POULSBO — A dose of “perfect timing” has led North Kitsap educator Bill Hobaugh back out into the Vikings’ athletic field. After more than a decade hiatus, Hobaugh will be returning to the scene as head coach on the NK fastpitch diamond — replacing Dan Kolda, who resigned last spring. Early in his career at NKHS, Hobaugh was head coach of the softball team when it was still slowpitch. He also helped coach basketball and soccer for the Vikings during the 1980s and 1990s and now the self-professed sports nut is at it again.
POULSBO — High school football players across the nation signed their names Feb. 7, each one laying the groundwork for their respective steps into the next level of competition. It was the NCAA’s national letter of intent signing day and at North Kitsap High School before the first bell, senior Aaron Salo sat at a conference table with pen in hand and a smile on his face.
TACOMA — While the Vikings came back without any championships from the Region III wrestling tournament at Mount Tahoma High School this weekend, they returned owning a little piece of history. Seven of North’s wrestlers earned entry into the 2007 Mat Classic XVI — that’s near the top number North has sent to state in any given year, NK head coach Jon Cooke said, and the absolute most of this decade.
FEDERAL WAY — If only North was classified as a 3A school. That’s what the North Kitsap gymnastics team was wishing this weekend at the West Central District meet at Federal Way High School, head coach Kris Goodfellow said. This year, after a shake-up in the way the 3A and 4A state meets are scheduled, there were considerably less qualifying spots available — almost half.
POULSBO — Any team that has the experience on the incoming Poulsbo Panthers girls basketball varsity squad, is already one step ahead of the game. This year’s Panthers have played together through the school program as well as in rec league programs. Some of them have been on the court together since elementary school.
KINGSTON — Days away from its Feb. 13 home opener, Kingston Junior High School’s gym is filled with anticipation. This year’s girls basketball team has a chance to cap a junior high school legacy for the Cavaliers.
POULSBO — North Kitsap’s outdoor athletes will finally have a roof over their heads. After years of searching for an alternative to the lack of field availability during the winter, NK’s outdoor sports community now has a gem in its backyard — more specifically off Finn Hill Road in College Marketplace. The Zone Sportsplex opened last week, offering indoor recreation and fitness options on a grand scale.
POULSBO — With a three-point loss to the Gig Harbor Tides Friday night at home, North Kitsap boys basketball ended its first year under head coach Tony Chisholm. And while the NK win/loss record seems riddled with discord, the actual tenor of the season was much more positive.
TACOMA — Though the South Kitsap Wolves — with another championship in 2007 — have claimed the Narrows League title in four of the past five years, North Kitsap, this year, qualified the most wrestlers onto the regional tournament than it has in the past five years.
OLYMPIA — With two losses coming into the final game of the season, the North Kitsap Vikings girls basketball team has put itself on the edge. Going from a three-way tie for second place in the Narrows Bay Division at the beginning of the week, the Vikings are now battling with Central Kitsap for the No. 4 spot. The fate of the season rested on the outcome of North’s Friday night match up with Gig Harbor and Central’s tango with South Kitsap tonight.
In their final two meets of the regular season, the Viking gymnasts went from a hardcore competitive meet with Bainbridge Friday night, to a fun-centered affair Saturday, in which team scores weren’t even kept. Though it wasn’t a perfectly happy ending — with a two-point loss to the Spartans — coach Kris Goodfellow hopes Saturday’s contrast will help the team see two sides of the competition.
POULSBO — Here comes the pressure-cooker. Despite a 49-46 setback to Central Kitsap Jan. 26 followed by a manhandling by Mount Tahoma Jan. 27, the North Kitsap Vikings (8-8 overall, 5-7 league) are still eyeing an automatic berth into the West Central District tournament.
POULSBO — Once again this year, the Narrows League mat title came down to a battle between North and South — only this time it was decided in a rescheduled match. The Wolves came to Poulsbo Thursday, highly touted with a NL winning streak dating back to 1992. However, the Vikings took to the match with an unusually confident poise for an underdog set for a double header on the evening.
POULSBO — Senior Night, the North Kitsap swim team’s final home meet and final regular season contest seemed like the perfect time to pick up the first team “W” of the season. A “true team effort” yielded the 95-74 win over the Abes, NK head coach Greg Braun said as North hosted Lincoln High School Tuesday. And for one of the few times this season, the Vikings were competing on an even playing field.
KINGSTON — Another round of basketball bonanza at the annual Kingston Hip Hop Hoop Shoot has yielded the cream of the 3-on-3 crop. Saturday, more than 50 youth teams from throughout the North End and beyond converged on Kingston Junior High School for a complete day’s worth of 3-on-3 hoops action. The meal of the day was provided by the Kingston Pizza Factory, while the demeanor of the Poulsbo Parks and Recreation’s 15th annual Hip Hop Hoop Shoot was a determined enthusiasm.
POULSBO — Led by two sophomores and a senior on the scoring end, the fledgling North Kitsap Vikings boys basketball team kept pace with a seasoned South Kitsap Wolves squad Friday night. Unfortunately for NK, it never closed the gap, and in the end, the No. 8 ranked team in the state took the game, 69-54.
POULSBO — In its first home dual of the season, the North Kitsap Viking wrestling team filled the NKHS den with dominance. The Vikes trotted easily over Lincoln to a 64-18 team win, which boosts them to a 9-1 record as they look forward to one of the most important weeks of the season. Next week also brings a chance to challenge South Kitsap’s ridiculous Narrows League unbeaten streak Jan. 25. (South hasn’t lost to a Narrows League opponent since 1992).
POULSBO — When it comes to finales, the latest North End junior high rivalry Jan. 18 wasn’t the most sentimental or the most exciting, but it was the last time these two boys basketball teams will do battle as junior highs. Next year, Poulsbo and Kingston junior highs will transition into middle schools as their ninth grades will join the high school ranks, while each school will welcome sixth grades to their respective halls.
SILVERDALE — Central Kitsap’s Matman Classic is growing into one of the state’s most prestigious wrestling tournaments as it continues to expand the number and quality of its teams. This year, the tournament’s team roster read like a state wrestling honor roll as four of the 15 teams — (final team placing) No. 1 Lake Stevens, No. 2 Rogers, No. 3 Enumclaw, No. 6 South Kitsap — finished in the top 10 at last year’s Mat Classic XVIII Championships.
KINGSTON — For the 15th year running strong, Kingston’s annual three on three Hip Hop Hoop Shoot will be bouncing into Kingston Junior High gymnasiums for a basketball extravaganza.