Friday notes…

Posted on July 25, 2014 by Rhett Workman

Light news morning on this Friday.

Soccer: Preston team advances to semifinals at national tournament
The Eastside FC Girls U15 soccer team will be competing for the national championship this weekend at the US Youth Soccer National Championship Tournament in Maryland after surviving pool play.

EFC, coached by former Mount Si boys’ soccer coach Tom Bialek and which features Wildcat girls’ sophomore-to-be Natalie Weidenbach, finished pool play with a 1-1 tie against California’s Legends ’98 Sanchez. The tie gave Eastside one win, one loss and one tie in pool play, good for four points and a second place finish. The top two teams from each of the two pools in the tournament advanced into the playoffs, which start tomorrow.

Eastside will be meeting a team from Jacksonville, FL, in their semifinal tomorrow with the winner going on to the finals on Sunday.

Baseball: Local tournament features Mount Si, Cedarcrest players
The Lee Johnson Invitational baseball tournament, featuring top local U16 select baseball teams, is taking place this weekend; games started last night and will run through Sunday.

Two teams with Valley high school players opened play in the event last night.

Northwest Bandits 3, Boys of Summer 1: The Bellevue-based Boys fell to their Kirkland-based rivals in a pool-play game last night in Bellevue. Mount Si’s Alex Adams pitched a solid complete game effort for BoS, allowing three runs on seven hits in six innings of work, striking out three. Fellow MSHS’er Cody Perrine had a hit and walked three more times to reach base for Boys, while Cedarcrest’s Blaine Wagner went 1-3 with a run. Fellow Red Wolve Cody Banks was hitless in four at-bats for BoS, which has another game tonight.

Washington A’s 2, North Shore Twins 1: Mount Si’s Collin Anderson went 1-4 and drove in a run to pace the Sammamish-based A’s to the win. Fellow Wildcat Reid Lutz went 0-1, but walked twice and scored a run to pace the A’s efforts.

News: Former Mount Si boys’ basketball coach back working in Snoqualmie Valley schools
A former Mount Si High School boys’ basketball coach will be back educating kids in our local schools this fall.

The Snoqualmie Valley School District recently announced the hiring of Jeff D’Ambrosio as the new assistant principal at Twin Falls Middle School in North Bend. D’Ambrosio, who coached the Wildcat boys from 2007-10 and led the team to the SeaKing District Tournament in his final season as head coach, was, for the past two years, a school administrator in the Mercer Island School District.

D’Ambrosio takes over for Monica Phillips, who was named principal at one of the Snoqualmie Valley district’s elementary schools for this upcoming school year.

Prior to becoming an administrator, D’Ambrosio was a teacher at Mount Si High School, and has also taught and coached at Eastside Catholic School.

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Thursday news notes…

Posted on July 24, 2014 by Rhett Workman

Thursday news:

Softball: Local teams with Valley players eliminated at Premier Nationals tournament
Two teams with Lower Valley girls saw their runs come to an end at the PGF softball national tournament in California yesterday.

The Washington Acers’ U16 team of Auburn, with Cedarcrest High School’s Karen Bomstead, fell to teams from New Mexico and California and had their championship dreams dashed. Bomstead had a hit in the game against the New Mexico team, a 2-0 loss for the Acers. She went 0-1 in the nightcap, an 8-0 Acer loss to the California Cruisers.

The Team Seattle U14 team, with future Red Wolve Lauren Rich, fell 2-1 to a team representing the Georgia Impact club and were also knocked out of the competition. Rich did not play in yesterday’s contest, but a name familiar to Mount Si fans saw action in the circle – Lake Washington sophomore-to-be Tori Bivens pitched a solid complete game, allowing both runs – only one of which was earned – on just four hits, striking out two. Defense proved to be a challenge for TS, as they committed four errors in the contest.

Action for the remaining teams in the competition continues through this weekend.

Baseball
Mid-Plains League
Hays (KS) 6, Junction City 5 – Mount Si grad Max Brown went 0-3 but was hit by a pitch and drove in a run for the Brigade in their loss last night.

We should note, by the way, that their three-game sweep of those Topeka teams last weekend which we reported on earlier this week earned them the league championship, so we offer Brown and his teammates congrats on that.

Soccer: Stumble for local team at nationals
In action yesterday at the US Youth Soccer Nationals in Maryland, Pennsylvania’s YMS Premier Xplosion ’98 team defeated the Eastside FC Girls U-15 squad 3-1. EFC, based in Preston, features Mount Si sophomore-to-be Natalie Weidenbach and is coached by former Wildcat boys’ coach Tom Bialek. Eastside, the defending national champions, is still very much alive for the title this year – they need to beat their final pool opponent this morning, from California, and they will advance into the semis Saturday. The California team as of yet has not won in pool play, so this should be very much winnable for the Eastside girls. We’ll keep you posted.

