There has been a lot of fallout from the move of the Seattle Sonics NBA franchise to Oklahoma City. And yes, while there is a chance that turncoat Howard Schultz might be able to bring the team back with his public-relations-stunt of a lawsuit, most sports fans will feel the void this November.
The Midlakes Swimming Championship marked the end of an era and many coaching tenures for Island clubs at the King County Aquatic Center on Saturday.
11U baseball team finishes second at district tourney
For most people, the vacation of a lifetime has a destination of Italy, France, or for Islander Paul Allen, maybe outer space. For me, the person who has taken two vacations since starting at the Reporter in 2001, it was the baseball trifecta.
Following the Midlakes Championship meet and quickly filing my story, I rushed to the airport with my brother-in-law for a red-eye to New York to see Yankee stadium, Cooperstown and then over to Boston for a game at Fenway Park.
The Mercer Island 9-10 Little League baseball All-Stars capped an undefeated playoff tournament by capturing the Mercer Island Little League’s first Washington state championship on July 27.
MI Girls Basketball (MIGB) is offering free clinics in August for girls in grades four through eight. Fourth, fifth and sixth-grade clinics will be held from 5:30-7 p.m. on Aug. 21 and 7-8:30 p.m. on Aug. 25 at the MI Boys and Girls Club. The clinics will be run by the fifth and sixth-grade select team coaches. At the clinics, MIGB will be introducing Jennie Rondel as the new fifth-grade coach. Coach Rondel played college basketball at Santa Clara University and coached Lake Washington High School varsity girls basketball team last season. Also running the clinics will be sixth-grade Select coaches Matt Price, former MIHS men’s varsity player and record holder, along with Dawn Wilson. Both have been coaching MIGB for the last two and three years, respectively.
Matt Boyd, a Mercer Island resident and Eastside Catholic baseball player, has had a busy year with numerous regional all-star team selections, helping to guide the Crusaders through an undefeated league schedule and verbally committing to play at Oregon State University. What’s next? His senior year of high school.
Islander head football coach, Bill Heglar, resigned on Thursday, taking the athletic director’s position at Kentlake High School because of a lack of teaching opportunities at Mercer Island High School.
Mercer Island’s only 18U select team, Mudville Baseball NW (42-19, 5-2) has captured the 2008 Triple Crown National 18U Championship defeating the No. 1 seed, Lone Peak Knights of Alpine, Utah, 6-1 in the championship game. After a 1-2 start in the Round Robin portion of the event, Mudville made the necessary offensive and defensive adjustments, winning four straight games in four days to capture the national championship at Supliezio Field, home of the National Junior College World Series. Mudville struggled initially in the seeding rounds to qualify in the double elimination event. Mercer Islander Cam Wilson won the only game of the Round Robin play, defeating the Newcastle Blue Sox (CO) 11-2. Wilson struck out six and walked two, not allowing an earned run.
One of the often cited minuses of trading Raul Ibanez is that he provides the intangibles of the “great clubhouse guy” for the Seattle Mariners.
Less than a month before the Mercer Island High School football team plays its first game of the 2008 season, interim head coach John Williams is still trying to put names with faces.
Free basketball
Some athletes have swam around the Island for charity. Some have attempted the feat as a school project. Some have done it for a challenge. For Rachel Godfred and Sara Markwith it was all of the above.
