Ja’Tarya Hoskins went to the state meet in both cheer and track during her time at Coupeville High School. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)
Hoskins teamed with (left to right) Maya Toomey-Stout, Mallory Kortuem, and Lindsey Roberts to smash the CHS record in the 4 x 100.
Brilliant and talented, Ja’Tarya Hoskins can clear any hurdle you throw at her.
The recent Coupeville High School grad, a standout for Wolf cheer and track teams, will head off the Island in the fall to continue her academic and athletic pursuits.
Hoskins plans to attend Saint Martin’s University in Lacey, and will balance studying pre-law with competing for the school’s track team.
The plan is to have her run the 60 meter hurdles during the indoor season, then move on to the 100 hurdles and possibly 400 hurdles when the outdoor season begins.
With a goal of attending law school after she finishes her undergraduate degree, Hoskins chose her new school after careful deliberation.
“I selected Saint Martin’s University because it’s a smaller school kinda like Coupeville,” she said.
“I haven’t visited the campus but looking at the photos it feels like home.”
Saint Martin’s is a private liberal arts school founded in 1895 by monks from the Benedictine Order.
Started as an all-boys boarding school, it first welcomed female students in 1965.
Hoskins joins a track and field team which vies in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, the same league her fellow CHS Class of 2020 grad and relay teammate Mallory Kortuem will call home while running in the 400 at Western Washington University.
Saint Martin’s athletic programs compete at the NCAA D-II level.
During her time in Coupeville, Hoskins advanced to the highest level of competition in both of her sports.
As a junior, she was a key part of a CHS cheer squad which claimed 3rd place at the state meet.
That was especially notable, as the Wolves abandoned competition cheer after the 2011 season, working as just a sideline squad for six years before returning to the blue mats in 2018.
Buoyed by their immediate success, Hoskins and her teammates went on to qualify for nationals during her senior season.
In the track world, Ja’Tarya, part of a family of successful Wolf track stars which includes older siblings Will and Jai’Lysa, and younger sister Ja’Kenya, competed in almost every event on the list.
The COVID-19 pandemic denied her a senior track season, but as a junior she teamed with Kortuem, Maya Toomey-Stout, and Lindsey Roberts to place 5th at state in the 4 x 100 relay.
The quartet hit the tape in 50.54 seconds, and they currently sit on the big board in the CHS gym as school record-holders.
