July 2013

Press release
BOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF AMERICA, THE UPS FOUNDATION
DRIVE INTO SEATTLE WITH UPS ROAD CODE PROGRAM

UPS Road Code, the national teen safe driving program implemented by Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) and The UPS Foundation, is hitting the road for safety with free community events throughout the country. The second stop in 2013 is the Southwest Boys & Girls Club in Seattle on Thursday, July 25 from 4:30p.m. - 6:30p.m., where UPS volunteers and Club members will be on-hand to educate local parents and teens on the importance of safe driving. Over 1,000 distraction-involved collisions occur in Seattle every year, and in 2011 alone, teenagers aged 16 to 20 were involved in 32,224 car accidents, according to the Washington State Department of Transportation.

UPS ROAD CODE CHALLENGE SEATTLE
DATE: Thursday, July 25
TIME: 4:30-6:30 p.m.
PLACE: Southwest Boys & Girls Club
9800 8th Ave. SW Suite 105
Seattle, WA 98106 (which is technically at Greenbridge in White Center)

Update for July 26
After three West Seattle and White Center community groups sent a letter to the City of Seattle asking them to study possible safety improvements for S.W. Roxbury St., the city's Department of Transportation spokeswoman Marybeth Turner said, "SDOT will conduct a safety study on SW Roxbury Street in the near future in response to community concerns."

Original post on July 22
Acting as the boundary between West Seattle and unincorporated North Highline, S.W. Roxbury St. is known for its undulating hills that can make sight lines tricky while driving, vehicles exceeding speed limits on a regular basis, fender benders to serious collisions and a potentially dangerous gauntlet for pedestrians hoping to cross or walk alongside the road.

Add into the mix three elementary schools along the way, and the safety concerns only increase.

West Seattle wins Juniors state opener

West Seattle jumped right into the fray on the second day as the Junior Little League baseball state all-star tournament got underway this past weekend.
The Westsiders drew a bye past the first round of the age 13-14 action Saturday and opened on Sunday instead with a 6-0 shutout victory over the Key Peninsula team.
Key Peninsula was a 12-2 winner over South Kitsap in its first game Saturday to earn the right to play West Seattle, which came into the tournament as the District 7 champion.
West Seattle continued the tournament being played at Medical Lake High School near Spokane with a winner's bracket semifinal game against Cascade on Monday. A win there would advance the team to he winner's bracket final scheduled for 7 p.m. Wednesday. The first championship is scheduled for 10 a.m. Friday followed by the if-necessary championship game at 4 p.m. that day. The loser's bracket final is at 7 p.m. Thursday.

West Seattle Legion

West Seattle's American Legion baseball season ended with a tight 5-3 loss at the hands of Juanita on Friday.

The perilous pathway to the 2013 Junior Little League Softball All-Star state championship was finally traversed by District 1 Mill Creek in a 10-7 if-necessary championship win against District 2 East Jefferson/Sequim at the Valley Ridge Ball Field #1 next to Tyee High School on Friday, July 19.

Much like the previous night's 10-7 win by EJS, this night of action showcased an exchange of spirited scoring bombardments early before the final curtain rang down on the seven team tournament hosted by District 7 Little League, which will host next season's Little League Majors Baseball state tournament. State champion Mill Creek moves on to the Western Region Junior League Softball tournament in Tucson, Arizona, Aug. 1-9.

"My girls never quit," said District 1 manager Page Dearborn. "We were disappointed after lat night, but were ready to play. I always tell the girls to give 'em hell and make 'em earn it. They want to win, but more importantly they have more fun just playing together."

PacWest's Intermediate team enjoyed immediate success at the Western Regional tournament in Irvine, Calif.

The Burien and SeaTac based team scored three runs in the top of the first inning en route to an opening 6-2 win over the Montana state champions Friday, July 19.

Bryson Beltran swung a big bat for Washington state champion PacWest in the game, driving in two runs on two hits to lead the way -- including the first and winning run.

David Perkins finished with a team-high three hits and added one RBI and Ryan Moormeier also had one RBI.

On the mound, Christian Hagler led with four strikeouts and Casey Hillyard got in 2.1 innings for the team's top spot in that category.

Beltran, Hillyard and Perkins all singled in the rally in the top of the first and Moormeier and Hagler both hit into errors.

After Montana narrowed the lead to 3-2 with single runs in the third and fourth, PacWest played add-on baseball with two insurance runs in the top of the sixth and one more in the top of the seventh and final inning.

