By GARLAND KENNEDY
Sentinel Sports Editor
From new records in the pool and on the cross country course to stunning team runs in basketball and baseball, Sitka athletes shattered records and made their names known in 2019.
Local high schoolers toppled records across the board. Sitka High- Mt. Edgecumbe games gave local sports fans a series of epic and sometimes emotional matchups in basketball, wrestling, and volleyball.
Younger Sitkans demonstrated their skills beyond local ballfields. Sitka Little League All-Stars made it all the way to San Bernardino, Calif., and to the Northwest Regions of the Little League World Series.
Even the Sentinel saw change, as Klas Stolpe passed the sports editor torch. Goodbye Klas, Sitka misses you.
On the macro level, budget cuts to the Sitka School District and the Alaska Marine Highway System continued to have ripple effects on many aspects of life in Southeast. Local sports were not spared.
Here’s a look at Sitka sports through 2019, the triumphs and the stumbles, the victories and losses of teams that live and compete on Baranof Island.
In this June photo, Sitka Majors Little League team poses for a shot. The team swept Alaska and went all the way to the region finals in San Bernardino. (Sentinel photo)
LITTLE LEAGUE BASEBALL
Sitka Little League Majors softball all stars and baseball all stars (ages 10-12) won state titles and represented Alaska at Northwest Regionals in San Bernardino, Calif., in August.
“The boys did not quit,” said baseball all stars manager Rich McAlpin. “This is a special group that worked hard and realized a dream to win state and play in the regional and compete with the best teams on the West Coast. It ended short of our goal but I could not be more proud of this group.”
Bryce Calhoun, one of three 12-year-old co-captains, started on the mound for Alaska. After giving up a leadoff single, his fielders had his back as Trey Johnson caught a fly ball in center and Brett Ross and Chance Coleman fielded groundball outs.
Sitka pitchers Bryce Calhoun, Trey Johnson, and Caleb Calhoun each secured a strikeout in the combined 15-hit loss.
Chance Coleman, another co-captain, ripped a leadoff single into center field and advanced to second on a passed ball.
“We had a good tournament defensively,” Coleman said. “We should have had more hits but still played really good against teams that play almost year round. I just wish we could have played some more games as a team. We only played, like, 10 games. I’m proud of our team though, winning Southeast and state. (This has been) the best baseball season of my life.”
Washington found the fence in the top of the fifth. Aksel Keim had a walk, Ledoux singled. Keim scored on a passed ball, Zach Daniel hit a single, scoring Johnson for a 10-0 lead.
In the top of the fifth, Washington got the score to 13-0.
“Even though we didn’t win a game it was amazing to get to be able to play on such a nice field,” 12-year-old co-captain Bryce Calhoun said.
In the bottom of the fifth, Coleman singled to load the bases and B. Calhoun reached on an error at third scoring Grant and McAlpin for a 13-3 tally, no outs, and runners on the corners.
“It was just amazing, even though we didn’t make it far,” Gluth said. “It was still an awesome experience. I know many kids would have liked to switch spots with us so it’s amazing to know that we had this once or twice in a lifetime opportunity.”
“We had a really good season,” Emmit Johnson, Sitka’s co-captain, said. “We worked hard for most of the wins. Our defense was really good, our hitting could be a little better. I loved playing with all my friends. Laughing at stupid stuff and just being a team. Overall this was probably the best year of my life and I’ll never forget it.”
LITTLE LEAGUE SOFTBALL
Sitka bats were alive at the Little League West Regional Majors Softball Tournament in San Bernardino in July, as well. It was softball’s first trip to Regionals.
But their timing at the plate was too late, and they fell to Nevada’s Summerlin South LL 16-7 for their second loss in two games, ending their World Series hopes.
It was the end of a historic season. Sitka Little League Softball Majors had never won the District 2 Tournament or the State Tournament. The only other Sitka Majors team to reach Regions were the 1989 and 2009 baseball boys in the Northwest Region.
“These girls accomplished things that Sitka has never done before,” Sitka coach Nikki Balovich said. “For that I am super proud of them. I am beyond grateful for this experience and lifetime of memories for them.”
The promise of the game began with a hard hit Nevada ground ball that Sitka third baseman Mecca Goldsberry scooped up and threw to first baseman Dalila Callahan for an out.
Then the post-season pattern emerged. Road games since July 11 welcomed unfamiliar sights and sounds, foreign beds and rooms, and opposition groomed by year-round club play. Worst of all, the heat took a toll on the team.
