Sports - High Schools

POSTED: Saturday, Jun. 27, 2009

PREP BOYS' TRACK: All-Whatcom County First team

ATHLETE OF THE YEAR

SHAYNE MOORE

School: Blaine

Year: Senior

Event: 110 and 300 hurdles

What he did: Won the Class 2A state championship in the 110 hurdles with a time of 14.61 seconds and the state title in the 300 hurdles in 38.89 seconds ... Joined with Caleb Statham, Jacob Rogers and Ephraim Westbrook to finish fifth at state in the 4x400 relay in 3:28.36 ... Helped the Borderites to a program-best second-place finish, only six points behind Lynden ... Won 2A Northwest District titles in the 110 and 300 hurdles ... Won every 110 hurdles final he raced except for one - the Larry Eason Invite at Snohomish on April 18 - when he finished second ... Finished in top two in every 300 hurdles final he ran, and won all but one.

Coach's quote: "We tried to find the toughest meets to send him to all year. We wanted to find the best competition we could to help him get better, and he always answered the challenge. To win two state titles, that's quite an accomplishment for him." - Mike Grambo

COACH OF THE YEAR

LAYNE HUTCHINS

School: Lynden

What he did: Led the Lions to the program's first state championship with 45 points, beating out second-place Blaine's 39 ... Had one relay win a state championship and eight individuals place in the top eight of their respective events.

Coach's quote: "Layne and I have been good friends for a number of years. ... It's been fun to watch Lynden grow in recent years. Layne has done a great job of building that entire program. Lynden can be a bit of a football and basketball town, but Layne and his assistants have done a great job creating some excitement over track during the spring." - Sehome's Jen Leita

TIM BRADLEY

School: Blaine

Year: Junior

Event: 1,600 meters

What he did: Won the Class 2A state championship in the 1,600 with a time of 4 minutes, 20.72 seconds ... Also finished sixth at state in the 3,200 with a time of 9:41.65 ... Helped the Borderites to a program-best second-place finish, only six points behind Lynden ... Won 2A Northwest District titles in the 1,600 and 3,200 ... A very dedicated athlete who put in plenty of miles last summer to develop into one of the area's top distance runners.

Coach's quote: "What was most memorable for me about Tim's title was we knew coming in that we needed him to place in the top two or three for us to bring home a state trophy. When I heard he finished sixth, it was kind of a bummer, but we all tried to stay positive. ... It was a lot to overcome for a kid who turned in a time the previous week that would have placed him second, but he did it in the 1,600. And he did it by breaking a 25-year-old record at Blaine High School to win state." - Mike Grambo

JACOB ROGERS

School: Blaine

Year: Senior

Event: Multi-events

What he did: Finished seventh in the 400 meters at the Class 2A State Championships with a time of 51.20 seconds ... Also joined with Caleb Statham, Shayne Moore and Ephraim Westbrook to finish fifth at state in the 4x400 relay in 3:28.36 ... Helped the Borderites to a program-best second-place finish, only six points behind Lynden ... Finished third in the 400 at the 2A Northwest District meet and sixth in the 100.

Coach's quote: "We knew him from football, and we knew he had some speed, but he had never turned out for track before. I didn't even recruit him. He went out for baseball as a freshman and sophomore, and we never thought he would turn out for track. ... I would say Jacob Rogers in all my 24 years of coaching is one of the toughest kids I've ever seen. He anchored our 4-by-1 and 4-by-4 relays, and he was one of the fastest kids on the team. He was a surprise." - Mike Grambo

DYLAN EASTWOOD

School: Ferndale

Year: Senior

Event: Pole vault

What he did: Finished ninth in the pole vault at the Class 3A State Championships by clearing 13 feet ... Won the 3A Northwest District title in the event, but cleared a personal-best 13-6 on April 29 ... Battled through the death of Golden Eagles pole vaulting coach Jeremy Scully last spring, and quickly learned to work with new coach Brian Talley this spring, according to Ferndale head coach Ted Genger ... Just narrowly missed qualifying for state in the event as a junior.