Once beaten District 2 East Jefferson/Sequim used steady and key hitting to subdue previously unbeaten District 1 Mill Creek 10-7 on Thursday, July 18, at Valley Ridge Ball Field No. 1 in SeaTac to qualify for a Friday, July 19, rematch against 1 Mill Creek for all the marbles at the 2013 Washington State Junior Little League Softball tournament hosted by District 7.

"We just kept hitting the ball," said District 2 manager Mike Eldridge. "The defense has been real solid and the pitching was perfect."

For the first four innings, the teams alternated scoring at bats. Only the fifth inning featured zero runs from each squad.

Mill Creek opened with a single tally in the top of the first inning. Alyssa Avalos reached first base on a two-out walk, giving Haley Cottingham the chance to drive her home on a deep triple into the left centerfield gap.

East Jefferson/Sequim answered with a roar of thunder in the bottom of the inning. Bradyn Nelson bunted for a single after Jordan Bentz had popped a single into the outfield. One out later, Michelle Nesbit tripled home two runs quickly followed by a run-scoring single by Ryley Eldridge.

Sometimes, it takes a motorcycle accident and a severed leg to change a life.

Before his accident in 2009, Levi Kane said he was a directionless soul with destructive habits. Now, he is going to participate in the Paratriathalon World Championships in England on Sept. 13.

No big deal.

The motorcycle accident was gruesome. He had been underage drinking at a sports bar in Greenwood and -- not wasted but not sober -- got on his motorcycle and went speeding at up to 80 miles per hour northbound on Greenwood Ave N. He crashed head-on into an oncoming car that was turning left.

His left leg was instantly severed at the knee, flying up and landing on the hood of the car. He broke both femurs. Had a compound fracture of his right humorous. Broke his left clavicle and the bone behind his ear. Bruised his lungs. Lacerated his spleen. Had his left arm torn up by road rash. And he still has the scars from the glass that slashed up his neck.

By Tim Clinton
SPORTS EDITOR

West Seattle jumped right into the fray on the second day as the Junior Little League baseball state all-star tournament got underway this past weekend.

The Westsiders drew a bye past the first round of the age 13-14 action Saturday and opened on Sunday instead with a 6-0 shutout victory over the Key Peninsula team.

Key Peninsula was a 12-2 winner over South Kitsap in its first game Saturday to earn the right to play West Seattle, which came into the tournament as the District 7 champion.

West Seattle continued the tournament being played at Medical Lake High School near Spokane with a winner's bracket semifinal game against Cascade on Monday. A win there would advance the team to he winner's bracket final scheduled for 7 p.m. Wednesday. The first championship is scheduled for 10 a.m. Friday followed by the if-necessary championship game at 4 p.m. that day. The loser's bracket final is at 7 p.m. Thursday.

West Seattle Legion

West Seattle's American Legion baseball season ended with a tight 5-3 loss at the hands of Juanita on Friday.

West Seattle's state stay ended with an 8-1 loss to Eastlake Thursday.
The Westsiders finished with a 2-2 record in the Major Little League action for 11-12 year-olds played at the Luke Jensen complex in Vancouver.

West Seattle won its opener by a 5-4 score over Camas and blasted Gig Harbor National, 13-1, before being knocked into the loser's bracket by Federal Way, 14-6. Federal Way went on to become the undefeated team in the final awaiting an opponent out of the loser's bracket.

West Seattle set out to be the survivor in the loser's bracket, but took the loss at the hands of Eastlake to be eliminated.

The District 7 championship West Seattle squad was managed by Jason Woodward with David Douglas and Jon Muench serving as coaches.

Players for West Seattle this year included Chris Frost, Dylan Diggdon, Henry Muench, Henry Ruf, Nathan Pelley, Jack Summers, Jarek Woodward, Joe Pare, Kai Osaka, Kenji Suzuki, Noah Oehling, Richie Wallace and Will Douglas.

The West Seattle charter president is Brian Pare.

Missed that “share the road” day of class
On July 16, around 5 p.m., a man was walking with his infant child in a stroller on a path near the 3600 block of 22nd Ave. S.W. when the stroller ran into mechanical difficulties. As dad worked to repair his child’s ride, a man approached on a bicycle and started cursing at him to get out of the way. The victim told police he made room for the cyclist to pass, but the aggressor kept on, cursing him loudly and striking him in the legs with his front tire. The suspect then dismounted and bumped the father in the chest as he spewed out another long litany of curses and threats, before finally getting back on his bike and riding away. Father and son escaped the incident without injury.

Good deed goes punished