2018: The year in sports on Mercer Island

Islanders athletes display skills in their respective sports.

By Shaun Scott • December 21, 2018 4:50 pm
Mercer Island 195-pound junior Donnie Howard earned second place at the Mat Classic Class 3A state tournament on Feb. 17 at the Tacoma Dome. Photo courtesy of Billy Pruchno
Mercer Island 195-pound junior Donnie Howard earned second place at the Mat Classic Class 3A state tournament on Feb. 17 at the Tacoma Dome. Photo courtesy of Billy Pruchno

JANUARY

“Islanders wrestlers dominate Totems”: The Mercer Island Islanders wrestling team cruised to a 48-0 victory against the Sammamish Totems in a KingCo 2A/3A dual meet on Jan. 5. Islanders grapplers Jordan Tillinger, Eli Pruchno, Vinny Ricci and Rini Li registered pins in their respective matches.

FEBRUARY

“Howard earns second place at the Mat Classic”: Mercer Island Islanders junior wrestler Donnie Howard registered an second-place finish in the 195-pound weight division at the Class 3A state wrestling tournament at the Mat Classic on Feb. 17 at the Tacoma Dome.

MARCH

“Yuasa earns first place at coveted event”: Mercer Island freshman Tegan Yuasa, center, earned first place in the Cadet -50 kilogram division at the USA Judo Scholastic National Championships on March 3-4 in York, Pennsylvania.

APRIL

“Lee dominates Eason Invitational”: Mercer Island senior track athlete Kayla Lee captured first place in the 400-meter dash with at time of 58.35 on April 21 in Snohomish.

MAY

“Islanders golf team earns third place at the state tourney”: The Mercer Island Islanders girls golf team finished in third place at the Class 3A state tournament on May 23 at Indian Canyon Golf Course in Spokane. Mercer Island golfer Gihoe Seo captured third place individually with a total of 151 strokes at the two-day tournament.

JUNE

“Little League softball squad competes in tournament”: The Mercer Island Little League softball all-star majors team, which is comprised of players between 11-12 years of age, competed in the Little League Softball Division Washington District 9 all-star tournament from June 19-21 in Duvall. The MILL all-stars had an overall record of 1-2 at the tournament.

JULY

“Howard partakes in an experience of a lifetime”: July of 2018 was undoubtedly a memorable month for Mercer Island Islanders boys lacrosse player Donnie Howard. Howard, who will be a senior during the 2018-19 school year, was a member of the Russian National Lacrosse team that competed at the 2018 FIL World Lacrosse Championships from July 12-21 in Israel.

AUGUST

“State champion Islanders girls soccer team kicks off practices”: The Mercer Island girls soccer team, which won the Class 3A state championship during the 2017 season, kicked off its first practices of the 2018 season in their quest to bring home a second consecutive state title.

SEPTEMBER

“Islanders are dominating on the tennis court”: The Mercer Island Islanders boys tennis team earned a 6-1 victory against the Bellevue Wolverines in a 3A/2A KingCo tennis matchup on Sept. 25 on Mercer Island. The Islanders improved their overall record to 8-1 (4-0 league) with the victory.

OCTOBER

“Mercer Island football program hosts Russian players”: Moscow Spartans football players Omari Grinyaev and Michael Levenshtein visited Mercer Island from Oct. 9-22 to observe Mercer Island Islanders football practices and games.

NOVEMBER

“Islanders earn fifth place at state water polo tournament”: With a fifth-place spot in the state tournament on the line, the Mercer Island Islanders came through in the clutch against one of their biggest rivals. Mercer Island defeated Bellevue, 3-1, earning fifth place in the Washington water polo state tournament on Nov. 9 at the Curtis Aquatic Center in University Place.

DECEMBER

“Mercer Island captures win against Juanita”: Mercer Island hit clutch shots from the perimeter and the free throw line down the stretch, en route to a 56-49 win against Juanita on Dec. 11 at Mercer Island High School.

The Mercer Island Islanders girls golf squad finished in third place at the Class 3A state tournament on May 23 at Indian Canyon Golf Course in Spokane. The Islanders, who finished with a total of 70.5 team points, finished 21 points behind first-place Bellevue. Mercer Island golfer Gihoe Seo captured third place individually with a total of 151 strokes at the two-day tournament. Photo courtesy of Billy Pruchno

The Mercer Island Islanders girls golf squad finished in third place at the Class 3A state tournament on May 23 at Indian Canyon Golf Course in Spokane. The Islanders, who finished with a total of 70.5 team points, finished 21 points behind first-place Bellevue. Mercer Island golfer Gihoe Seo captured third place individually with a total of 151 strokes at the two-day tournament. Photo courtesy of Billy Pruchno

Moscow Spartans football players Omari Grinyaev, Michael Levenshtein and Mercer Island head football coach Ed Slezinger pose for a quick photo prior to the start of Mercer Island’s football practice on Oct. 9. Grinyaev and Levenshtein were in Washington observing the Islanders football programs practices, meetings, workouts and games through Oct. 22. Shaun Scott/staff photo

Moscow Spartans football players Omari Grinyaev, Michael Levenshtein and Mercer Island head football coach Ed Slezinger pose for a quick photo prior to the start of Mercer Island’s football practice on Oct. 9. Grinyaev and Levenshtein were in Washington observing the Islanders football programs practices, meetings, workouts and games through Oct. 22. Shaun Scott/staff photo