He was a member of coach Mike Smith’s historic cross-country team this year. The Liberty boys team made its first state appearance in school history last fall.

Collin Olson

Olson was named first-team all-league in cross-country this season, along with Gonzaga-bound teammate Aaron Bowe.

He will run for coach Trisha Steidl at Seattle University. Olson plans to major in engineering.

Hazen soccer standouts Gabby Brower and Chelsea Delgado will play the sport in college after leading this year’s team to its first outright Seamount League title since 1992, and a state tournament appearance.

Brower will play at Western Washington University, while Delgado will suit up at Bellevue College.

Contributed
Hazen High School athletes (from left) Chelsea Delgado, Quadir Griffin and Gabby Brower signed to colleges Feb. 5.

Hazen football standouts Joe Glaefke and Quadir Griffin will also continue their athletic careers in college. The all-league performers will both play at Everett Junior College.

“These four individuals have made significant contributions to Hazen High School,” Hazen Principal Randy Taylor said in a statement. “We are proud of them.”

No Liberty High School athletes signed national letters of intent on signing day, Feb. 5, to his knowledge, Stark Porter, the school’s athletic director, said.

There are a handful of athletes, however, who plan to continue their careers at the next level.

Aaron Bowe, who led the boys cross-country team to its first state appearance this year, will compete at Gonzaga University.

Hannah van Amen, a member of the state championship soccer team, will continue her career at Saint Martin’s University.

Chase Vanek will play baseball at Clark College, while Lorin Archibald will take to the diamond at Lower Columbia College.

The award, sponsored by the Washington Interscholastic Athletic Association, the Dairy Farmers of Washington and Les Schwab Tires, recognizes the team with the highest GPA among all Washington high schools in their enrollment classification.

Contributed
Hazen High School’s varsity girls cross-country team, named 2012 academic state champions with a collective grade point average of a near perfect 3.958, are (from left) Kate Ahearn, Alexis DeBrock, Cindy Truong, Vicki Tang, Laura Truong, Cassandra Slaugh, Kristin Ericksen, Alisha Piazza, Vivian Tang, Lucia Rios-Flores and Coach Sarah Menaul.

The team, led by Coach Sarah Menaul, received its award at the state’s cross-country championship in Pasco Nov. 2-3.

“We try our best to excel in class, on the track and in all aspects of our lives,” Vicki Tang, the team’s captain, said.

As the fall sports season comes to a close, athletes from Hazen and Liberty high schools are being honored for their athletic achievements as all-league teams are announced. Players and coaches select all-league teams annually. Email additional all-league honors to newcastle@isspress.com.

Hazen boys tennis

The following Hazen High School tennis players were named to the Seamount League all-league team:

FIRST TEAM: Gregg Furumasu.

SECONT TEAM: Jon Le.

HONORABLE MENTION: Jason Lui.

Hazen cross-country

The following Hazen High School cross-country runners were named to the Seamount League all-league team:

BOYS: Daniel Karpman, Sr.; Marshall Melrose, Sr.; Keith Beasley, Sr.

GIRLS: Kristin Ericksen, So.

Hazen girls soccer

The following Hazen High School soccer players were named to the Seamount League all-league team:

FIRST TEAM: Chelsea Delgado, Jr.; Gabby Brower, Jr.; Cindy Hanson, Jr.; Courtney Kiteley, Jr.

SECOND TEAM: Brianne Sherin, Jr.; Dee Dee Green, Sr.; Melissa Carney, Jr.; Erin Zetterberg, Fr.

HONORABLE MENTION: Cameron Devereaux, Nicole Anderson, Korbyn Walls, Kristina Holm, Jenifer Bourbonnais

Hazen swim and dive

The following Hazen High School swimmers were named to the Seamount League all-league team:

FIRST TEAM: Amy LeBar, Sr.; Talisa Wibmer, Jr.; Kourtney Brunings, So.

SECOND TEAM: Anna Collons, So.; Kristin LeBar, Fr.

Hazen golf:

The following Hazen High School golfers were named to the Seamount League all-league team:

Boys

FIRST TEAM: David Hu, Nick Yee.

SECOND TEAM: Brody Graybeal.

