Finalists named for annual youth awards
That North Central distance runners Tanner Anderson and Kai Wilmot were featured for their accomplishments in the Sports Illustrated Faces in the Crowd segment three weeks apart is recognition enough.
Their 2013 accomplishments that put them among area finalists for the Inland Northwest Sportswriters and Broadcasters annual youth awards is icing on the cake.
Both Anderson, a junior, and star-crossed senior Wilmot combined to win, state, regional and national track and cross-country individual titles and were instrumental in NC’s eighth straight State 3A cross country championship under coach Jon Knight.
They are just a sampling of the wealth of talent and exceptional teams who made their marks state, regional and national in 2013. Among females there were numerous state players of the year like Lake City’s Casey Stangel, now at Missouri, who put up otherworldly numbers during a softball career that included two Idaho 5A championships.
Last year’s winner Kelsey Moos, now a freshman starter at Arizona State, is a repeat finalist after leading Reardan to its third straight State 2B basketball title. Three state title football teams and their coaches are among finalists in those categories.
Winners, revealed the first week in February, are determined by a vote of the SWABs chosen from the list of 10 each boys and girls athletes, five male and female coaches and six girls and boys teams.
INW Sportswriters and Sportswriters Junior Finalists
MALE ATHLETE
Tanner Anderson – After winning the State 3A championship in November, the NC junior finished first in the Nike Cross Regionals and third in the Nike nationals. Last Spring Anderson was the State 3,200-meter champ.
Brett Bailey – Now playing basketball at San Diego, University’s Bailey was a two-time GSL MVP, last year averaging 23.6 points per game and scoring a GSL individual game-record 47 for state-qualifying Titans.
Kian Genteman – Freeman senior was named Most Valuable Player both on offense and defense in the Northeast A League for the State 1A football champions. He caught 46 passes for 749 yards and led the team in tackles.
Matt James – The 6-foot-4 275-pound lineman on Coeur d’Alene’s Idaho State 5A football champions was MVP of the Inland Empire League, named All-State on offense and defense and last winter placed in wrestling at state. He’s verbally committed to the University of Washington.
Corey Langerveld – Pullman basketball star was named State 2A MVP for basketball-champion Greyhounds, scoring 20 points, his season average, in the title game.
Timmy Mueller – Post Falls scoring machine and Idaho Gatorade Player of the Year headed to Oregon State for soccer, was offensive player of the year in the Inland Empire League with several hat tricks and one four-goal effort.
Levi Periera – Baseball standout at Coeur d’ Alene, now at Gonzaga University, was named Idaho Gatorade baseball player of the year after hitting .559 with 6 home runs, 45 RBIs, 38 runs and 18 doubles.
Chandler Rogers – Mead junior wrestler was unbeaten and captured his third straight State 4A championship. He has moved to Oklahoma after winning 89 straight matches, including a 42-0 record in 2012 and 43-0 in 2013.
Brett Rypien – Shadle Park junior quarterback continued his assault on Greater Spokane League passing records. Rypien passed for 4,230 yards, including a state-record 613 in one game, and 57 touchdowns to be named Washington 3A Player of the Year.
Kai Wilmot – Despite being injured much of his career, the NC runner capped his fall by winning the Nike Cross national cross country race in Portland. He earlier captured the Bob Firmin Invitational in Idaho and helped Indians to Washington State 3A title.
FEMALE ATHLETE
Dani Failor – 6-0 athlete was named Idaho Gatorade Player of the year. She averaged 12.2 points and 8.1 rebounds for State 5A champion Post Falls.
Kassie Guglielmino – In four years the Northport athlete won 12 state titles in the sprints, including the 100-through-400 meters in last spring’s 1B track meet.
Kelcie Hedge – The Post Falls soccer player earned a spot on the National U-17 team. During the fall she scored 18 goals and had 12 assists for the state runner-up Trojans. As a freshman she scored 25 goals.
Savannah Hoekstra – Senior leader who scored 17 goals and had 7 assists was a main cog in Central Valley’s State 4A soccer championship, just the second in Greater Spokane League history.
Sarah Kersten – Lewis and Clark golfer went the distance to win the State 4A championship with a two-day total 78-73 151 and dramatic finish with a birdie on the par-5 18th to clinch.
