Christmas Day marks the final issue of the year for the Port Orchard Independent. As the year comes to a close, we look back at some of the highlights — and not so memorable moments — of the year.
January
8: Chad Tester, a 2008 South Kitsap High School graduate, wakes to find that Western Washington University has discontinued its football program. Tester, a linebacker, later transferred to rival Central Washington.
9: Willie Bloomquist leaves the Seattle Mariners to sign a two-year, $3.1-million contract with the Kansas City Royals. A 1996 South Kitsap graduate, Bloomquist was expected to compete for the job at second base.
13: South Kitsap’s wrestling team won 77-0 in a Narrows League double-dual at Foss High School. It was the Wolves’ first shutout since a 82-0 win Jan. 9, 2007 against Mount Tahoma.
28: Senior Kyle Fenton needed just 51 seconds to pin Thomas Gillespie at 135 pounds as South Kitsap defeated Central Kitsap 39-26 in Silverdale to close the regular season. It was the Wolves’ 160th consecutive victory in Narrows League dual matches. Their last loss came in December 1992 against North Thurston.
February
3: Senior Tionne Curry scores a game-high 15 points to lead South Kitsap’s boys basketball team to a 55-45 win against Gig Harbor. It was the Wolves’ eighth home win in the last nine meetings in the rivalry.
4: Six South Kitsap seniors participate in the school’s National Letter of Intent Day signing party. They include Ally Johnson (softball; University of North Carolina at Greensboro); Collin Monagle (baseball; University of Washington); Justin Moore (boys soccer; Western Washington University); Alyssa Nystrom (girls soccer; University of Montana); Jason Skolnik (boys soccer; Northwest University); and Brady Steiger (baseball; Washington State University).
7: Taylor Rousell won perhaps the most competitive race at the West Central District swim meet when he finished first in the 50-yard freestyle in 21.73 seconds. The South Kitsap junior edged Wilson’s Zach Kaija (22.23) and Gig Harbor’s Tyler Kaslik (22.52).
9: South Kitsap boys basketball coach John Callaghan improved his career record to 200-75 in 11 seasons with a 64-36 win against Shelton to end the regular season.
10: John Wedge is named as the first coach of the Kitsap Pumas.
14: South Kitsap’s boys basketball team loses 55-53 against Wilson to end its season in the Narrows League Tournament. The Wolves finished with a 13-9 record.
14: Seniors Kyle Fenton (135 pounds), Adam Ferguson (130), Simon Kipperberg (119) and Brady Zurn (152) in addition to sophomores Cody Barich (125), Kris Fenton (135), Conner Hartman (160) and Michael Neiner (171) all advanced to state for South Kitsap out of the Class 4A Region III championships. The Wolves also won their first regional title since 1999 with 162.5 points to outlast Heritage of Vancouver (159).
17: South Kitsap athletic director Ed Santos announces that Michael Krug will coach the boys soccer team. Krug guided the Wolves to the state tournament in girls soccer during the fall.
18: South Kitsap’s girls basketball team loses its first game, 85-45, in the West Central District Tournament. It was the school’s worst loss since a 86-36 setback Jan. 3, 2007 at Mount Tahoma.
21: Ferguson placed fourth at 130 pounds at Mat Classic XXI, while Kyle Fenton (135) was sixth and Zurn (152) and Neiner (171) were eighth for the Wolves. As a team, South placed 19th with 32 points.
21: South Kitsap’s 400-yard freestyle relay placed fifth in 3 minutes, 16.89 seconds at the Class 4A state swim and dive championship at Federal Way’s King County Aquatic Center. That broke the school record of 3:17.68, set in 1986. Brandon Dravis, Taylor Rousell and Justin Slezak also had top five finishes in individual events.
24: Molly Werder scores a game-high 18 points as South Kitsap’s girls basketball team wins a loser-out game, 43-36, against Puyallup in the West Central District Tournament.