Nevada followed their out with a couple of hard singles and a Sitka error, and then a hard ground ball out fielded by second baseman Adriana Denkinger for two away but Nevada’s Bella Lenahan had a jump to home plate to score. Nevada’s Lexi Thurman rapped a shot into center field that Sitka’s Tessa Anderson cut off from extra bases but it pushed Nevada runner Zoe Helein across.
After a walked batter, Sitka shortstop Nai’a Nelson moved across the field’s humidity to field another hard hit and whipped the ball to Callahan for the third out.
In the bottom half Sitka’s Anderson led off with a single, advanced on a Kaelynn Balovich sacrifice, and scored on a Nelson ground ball.
Trailing 16-1 Sitka could have packed in their season. But as Alaska’s best Majors softball team, the Sitkans found their groove.
Goldsberry stroked a lead-off single and Anderson and Kaelynn Balovich earned walks to load the bases.
Nelson followed with a single that scored Goldsberry and Anderson.
After an infield fly for out number two, Sitka’s Denkinger singled to left field scoring Weathers for the 17-6 final score as Goldsberry reached on an error but Sitka lifted a long fly ball deep to right field that Nevada’s Thurman caught to end the game.
Kaiya Balovich started on the mound for Sitka, going four innings, using 76 pitches, allowing 10 hits and 9 runs, striking out 2 batters and walking 2.
Sitka lost their opening game to Northern California 10-1.
“The girls’ success makes me emotional,” coach Balovich said. “They set a lot of firsts for Sitka softball ... District and State Majors Softball Champs. And no one can ever take that away from them. I’m so proud of all their accomplishments and so grateful I could be a part of it. They grew in so many ways and overcame so many obstacles. Their bond is insane on and off the field. I truly hope that they find the good memories in this softball season and carry them for a lifetime.”
WOLVES SOFTBALL
Sitka High Lady Wolves recorded four wins and one loss in the ASAA small school state softball tournament in Anchorage June 1-2, culminating in an 11-3 run-rule championship win over Ketchikan Saturday evening.
“The girls deserved it,” Sitka coach Jael McCarty said. “They kept their composure all tournament and they played like they loved the game.”
In the final game for the championship, Lady Wolves’ Avery Voron got her team on the scoreboard with a solo home run off Ketchikan pitcher Lianne Guevarra in the top of the first inning for a 1-0 lead.
“It was absolutely crazy,” Voron said. “I was literally talking to my parents right before that at-bat, and I was saying how irritated I was that I hadn’t gotten one this season yet. This past weekend I was thinking about it too much. That pitch I didn’t think about it at all. I just swung, and I think that’s why it went over. I just let the bat do the work.”
With two outs the Lady Wolves’ Nyla Duncan and Chloe Morrison reached base to cause a Ketchikan pitching change and Calista Gallant hit a deep fly ball to end the inning with Sitka in the lead 8-4.
Ketchikan rallied again in the top of the third to tie the score 8-8 with just one out and the bases loaded.
The Lady Wolves brought in Smith on the mound and moved Dumag to shortstop, but Lady Kings hit a 2-run single for a 10-8 lead.
Sitka hit three hard ground balls for outs to strand (graduated) senior Abby Forrester on base in the bottom half, ending the game by the 10-run rule and forcing the If-Necessary championship as both teams now had one loss.
“I knew that we would bounce back,” Forrester said. “I knew there was no way this team would ever lose twice in a row. I had full confidence that we were going to win it.”
WOLVES BASEBALL
The Sitka High Wolves were eliminated from the 2019 Region V baseball tournament at Juneau May 25, falling to the Ketchikan Kings by the 10-run rule deficit of 16-6 in the sixth.
Sitka’s Brandon Massey-Jones earned a walk and stole second base, Gavin Flores singled, and Emmanuel Barragan reached on an error that scored Massey-Jones.
Then-sophomore Trevin Carley singled in Flores, and Morgan Simic earned a walk to load the bases with no outs. Pinch runner Michael Leach replaced Morgan Simic on first.
After a fly ball out, Keaton Koelling doubled to left field scoring Barragan and Carley, and Leach scored on the fielding throw for a 5-3 lead.
Ketchikan got 3 runs back in the bottom of the inning to lead 6-5.
Sitka seemed to be in control as the Wolves started another rally in the top of the fourth inning.
