Kitsap’s Athletes of the Week | Dec. 16

Editor’s note: Kingston High School’s Liam Young’s name is corrected in this version. His first name is incorrect in the Dec. 16 Kitsap News Group print editions.

DEC. 16

TAYLOR TYE, BAINBRIDGE HIGH SCHOOL, BASKETBALL: Tye finished the Dec. 7 game against Garfield as the Spartan top scorer with 16 points. She went 4/5 on the field, all successful three-pointers, and also made four from the free throw line.
COUGARS BOWLING TEAM, CENTRAL KITSAP HIGH SCHOOL: The Central Kitsap Cougars bowling team — freshmen Jasmine Clewis and Alexis Lowery; sophomore Rebecca Sharp; juniors Brianna Salisbury, Karesse Sismore and Amanda Stewmon; and senior Sapphire Owens — continued their undefeated streak with a 4-1 win over the Yelm Tornados, Dec. 13 at All Star Lanes. The Cougars are 8-0, 8-0 and in first place in the 3A South Sound Conference.
LIAM YOUNG, KINGSTON HIGH SCHOOL, BASKETBALL: Kingston senior Liam Young scored 21 points in the Buccaneers’ 68-55 win over North Mason, Dec. 13. Kingston is 3-0, 4-0 and in first place in the 2A Olympic League.
SARAH STOLLE, SOUTH KITSAP HIGH SCHOOL, BOWLING: Sarah Stolle bowled high games of 218 and 223 in South Kitsap’s win over Olympia, 1,962 pins to 1,674, Dec. 6. SK followed up with a win over Puyallup, 1,826 to 1,632, on Dec. 13. South Kitsap is 6-1, 6-1, and in first place in 4A South Puget Sound League.

PAST ATHLETES OF THE WEEK

DEC. 9

SI-QI TALLEY, BAINBRIDGE HIGH SCHOOL, GYMNASTICS: Talley was the all-around champion in Bainbridge High’s opening gymnastics meet Dec. 2 against Ballard and Holy Names, with a score of 35.750.
BRYCE HOFFER, KINGSTON HIGH SCHOOL, SWIMMING: Hoffer is considered by his fellow swimmers to be an amazing teammate and competitor who leads by example. In the 2015-16 postseason, he was pivotal to the team’s success, winning districts and placing fourth at state. At districts, Hoffer moved up from 11th place in prelims to 10th place in the finals of the 50-free, helping the Buccaneers to win the meet by a half point. “He does what it takes to keep the team moving forward in the quest of our goals,” KHS head coach Mark VanHuis said. At state, Hoffer helped his 200-medley team bring home the school’s first state swim title. “He is just a teammate that has helped form the backbone of our team,” VanHuis said.
KAYLEE MCEDWARD, SOUTH KITSAP HIGH SCHOOL, BASKETBALL: McEdward was the leading scorer in the Wolves’ loss on Dec. 6 to North Kitsap, as well as in the team’s season-opening win Nov. 30 against North Thurston, where she scored 19 points.

NOV. 25: FALL SEASON STATE CHAMPIONS

ZORA OPALKA, BAINBRIDGE HIGH SCHOOL: State 3A diving champion.
ELEANOR BEERS, NORTH KITSAP HIGH SCHOOL: State 2A swimming champion in the 50-yard freestyle, 100-yard freestyle and 400-freestyle relay.
ELEANOR BEERS, ISABEL HENDRYX, DANICA HENNINGS, IZY IRAL, NORTH KITSAP HIGH SCHOOL: State 2A champions in the 400-yard freestyle.

NOV. 18

JAMES MUIR, BAINBRIDGE HIGH SCHOOL, WATER POLO: The Bainbridge High varsity boys water polo team claimed the fifth-place spot in the state tournament this week, thanks in no small part to the work done in the net by senior co-captain and primary goalie James Muir.
ELEANOR BEERS, NORTH KITSAP HIGH SCHOOL, SWIMMING: Beers won the state title in three events at the 2016 2A Girls State Swim Meet, Nov. 11-12 at the King County Aquatic Center. Beers finished first in the state 50-yard freestyle with a time of 23.36; first in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 50.98, and, with Isabel Hendryx, Dannica Hennings and Izy Iral, won the state 400-yard freestyle relay title with a time of 3:41.54.
TAYLOR SIMS, CENTRAL KITSAP HIGH SCHOOL, SWIMMING: Sims placed in the top 10 in four events at the 2016 3A Girls State Swim & Dive Championships, Nov. 12 at the King County Aquatics Center. Sims was a member of the relay teams that placed seventh in the 400-yard freestyle relay with a time of 3:42.74; and 10th in the 200-yard freestyle relay, finishing in 1:42.19. In individual events, Sims placed eighth in the 200-yard IM, finishing in 2:14.03; and ninth in the 100-yard butterfly with a time of 56.06.

NOV. 11

ZORA OPALKA, BAINBRIDGE HIGH SCHOOL, SWIMMING: Opalka won the Metro League championship in diving and also was first in district competition.
RACHEL DEGNAN, CROSSPOINT HIGH SCHOOL, VOLLEYBALL: Degnan led the Warriors volleyball team in their final regular-season match with nine assists and five aces to clinch a spot at districts. She was also named an Athlete of the Week by the Washington Interscholastic Athletic Association, or WIAA.
ANDREW SIMON, KINGSTON HIGH SCHOOL, CROSS COUNTRY: Simon placed second in the district cross country meet and 21st at state. His time of 16:03.2 was the 10th-best time run this season in 2A XC. He led his team to a second-place finish in league, third at districts, and 13th at state.
JACOB SIMON AND JACOB LAWS, SOUTH KITSAP HIGH SCHOOL, CROSS COUNTRY: Simon and Laws competed in the state cross country meet Nov. 5 in Pasco. Simon placed 59th out of the top 162 runners in the state. “Jacob Simon was very inspirational to his teammates both in terms of leadership and ability to race well,” head coach Erin Fraser said. “Jacob Laws raced phenomenally well as a ninth-grader and was a great racer all year.”

NOV. 4

SAM KAPEL, BAINBRIDGE HIGH SCHOOL, WATER POLO: Kapel led the Bainbridge Spartans’ scoring effort in the boys water polo team’s 16-9 win against Wilson High School in Tacoma on Oct. 26, the last of the team’s regular season outings. He scored six goals. The Spartans entered the postseason with a flawless 8-0 conference record.
BRIANN GEORGE, NORTH KITSAP HIGH SCHOOL, SOCCER: George scored the first three goals of the game to propel the Vikings girls soccer team to a 7-0 win Oct. 29 over River Ridge in the WCD 2A Girls Soccer Tournament opener.
TIA LAWRENCE, SOUTH KITSAP HIGH SCHOOL, VOLLEYBALL: Lawrence helped lead the South Kitsap volleyball team to a record of 6-10 during the Wolves’ first year in the South Puget Sound League. Her 18 digs helped South Kitsap overcome eighth-seed Rogers in the SPSL tournament.