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Archive for the ‘Hall o’ Fame’ Category

Peter Charron (left) is joined by fellow inductees Lily Doyle and Nathan Lamb.

Peter Charron (left) is joined by fellow inductees Lily Doyle and Nathan Lamb.

The complete package.

The three stellar athletes who comprise the 69th class inducted into the Coupeville Sports Hall o’ Fame were leaders on the field, in the classroom and in their community.

They left a sizable impact on Wolf Nation during their time repping CHS, but have also all gone on to accomplish even more after graduation.

So, with a strong round of applause, we welcome our newest trio into these hallowed digital walls, as we call on Lily Doyle, Peter Charron and Nathan Lamb.

After this, you’ll find them camped out with their compatriots atop the blog, hanging out under the Legends tab.

Our first inductee, Doyle, is the daughter of one of Coupeville’s truly legendary educators, Barbara Ballard.

Lily made her own mark, however, as one of the classiest student/athletes to ever emerge from Cow Town.

A highly accomplished swimmer, she balanced life between two schools, attending classes in Coupeville while swimming with the Oak Harbor High School squad.

With no pool to call their own, Wolves like Doyle and fellow Hall o’ Famer Amanda Streubel had to make a greater commitment to pursue their sport than many Coupeville athletes, and yet they never wavered and continued to post top times.

Swimming remained a passion for Doyle during her college days, as well, as she put together a successful career in the pool at Vassar.

But take away all the athletic accomplishments (and there were many) and you would be left with an amazing woman who would deserve to be hailed every day.

Smart, high-achieving, a friend to all, Doyle is a true winner.

Those traits are shared by Lamb, who excelled in both soccer and tennis and was the very personification of a calm leader who was a coach’s dream.

The third member of his family to enter the Hall (after sisters Erica and Taniel; it’s not personal Jordan, your moment is on the horizon, as well), Nathan was smooth.

Whether wielding a tennis racket, dropping shots into the tiniest of gaps effortlessly, or sprinting down a soccer field, about to cash in with a game-winning goal, he seemed to glide at all times.

Lamb put a lot of effort into perfecting his game, but in the heat of battle, he seemed invincible largely because no matter what you did, you couldn’t ruffle his deceptively placid exterior.

Like all of his siblings, he would take down his rivals with big, bold moves, slicing them off at the knees and leaving them to (metaphorically) bleed out, and yet he never gloated, never rubbed it in, never was less than the consummate professional.

He was, for lack of a better word, a gentleman, and he treated wins and losses the same (at least in public).

Few Coupeville athletes have possessed his skills, even fewer his grace.

Combine the two as he and Jordan did, following in the epic, and just as classy, footsteps of their older sisters, and it’s no wonder their family towers so large in Wolf fan’s memories.

Our final inductee, Charron, is the oldest of our trio, but his achievements continue to live on just as large.

“Flash” was a standout football player, an exceptional thrower in the world of track and field and a trailblazer at CHS as one of the first male cheerleaders when the Wolves were a co-ed competition squad.

He also went to nationals as part of a combined Oak Harbor/Coupeville cheer squad, then later tried out for a professional gig before moving into the world of video game creation and 3D work on movies.

Charron had power, he certainly had speed (hence the nickname) and he had a work ethic and commitment to the cause rarely seen at any level.

While his track records may have been eclipsed by a new generation, he doesn’t need his name up on the big board to be remembered as one of the great ones.

And it’s true for all three of today’s inductees.

Time may have passed, whether it be a few years or two decades, but the legacy left behind by Doyle, Lamb and Charron — that you can be a successful athlete while also being a successful student and a great person — will live on forever.

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Erin Rosenkranz (left) is joined by Aaron Curtin and her parents, Scott and Kerry (McCormick) Rosenkranz.

   Erin Rosenkranz (left) is joined by Aaron Curtin and her parents, Scott and Kerry (McCormick) Rosenkranz.

We are family.

Three of the four inductees into the Coupeville Sports Hall o’ Fame today have claimed the same house for years.