Massey-Jones again walked, and Barragan and Carley hit back-to-back singles to load the bases.
Simic singled to lead off the sixth inning and junior Kyler Brenton walked, but Koelling hit a hard ground ball to third base that outed Simic and Kayhi’s Korbin Stack fired over to first base to nip Koelling. The Wolves grounded out to end the inning.
GIRLS BASKETBALL
The true meaning of the word “team” came to the forefront during the Mt. Edgecumbe High girls’ final game at the ASAA March Madness Alaska 3A State Basketball Championships in Anchorage March 21 and 22.
One night earlier, Mt. Edgecumbe then-senior Sanora Bell’s biggest fan had passed away.
Lowell Severan Petersen, 75, and a member of MEHS class of 1961, had watched his granddaughter play on Thursday and Friday and was looking forward to watching her final high school game, against the Galena Hawks in the UAA gymnasium.
“She always plays hard,” he had said on Thursday. “She has a passion for the game and her team.”
Bell said she made the decision to play the game against Galena “because I knew my ‘Papa’ would want me too.”
“My whole entire life my Papa has had a huge love for basketball,” Bell said. “He was always one of the loudest fans in any gym he was in. Ever since I started pee-wee basketball he has been my biggest fan. He always told me win, lose, or draw that he was always proud of me. He taught me to always play my hardest.”
Two weeks earlier Bell’s grandmother, Sandra Jessie Madej, 68, had died.
“He told me to play for my grandma when she passed away a few weeks ago, and that she would be watching me,” Bell said. “During my last game, although it was tough and with the support of my family, coaches, and teammates, I played for both of them. I know both of them were watching my teammates and me.”
Though Bell had reason to be sullen, the Lady Braves had to contend with the outside shooting of the Lady Hawks. Bell grabbed the game’s first rebound, Vernae Ramoth answered with a put back inside and Brystel Charlie recorded the first of her six steals and passed to Catherine Sunny. Autumn Beans made two baskets for MEHS.
MEHS’ Sunny opened the second quarter with a steal for a basket, and Bell and Tyra Brown had two steals out of the Lady Braves press that resulted in a physical, mental and emotional boost.
Edgecumbe answered with a 6-0 run on baskets by Bell twice and Charlie to close to 32-28. The Lady Braves stayed within 2 points, answering Galena scores with baskets by Kameroff, Bell, and Miller to close to 36-34 at the end of the third quarter.
Lady Braves basketball coach Kathy Forrester hugs her daughter, Abby, after MEHS’ one point win in the Region V tourney, Feb. 27. The younger Forrester was a Wolves all-star. (Sentinel photo)
Bell stole a dribble to open the fourth quarter and tied the score at 36-36 and Miller hit inside again for a 38-36 Lady Braves advantage.
Miller hit a free throw and Beans found room from beyond the arch to tie the game at 46-46 with 2:03 remaining.
The Edgecumbe defense rose to yet another level and did not allow another Galena score.
Charlie rebounded a miss and fed Beans who was fouled and made two free throws for a 52-46 lead and Charlie ended the day with a freebie from the charity stripe for the 53-46 final.
The team celebrated the win and honored the passing of their biggest fan.
“Having him at games was the biggest thing to me,” Bell said. “I knew he was so proud of me, especially for wearing a Mt. Edgecumbe jersey as he was the most proud alumni ever. Listening to him cheer and get rowdy always made me play harder.”
MEHS opened the tournament with a 34-32 loss to Kenai March 21 and downed Kotzebue 62-43 March 22. Galena lost to Barrow 46-35 and beat Valdez 47-42 March 22, claiming fourth place in Alaska.
The 2020 basketball season began last week.
BOYS BASKETBALL
The Wolves took sixth in the Alaska March Madness competition.
Sitka’s Gavin Flores gave the Wolves the first 2 points of the game against the Monroe Catholic Rams and Morgan Simic hit inside, both on assists by CJ Taccad who then made his own shot to stay on pace with Monroe and tie the score at 6-6 in the first four minutes.
A small Monroe run gave them an 11-6 advantage but John Arce replied.
“Just being with all of us together was fun,” Arce said. “Having the guys around and just having fun and making memories. For sure this was one of the best trips for my high school career.”
The Rams made another run in the second quarter, but the Wolves fought back with Taccad scoring on an Arce screen, then hitting a deep shot past the arch as now-graduated senior Morgan Simic screened. Simic earned his third foul as he tried to battle the taller Rams and keep the Wolves in the game at 21-14, ending the second quarter.