March
4: Carly Noyes, a 6-foot-5 post, scored 20 points to lead Moses Lake to a 51-38 win against South Kitsap in the first round of the Class 4A girls state basketball tournament at the Tacoma Dome. The Wolves trailed 17-2 with 2:19 minutes left in the first quarter. It was South’s first state-playoff appearance since 2000.
5: Samantha Gulisao scores a team-high 11 points, but it is not enough as the Wolves are eliminated from the state tournament with a 43-36 loss against Eastlake.
21: Boise State’s Brent Chriswell, a 2006 South Kitsap graduate, placed sixth in the 197-pound weight class to earn All-American honors.
April
5: Jason Hammel, a 2000 South Kitsap graduate, is traded from Tampa Bay to Colorado on the eve of the baseball opener. Hammel, a right-handed pitcher, was acquired for minor-league pitcher Aneury Rodriguez.
13: Moore scores a career-high four goals to keep South Kitsap’s boys soccer team undefeated with a 9-0 win against Mount Tahoma.
14: Ricky Johnson hit a one-out single to score Caleb Macabitas from third base in the seventh inning to lead South Kitsap to a 2-1 win against Gig Harbor.
18: Wolves senior Jon Phillips won the 1,600-meter run in 4 minutes, 19.51 seconds and followed that with a victory in the 3,200 (9:49.12) at the South Kitsap Invitational.
21: Despite 27 shots on goal and 12 corner kicks, South Kitsap’s boys soccer team ties Lincoln, 0-0. It was the first time the Wolves did not win a league match all year, but the result dropped them into third place in the Narrows League.
24: The Washington Interscholastic Activities Association’s Representative Assembly approved an amendment to implement a 35-second shot clock in boys basketball beginning during the 2009-10 season.
27: After being no-hit by Central Kitsap’s Drew Vettleson in their previous game, the Wolves respond with a 11-1 win against Wilson that clinches the Narrows League Bridge Division championship for a second consecutive year.
May
2: Behind a first-place finish by Isaiah Davis in the high jump, South Kitsap’s boys track team won the 49th Shelton Invitational with 46 points. Davis’ jump was 6 feet, 4 inches.
9: South Kitsap’s baseball team was shutout by Olympia, 12-0, in the Narrows League title game. It extended the Wolves’ scoreless streak to 26 innings against Olympia.
10: Brittany Miller, a 2005 South Kitsap graduate, saw her collegiate career end with a 5-4 loss against Texas-Tyler in the championship game of the NCAA Division III West Regionals. Miller, a right-handed pitcher for Linfield College, finished her career with a 71-14 record. She later was named as Linfield’s Female Athlete of the Year.
16: After a 1-0 loss against Puyallup, Steiger went 3 for 4 with a double and a home run to lead the Wolves to a 10-2 win against Jefferson in the afternoon game. That clinched a second consecutive state appearance for South’s baseball team.
19: South Kitsap’s boys soccer team earned its first state-playoff berth with a 3-2 shootout win against Roosevelt at Seattle’s Memorial Stadium. The Wolves converted 4 of 5 opportunities in the shootout, while the Roughriders missed two.
23: Behind a season-high seven errors, South Kitsap’s baseball team is eliminated with a 7-1 loss against Issaquah in the first round of the state tournament at Tacoma’s Heidelberg Park.
23: Moore scores on a cross from Diego Aceves-de la Cruz in the 30th minute to give the Wolves a 1-0 state-playoff win at Snohomish. South becomes only the third boys soccer team from Kitsap County to reach the state semifinals. The Wolves also did it in 2006, while North Kitsap accomplished it in 1986.
30: A day after winning a shootout against Marysville-Pilchuck, South Kitsap becomes the first boys soccer team from Kitsap County to win a state championship with a 2-1 win against Pasco at Harry E. Lang Stadium in Lakewood. Brent Ricigliano — one of 10 seniors graduating — and junior Dixon Hammer scored for the Wolves. South finished with a 15-3-1 record.
