Fall sports set for Ballard High

By Michael Harthorne

August is halfway over and that means it is just about time for Ballard High School's student athletes to start the fall sports season.

This season brings new players, a new coach and, due to a realignment of the KingCo league, new competition for the Beavers.

Boys' Tennis

The boys' tennis team is going to have a different look this year due to the loss of many seniors and the addition of a lot of younger players, said coach Brad Hamilton.

One of younger players Hamilton has high hopes for is junior Neal Berg.

"He's really put a lot of time into his game," Hamilton said. "We're really excited about the development that he's shown the last couple of years."

Berg made it to the quarterfinals in last years district doubles tournament, but lost his doubles partner to graduation. Hamilton said one of the challenges for this season will be finding a new partner for Berg.

The team also faces challenges in the form of its youth and the toughness of the league, but Hamilton said he is optimistic for the season.

"It's going to be challenging for some of these younger, newer varsity players," he said. "However, I think it's going to be a good experience for them and we'll have a good year."

Girls' Soccer

Last season, the girls' soccer team missed the playoffs by one point, losing to Roosevelt 1-0 in their final game and finishing 3-4-3 in KingCo.

The upside to that season was that six Ballard players were named to the KingCo All League team. The upside to this season is that three of those players - seniors Jessica Nelson and Lauren Ives and junior Sara Ives - are returning to the team.

However, the realignment of KingCo brought two new state champions into competition with Ballard. New KingCo schools Issaquah and Skyline each won a state championship in the last two years.

Despite a tougher league, coach Val Seid said the team should be competitive this year and do well.

"We probably have the strongest team on paper since I've been here and probably longer than that," he said.

Boys' Golf

The boys' golf team had a good finish last fall, placing fifth in the KingCo 4A tournament.

Second-year coach Casey McMullin said that with one year of experience under his belt and a lot of returning players, this season should see a continuation of that success.

Senior Nick Palewicz made it to the second day of the KingCo tournament last year and McMullin said he should have another excellent year.

"He played well the first day but not so well the second day," he said. "I think it was a good experience for him and maybe it will make him a little bit more hungry this year."

Cross Country

For the girls' cross country team, last year was another in a series of near misses as the team failed to qualify for state by one point.

Coach Bruce Drager said the girls should have gone to state in four of the last five years but kept barely missing it.

Drager said he is hopeful for the upcoming season because senior Lauren Hammerle and junior Erin Dhilbeck, both excellent runners last year, have managed to continue to make dramatic improvements.

However, the league rearrangement has once again made Ballard's path to the state championship a little more difficult. Newport and Skyline were in the top 10 in the state in their previous league and have now joined KingCo.

The boys' cross country team made it to state last year and should make it back due to a group of solid runners and a less competitive league than the girls face, Drager said.

Football

The football team finished 5-3 in KingCo last year and did what no city school had done in four years - made it to the playoffs.

The team went on to lose to Edmonds-Woodway 24-6 in the first round.

This year, under new coach John Bowers, the team is hoping to repeat that success and hopefully move deeper into the playoffs.

Bowers said two players to watch out for are seniors Mousfa Gloyd and Linton Rowan.

Bowers said tight end/linebacker Gloyd is poised to have a very good season.

"He's a tremendously hard worker with a great attitude and good skills," he said. "He'll play college football somewhere."

Offensive lineman Rowan is the most explosive player on the team, Bowers said.

Girls' Swimming

The girls' swimming team found more success than any other Ballard team last fall by placing third in the state championship.

Then-freshman Annemarie Thayer won the 100-meter backstroke. Her victory made her the first Ballard female to win an individual event in a 4A state championship in any sport.

Thayer's time in the 100-meter backstroke qualified her to swim in the Olympic trials in Omaha, Neb., in July.

Coach Carlos Palacian said he believes the team should be very strong again this year.

"I don't want to make any predictions, but we should be up there again," he said. "We should be one of the contenders at state."

Volleyball

This season, the volleyball team is looking to make the playoffs for the 12th year in a row. The team made it to the second round of the playoffs last year after finishing 7-3 in KingCo.

The team lost many of its key players, but coach Tami Reese said she is counting on the six returning varsity players to have a good year.

Senior Clare Murphy was second-team All KingCo League last year and is co-captain this season.

Reese said senior Kelsey Christianson is poised to have a big impact on the team and is preparing hard for this season after not getting much playing time last year.

"This is her year to shine," Reese said. "Her year to step it up."

Michael Harthorne may be reached at michaelh@robinsonnews.com