“It was fun,” Simic said. “I would have liked to win but it was a great experience going up to state. We surprised some people. We surprised ourselves too. We played a lot better than we thought we would, I think. We started to come on towards the end of the season and that was best for us. I’m glad it happened like that, not start off hot and finish bad.”
Austin Morrison started Sitka’s aggressive defensive stance in the third quarter with a rebound and the Wolves finished the next play with a hustling loose ball scramble.
“I think we definitely started playing our best basketball during the season,” Sitka coach Jarrett Hirai said. “I was happy we were able to come up here. Obviously, ACS was the best team in 3A, but I was impressed with the energy we brought each game. The energy was the reason why we stayed in games for sure. We didn’t know what to expect from Monroe. It would have been nice to end with a ‘W’ but after the game was over it was nice to look back and see where these guys came from at the beginning of the year to how they are now. I’m happy how they finished despite the loss to Monroe.”
The Wolves finished the state tournament in the fan section of the Ketchikan Kings, watching their southeast 4A counterparts win the state title in overtime, 57-53, over Dimond High.
“I felt like I won the state title too, because we’ve been playing those guys since eighth grade and it just feels good to see them succeed,” Taccad said.
CROSS COUNTRY
Records fell again and again in the 2019 cross country season. Seasoned Sitka senior Dominic Baciocco set a number of new course times, but he was not alone on the trails. The Sitka Wolves put on a solid show overall, as did the Braves.
Sitka scored a first place win at the Region V Championship, Sept. 28.
Baciocco was the first place finisher at regions, running a course record at 16:12. His personal best was a blistering 15:56 in Juneau earlier in the season.
Baciocco was not alone in lowering his times. Senior Asa Demmert took second at 17:02, followed by junior Kobi Weiland at 17:44. Freshman runner Anna Prussian outclassed all other 3A girls, finishing first at regions with a time of 19:17. Tawny Smith was second at 21:39, with Lindsey Bartaloba right behind her at 22:38.
Dominic Baciocco on his way to winning the Region V Cross Country meet in September. (Sentinel Photo)
The Braves also ran personal records this season, said coach Josh Arnold.
Lady Brave Mia Anderson took fourth at regions with a time of 23:11. Robin Masterman came in fifth at 23:35, Adeline Dyment at 24:07, Aliyah Schumann at 24:27, Kayla Kashevaroff at 25,27, and Sunset Woods finishing 10th, barely snagging a state spot at 25:42.
Edgecumbe’s Lloydy Ayojiak ran his PR of 18:09 at the meet as well.
Up in Anchorage, local runners continued their high-performing season, and were not slowed by a peaceful run-in with a bear and moose on the trails.
The Sitka boys team claimed fourth place in Anchorage, and the girls took sixth.
Baciocco ran the course in 16:32, finishing second in the state. Asa Demmert ran the course in a flat 17 minutes, taking seventh of the 72 racers.
Coach Shasta Smith said that Demmert had an incredible season. “What he was able to do with his very first year of running cross country was amazing,” she said.
Kobi Weiland was the Wolves’ third finisher, claiming 23rd place in 18:24. Colton Ewers was right behind at 18:52, and was preceded by Hahlen Behnken Barkhau, who finished two seconds later with a time of 18:54. Silas Demmert finished in 19:19 and Asa Dow at 19:36.
In the girls’ race, Anna Prussian was second in the state at 19:50. Coach Smith said she’s excited to see Prussian grow as a runner. “She becomes a better racer every time she steps to the line,” Smith said.
Tawny Smith - Coach Smith’s daughter - was the second Lady Wolf to finish at 22:10, followed by Lindsey Bartaloba at 24:12.
Addie Poulson finished in 25:24 and Alyssa Henshaw ran the course in 28:28. The Wolves’ Danish exchange student Nicolene Christensen, who ran her first season this fall, finished the state race in 29:00.
The Braves sent their best to compete as well. Lloydy Ayojiak, the Braves’ top runner, finished in 21:51 after rolling his ankle in the first lap. Coach Arnold carried him off the course after the race.
Edgecumbe’s top state finisher was Dayton Hoblet, who finished at 18:41, followed by freshman Connor Journey at 19:06.
David Bahnke ran the course in 19:58.