30: South Kitsap junior Leon La Deaux places third in the 300-meter hurdles in 39.04 seconds to finish third at Star Track at Mount Tahoma High School. No other South competitors placed higher than sixth. Senior Corey Galligan finished in that spot in the 400 (50.56) as did classmate Jon Phillips (4:21.03). Another senior, Sean Allison, was seventh in the javelin with a throw of 191 feet, 5 inches.
June
22: South Kitsap graduate Collin Monagle said he would not ask to be released from his letter of intent, but said he was “shocked” by the firing of University of Washington baseball coach Ken Knutson earlier in the day. Knutson compiled a 584-399-2 overall record in 16 years at UW.
July
18: Port Orchard’s Jon VanGesen led the Northwest Legends Series Masters Division with 1,733 before he blew the engine in the replica 1937 Chevy Coupe he drove at South Sound Speedway in Rochester.
24: Seattle Mariners designated hitter Mike Sweeney visits Little Leaguers at Art Mikelsen Field.
29: Santos announces that Julie Cain will succeed Krug as the school’s girls soccer coach. Cain graduated from Shorewood High School in Shoreline and later played and coached at Westmont College in California. She later coached at Seattle Pacific University. Cain became the Wolves’ third girls soccer coach in as many years and the fourth in five seasons.
August
1: South Kitsap High School graduate Dave Villwock became the winningest driver in Seafair unlimited hydroplane history with his 10th victory on Lake Washington.
16: Atta Boy Roy, a Port Orchard-owned colt, led for most of the Longacres Mile, but Assessment surged ahead near the finish to win the race in 1 minute, 33.4 seconds at Emerald Downs.
27: Bloomquist returns to Safeco Field for the first time as a Kansas City Royal. He played with Seattle from 2002-08. Bloomquist did not play and had one hit in eight at-bats during the four-game series.
September
5: South Kitsap senior Robert Issa rushes for 242 yards on 27 carries as the Wolves win their season opener, 35-14, against Kennewick at Qwest Field.
11: La Deaux finishes with 188 yards and two touchdowns on eight receptions to help the Wolves to a 28-21 win at Gig Harbor. It was their first victory against the Tides at Roy Anderson Field since 2002.
25: South Kitsap earns a 10-6 win at Olympia to snap the Bears’ streak of 28 consecutive regular-season wins in Narrows League play. It marked Olympia’s first loss since a 14-12 setback at Lincoln on Oct. 22, 2004. La Deaux scored an 82-yard touchdown on a fake-punt run in the second quarter to put the Wolves ahead for good.
29: Brianna Waldron and Becca Schoales scored as the Wolves defeated No. 2 Bellarmine Prep for a second consecutive year. South improved to 6-0-0 overall and 4-0-0 in the Narrows with the win.
October
6: Former South Kitsap quarterback Tony Fein was found dead after collapsing at a friend’s house outside of Port Orchard. Fein, who played for the Wolves in 1999-00, served 2 1/2 years in Iraq as a 19 Delta reconnaissance scout. He later played linebacker at Ole Miss and played in the preseason with the NFL’s Baltimore Ravens. The Kitsap County coroner later determined his death was the result of an accidental drug overdose.
21: South Kitsap joins Olympic for the first “DiG PiNK” match to raise awareness for breast cancer research. Each member of the South volleyball team raised at least $50 and hung posters around the city. One thousand DiG PiNK T-shirts were sold for $5. Olympic won the nonleague match 25-12, 11-25, 25-15, 22-25, 15-11.
24: The Wolves produced 381 yards of total offense alone in the first half en route to a 54-20 win against Mount Tahoma to close out a perfect regular season. South finished 9-0 overall and 8-0 league — its first undefeated regular season since 2002.
28: Riley Dopps, Brita Oleson, Christina Boddie and Kailey Lyman scored goals as South Kitsap beats Shelton, 4-0, in the Narrows League girls soccer tournament opener.
