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Posts Tagged ‘track and field’

Dig deep for Danny!!

Posted in Track, tagged , , , , on July 8, 2018| Leave a Comment »

Danny Conlisk hangs out with mom, and faithful fan, Dawnelle.

We need to make Danny Conlisk run out of town.

And by that, I mean, I’m calling on all Wolf fans out there to support the easy-going whirlwind of the track oval, and help him, his mom, and his sister make it to the national Junior Olympics.

Conlisk, who will be a senior at Coupeville High School this fall, ran strongly in the 400 at regionals Saturday and punched his ticket to the biggest meet of the year.

Only issue is nationals, which run July 23-29, is held in Greensboro, North Carolina.

But we’re going to make this happen.

So, I have taken it upon myself to engage in some participatory journalism, by launching a GoFundMe for Conlisk.

The money raised would pay for plane tickets for Danny, mom Dawnelle, and sister MaryBeth, as well as a rental car when the trio is on the ground.

Why help Conlisk, you ask?

Because he’s a class act in every way, a young man who has used running to shape his world and open up multiple new doors for himself.

From a quiet kid entering high school, he has emerged as a leader, a four-time (and counting) state meet participant, a strong student and a member of the Coupeville School Board.

When Danny comes bolting down the backstretch, serene look on his face as he blitzes past rival runners, his teammates lose their minds.

They do it because he’s developed into a killer on the oval, but even more so because he is such a good guy, and that’s something you can’t fake for too long.

Look beyond the ripped tape and the timers checking their stats, and all you need to know about Conlisk is on display as he seeks out and shakes the hand of each rival after his races, win or loss.

The quiet kid, who has become a stellar young man, is class, pure and simple.

He makes Coupeville look good, and we have a chance to put him on a national stage, where the whole USA can see Cow Town’s finest up close and personal.

How can you say no to that?

Spoiler: you can’t.

 

To help Danny and Co. make the trip to Carolina, pop over to:

https://www.gofundme.com/fly-danny-fly

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Heart of a lion!!

Posted in Basketball, Track, tagged , , , , on July 8, 2018| 2 Comments »

Kiara Contreras, a scrappy ball-hawk for the Wolves, makes her high school debut this fall. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)

Contreras flies in a relay this spring.

Kiara Contreras is a scrapper.

The fast-rising young athlete, who will be a freshman at Coupeville High School this fall, always played with a wild abandon during her middle school days.

Whether jousting on the volleyball or basketball court, or zipping around a track oval, Contreras never gave less than her best.

And her best usually involved things like diving between rival players to snare a loose ball on the hardwood, then spinning away and leading a mad charge to the net for a breakaway layup.

She might not be the biggest player on the floor, but Contreras always has one of the biggest hearts on display.

It’s a trait she shares with her cousins, CHS juniors Willow and Raven Vick, who Contreras hails as role models, along with mom Angella.

“I’m very competitive,” Contreras said, though she admits, “I need to work on being confident in myself.”

The young warrior, who enjoys math class, hanging out with family and friends and “practicing to get better,” plans to stick with basketball and track as she enters high school.

While she enjoys both sports, it’s hoops which claims her greatest devotion.

“Basketball is my favorite sport because of the adrenaline and meeting new people,” Contreras said. “(I like) the work you put into it and the competition.”

Regardless of what she’s doing, she will approach every day, every practice, every game, filled with a desire to make sure people remember her name, and her dedication, long after the final whistle.

“My goals are to work hard and hopefully make it to state before I graduate,” Contreras said.

Don’t doubt her.

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Fly, Danny, fly!!

Posted in Track, tagged , , , , on July 7, 2018| Leave a Comment »

   Coupeville High School senior Danny Conlisk is North Carolina-bound after qualifying for the Junior Olympics national meet. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

   Conlisk and Fliers teammate James Dillow finished 3rd and 5th in the 400, respectively, both qualifying for nationals. (Dawnelle Conlisk photo)

Not even an injured groin could slow him down.

Battling through a nagging injury, Coupeville High School senior Danny Conlisk ran strongly Saturday at regionals, clinching a trip to the USATF Hershey National Junior Olympic Track & Field Championships.

Conlisk, who is running with the Kitsap Fliers this summer, finished third in his top event, the 400, hitting the line in 50.21 seconds while competing in Bend, Oregon.

That was just off his PR of 49.70, which he set in May while finishing second at the 1A state meet.

The top five finishers Saturday punched their tickets to nationals, which are held in Greensboro, North Carolina.

When he’s in the deep South (nationals run July 23-29), Conlisk could also be competing as a member of a Fliers relay team.

He’ll run in the 4 x 400 Sunday afternoon, seeking to punch a second trip to nationals.

With just five teams entered, all the Fliers have to do is run a clean race to advance.

Conlisk was originally entered in two other races at regionals, the 200 and 4 x 800, but opted out to protect his groin.