So, with all three being welcomed into these hallowed digital walls at the same time, we’re being thoughtful and ensuring no family arguments about who ranks where in the athletic hierarchy.

Just call me Mr. Considerate.

Anyway, with that, we fling open the doors and usher in the 68th class to gain entrance — Scott Rosenkranz, Kerry (McCormick) Rosenkranz, Erin Rosenkranz and interloper Aaron Curtin.

After this, you’ll find the fab foursome at the top of the blog, residing under the Legends tab.

Or, you can just swing by the Rosenkranz household around dinner-time. That works too.

Our first inductee, Kerry, is the only one of the family not to be inducted under the Rosenkranz name.

She’s being honored for her days as a standout cross country runner at Coupeville High School, and when we induct female athletes, we use their maiden names, since that’s how they competed and are listed in the record books.

Back when she was a McCormick, mama Rosenkranz was a team captain who helped lead the Wolf harriers to state as a junior and senior.

The first visit, in 1981, is a landmark moment, the first time a female sports team from CHS made it to the big dance in any sport.

Those trailblazing Wolves finished second at the Cascade League championships, third at districts and eighth at state, before McCormick and the core of the roster returned to achieve new greatness in ’82.

Bolstered by the addition of a whip-thin freshman named Natasha Bamberger, who would go on to win five individual state titles in track and cross country, Coupeville won a league title and claimed 4th at state, sending McCormick out on top.

Later she would meet and marry our second inductee, the low-key Mr. Rosenkranz.

Soccer has boomed on Whidbey in recent years and it’s coaches like Scott who have been in the trenches, doing the hard work day after day.

Working along side fellow Hall o’ Famer Sean LeVine, the duo turned Whidbey’s select girls’ soccer program into a powerhouse which has gone toe-to-toe with big city teams in recent years.

As Islander alumni continue to compete at both the high school and college level, while a steady stream of younger players rises through the ranks, his impact is immeasurable.

As a modest guy, he may try and brush off the praise, but girls soccer on our Island would not be where it is today without Scott Rosenkranz, and that’s a stone-cold fact.

Kerry and Scott’s progeny, Erin, is, like her parents, low-key, modest, not quick to single herself out by hootin’ and hollerin’. She simply goes out, kicks butt and walks away, quiet smile gracing her face.

As a distance runner on the Wolf track squad, she followed in the (many) footsteps of her mom, but it was while playing “the beautiful game” she made her biggest impact.

A brilliant soccer player, both for CHS and the Islanders select program, she was, with fellow Hall o’ Famers Micky LeVine and Jacki Ginnings, the glue which held both teams together.

Few have played with the intensity she brought to the pitch, and virtually none have played with such grace.

And, while he’s not related to the Rosenkranz family (that I know of), our final inductee, Curtin, played all of his sports with a similar style to how they conduct themselves.

The man they call “Church” was a CHS Male Athlete of the Year and one of the best to ever wear the red and black, a talented, deceptively calm athlete who combined raw talent with an inner drive like few have possessed.

Put him on a tennis court and he was deadly, making it to state as both a doubles and singles player, medaling in the latter as a senior.

He could beat you with power, he could beat you with pace and he could always beat you with his brains.

Slide Curtin onto a basketball court and he was a silky-smooth shooter, a relentless ball-hawk and an ideal teammate, especially during years when Wolf basketball struggled to rebuild from the ground up.

But, if we had to choose a sport to truly hail him for, it would be baseball.

A deadly hitter who thrived in big-game situations for legendary Wolf hardball guru Willie Smith, Curtin was also a go-to ace on the mound.

He may not have always thrown quite as hard as fellow hurler Ben Etzell, but he was impeccable with his control and rang up his fair share of punch-outs.

In all of his sports, Curtin, who might have raised his voice once, half an octave, in four years, was a leader, a guy who other Wolves would have followed into a fire-fight without a second thought.

You don’t have to be a screamer to be heard, and he was a fully-formed man among young men, a superior athlete who let his actions speak loudest.