MEHS also sent some of their girls to state. Mia Anderson ran the course in 22:53, taking 26th place out of 67 runners. Robin Masterman finished in 24:11, and Adeline Dyment was close behind at 24:59.
Aliyah Schumann finished in 25:42 and Sunset Woods came in at 26:02. Kayla Kashevaroff finished in 26:57.
The sheer number of course and personal records in the cross country season stands out as emblematic of the season itself.
TRACK AND FIELD
Boys
The Sitka High boys track and field team placed second at the 2019 ASAA State Track and Field Championships in Palmer, May 26.
The boys finished with 94 team points, placing second behind Anchorage Christian’s 113. Out of 18 teams, Sitka High placed as the state runner-up for the second season in a row.
Wolves then-junior Dominic Baciocco and now-graduated seniors Jacob Gagner, Joe Pate, and Skyler McIntyre set a new Sitka High 800 relay record, winning the state championship in 8:22.77 for the boys’ only state placing at the meet.
McIntyre has since gone on to run for UAA.
“I tried to put my team in a good place that would give us a good chance to win,” Baciocco said. “I knew the ACS kid I was running against in my leg would be fast so I ended up just trying to stay with him.”
The Wolves’ opponents went through 400 meters at 61 seconds and split about 2:03 for their full 800. Gagner took the hand-off and extended the lead and Pate did the same.
“I have had a ton of fun training every day with these guys and I look forward to seeing them excel in college,” Baciocco said.
McIntyre and Baciocco placed second and third in the 3200 with 9:43.32 and 9:45.07.
McIntyre was second in the 1600 with a PR 4:28.64, Baciocco fourth in a PR 4:30.15, and Asa Demmert ninth in a PR 4:45.07.
The Sitka 4x400 relay team of Tabor Buxton, Gagner, Baciocco, and Pate placed second in 3:38.58.
Sitka High’s Garrison Lass placed second in the high jump at 5-08.
Sitka High’s Aedon Dumag placed second in the long jump in a PR 19-05.25.
Parks also won the triple jump at 39-06.00, Dumag third at 38-05.50, Reese Heim fifth 37-01, and Jemar Diga sixth 37-08.50.
Dumag was fifth in the shot put at 40-01.
The Sitka 4x100 relay of Dumag, Buxton, Carson Grant, and Thomas Bailey ran third at 47.51.
The 4x200 of Buxton, Levi Danielson, Grant, and Bailey placed fourth with a time of 1:38.28.
Gagner and Pate placed fourth and fifth in the 800 with a PR of 2:03.66 and a SR of 2:03.69.
Gagner was fifth in the 400 at 53.58.
Danielson was eighth in the 110 hurdles with 19.60.
Bailey placed 13th in the 100 in 12.40.
Grant placed 11th in the 200 in a PR 24.57, Danielson 15th in 25.32.
In Unified events Sitka’s John Morrow and Jemar Diga won the Unified long jump. Morrow and Dumag won the Unified shot put. Morrow and Danielson placed second in the Unified 100 meter.
Girls
Sitka High girls track and field team placed third at the 2019 Alaska School Activities Association State Track and Field Championships at Palmer over the weekend.
The Wolves tallied 94 points, trailing Kenai Centrals’ 110 and Grace Christian’s 95, placing third out of 19 small school teams.
The Wolves’ 400 relay nabbed the top DII time of the championships. Sitka (graduated) senior Haley Bartolaba started the first circle and in subsequent one lap sprints came then-sophomore sister Lindsey Bartolaba, then-freshman Tawny Smith, and (graduated) senior Joei Vidad for a winning time of 4:17.30.
“This is the most exciting race,” Vidad said. “Given that Haley, Lindsey, and Tawny are all phenomenal runners I wasn’t too worried about anchoring. They definitely set the tone right away by creating a bigger gap within each leg. They gave me such a large lead to even start with, so finishing the race was all I had to do.”
Vidad said her last state meet with her teammates helped push her through the race.
“I used those factors to scrape whatever energy I had left to finish,” she said. “It was such a great ending, knowing that we had just won state. Carrying the Alaska flag was such a bittersweet moment to close out my last state meet.”
Vidad set two Sitka High records, placing second in the 200 and 400 meter dashes in personal best times of 25.71, and 58.31.
Sitka senior Bailey Clifton was fourth in the 400 with 1:01.99 and L. Bartolaba fifth in 1:02.10.