Coach's quote: "Jeremy Scully was Dylan's pole vault coach for much of last year, and it was kind of a tough transition for him going to a different coach. There is a different approach and some different terminology to deal with, but Dylan responded well to his new coach, Brian Talley. Those guys really worked together well. Dylan wanted to go to state, not only for Jeremy Scully, but also for Brian Talley. He set his mind to it and accomplished that goal." -Genger

BLAIR BOMBER

School: Lynden

Year: Junior

Event: 200 meters

What he did: Finished second in the 200 at the Class 2A State Championships with a time of 22.05 seconds ... Also placed second in the 100 at state with a time of 11.07 seconds and joined with Colby Biesheuvel, Dusty Duncan and Jordan Weeks to win the 2A state championship in the 4x400 relay in 3:21.12 ... Helped the Lions to the 2A team title for the first time in the program's history ... Also competed in the 4x100 relay at state ... Won the 2A Northwest District title in the 100 and finished second in the 200 ... Known for lightening the mood in practice, but also an extremely hard worker.

Coach's quote: "I think before the season, this was one of the first breaks Blair had between basketball and track and every other sport that he had. It helped him to have a little rest and a little down time. When the season started, he came in focused and worked hard in every practice. ... He worked hard and it paid off for him." - Layne Hutchins

DUSTY DUNCAN

School: Lynden

Year: Junior

Event: 400 meters

What he did: Finished fourth in the 400 at the Class 2A State Championships with a time of 49.97 seconds ... Also placed fifth in the 100 at state in 11.13 and joined with Colby Biesheuvel, Blair Bomber and Jordan Weeks to win the 2A state championship in the 4x400 relay in 3:21.12 ... Helped the Lions to the 2A team title for the first time in the program's history ... Also competed in the 4x100 relay at state ... Finished second in the 400 and fourth in the 100 at the 2A Northwest District meet ... Worked well with fellow junior sprinter Blair Bomber, as both pushed each other to be better.

Coach's quote: "I credit Dusty for coming back from what was a pretty serious injury at the district meet last year. He came back and did what he was supposed to do, as far as rehabbing, which is hard for some kids to focus on. He did it, and that is a credit to his focus and determination." - Layne Hutchins

CONNOR ANDERSON

School: Lynden

Year: Sophomore

Event: 300 hurdles

What he did: Placed sixth in the 300 hurdles at the Class 2A State Championships with a time of 40.84 seconds ... Helped the Lions to the 2A team title for the first time in the program's history ... Finished second at the 2A Northwest District meet in the 300 hurdles and eighth in the javelin ... A talented all-around athlete, who also was an alternate on Lynden's relays and should figure prominently there next year.

Coach's quote: "Connor is a very good athlete. He is extremely coachable. Just a great kid. Whatever you want him to work on, he'll do. The 300 hurdles is something that was brand new for him this year, but because of his athleticism, he was able to take it all the way to state. He worked hard, but that is one of the most difficult events to do well in for somebody who is starting out. But he made it with a lot of hard work." - Layne Hutchins

BRETT BAJEMA

School: Lynden

Year: Junior

Event: Triple jump

What he did: Placed sixth in the triple jump at the Class 2A State Championships with a leap of 43-7 3/4 ... Helped the Lions to the 2A team title for the first time in the program's history ... Finished second in the triple jump at the 2A Northwest District meet ... Completed at least once in 13 different events for Lynden at some point during the season ... Finished 11th out of 60 competitors in the decathlon at the Multi Event Championships at Lake Stevens on June 5.

Coach's quote: "Brett is a multi-talented guy. We have a hard time figuring out where to put him. After last year's decathlon, we though maybe the 110 hurdles would be good. He did a good job, but just started beating himself up. So we thought we should get him out of there and find the best place to put him where he could get to state. ... He'll do whatever you ask him. He is a team player who really helped the entire team succeed." - Layne Hutchins

JORDAN WEEKS

School: Lynden

Year: Senior

Event: Multi-events

What he did: Joined with Colby Biesheuvel, Blair Bomber and Dusty Duncan to win the 2A state championship in the 4x400 relay in 3:21.12 ... Placed sixth in the 100 meters at state in 11.14 seconds and was eighth in the 200 in 22.45 seconds ... Helped the Lions to the 2A team title for the first time in the program's history ... Also competed in the 4x100 relay at state ... Finished third in the 100 and 200 at the 2A Northwest District meet ... Will attend the University of British Columbia in the fall to play football.