31: South Kitsap seniors Erika Copeland and Jeff Robinson advance to the state cross-country meet. Copeland finished 23rd in the Class 4A girls meet in 19 minutes, 42.6 seconds at Lakewood’s American Lake Veterans Golf Course. Robinson was 29th in the boys competition in 16:51.8. The top 30 individuals in both the boys and girls races advanced to state.
31: Four individuals advanced to state from the West Central District III Class 4A swim and dive championships at Rogers High School in Puyallup. Sophomore Nicole Hinely tied Olympia junior Clara Heffernan for first place in the 200-yard freestyle (1 minute, 55.57 seconds) and also won the 100 butterfly (58.39). Juniors Ashlee Becker (100 butterfly), Kelsey Bagley (100 freestyle) and Angela Pearson (500 freestyle) also advanced in addition to the school’s 200- and 400-freestyle relay teams.
November
2: Santos forms a task force that meets for the first time to examine the field at South Kitsap High School. The school is one of only three in the Narrows League, in addition to Bellarmine Prep and Shelton, that has a grass surface. The Washington Interscholastic Activities Association mandates that teams must have an artificial surface to host state-playoff games.
3: Dopps and Waldron score goals to lead South Kitsap to a 2-0 win against Bellarmine Prep to win its first Narrows League Tournament title. It marks the first time the Wolves have defeated Bellarmine Prep twice in one season in girls soccer. South becomes the first team in 10 years besides the Lions to win the tournament.
7: South Kitsap senior quarterback Gordy Anderson completes 18 of 28 passes for 362 yards and four touchdowns to guide the Wolves to a 38-21 win against Heritage in the Class 4A state play-in game at Silverdale Stadium.
10: Jami Cantrell and Oleson scored goals as South Kitsap advances to the Class 4A state playoffs for a second consecutive year with a 2-0 win against Kamiak at Silverdale Stadium.
14: Reilly Retz scores on a loose ball in the 48th minute as Kentwood eliminates South Kitsap in the first round of the Class 4A state girls soccer playoffs at Mount Tahoma High School. The Wolves finished the season 14-1-3.
14: Skyline quarterback Jake Heaps, who committed to Brigham Young, passes for 301 yards in the first half as the Spartans hand South Kitsap a 63-14 loss in the first round of the Class 4A state playoffs at Mount Tahoma High School. It marks the Wolves’ worst loss since North Kitsap beat them 65-7 in 2004. South finished the season 10-1.
14: Hinely places 10th in the 100-yard butterfly (58.12 seconds) and 11th in the 200 freestyle (1 minute, 56.33 seconds) at the Class 4A state swim and dive championship at the King County Aquatic Center in Federal Way. Those were the Wolves’ top finishes.
15: Drew Polley, a 2004 South Kitsap High School graduate, was the top American placer at the Rock ‘n’ Roll San Antonio Marathon. He finished eighth in 2 hours, 20 minutes and 59 seconds. Gilbert Koech, a 29-year-old Kenyan, won the event in 2:14.39.
15: Whitworth University midfielder Travis Gutierrez, a former South Kitsap student who graduated from Bremerton High School in 2007, helps the Pirates to the Northwest Conference Division III men’s soccer championship with a 2-1 win against Claremont-Mudd Scripps College.
22: University of San Diego senior defender Tim Grey, a 2006 South Kitsap High School graduate, sees his collegiate career end with a 1-0 loss against UC Santa Barbara in the second round of the NCAA men’s soccer tournament.
December
1: South Kitsap junior Angela Romonsky hits six 3-pointers to guide the Wolves to a 62-45 win against Graham-Kapowsin in the season opener. Romonsky finished with 20 points.
10: Rousell, who generally specializes in the 50- and 100-yard freestyles, earns a state-qualifying time in the 100 butterfly (53.89 seconds) as South Kitsap earns a 101-85 win against Central Kitsap in a Narrows League boys swim and dive meet.
