From
the golf links to the tennis court, and from the cross-country trails
to the volleyball court, student athletes culminated the fall sports
season with six league titles, a third-place state trophy, and nearly a
dozen academic team awards.
“I
am delighted at the athleticism this fall season, especially among our
younger athletes who will be back again to play in our district next
year,” said Rick Wells, director of athletics, health, and fitness.
“Given their age and their talent, there is a bright future ahead for
those students and their sports teams.”
Wells
provided an overview of the fall sports season during last month’s
Puyallup School Board meeting and introduced four coaches who won South
Puget Sound League (SPSL) South Division Coach of the Year honors.
For
the second consecutive year, the Emerald Ridge High volleyball team
snatched the SPSL championship after an 8-0 undefeated season. The team
went on to capture third place at the state tournament.
Co-coach
Bobby McGivern credits this year’s success to a hard-working team and
coaching staff. He said the players committed to working out together
even before tryouts last year, set goals to win the league title and
land in the top four at state, and then fought to achieve those goals.
The
Emerald Ridge High girls golf team and girls cross country teams also
excelled this year, ending the season tied for first place with other
teams in their respective sports.
In
addition to athletic achievement, the girls cross country team earned
state recognition for its success in the classroom. The Washington
Interscholastic Activities Association (WIAA) awarded the Jaguars an
Outstanding Academic Team Award for maintaining a combined 3.94 team
grade point average (GPA).
WIAA
presents a Distinguished Academic Team Award to teams that have
combined GPAs of 3.0 or higher. An Outstanding Academic Team Award is
presented to teams with combined GPAs of 3.5 or higher.
Rogers
High School also had four teams win WIAA Outstanding Academic Team
Awards (girls volleyball, golf, cross country, and swimming) and five
teams win Distinguished Academic Team Awards (girls soccer and boys
golf, cross country, water polo, and tennis).
Victory also belonged to several Puyallup High School teams that won league or state recognition.
Girls
golf tied for first place in the league, and the undefeated boys golf
team and tennis team each won a league championship title.
Puyallup
and Emerald Ridge high school swimmers also medaled as one of the top
finishers at the 2013 Swim and Dive Championship November 15 and 16 at
the King County Aquatics Center.
Tenth
grader Mackenzie Mergel represented the Puyallup High Vikings with a
third place finish in the 500-meter freestyle. Mergel also set a new
school record with a time of 1:57.97 and an eighth-place finish in the
200-meter freestyle.
Emerald
Ridge High junior Alana Pries took third place in state in the
100-meter freestyle and fifth place in the 50-meter freestyle.
SPSL
South Division Coach of the Year honors this fall went to Emerald Ridge
High volleyball co-coaches Bobby McGivern and Jill Fox-Mullen, Puyallup
High boys tennis coach Brooks Hazen, and Emerald Ridge High girls cross
country coach Gary Osborne.
A
complete fall sports season wrap-up, including team and individual
accomplishments at the local, regional, and state levels, is on the district website.
A wrap-up of the winter sports season will be featured in the April issue of Connections.
Top left photo courtesy of Jim Meyerhoff
Top right photo courtesy of Ariel Deahl
Bottom left photo courtesy of Adam Miller