Coach's quote: "Jordan fought through injuries again this year. That's something he's had to do the last couple of years. His hamstrings bothered him all year, because he is so strong and tight. We worked on his flexibility, but at times we had to shut him down so he could be ready to run good at the end of the year, and he did. He was really important for us in the relays as well as the sprints, getting us extra points." - Layne Hutchins

ZACH BLOK

School: Lynden Christian

Year: Senior

Event: High jump

What he did: Won the Class 1A state championship in the high jump with a leap of 6 feet, 4 inches ... Also joined with Chris Johnson, Cody Heeringa and David Griess to finish sixth at state in the 4x400 relay with a time of 3:32.75 ... Finished second in the high jump at the 1A tri-district meet ... A very confident athlete who broke the old school record in the event by two inches ... Extremely consistent, steady and determined throughout the year, according to Lyncs coach Kent DeHoog.

Coach's quote: "I was always impressed that it was never in question that he was going to surpass the school record. His confidence really struck me. I don't think he ever doubted that he would jump 6-4 and break the school record. It was just a matter of which track meet it would happen in. He did it at the right time and won the state title." - Kent DeHoog

MAX CROOK

School: Meridian

Year: Senior

Event: Javelin

What he did: Finished fifth in the javelin at the Class 1A State Championships with a throw of 173 feet, 6 inches ... Also placed third in the shot put at state with a throw of 48-4 ... Won 1A tri-district titles in the javelin and the shot put ... A versatile, hard-working athlete who also competed on Meridian's relay teams this season.

Coach's quote: "Max was the leader of the boys' team. He ended up being a strong competitor after having some disappointment at the end of last season when he entered district as one of the top javelin throwers in the state and didn't make it. But this year he set his sights on being a state competitor and he worked through some difficulties in the middle of the season to have a strong finish. ... All the success he had was something he worked hard for." - Patrick Ames

NATHAN OLIPHANT

School: Meridian

Year: Senior

Event: Long jump

What he did: Had a personal best leap of 20 feet, 1 1/4 inch in the long jump at the Larry Eason Invite on April 18 ... Finished ninth in the 200 at the Class 1A State Championships preliminaries in 23.56 seconds and 11th in the 400 meters with a time of 53.37 seconds ... Joined with Skyler Ferry, Mike Ryan and Tim Schwisow to finish ninth in the state preliminaries for the 4x100 relay with a time of 45.49 seconds ... Finished fourth in the 200 and fifth in the 400 at the 1A tri-district meet ... Selected the boys' track team's Most Inspirational Athlete in his first year on the team.

Coach's quote: "To come out for the first time as a senior, track was something that he really enjoyed. He lived, ate and breathed track and field for the three months of this season. He is a versatile athlete that was a good sprinter. He was a good competitor and a great kid with a good work ethic. I think if you asked him, he would list his experience with the track team as one of his favorite memories from high school." - Patrick Ames

ANTHONY REESE

School: Nooksack Valley

Year: Junior

Event: 110 hurdles

What he did: Finished seventh in the 110 hurdles at the Class 1A State Championships with a time of 16.14 seconds ... Also placed fourth in the 300 hurdles at state with a time of 41.57 seconds ... Finished third in the 300 hurdles and fifth in the 110 hurdles at the 1A tri-district meet ... Worked well with new Pioneers assistant coach Andrea Ames to drop an amazing 1 1/2 seconds off his time in the 110 hurdles.