And they spoke very, very loudly.

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Steve and Elaina Kiel (top right) are joined by the Bad Boys of Spirit -- Kyle Bodamer (in helmet) and Brian Norris. (John Fisken photos)

   Steve and Elaina Kiel (top right) are joined by the Bad Boys of Spirit — Kyle Bodamer (in helmet) and Brian Norris. (John Fisken photos)

It don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that spirit.

Today, as we induct our 67th class into the Coupeville Sports Hall o’ Fame, we’re focusing on those who bleed red … and black, for their Wolves.

Two couples, one married in real life, one forever united by their history in the student section at CHS, are being welcomed inside these hallowed digital walls.

With that, we welcome volleyball lifers Steve and Elaina Kiel and the Bad Boys of Spirit — Kyle Bodamer and Brian Norris — inducting all four as contributors.

After this you’ll find them at the top of the blog, under the Legends tab.

Which is only appropriate, since the four-pack of die-hard CHS supporters are all legendary in their fervor.

Up first are the Kiels, who join daughter Kacie in the Hall.

The duo are strong fans year-round, but their fervor during volleyball season, both back when Kacie and older sister Katie were active athletes at CHS, and continuing through today, is where they really rock the house.

Elaina is the calm center of the family, a mom to many a spiker, whether they are her own blood or not.

Her battle against cancer united her daughter’s teams, and her loyalty to each of her “girls” through the years is unbending.

While Mrs. Kiel is content to stay in the background, Mr. Kiel is often worth the price of admission (if I had to pay…) by himself.

Watching him work as a volleyball linesman is like gazing upon an artist painting their masterpiece, a mix of theatrical showmanship (especially on the big calls) and impeccable adherence to the rules.

You know it kills him to have to make calls which go against Coupeville, but you also know he would have called a foot fault on his own daughter at match point if they erred.

He’s loyal to his team to the end, but his ultimate loyalty lies with upholding the honor of his sport, which is why the paid refs always smile when they see him taking his place, flag in hand.

When he’s not on the court, Steve Kiel has been known to bellow some encouragement for the Wolves, often playing off of the student section in a concentrated effort to overwhelm the visiting fans, especially when those folks are in an uppity mood.

Two of the best to ever run wild in said student section are Norris and Bodamer, who combined innovative (and often blasphemous) costumes, leather-lined lungs and a willingness to go above and beyond in their fervor for their school.

Now, you will find some (especially back in the day) who didn’t appreciate their vuvuzela horn-backed antics.

Rival schools often complained and school administrators were often on edge.

To which I say, take a chill pill.

The Bad Boys of Spirit, along with other notables like Danny Savalza, Jake Tumblin and Josh Bayne (and his crop tops), made the joint jump.

They were impish, they were entertaining, they were committed and they fully bought in every game.

Which is exactly what the school should want — students actively supporting their classmates and having a fun time doing it.

Did King’s and ATM’s extra-precious, the-world-should-revolve-around-us-cause-we’re-fancy fans get their knickers in a twist?

Did the no-fun-crowd hate their antics?

Yes, yes, and so freakin’ what.

Coupeville should fully embrace the Bow Down to Cow Town concept.

We are who we are, and the Bad Boys of Spirit knew that, loved that and showed that, every game, every night.

So pull your vuvuzela horn out of its hiding place and blast away as Norris and Bodamer crash through the front door of our Hall o’ Fame, ready to rip the joint up and bring the house down.

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Gabe Eck holds Coupeville High School's single-game passing record with 403 yards. (John Fisken photo)

   Gabe Eck holds Coupeville High School’s single-game passing record with 403 yards. (John Fisken photo)

The Sack Kings. (Photo courtesy Tom Roehl Archives)

The Sack Kings. (Photo courtesy Tom Roehl Archives)

I have football on the brain.

Having spent a good chunk of time recently going through stat sheets, newspaper clippings and wadded-up bits of old paperwork, I have been able to pull together a pretty good approximation of what Coupeville High School’s gridiron records should be.