Kelsey Moos – Four-year multisport standout averaged 20.2 points per game and had 28 in the title game for Reardan’s third straight State 2B basketball championship
Kayceelyn Pouttu – Kellogg golfer won her fourth straight Idaho State 4A title with a two-day total 148, including 71 on the final day, winning by 28 strokes.
Jade Redmon – Washington State 4A champion Mead’s basketball floor leader was named All-State and averaged nearly 16 points per game for the Panthers. She’s now playing regularly at Eastern Washington.
Casey Stangel – Lake City softball player was named national MaxPreps Player of Year among other honors. She pitched and batted her team to the State 5A title for a second time, going 28-0 on the mound with a 0.73 ERA and batting .640 with 64 RBIs, 33 extra base hits (15 of them homers).
Kayleigh Valley – University basketball player was named Washington 3A player of the year for state-placing Titans. The Montana recruit averaged 16.9 points, 10.1 rebounds and 3.4 assists for the Titans.
MALE TEAM
Coeur d’Alene football – After losing three of their first four games, the Vikings won eight straight, reversing a loss to Highland with a 31-28 triumph for their third State 5A title in four years.
Freeman football – Scotties outscored opposition by an average of 42-6 on the way to a 13-0 record and the State 1A championship
Lind-Ritzville-Sprague football – Captured the State 2B championship in similar fashion, beating foes by an average of 34 points per game before its 7-0 win in the championship game.
North Central cross country – Despite having a relatively inexperienced group the Indians didn’t miss a beat with their eighth straight State 3A championship.
Pullman basketball - The unheralded Greyhounds compiled a 27-1 record on their way to the State 2A championship.
Wellpinit track – Became school’s first state team champion in any sport with 62.2-44.5 victory over Republic in the State 1B meet.
FEMALE TEAM
Central Valley soccer – Two shootout victories took Bears to the school’s first State 4A championship. They became just the second GSL team to win a title, the first by Mead in 1994.
Colton basketball – Lost just once during a 25-1 season that earned them a fifth straight State 1B title, with an average victory margin of more than 50 points. The Wildcats scored more than 70 points 19 times and went over 80 seven times.
Lake City softball – Timberwolves won their second Idaho State 5A title in three years while completing a perfect 28-0 season
Mead basketball – Panthers compiled a 24-1 season record to win the school’s fourth State 4A title, the first since 1996 with a 58-42 win in the finals over Arlington.
Post Falls basketball – The Trojans under coach Marc Allert, completed a 24-1 season with a Idaho State 5A championship victory 46-44 in overtime over rival Coeur d’ Alene.
Reardan basketball – The Indians won their third straight Washington State 2B basketball championship during a 27-1 season.
COACH, MALE TEAM
Shawn Amos – Following a diagnosis of cancer and loss of his quarterback; son Gunnar to injury, he coached Coeur d’Alene football to a 9-3 record and its third Idaho State 5A title in four years.
Don Owen – University’s highly successful wrestling coach became the first in Greater Spokane League history to win three state team titles (two while U-Hi was 4A) after Titans won State 3A.
Craig Brantner – Pullman basketball coach took the Greyhounds to the State 2A basketball championship with a 44-39 win over Anacortes for 27-1 record.
Greg Whitmore – Guided Lind-Ritzville to its second State 2B football championship, the first in 2005, with a 7-0 win over Morton-White Pass to complete a perfect 13-0 season.
Jim Wood –Freeman football coach took a dominant team to its first State 1A title, finishing with a 13-0 record following the Scotties 31-13 win over Mt. Baker.
COACH, FEMALE TEAM
Quantae Anderson – Mead basketball coach took a team ranked No. 1 most of the year to the championship of the State 4A tournament, finishing with a 24-1 record.
Cathy Compton – Coaching a young Coeur d’Alene cross country team, Compton guided Vikings to their second-straight Idaho State 5A championship.
Andres Monrroy – Seventh-year girls soccer coach at Central Valley, got Bears over the quarterfinals hurdle, then went on to win their first girls State 4A title with a 17-1-1 record.
Steve Olson– No stranger to Lakeside cross country, success now with a combined six boys and girls state titles, the Eagles beat fellow Northeast A League and defending-champion Riverside for the crown.
Brandy Brown – In her coaching swan song, Brown took Tekoa-Oakesdale volleyball team to its third straight State 1B title. It was the first school in that classification to win three tourneys consecutively and one of just 10 in all classifications combined.