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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

St. Michael’s student wins High School Outdoor Writing Contest

From left, Christine Koneazny, St. Michael’s Academy; Cojo Smith, University High School; Kryss Adams, Cheney High School; and Alisha Myers, Medical Lake High School, were top finishers in The Spokesman-Review Outdoor Writing Contest. (Jesse Tinsley)

A story by Christine Koneazny, a senior at St. Michael’s Academy, has been judged the best of 191 entries to win The Spokesman-Review’s 2009 Outdoor Writing Contest for high school students.

In “Answering the Call,” Koneazny details an adrenaline-charged moment in a youngster’s bow hunt for deer.

Contest runners-up were:

•“Food for Naught,” follows a rowdy flock of sparrows through another munch-and-punch day, by Kryss Adams, senior, Cheney High School.

•“Hang On,” relives a skier’s breathless anticipation above a monster jump, by Cojo Smith, sophomore, University High School.

•“Top of the World,” follows a lifelong expedition to the world’s highest peak, by Alisha Myers, senior, Medical Lake High School.

Koneazny will receive $75 for first place. Each of the runners-up will get $40. The four finalists will be entered in the Outdoor Writers Association of America National Scholastic Writing Contest, which is open to any outdoor writing published in 2009 by junior high or high school students.

National winners, who can earn up to $200, will be announced next spring. In 23 years, 38 finalists from The Spokesman-Review contest have gone on to win national awards.

Other students who made the final round of judging this year include: Jared Bennett and Ava Adams of Cheney; Justine Bunch of Coeur d’Alene; Haley Newsome, Raelynn Gosse, Kaitlyn Krasselt, David Steury, Chieh-Yu Chang, Arden Jones, Carolyn Graden, Dezerae Maxey, Zoe Johnson, Allie McIntosh, Sebastian Mortimer, Bobbi Gilmartin and Alexis Humphreys of Moscow.

This year’s entries were judged by newspaper Outdoors editor Rich Landers. The winning entries once again have been illustrated on this page by Spokane Valley artist Dale Hamilton, a graduate of Central Valley High School.

For the record, only three entries were received this year from students at former contest powerhouses Mead and Lewis and Clark high schools.

The newspaper contest is announced in the fall.