HONORABLE MENTION: Ethan Morris.

Girls

SECOND TEAM: Samantha Kelly

Coach Teresa Caluori was selected as the league’s coach of the year.

Hazen volleyball

The following Hazen High School volleyball players were named to the Seamount League all-league team:

FIRST TEAM: Kelsey Allen, Jr.; Marcela Macias, So.

SECOND TEAM: Shelby Sturman, Jr.

HONORABLE MENTION: Sarah Sherrod.

Liberty volleyball

The following Liberty High School volleyball players were named to the KingCo 3A/2A all-league team:

HONORABLE MENTION: Shea O’Brien, Jessica Pickering.

Liberty football

The following Liberty High School football players were named to the KingCo 3A/2A all-league team:

SECOND TEAM OFFENSE: WR Tynan Gilmore, Sr.; WR Scott Dean, Sr.

FIRST TEAM DEFENSE: LB Scott Dean, Sr.

SECOND TEAM DEFENSE: DT/NG Max Hill, Sr.; DE Nick Short, Sr.; S Tynan Gilmore, Sr.

HONORABLE MENTION: Russell Boston, Di Wang, Nate Jarvis, Sam Dodt

Hazen football

The following Hazen High School football players were named to the Seamount League all-league team:

OFFENSIVE LINEMAN OF THE YEAR: Cody Moorhead, Sr.

FIRST TEAM OFFENSE: OG Cody Moorhead, Sr.; P Kyle Nelson, Sr.

FIRST TEAM DEFENSE: DT Tyler Wicks, Sr.; DE Cody Moorhead, Sr.; LB Zach Cable, Sr.; DB Kyle Nelson, Sr.

SECOND TEAM OFFENSE: RB Joe Glaefke, Jr.; C Bryce Sowder, Sr.; OT Tyler Wicks, Sr.

SECOND TEAM DEFENSE: DB Marquise Lee, So.

HONORABLE MENTION: Jordan Abdullah, Isaiah Davis, Jeremy Hazlet, Mason Jacobs, Drew Kelly, Tony Nipert, Dominic Orsillo.

Liberty girls soccer

The following Liberty High School soccer players were named to the KingCo 3A/2A all-league team:

FIRST TEAM: F Kailiana Johnson, Sr.; MF Kiana Hafferty, Sr.

SECOND TEAM: D Taylor Sekyra, So.; D Katie Noonan, Sr.; MF Tara Johnson, Jr.; MF Nicolle Marlow, Sr.; F Kali Youngdahl, Jr.

HONORABLE MENTION: Mollie Cooke, Amy Ellenberg, Leah Grefthen, Jacquelyn Anderson.

Coach Tami Nguyen, in her first year at the helm for the Patriots, was selected as the league’s coach of the year.

Both varsity and junior varsity teams for girls cross country and boys tennis qualified for the Outstanding Team Award, given to teams with a cumulative grade point average above 3.5.

The varsity girls cross country team, led by coach Sarah Menaul, recorded a near perfect cumulative GPA of 3.958.

The varsity and junior varsity teams for boys cross country, girls soccer, girls swimming, boys golf and volleyball qualified for the Distinguished Team Award, given to teams with a cumulative GPA above between 3.0 and 3.49.

By Christina Lords
Eddie Strickler, 28, is the first runner to round the final corner of the 10-mile Cougar Mountain Trail Run on July 7. The Seattle resident finished the run in 1 hour, 14 minutes and 54 seconds — a new course record.

Beating the course record by nearly two and a half minutes, Seattle resident Eddie Strickler crossed the finish line of the latest installment of the Cougar Mountain Trail Run series July 7 with a time of 1 hour, 14 minutes and 54 seconds.

The previous record for the 10-mile run was held by Matt Messner’s 2006 time of 1:17:28.

Strickler, a 28-year-old software engineer who ran track and field and cross country for Seattle Pacific University, said he participated in each of the Cougar Mountain Trail Runs last year and plans to run in each of the five events this year.

This was Strickler’s first first-place win in the Cougar Mountain series.

“I probably run five days a week,” he said. “For me, it’s a good switch from sitting at a desk all day.”