Coach's quote: "Anthony is a kid that worked hard to get better. He started the year with a goal to get to state, and at the beginning of the year, he was probably on the outside looking in. It was going to be hard for him to get there with so many quality kids in our district. But he had a goal and worked really hard to meet that goal, and he brought his time down by about 1 and a half seconds this season." - Robb Myhre

JUSTIN THOMSEN

School: Sehome

Year: Senior

Event: 100 meters

What he did: Finished third in the 100 at the Class 2A State Championships with a time of 11.09 seconds ... Also joined with Justin Santos, Levi Grudzinski and Matt Fazio to finish seventh at state in the 4x100 relay in 47.62 seconds ... Helped the Mariners place fifth as a team, only eight points behind state champion Lynden ... Finished second in the 100 at the 2A Northwest District Meet ... Holds the school record in the 100 ... Will attend Western Washington University and plans to continue competing in track.

Coach's quote: "He came to us for the first time as a junior. After watching him come from football and seeing him run, we thought he could be something special, but we had no idea he would break the school record in the 100 as a junior and then break it again this year. Then to see him finish third at state in a very competitive field, it was amazing. He was another guy that was nice to have to anchor our relays. He would lay it all on the line to get the job done." - Jen Leita

JACOB GILBERT

School: Sehome

Year: Senior

Event: Shot put

What he did: Finished eighth in the shot put at the Class 2A State Championships with a throw of 49 feet, 8 1/2 inches ... Also finished fourth in the discus at state with a throw of 150-11 ... Helped the Mariners place fifth as a team, only eight points behind state champion Lynden ... Finished second in the shot put and fourth in the discus at the 2A Northwest District meet ... Known for his hard work and senior leadership.

Coach's quote: "(Throws coach Tim Carlson) does such a great job of making each of his kids buy into the family atmosphere and helping them each progress. Jason definitely bought into the program, and it's been fun to watch him progress the last four years. I love to see the kids that put in the hard work have it pay off for them, and Jason was definitely one of those guys." - Jen Leita

NELSON WESTLIN

School: Sehome

Year: Senior

Event: Discus

What he did: Won the Class 2A state championship in the discus with a meet record throw of 172 feet, 11 inches ... Also finished second in the shot put with a throw of 58-8 ... Helped the Mariners place fifth as a team, only eight points behind state champion Lynden ... Won the 2A Northwest District shot put (57-9) and discus titles (175-11) ... A quiet leader for the Mariners throwers ... Plans to attend Western Washington University and continue to throw.

Coach's quote: "No one cares more about track than Nelly. He is so focused and so dedicated. When (throws coach Tim Carlson's) wife went into labor and Tim had to leave us at state the night before the discus, I didn't have to worry about it. I came down to breakfast and told Nelly that he was going to have a little sister - the throwers are always talking about being a family - and he was so excited. It didn't even bother him that his coach wasn't there. He was unflappable and totally relaxed. He went out and won without his coach and set a meet record." - Jen Leita

JUSTIN SANTOS

School: Sehome

Year: Junior

Event: Multi-events

What he did: Finished ninth in the 200 meters preliminaries at the Class 2A State Championships with a time of 22.72 seconds ... Joined with Levi Grudzinski, Matt Fazio and Justin Thomsen to finish seventh at state in the 4x100 relay (47.62 seconds) and Logan Barnett, Fazio and Clinton Overman to finish fourth in the 4x400 relay (3:29.11) ... Helped the Mariners place fifth as a team, only eight points behind state champion Lynden ... Placed fourth in the 200 at the 2A Northwest District meet ... Led the Northwest Conference in rushing on the football team in the fall.

Coach's quote: "Justin was one of the guys that cared about carrying the team. After we were strong in the middle-distance and distance events for so long, he was excited that it was going to be up to the sprinters and throws to carry us at state this year. He really wanted to help carry this team to another title. He's just a great guy to have on the team." - Jen Leita

RYAN MACDONALD

School: Sehome

Year: Junior

Event: Multi-events

What he did: Placed fourth in the discus at the Class 2A State Championships with a throw of 150 feet, 11 inches and was ninth in the shot put with a throw of 49-4 1/2 ... Helped the Mariners place fifth as a team, only eight points behind state champion Lynden ... Placed third in the discus and fourth in the shot put at the 2A Northwest District meet ... Will be looked to to lead the Mariners throwers next season.

