Here’s a rundown of Coupeville and Oak Harbor graduates who competed at the collegiate level this past winter season.
Coupeville’s Kyle King, running for Eastern Washington University at the Big Sky Conference Indoor Track Championships Feb. 26 in Pocatello, won the 5,000 meters (15:23.63) and placed third in the 3,000 (8:24.41). Earlier this indoor season at the University of Washington Indoor Preview meet, the junior placed first in the 3,000 in a personal best 8:16.89.
Oak Harbor’s Shantae Young, a freshman on the Washington State University track team, participated in the 60-meter sprint, long jump and triple jump for the Cougars during the indoor season.
Young’s best finish this season was second in the long jump (17-0.5) in the WSU Open Jan. 15.
Cody Peters, a 6-6 sophomore forward for Whatcom Community College from Coupeville, helped the Orcas put up a 21-8 mark this winter and finish eighth in the NWACC championship tournament.
Peters scored 22 points to lead WCC to a second-round win in the tournament over Mount Hood March 3.
Peters finished sixth in scoring (8.6 points per game), fifth in rebounding (98) and second in blocks (10) for WCC in 2010-11.
Former Oak Harbor basketball teammates Jessica Denmon and Nicole Mowbray now compete against each other as freshmen in the Cascade Collegiate Conference.
Denmon, playing for Warner Pacific of Portland (16-13, 10-8), and Mowbray, playing for Southern Oregon University of Ashland (16-15, 9-9), split this year’s two-game series.
Denmon was sixth in scoring for the Warriors (4 ppg) and Mowbray was eighth in scoring for the Raiders (4.5 ppg). Denmon scored a season-high 12 points against Concordia Jan. 21. Mowbray twice scored 10 points, both against Simpson University of Redding, Calif.
Coupeville’s Megan Smith and Ashley Manker are freshman teammates for the Peninsula College women’s basketball team in Port Angeles (5-20).
Smith led the team in steals (52), finished second in scoring (10.16 ppg) and rebounding (143) and third in assists (53). She had a season-best 24 points against Blue Mountain Nov. 19 and 15 rebounds against Olympic Nov. 21.
Manker appeared in 14 games and topped the team in blocks (5) and was seventh in scoring (2.57 ppg) and rebounding (32). She scored 10 points against Lane Dec. 10.
Stevens Institute of Technology (Hoboken, N.J.) swimmers and Oak Harbor graduates Evan Wilson and John Hu just completed another strong regular season for the Ducks. (A detailed story about Wilson’s career appeared in the March 9 issue of the Whidbey News-Times.) Hu, a sophomore, earned National Swimmer of the Week honors Feb. 3 and received a trio of Empire 8 Swimmer of the Week honors. He owns five Stevens’ school records.
United States Air Force Academy senior and Oak Harbor graduate Tom Chandler finished 15th in the smallbore rifling competition in the NCAA championships March 11. This was Chandler’s fourth consecutive selection to the national championships.
Heading into this season, Chandler earned three all-American titles in air rifle (first team in 2010) and smallbore (first team in 2010 and second team in 2009 and 2010). He has been honored as the team’s most valuable marksman the past three years. He is also the Academy’s first multi-recipient of all-American honors in rifle since 2006.
In other alumni news, Oak Harbor graduate Rory Magana just completed his second year as head coach of the Hazen High School of Renton wrestling team. He was named Seamont League and Region II Coach of the Year after leading his team to the league championship with a 6-1 record. Five of his wrestlers qualified for the 3A state meet.
Magana also coaches wrestling at McKnight Middle School and is the Hazen assistant golf coach.
Oak Harbor graduate Marti Malloy is closing in on a spot on the Olympic judo team. She finished 2010 ranked in the top 16 in the world in her weight class, which earned her an invitation to the World Masters Event.
Recently she placed seventh in the Paris Grand Slam and fifth in the Vienna World Cup. She plans on competing in Mexico, Brazil, Russia, Spain and Japan before July.
Oak Harbor’s Heidi McNeill is playing professional basketball in Australia. After finishing the European season in Austria last year, she went to Perth, Australia, in April of 2010 to play for the Lakeside Lightning. She returned to Perth this spring, and the Lightning are currently preparing for their season opener March 18.