Keegan Symmes, the race’s second-place finisher, and Gareth Jones, the runner who took third place, also beat the course record with times of 1:16:20 and 1:17:23, respectively.

“I love the park,” Strickler said. “I’ve run out here since being in college. I just love the trails … on a day like this you just want to get out into the woods and enjoy the day.”

Iliana Sach, 34, of Bellevue, came in first for the women’s division with a time of 1:35:21, followed by Maurean Anderson with a time of 1:39:59 and Larissa Kolasinski with a time of 1:40:32.

“It was a surprise to me that I did so well,” Sach said. “I came in, I didn’t even have breakfast. It was a last-minute decision, but it was just one of those days when you just feel great.”

Sach said she’s been running for 16 years and first participated in the Cougar Mountain Trail Run in 2003. She does at least one run per year, and her husband, Eric Sach, came in just behind her at the finish line at the July 7 race.

Eric Sach is the owner of the Balanced Athlete (a major sponsor of the trail run series) at The Landing in Renton.

“For me, I love these types of grassroots races,” she said. “It’s very much a community-supported, community-oriented event. We give a lot of money back to the park. I love this park. My husband and I started dating in this park.”

The 13-mile installment of the Cougar Mountain Trail Run Series is set for 8:30 a.m. Aug. 11, and the final leg of the series, a 50K, will take place at 8 a.m. Oct. 28.

On the Web

Learn more about the Cougar Mountain Trail Run Series at the Seattle Running Club’s website at www.seattlerunningclub.org/Events/Cougar/cougarmtn1.html.

It was the first time VanNuland, a sophomore, has received the honor in his collegiate career. He graduated from Hazen in 2010 and is the son of Mike and Mary VanNuland.

According to the conference office, 175 Great West Conference athletes in the sports of men’s and women’s cross country, football, women’s soccer and volleyball were named to the team based on a minimum cumulative 3.2 grade point average. The athletes also must have participated in at least 50 percent of their respective team’s contests.

First-year students and JC transfers in their first year of residence are not eligible for the award.

The cross country team finished its third and final season in the Great West Conference this past fall. On July 1, the program will join 15 other Seattle U teams and move to the Western Athletic Conference.

The Hazen High School cross country boys team will start out its season ranked in the top 10 in the state for the 3A Class.

The team was selected for the No. 9 spot in the 2011 Washington State Cross Country Coaches poll that was released Aug. 28.

North Central was selected for the top spot across the state for the 3A class, followed by Bellevue in the No. 2 slot and Kamiakin in third.

Glacier Peak, Shadle Park and Kamiakin round out the top three spots in the 3A girls class in the preseason poll.

Hazen is slated to begin its season Sept. 8 at the Seamount League Class Meet at Evergreen High School.

Hamilton Noel, Liberty High School junior has the top position on Enumclaw’s Josh Musick early in their 152-pound state 3A championship match Feb. 19 at the Tacoma Dome. By Sebastian Moraga

For as long as he can remember, Liberty High School wrestler Hamilton Noel has learned from the best. His father, Wright Noel, was a state championship high school wrestler and an NCAA First-Team All-American wrestler at Brigham Young University.

With the lessons learned from his father — and his own strength and determination — Hamilton Noel took second place in his weight class at the state wrestling championships for the past two years.

Building on the foundation of wrestling, Hamilton — now a high school junior — has become a dangerous football player and a dominating track-and-field athlete.

“It’s a competitive-natured sport, and if you bring that to other sports, it helps,” Hamilton said about wrestling.

He said that applies both mentally and physically, and the physical core strength gained in wrestling provides a solid physical foundation for other sports.

His supreme drive has earned him widespread respect at Liberty.

“He’s very highly respected by players, teachers and coaches,” Liberty football coach Steve Valach said. “You’d have to stretch a long way to find somebody who would have something bad to say about Hamilton.”

A record that speaks for itself

Hamilton Noel first began wrestling with his brothers at home before joining his middle school wrestling team. He was on the track-and-field team throughout middle school, and joined the football team in eighth grade, thanks to encouragement from his friends.

When he started high school, he went straight to the varsity wrestling squad, taking to the 135-pound weight class. He finished the season with a 25-9 record, advancing to the Mat Classic state tournament in the Tacoma Dome. He won his first match in the tournament 14-1, but he lost his second match in triple overtime and his third by just four points, which ended his championship run.