Now-graduated Sitka senior Haley Bartolaba competes in the 300 meter
hurdle event in Juneau, in May. (Sentinel photo by Klas Stolpe)
“I really have to give a shout-out to Hailey Williams,” Vidad said. “She is a great runner with an even greater personality. She was who I was chasing towards the finish line. I gotta give some thanks to her for my new records. My main goal was to PR in at least one event and coming home with two made me ecstatic. Hopefully, they stay for a few years but there’s plenty of talent in Sitka.”
Wolves’ hurdler H. Bartolaba also placed second in the 100 hurdles with 17.46, and second in the 300 hurdles with 48.82. Wolves’ Bailey Clifton came in seventh in 52.94.
“My hurdles were really smooth,” Bartolaba said. “The 300 was just a little bit disappointing because my personal record is so much faster than what I ran this season, but it was a good race. The 4x4 was really exciting, we were all hyped up. I think running the first leg helps me run faster because I want to put my team in the best position for the rest of the race.
“Knowing that it was my last race as a Sitka Wolf made it more meaningful. Everyone on the team competed so well. I am so blessed to have been able to be on the team for four years and get to know and learn from some amazing coaches and teammates.”
Sitka freshman Tawny Smith placed sixth with 2:36.11 in the 800 and seventh with 5:45.86 in the 1600.
“The atmosphere was really fun,” Smith said. “It was great to get to see a different caliber of athlete and race some new people. The 4x4 was a great event. It’s the last of the weekend so it’s exhausting, but remembering that you have to run for your teammates makes it easier. I had already run the 4x8, 1600, and 800, so I was pretty tired.”
Sitka’s 4x100 relay of Clifton, Makayla Moore, L. Bartolaba, and H. Bartolaba placed fourth in 53.22. The 4x200 of Clifton, Addie Poulson, Moore, and L. Bartolaba placed fourth in 1:54.35. The Wolves 4x800 team of now-graduated senior Mattey Stroemer, Audrey Saiz, Poulson, and Smith came in fourth at 10:53.45.
Sitka’s Jessica Davis placed third and then-sophomore Jocelyn Brady fourth in the discus with 107-03 and 98-05.
Davis also placed fifth in the shot put with a personal best, and new Sitka record, of 33-00.25, and Wolves sophomore Morgan Feldpausch ninth at 27-06.50.
Sitka High’s Stroemer was third in the high jump with 4-10. Clifton was eighth in the triple jump at 28-10.25.
SOCCER
The Sitka High co-ed soccer team ended their season the same way they began: with athleticism, heart, spirit and two losses.
Highlight scores included a second half goal on Friday by freshman Aiden Bailey, and a second half goal on Saturday by then-junior Harrison Lambeth, and now-senior goalie Kyle Remington had a diving save during a penalty kick.
Another positive note was playing before fans on Upper Moller Field’s turf surface.
“The thing that I am proudest for the season was the opportunity to play our games and some practices on upper Moller field,” Sitka coach Chris Lamb said. “It was safe, there weren’t dog droppings to have to deal with, and I think the fans really enjoyed being a part of this unprecedented occurrence for the Sitka Wolves team.”
Lamb said being afforded the right to use Upper Moller for practice and competitions in perpetuity will help grow the program.
“My wish for the program is to eventually turn Lower Moller into a state-of-the-art complex,” Lamb said. “It could accommodate football, soccer, track, rugby, ultimate Frisbee and all of the other sports and activities that this community loves to play.”
Lamb added that Sitka “deserves to have a facility to accommodate all sports.”
Despite Lamb’s wish, no plans are currently underway to build such a complex on Lower Moller.
ALPINE ADVENTURE RUN
The 26th Alpine Adventure Run July 20 saw a new men’s winner, but the defending women’s champion held her top spot.
Esther Kennedy succeeded in defending her title, running the course in 1:20:41, a two minute improvement over the previous year.
David Wilcox swept the men’s field in 1:11:57, claiming the title from eight-time defending champion Sam Scotchmer.
“Just those stairs, definitely the stairs,” Wilcox said. “Once you get up to the top you got to transition between letting yourself fly down the hills and maintain on the flats, and then switch back into whatever gear you have going up the hills. Sometimes that’s power hiking, sometimes that’s walking.”
Kennedy, too, commented on the trail’s many stairs.
“I’m definitely not a big uphill runner, but at this point and time I have made my peace with being bad at the stairs and so I take them intentionally a little bit easier and that makes them not so hard,” she said. “I honestly think the hardest part for me is the section right after the rock slide where you’re just slowly climbing again, and you’re really tired, and you just want it to be downhill.”