To see the full list, pop over to: https://coupevillesports.com/2016/09/10/roll-call-of-the-gridiron-greats/.

Then, come back here as we use today’s Coupeville Sports Hall o’ Fame induction, our 66th so far, to pay tribute to two of those records.

Spanning the decades, and both sides of the ball, we’re honoring a record single-game performance and a season’s worth of work by a fired-up defense.

So welcome to these hallowed digital walls former Wolf QB Gabe Eck, being honored for the night he threw for 403 yards against Chimacum, and the 1996 CHS defense, which holds the school’s record for most sacks by a team in a season.

After this, you’ll find them atop the blog, under the Legends tab.

And soon, immortalized on the school’s football record board in the gym, once the update is completed.

First up is Eck, who, although he only played one season in the red and black (he’s sporting Oak Harbor purple and gold this season) accomplished something no other CHS gunslinger ever did.

It was the night of Sept. 18, 2015, and Coupeville had jumped across on the ferry to face Chimacum.

Both teams entered at 0-2, and, after an injury to starting QB Hunter Downes, Eck, who had thrown eight passes at the high school level, was making his first prep start.

He responded in high style, completing 19 of 34 passes, spreading the ball out among five receivers as the Wolves captured their only win of the 2015 campaign, a 28-26 thriller sealed by a fourth-quarter field goal off the foot of Zane Bundy.

Hunter Smith was Eck’s main target, hauling in nine passes for 178 yards (just 24 shy of the school single-game receiving record).

CJ Smith (4-93), Ty Eck (3-82), Jordan Ford (1-28) and Lathom Kelley (2-22) also snagged aerials, with Ty Eck reaching the end zone twice and Hunter Smith once.

Coupeville kept its hosts guessing, as Wiley Hesselgrave rampaged for 152 yards on the ground, but it’s Gabe Eck’s arm which holds a place in Wolf lore.

The Wolves have had a string of strong QB’s (Bob Rea, Corey Cross, Scott McGraw, Brad Sherman, Ian Smith and Joel Walstad, to name but a few), but the highest any of them (Sherman) ever reached was 386 passing yards in a single game.

The only member of the 400-yard club walked the halls at CHS for just a year, but, until someone takes his record down, his impact outweighed his tenure.

Joining Eck’s single-game performance in the Hall is the season-long rampage thrown down 20 years ago by the 1996 gridiron squad.

While sacks are a relatively new stat (back in the ’40s and ’50s they were just tallied as tackles), all my research could find no more effective Wolf team at snaring the elusive QB than the one which played 20 seasons ago.

Led by the school’s career sack leader, Nick Sellgren, Coupeville recorded 22 sacks that season, spread among six Wolves.

Sellgren topped the charts with seven take-downs, while Joey Biller (4), Bill Marti (3), Rich Morris (3), Jason Sechrist (3) and Justin Thiesen (2) all chipped in.

While sacks are an exclamation point, interceptions (Arik Garthwaite snared a team-high four) and pass deflections (Jerry Helm poked away seven) are also important.

With that in mind, we induct the Wolf defensive unit as a whole, honoring the 21 players who make an appearance on the ’96 stat sheet:

Player Tackles Sacks Fumbles INT Deflect
Greg White 45 2 1
Mike Vaughan 25 1 1 2
Pete Petrov 43 1 1
Arik Garthwaite 26 4 1
Joey Biller 61 4 1 1
Dan Palmquist 1
Peter Charron 2
Damon Vracin 8
Jomo Bowman 8 1
Jerry Helm 36 2 7
Rich Morris 67 3 1
Bill Marti 93 3 1 1 2
Nick Sellgren 84 7 2
Dan Russell 2
Jason Sechrist 45 3 2 1
Gary Boyke 4
Justin Thiesen 36 2
Aaron Henderson 3  1
Jeremy Ratcliff 1
Matt Brown 2
Tariq Omar 1
TOTALS 593 22 6 11 20

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Hall o' Fame inductees (clockwise, from bottom left) Jim Wheat, Craig Pedlar, Rich Wilson and, representing the 1924-25 CHS boys' hoops team, captain Robert Engle.