Football: Mount Si football hosts junior camp
Mount Si High School’s football program is this week and next hosting Wildcat junior football players for a camp. This camp is intended to help the Wildcat junior players, all elementary and middle school students, get prepared for their upcoming junior football season by learning new skills and techniques designed to help them succeed on the gridiron this fall, and do so in a safe manner. The camp started Monday and wraps up for this week today, then resumes next Monday through Thursday. Sessions are from 6:00-8:30 and the program invites parents and fans out to see the future of the program get prepared for this season.

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Wednesday news notes

Posted on July 23, 2014 by Rhett Workman

Here’s our Wednesday news briefs.

Golf: Valley youngsters punch tickets to state tourney
Five youth golfers from the Snoqualmie Valley earned slots at the upcoming Washington Junior Golf Association state tournament as a result of their efforts in the final rounds of their respective district tournaments yesterday. Two additional Valleyites also may end up at state, as they made it in as alternates.

At the District 2 event in Seattle, three local kids punched their tickets to the state event, set to be held in Spokane next month. Cooper Neil of Snoqualmie, in the boys’ 8-11 age group, fired a round of 38 over nine holes, a nine-stroke improvement over his 47 in the opening round Monday, to finish the tournament with a 13-over-par 85 and a third-place finish. On the girls’ side, fellow Snoqualmie resident – and Mount Si High School girls’ golf star – Caitlin Maralack, in the girls’ 14-15 age group, finished fourth and earned a berth.

Mount Si boys’ golfer Jimmy Jacobson, of Snoqualmie, in the boys’ 16-17 age group, fired another 76 yesterday; he shot that score Monday and finished with a 12-over par 152, good for xx and an alternate berth at the state tourney. His Wildcat teammate Peter Yoshikawa, also of Snoqualmie, fired an 85 in his final round yesterday in the boys’ 14-15 age group and totaled out for the two rounds at 166, one stroke behind his age group’s final state qualifier.

Meanwhile, in District 1, in Belllingham, Mount Si boys’ golf star Alex Nelson, of North Bend, carded a 79, a 15-shot improvement over his Monday round, in which he fired a 94. That strong improvement enabled him to finished with an 11-over par 173 for the two rounds and earn a state berth with a tie for 11th place in the boys’ 14-15 age group.

Down in District 6, in Orting, Snoqualmie’s Drew Warford earned a state slot in the boys’ 12-13 age group after carding an 83 to finish his two rounds with a 163, good for fifth. And fellow Snoqualmie resident Buddy Dann, in the boys’ 8-11 division, carded a 45 over nine holes in his final round, and finished sixth with a total score of 92 over the two rounds. Out of that same age group, a third Snoqualmie youngster, Hogan Warford, carded a 46 over his nine holes yesterday and finished eighth overall with a tournament score of 96, good for eighth and an alternate slot to the state tournament.

The state tourney will be held August 6-8 at three different courses around Spokane.

Softball
PGF Nationals, Huntington Beach, CA
Acers U16 3, Illinois White Sox 0: Cedarcrest’s Karen Bomstead served as a pinch-runner for the Auburn-based Acers in this contest, but did not score a run; even with that, the Acers still got it done and blanked the Illinois foe to remain alive in the winner’s bracket of the U16 “Platinum” division.

Team Seattle U14 13, NW Sidewinders 4: Valleyite Lauren Rich pitched well in the circle, and had the bats behind her, helping the Seattle team remain alive in the tournament with this loser-out win. Rich pitched three innings, allowing a pair of runs on three hits, striking out two and earning the win.

San Jose Ladysharks 3, NW Bullets Zacher 1: The Issaquah-based Bullets Zacher team was eliminated from the U16 “Premier” tournament with this loss to the California team. Maddy Trout, of Mount Si High School, went 0-3 for the Bullets.

Baseball: Mount Si, Cedarcrest grads step up to help Bellevue select team win playoff game
The Boys of Summer U18 select team, based in Bellevue, used the bats of three Valley high school alums to blast a Gig Harbor-based team in a playoff game last night at Bellevue College.

MSHS grad Zach Usselman doubled and drove in a run to aid BoS to the 8-2 blowout over the Narrows team. Fellow Wildcat alum Evan Johnson had a hit, scored a run and drove in two more to pace Boys, who also got a hit and run scored from Cedarcrest grad Colton Sandhofer. All three players walked the graduation aisle back in June and will be playing collegiately next spring.

Soccer: Preston-based team with Mount Si player wins opener at nationals
The Eastside FC girls’ U15 soccer team, coached by former Mount Si High School boys’ soccer coach Tom Bialek and which features current Wildcat sophomore-to-be girls’ star Natalie Weidenbach, took their first game at the US Youth Soccer National Championships yesterday, defeating Michigan’s Alliance Academy 2-1 in the tournament, being held in Germantown, MD. Play continues today.