They tentative date for the 2020 race is July 18.
VOLLEYBALL
It was standing room only at Sitka High when the Lady Wolves clinched the Region V volleyball title. The game was a high point in a roller coaster season.
The Lady Braves beat the Lady Wolves 3-1 in the first night of play, Nov. 5. But Sitka rebounded, taking the Braves down 3-1 on the second night and forcing the competition to a tie breaker on Thursday. Sitka took the Region V title 3-1 in the tiebreaker match.
“The mental toughness of that group is really what carried them,” Sitka coach Zaide Allen said of her team.
Sitka’s gym was electric on the final night of play. From the Wolves pep band to the throngs of supporters for both teams in the stands, the noise shook the gymnasium.
“To have the amount of people that we did and nearly-filled stands - it has never been like that before,” Allen said.
Lady Braves coach Mike Mahoney was proud of his team, as well.
“The girls played so hard,” he said. “I’m just super proud of how they played. Of course it’s not the outcome we were hoping for, but when we were done, nobody was unhappy.” MEHS captains Vernae Ramoth and Shayna Warnke Green, as well as Brody Wysocki, won All-Tourney titles for the Braves. Ramoth and Mia Anderson won the Good Sports award.
The Lady Braves couldn’t block Sitka’s hitters. Wolves’ Tiffany Elefante and Rean Famini held the back row down. Chloe Morrison, Jocelyn Brady, Morgan Feldpausch, Taliah Fredrickson, and Ava Brady were on the front lines, scoring left and right. Zaeda Dumag played as the team setter. Even JV sophomore Riley Nutting stepped up, playing with the Wolves’ varsity to replace an injured player. Brady, Morrison, and Elefante all won the All-Tourney distinction. Fredrickson and Dumag won the Good Sport accolade.
The Lady Wolves ended up taking fourth place at the state tournament the weekend of Nov. 14.
At the tournament, the Wolves faced Valdez in the first round and won 3-0. Coach Allen recalled that her squad’s solo freshman Ava Brady “would hit it line, and angle it and tip it, and they just could not pick it up.”
Sitka fell to Kenai Central, then beat Monroe Catholic. Sitka then lost to Homer who went on to win first place.
Chloe Morrison won All-Tourney at state.
The Wolves’ team this season was a young team, the only senior being Tiffany Elefante. Looking forward to the 2020 season, Allen said she looked forward to working with many of the same players.
“I’m just super excited to have most of them back again,” she said. “I think that coming into it with a team that inexperienced, you just don’t know - ‘will it come together, when will it come together, how will it come together?’ I am definitely very happy about how it came together.”
SWIM AND DIVE
In the pool, local athletes proved that Wolves also dominate the water.
The Lady Wolves’ swim team snagged fourth place out of 22 teams at the state championship, Nov. 8-9, despite being outnumbered. The girls squad secured a first place finish at the Region V champion the week before, winning all three relays and qualifying 8 girls for the State Championship. The boys team placed third at regions. At state, Sitka’s sole scoring male, Tytan Frawley, took 14th place among 21 teams of varying sizes.
At the Region V championship meet, Jordan Gagner, Grace Harang, Kai Frawley, and Raize Guillory started the meet with a bang, winning the 200 Medley Relay in a time of 1:53.84. The 200 Free relay was won by Guillory, Emma Gassman, K. Frawley, and Sophia Schwantes with a time of 1:43.51. The girls team also claimed the first in the 400 freestyle relay, with Harang, Gagner, Schwantes, and Gassman finishing in 3:34.04.
Four boys qualified for the state meet. The boys 200 Free relay with T. Frawley, Benjamin Tuner, Bridger Bird and Matt Rice finished 2nd with a season best time of 1:35.47, dropping 5 second from their previous PR.
Team coach Tabitha Frawley said that “everyone dropped time and really came ready to rock the pool.”
Up in Anchorage, the girls remained impressive. The girls 200 medley, with Gagner, Harang, K. Frawley, and Guillory took fifth place, at 1:53.22. The 400 free relay was a second place finish for the Lady Wolves. Guillory, Gassman, Schwantes, and Harang finished in a stunning 3:41.07. In a nail biting finish for the 50 free at the state meet, Harang broke a 24-year-old school record previously held by Randi Madsen with a time of 24.57. Harang finished 2nd in the 500 free in 5:17.41 and was followed closely by Gassman, who finished third at 5:17.71. Gassman also took third in the 200 free at 2:00:27, medaling in both.
