead between the South Whidbey and Cedarcrest teams switched back and forth so often the guy keeping score was getting cross-eyed.
South Whidbey’s wrestling team came in second place in the district match held at Archbishop Murphy High School on Saturday.
But the Falcons will send a record 13 grapplers to regionals this weekend at Mount Vernon High School and, though his team missed the Cascade Conference title by a hair, Falcon Coach Jim Thompson was named Coach of the Year by his fellow coaches.
The Cedarcrest wrestling team showed up in Erikson Gym on Wednesday, ready to defend their undefeated 4-0 status opposite the only other undefeated team in the Cascade Conference.
And they did, beating the Falcons 42-33 before the largest crowd ever to watch a South Whidbey wrestling match.