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New golf event coming to Snoqualmie helping local charities

Posted on July 22, 2014 by Rhett Workman

It’s only about three weeks away, but preparations are beginning to heat up for the Valley’s signature sports event of the year, the Boeing Classic golf tournament. And the tournament yesterday announced a new event that is sure to help attract more local interest.

The Classic has put together a best-ball contest featuring four of Seattle’s top sports personalities August 4. Billed as the “Showdown in Snoqualmie,” the competition will see the foursome battle it out for bragging rights and help raise funds for charity. The foursome will consist of the following individuals:

• Mitch Levy, the longtime morning show host on Sports Radio 950 KJR-AM

• Steve Ballmer, the former CEO of Microsoft who is currently attempting to purchase the Los Angeles Clippers pro basketball team

• Rick Neuheisel, the former University of Washington head football coach and current football TV studio analyst for the Pac-12 Networks

• Fred Couples, Champions Tour pro golfer from Seattle

The group will compete in a best-ball format during the event, which starts at 2:00 p.m. and is open to only the first 500 spectators who purchase tickets at the Boeing Classic’s website (linked at right in our news links); those tickets are $100 per person. All proceeds from the competition will benefit local charities.

Tickets include exclusive access to the competition, free parking, lunch and a photo of the foursome.

Additionally, opportunities for fans to be a part of the event will be auctioned off during the next several days during broadcasts of Levy’s “Mitch in the Morning” show on KJR, which runs from 5:30-10 am.

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Tuesday news notes…

Posted on July 22, 2014 by Rhett Workman

Light Tuesday morning for you. Here’s the news and notes.

Baseball
U18 Baden Northwest Invite, Kirkland
Washington A’s 8, Laces 5: 2013 Mount Si High School grad Connor Swift had a solid outing on the mound for the A’s as the Sammamish-based team took care of their rivals from Snohomish County. Swift, who will be a sophomore this fall at Columbia Basin College in Pasco, pitched six innings, allowing four runs – three earned – on five hits, walking four and striking out three, getting the win. Fellow MSHS alum Austin Hall went 2-3 with two runs scored to pace the A’s.

Seattle Select 6, Washington A’s 3: Hall went 4-4 for the A’s as they were doubled up by their Seattle rivals last night.

Mid-Plains College Summer Playoffs
Puerto Rico Collegiate 6, Junction City 1: Mount Si grad Max Brown went 0-1 for the Brigade as they fell in a playoff game last night.

Valley Baseball League
Strasburg 3, Aldie 2: Mount Si grad Reece Karalus pitched tough last night for the Senators to keep things close in their game with the winning Express team. Karalus, a junior-to-be at Santa Clara this fall, pitched two no-hit innings, striking out two.

Golf: WJGA district tournament opening rounds a challenge for Valleyites
District tournaments opened yesterday for the Washington Junior Golf Association in the three districts featuring Valley competitors. And it proved to be a tough go for the 11 boys and girls from our community competing in the tournaments, as everyone finished with a round over par.

The best round of the day went to Mount Si High School boys’ golfer Jimmy Jacobson, of Snoqualmie, who fired a six-over 76 at the District 2 tournament at Jefferson Park Golf Course in Seattle in the boys’ 16-17 division. But there were also some uncharacteristically difficult rounds, perhaps evidence of how tough the courses were laid out for the players. Mount Si boys’ golf star Alex Nelson, of North Bend, had a challenging time in the opening round of the District 1 event at Sudden Valley up in Bellingham, carding a 22-over par 94, and it was no less difficult for Wildcat girls’ golf star Caitlin Maralack, of Snoqualmie, who fired a 19-over 89 in her opening round at the District 2 event.

At the District 6 event, at High Cedars Golf Club outside of Orting, Snoqualmie’s Drew Warford led the way with an eight-over 80, good for a tie for third in the boys’ 12-13 division.

All of the players will look to improve today in the final rounds, and we’ll keep you posted on what happens.

Football: Mount Si player talks about Media Day
As we have mentioned for you the past couple of days, Mount Si High School’s football program participated in a special media event Sunday at the VMAC facilities in Renton that are home to the Seattle Seahawks.

We got in touch with one of the players who was part of that event, Sean Hyland, and he told us he enjoyed it. “Media Day was a cool experience to have, as I have never done anything like a press conference before,” Hyland told the SVSJ by email. “It was fun to have that kind of opportunity with Coach (Charlie) Kinnune, Jojo (Hillel), Andrew (Thompson), and Chris (Schlicting).

Hyland, like all of the other players who took part, will be a senior this fall, and he told us that there were only a few reporters on hand, and was asked questions by a reporter from MaxPreps, the national high school sports news website who sponsored the event.

Good stuff, and hopefully good practice for all the guys this fall, as we, of course, will be on hand for every home Mount Si football game and provide you coverage here.

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