In the 100 butterfly, Schwantes was seeded fifth, but edged out her opponent by 0.02 seconds to claim fourth at an even 1:00:00.
Gagner was active not only in relays, but also in the 100 back, taking eighth in 1:03.68.
Tytan Frawley was Sitka’s sole boy in the pool for finals, but he finished second in the 500 free with a time of 4:48.06 and fifth in the 200 free, at 1:46.25.
Sitka’s diver, Brandon Widdison, took 10th place, improving his previous high score by 88 points.
Freshmen boys Ben Turner and Matt Rice competed in the state meet preliminary rounds where Rice swam both the 200 free (1:51.94) and 500 free (5:05.53). Turner finished the 100 backstroke with a time of 1:00.65.
WRESTLING
A short yet action-packed wrestling season sent a number of local wrestlers to the state meet. Though none individually earned the top spot, both SHS and MEHS teams ranked in the top ten in the small schools category.
The Braves took first place in the Region V Championship in Craig, Dec. 13-14. The Wolves were right behind, taking second.
Sitka’s top-tier finishers sent a large number of local wrestlers to Anchorage.
At the state meet, Dec. 20-21, Sitka High pulled ahead to take sixth place, with MEHS following in a triple tie for seventh.
Sitka senior Sid Fleming concluded his high school wrestling career with a rematch against his friend Wayland Patten, of Craig. Patten won the final match, taking first in the 171 pound weight class. Fleming took second.
Colton Ewers claimed third at 112 pounds for the second year running, in a rematch against Edgecumbe’s Dayton Hoblet.
Edgecumbe’s Ajey Moses took sixth in the 125-pound weight class and the Braves’ Emilio Mangrobang claimed second at 135 pounds.
At 189 pounds, Sitka High’s John Welsh took fourth place, and Max Johnson claimed fourth at 215. Hunter Littlefield also took fourth, at 285.
The Lady Braves also sent wrestlers up north.
At 130 pounds, Maysa Brown took third.
Dakota Magnuson claimed fourth at 160 pounds.
“She’s very talented at what she does,” Lady Braves coach Jeff Sato said.
In the semifinals, Magnuson lost by major decision to her former teammate, Alaina Pete, of Brevig Mission.
In the 235-pound weight class, Edgecumbe’s Maggie Miller took second. “She had a great tournament overall,” Sato said.
Commenting on the narrow victory over Mt. Edgecumbe’s team at state, Sitka High coach Will Patrick said, “It felt good. We knew it would be close. We knew that we could beat them up at state.”
“Hopefully everyone has learned a lot this year, and can build upon that if they continue to compete next year,” Sato said.
A SNAKE IN THE GARDEN
Despite a triumphant year in sports, competition in Southeast comes with complications.
Cuts to the Alaska Marine Highway System have left Southeast schools to choose between difficult and expensive options for team travel, a number of school officials told the Sentinel.
“Ferry cuts are killing our C/JV sports programs. We have to fly every place now,” Sitka High Activities Director Rich Krupa said. “Right now we don’t even use (the Marine Highway) because the ferry system doesn’t work out for us,” he said. “The combination of higher fares and reduced sailings have forced local teams to use Alaska Airlines.”
School District Superintendent Mary Wegner agreed.
“A couple years ago we started losing a lot of ferry service to Sitka,” she said. “We have really stopped using the ferry because the schedule doesn’t work.”
Wolves’ volleyball coach Zaide Allen remembers a time when that wasn’t the case.
“I was born and raised here,” Allen said, “and through my job and through sports I think I have been able to travel to every single Southeast Alaskan community that ferry service reaches.”
This travel, she added, was integral to the volleyball meets she attended.
“I remember being on the ferry almost every single volleyball trip,” she said. “(Even) as a C-team player we got three trips a year. We were traveling all the time.”
In the 2019 volleyball season, Allen said that the Wolves’ C-team only traveled once, and that was courtesy of Allen Marine.
As the future of the AMHS remains undecided, Southeast athletes struggle to find opportunities to play outside their home communities.
A NEVER ENDING CYCLE
The 2020 basketball season opened only a week ago. Though Track and Field, Baseball, and Softball seem far off in December, preseason trainings are just around the corner, with coaches already preparing for the upcoming year.