In a positive sign, the injury didn’t seem to bother him much in the 400.

“He went out in the first 200 softer, noticed he didn’t hurt so he picked it up in the 300 and still didn’t hurt so he did “The Danny” in the final 100,” said mom Dawnelle Conlisk.

Doing “The Danny” is synonymous with flying down the backstretch and shredding the hearts and souls of foes as they fall beneath his final burst of speed.

Sort of his trademark move.

When Conlisk returns to school this fall, he’ll be gunning for a second-straight trip to state as a cross country runner and a fourth-straight trek as a track supernova.

One difference is, after training and traveling with South Whidbey’s harriers in recent years, he will get to be at the forefront of a cross country revival in Coupeville.

The Wolves have restarted their own in-school program after a two-decade absence, with Natasha Bamberger, the most-accomplished runner in CHS history, hired as coach.

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“I can’t get enough volleyball!!”

Posted in Track, Volleyball, tagged , , , , , , on July 7, 2018| Leave a Comment »

Noelle Daigneault spends time with her beloved pet duck, Chandler. (Photo courtesy Irene Echenique)

Put Noelle Daigneault on the volleyball court and she never stops smiling.

The busy, talented Coupeville High School freshman is also devoted to heaving the shot put, surfing, listening to the sweet sounds of ABBA, painting, and playing her ukulele, but there’s something special about her time as a spiker.

“Volleyball is my favorite sport; I have played club volleyball these past two years and still can’t get enough volleyball!,” Daigneault said. “I love the sport because it is very exhilarating!

“And the feeling of smacking the ball as hard and quick as you can and getting a point for your team is a feeling of such joy I can’t describe.”

On the court, she’s the player always firing on all cylinders, chasing down every last ball with an expression of pure happiness gracing her face on every play.

“One of my bigger strengths in volleyball is, I always want the ball,” Daigneault said. “I will try my hardest to not let the ball drop.

“An area I need to work on is technique,” she admitted with a laugh. “Sometimes I’ll make up my own form, and it more often than not does not help me…”

Daigneault, who follows on the heels of older sister Bree, a standout soccer and tennis player during her time at CHS, attacks each new day with vigor.

“I enjoy being an athlete because I don’t like not doing anything,” Noelle said. “And when you’re on the court there is always something we need to be doing and you’re never standing still.

“One of my goals for my high school career is to always do more, meaning SST, or open gym,” she added. “Sometimes spending an extra half-hour on the court or track, practicing, can make all the difference.”

Daigneault can’t go wrong emulating her older sibling, as Bree was a fireball on the field, while also being one of the most genuinely kind athletes to ever rep CHS.

“My sister has had a very big impact on who I am as a person and a player,” Noelle said.

But there’s also another athlete, a fellow freshman-to-be, who plays a big role in Daigneault’s life, on and off the court.

“My best friend, Jaelyn Crebbin, has always inspired me as a volleyball and track player,” Daigneault said. “I always thought, if she could do it, I could too!

“Considering she has one arm, that does not stop her, and that’s always inspired me to do my best on the court.”

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Fire up fan mail for Coach Ford!!

Posted in A freakin' American hero, tagged , , , , on July 1, 2018| Leave a Comment »

Go find a stamp and mail a card to former Coupeville track coach Larrie Ford as he recuperates in Seattle. (Photo courtesy David Ford)

I’m gonna need you to go find a stamp.

Then go send a card to former Coupeville High School track and field coach Larrie Ford as he continues to battle back after surgery.

Coach Ford, a fully-accredited member of the Coupeville Sports Hall of Fame, has moved to the Washington Care Center in Seattle after a three-month-plus stay at Careage.

That’s actually a huge positive, as he recovers from a leg amputation.

At the VA-contracted facility in Seattle, Coach Ford will be focusing on transitioning to the next stage of rehab as he works towards being able to have a prosthesis.

Both during his time at CHS and afterwards, he made a tremendous impact on the local sports community.

There was no project he wouldn’t support, and he put his money, time and spirit into everything he did.

Coach Ford was one of my first, and most loyal supporters, with this blog, but we go back much further.

He used to be a regular presence at Videoville during my video store days, a master of storytelling, and just an all around good guy.

As he goes through rehab, one of the best ways we can support him is to make sure he knows how important he is to his home community.

During his time at Careage, he collected 61 cards, according to son David Ford, and they hung on his wall, a reminder of everyone who was pulling for him.

Now that’s he in the big city, we need to step it up and flood his room with cards and notes.

Let Coach Ford know what an impact he had on Coupeville. What an important role he played, both on the athletic stage and off.

And that we expect him to walk back onto Mickey Clark Field at some point in the near future.

So, get going, get a stamp and fire off something to:

Larrie Ford
Room 253
2821 S Walden St
Seattle, WA 98144

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