With just one more win, he would have placed in the top eight in the state.

By his sophomore year, Hamilton had moved to the 145-pound weight class, improving his record to 30-5 and again advancing to the state tournament, and falling just six points short of a championship. He further improved his record to 33-2 his junior year, advancing to the championship match again but failing to win by four points.

Hamilton also competed in this year’s National High School Coaches Association High School Wrestling Nationals Championship in Virginia from March 29 to April 3. Noel wrestled in five matches, boasting a 3-2 record against the county’s strongest. He fell just short of placing.

Early in his high school career, Hamilton worked his way through the football program, advancing to the varsity team his junior year, getting considerable playing time as a fullback, outside linebacker and safety.

“It’s a great team sport. I really like the coaches,” he said about Liberty’s football program. “Games are obviously super fun.”

In his junior season, Noel had 69 carries for 616 yards — an average of 8.9 yards per carry. His longest run was 77 yards, and he recorded six touchdowns. Defensively, he racked up 44 tackles — the second-most on the team — and a team-leading four interceptions.

Valach said Hamilton is a quiet leader, although one with tremendous heart.

“The best thing about Hamilton is he leads by example,” Valach said. “He’s not only tough and determined, he’s really talented. He’s a guy that lets his plays speak for him.”

Hamilton took his freshman year off from track and field, and when he joined the team his sophomore year, he finished ninth in state in the pole vault with a 12-foot 6-inch leap. He also ran in the 100-meter and 200-meter sprints.

This year, he dropped the individual sprints to join the team’s 4×400 relay team with Joshua Gordon, Hiron Redmon and Devin Bennett. The team runs the event in 3 minutes, 32.5 seconds — the third-fastest time in the state.

“He’s like a cannonball. He’s just solid,” Liberty track-and-field coach Mike Smith said. “Hamilton, not even training with the runners, blasts one of the fastest 400s on the team.”

Smith said the team also had to buy new, stronger poles to accommodate Hamilton’s ever-increasing strength.

“He’s just gotten so strong that we didn’t have anything that he could use,” he said.

A family affair

Wright and Hamilton Noel are not the only ones in the family who know how to wrestle. Hamilton’s brothers — Wright Jr., 19, and Romney, 14 — also began wrestling informally at home before joining teams in middle school.

“It started as young boys just rolling around on the carpet,” said Wright Noel, an assistant coach for the Liberty wrestling team. “With three young boys, there’s a lot of rolling around on the carpet.”

As the boys grew older, Wright began joining in on the wrestling, which he said now takes place whenever somebody wants somebody else to move out of the way.

Hamilton agreed.

“It’s pretty much always a wrestling match around the house,” he said.

However, Wright Noel has an advantage of 35 pounds and more than 20 years of experience.

“Hamilton is very gifted. The sport is natural for him, but I’ve been doing it a lot longer,” Wright Noel said with a laugh. “I have a lot of tricks.”

When Hamilton reached high school, he spent two years wrestling alongside his older brother. Wright Jr. qualified for the state tournament while at Liberty, but he never placed in the top eight.

At first, Wright Noel said there used to be tension between the boys when one would do better than the other, but the relationship has since matured.

“Now I think Wright is Hamilton’s biggest fan,” Wright Noel said about his sons. “One of the reasons Hamilton is as good as he is is because of his brother. He wanted to keep up with his brother.”

Wright continues to coach on the Liberty team, but he said he will always be a father first and coach second, and he tries to not bring his coaching duties home with him at night.

A big senior year ahead

On the football team this fall, Hamilton may take the role of the team’s leading rusher, since running back Chandler Jenkins will graduate in June.

“Certainly when we talk about running the football, he’ll be the backfield,” Valach said.

However, Valach said Hamilton will continue to be a key defensive and special teams player as well. Defensively, he will continue to drop back as a safety on coverage plays and creep up as a linebacker on four-linebacker formations.

“He’s the kind of guy when you think, ‘If we have 11 Hamilton Noels out there, who’s going to beat us?’” Valach said. “Wrestlers are so dog garn tough that they can do pretty much anything.”