Coach's quote: "I'm super happy that we get Ryan back. We had him join us his sophomore year, and we watched him buy into the program. He cares about contributing. He's a guy that is in the weight room constantly during the offseason. We're looking forward to him being our go-to thrower next year. He's a guy we can rely on and look to for big points to help lead the team." - Jen Leita

CLINTON OVERMAN

School: Sehome

Year: Senior

Event: Multi-events

What he did: Placed eighth in the 800 meters at the Class 2A State Championships with a time of 2 minutes, 3.18 seconds ... Joined with Logan Barnett, Matt Fazio and Justin Santos to finish sixth in the 4x400 relay with a time of 3:29.11 ... Helped the Mariners place fifth as a team, only eight points behind state champion Lynden ... Finished fourth in the 800 at the 2A Northwest District meet ... Also a strong cross country runner for the Mariners ... Plans to attend the University of Washington and attempt to walk on for the cross country team.

Coach's quote: "Clinton is a kick in the pants personality-wise. I was happy to be able to see him use his speed in the 4x4 relay. He really wanted to be on that relay after watching Mason (McHenry) and those guys last year. He though it was the coolest event on the track. He showed me early in the season why he belonged on that team. He was just such a stellar performer for us." - Jen Leita

DYZMTRY RYZHKOU

School: Squalicum

Year: Senior

Event: 800 meters

What he did: Finished second in the 800 at Class 2A State Championships with a time of 1 minute, 56.87 seconds ... Also placed fifth in the 1,600 with a time of 4:27.21 ... Placed second in the 800 and fourth in the 1,600 at the 2A Northwest District Meet ... Developed into a stronger distance runner for the Storm, according to coach Peter Oviatt ... Also improved the way he raced tactically, running inside and not worrying about running in a box ... Plans to attend Whatcom Community College.

Coach's quote: "He has the best learning curves both physically and tactically of anyone I have coached since I took over here. He is a hard worker who did some things in practice that, maybe he wasn't comfortable doing but that I needed him to do. He took it on trust that it would help him improve and he developed into a guy that learned he could run anything from a 200 to a 3,200 and be one of the best runners in the state in any of them." - Oviatt

MARC FUHRMEISTER

School: Squalicum

Year: Senior

Event: 3,200 meters

What he did: Placed seventh in the 3,200 at the Class 2A State Championships with a time of 9 minutes, 43.30 seconds ... Finished third in the event at 2A Northwest District meet ... Developed into a top-level runner by taking each workout personally and making sure he got the most of each one, according to coach Peter Oviatt ... Will continue to run at Western Washington University, and Oviatt believes he can challenge for a varsity spot as a freshman.

Coach's quote: "I don't know exactly what made him decide he wanted to go from being a good runner to being one of the best runners in the state, but you could see the difference it made in him. You could see it in the way he trained and in the way he ran at meet. When he said he wanted something and I told him what it was going to take to get there, there was never any rehashing - he just trusted the program." - Oviatt

HONORABLE MENTION

Athlete School

Junior Clizbe Bellingham

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Brett Mattson Blaine

Blaise Carey Blaine

Isaac Akers Ferndale

Tanner Clark Ferndale

David Gaylord Lynden

Chris Johnson Lynden Christian

Jacob Hollander Lynden Christian

Joey Spoelstra Lynden Christian

Chris VandenBos Lynden Christian

Simon Vlas Lynden Christian

Ryan Newby Meridian

Logan Packard Mount Baker

Matt Millson Mount Baker

Miles Palmerton Mount Baker

Tyler Buss Mount Baker

Oliver Bear Don't Walk Nooksack Valley

Jessie Salmonson Nooksack Valley

Tyler VanDooren Sehome

Levi Grudzinski Sehome

Sam Chue Sehome

Thayne Yazzie Sehome

Aaron Bornemann Sehome

Harrison Finley Sehome

Evan Mathews Sehome

Matt Fazio Sehome

Stephen Foster Squalicum

Brad Miller Squalicum

Mackenzie Noyes Squalicum

Nate Miller Squalicum

Leonard Kravchenko Squalicum