   Hall o’ Fame inductees (clockwise, from bottom left) Jim Wheat, Craig Pedlar, Rich Wilson and, representing the 1924-25 CHS boys’ hoops team, captain Robert Engle.

A little something for everyone.

When you take a look at the 65th class inducted into the Coupeville Sports Hall o’ Fame, diversity is the name of the game.

An athlete, a coach, a contributor and a team all come together today, ready to be enshrined inside these hallowed digital walls.

So, with that, we welcome to the podium Craig Pedlar, Jim Wheat, Rich Wilson and the 1924-1925 Coupeville High School boys’ basketball squad.

After this, you’ll find them with their brethren atop the blog, under the Legends tab.

Our first inductee, Wilson, was a two-sport sensation who still holds a CHS track and field record 16 years after his graduation.

His mark of six feet, four inches in the high jump in 2000 hasn’t been topped since, leaving him just three years shy of matching his predecessor.

When he broke the mark, it had stood since 1981, the year of Wilson’s own birth.

And, in a fun side fact, his wife Yashmeen (Knox) Wilson, already a Hall o’ Famer, holds the CHS record in the same event on the girls side.

Her mark of 5-02 has held since 1999.

Track wasn’t Wilson’s only area of expertise, however, as he was a bruising two-way star on the gridiron who racked up tons of tackles and churned out big yardage.

The only thing keeping his offensive numbers down a bit was his career crossed paths with that of Coupeville’s greatest weapon, school career rushing leader Ian Barron.

But if you look at the time period when Barron went down with a broken ankle, Wilson seizes the spotlight and runs with it, one of the best backs to ever wear the red and black.

Our second inductee, Pedlar, has a strong history at two Island schools, and he was in the prime of his Oak Harbor days when I worked with him while I was a young Sports Editor at the Whidbey News-Times.

But, as much success as he achieved at OHHS, his CHS days stack up quite nicely.

He was an assistant basketball coach, working along side legendary hoops guru Bob Barker, but his biggest impact probably came in his stints working with Wolf runners.

The cross country program, which boasts a deep collection of league, district and state meet accomplishments as part of the school’s new Wall of Fame, was his baby and he turned it into a powerhouse.

A big part of his success came from his skill at reaching each individual runner and finding what they personally needed to succeed.

Natasha Bamberger, who went on to win a state title in cross country, and four others in track (making her the only five-time individual state champ in CHS history), vouches for Pedlar’s impact.

“Feeling believed in is very powerful,” she said. “I never felt that before and I credit those coaches with it, all starting with Coach P.”

Our next inductee, Wheat, could go in as a coach (he was a key part of the staff of the 2002 CHS softball squad which finished 3rd at state), but today we’re inducting him as a contributor for his work as an umpire.

He has a sterling touch on the field, where he is highly-respected for his game-calling skills, but he continues to make an even bigger impact as the head of umpires for Central Whidbey Little League.

Whether it’s recruiting and training other umps, working with them on the field, or all the work he puts in behind the scenes helping to keep CWLL a roaring success, Wheat is The Man.

Putting him in the Hall o’ Fame? It’s just the right call.

Wrapping up our class we’re reaching back in time to induct the earliest team yet to enter the Hall.

The 1924-1925 CHS boys’ hoops squad, led by high-scoring (for the day) Roy Armstrong, won a county championship, drubbing Oak Harbor and Langley twice each, then found a bit of postseason glory.

A 13-10 win over Index gave the Wolf farm boys a district title and sent them on to the Northwest Tournament, where they went 1-2 against big-city schools.

While the name of their coach is lost to time (at least it’s not listed in the 1925 CHS yearbook), we want to reach back and honor the letter winners from that early round-ball juggernaut.

Inducted, together, as a team:

Roy Armstrong
Lewis Berry
Robert Cushen
Robert Engle
(captain)
Sam Kieth
Joe Libbey
Marion Sill

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