On the mat, Hamilton said he hopes to win a state championship, and Liberty wrestling coach Manny Brown will be there to help get there.

“He’s determined. He loves the sport,” Brown said. “He’s just an athlete no matter what he does, and he wants to be the best at it.”

Brown said he will need to seek tough competition for Hamilton next year.

“Every time I’ve got to schedule something, I’ve got to think kind of in 3-D,” he said. “I can take the team here, but I’ve got to send Hamilton there.”

He said he hopes to give Hamilton enough competition next year that he has at least one loss during the season.

“Not that I want him to lose, but I want him to be able to challenge himself,” Brown said. “It really helps mentally. You’re not going to win every match, not going to win every point. It preps you mentally to know how far your body can go.”

He said Hamilton Noel will be the team captain next year, as he was in the 2010-2011 season.

“He’s just a natural athlete,” Brown said. “You don’t run into those every day.”

Liberty girls’ cross country team members run with other 3A Sea-King District teams Oct. 28 at Lower Woodland Park. By Michael Smith

A promise is a promise. Liberty High School cross country coach Michael Smith kept his Oct. 28 after the Patriots’ girls team captured the 3A Sea-King District title.

Smith, with some help from the Liberty team, did a dive into Green Lake. Scoring wise, the dive wasn’t a perfect 10 because he was pushed into the lake. But he kept his promise.

The week before Smith had made a similar promise to the team when it competed in the 3A KingCo Conference meet.

“I told them if they won the team title I would jump into Lake Sammamish,” Smith said.

As things turned out, Liberty finished second and Smith didn’t have to take a dip into the cold lake.

But last week, before the district meet at Seattle’s Lower Woodland Park, the Patriots, remembering Smith’s promise the week before, asked him what it would take to plunge into Green Lake.

“They asked me if I would jump in if they qualified for state. I said they would have to do better than that. Then, they asked me if they won the district title, whether I would jump into the lake. I said I would,” Smith said.

He kept his word. The Patriots captured the district title for the first time, compiling 78 points to outdistance KingCo champion Mercer Island, which was second with 99 points.

How was the water?

“It was cold,” Smith said.

But it has been a hot season for the Patriots that has just gotten better and better for the Liberty girls. Earlier this season, the Patriots had their first perfect score ever in a meet. Then, the Patriots went unbeaten against other 3A KingCo teams in league meets.

Last week, the Liberty girls became the first cross country team from Liberty to ever qualify for the state meet.

This team has come a long way in three years.

“Three years ago, we had just four girls on varsity,” Smith said.

This year, the Patriots are headed to the state meet Nov. 6 in Pasco.

Liberty won the district title despite having no individual finishers among the top 13. Mercer Island, probably a favorite for the team title, had two runners, Lindsey Benster (seventh) and Mikayla Davis (10th) finish among the top 10 placers.

However, the key for Liberty was its ability to run as a pack. Aimee Christensen led the way for the Patriots, finishing 14th in a time of 20 minutes, 25.41 seconds. Right behind her was teammate Megan Chucka, 15th in 20:26.14. Isabel Ferguson, of Bainbridge, broke up the pack by taking 16th. However, Liberty’s Rachel Shaw, Allie Wood and Amy Broska went 17th, 18th and 19th respectively. Because of the pack, there was no way Mercer Island could overcome the Patriots. The Islanders’ next runners came in at 25th, 27th and 36th.

Liberty’s Michaela Chucka finished 29th and Megan Larson came in 31st.

“I told them to stay together, and charge the uphills and go crazy on the downhills,” Smith said. “I told them not to get caught up going out too fast. They just did a great job of staying together.”

He said he had a hunch his team might do well at district.

“We felt pretty good coming into it. If Mercer Island didn’t have a great day, I felt we had a chance. I felt we could beat the Metro teams,” Smith said.

With all of the top runners returning next year, the Patriots have a chance at repeating their district title.

“We’re hoping to start a tradition,” Smith said.

Liberty boys come in sixth

The Liberty boys team finished sixth and didn’t qualify for the state meet. However, two runners did qualify individually for state — Scott Turner and Tyler Westenbroek. Turner finished 20th and Westenbroek took 23rd.