If you thought the Friday Harbor girls basketball team would fear taking on the No. 2-ranked team in the state, think again. The Wolverines, according to junior Kayla Short, took the court determined to make the most out of their test against the defending 1A state champ, Lynden Christian, and found good reason to smile despite a lopsided loss Saturday at home.
Three Wolverines scored in double digits as Friday Harbor clinched the No. 3 seed in the first-round of post-season play thanks to a 52-45 victory at home Saturday over Lynden Christian.
Any hope of a perfect run through league came to a screeching halt Friday as La Conner took advantage of a fourth-quarter collapse to deal the Wolverines a 41-34 loss on the road.
Too little and, perhaps more importantly, too late. A furious fourth-quarter rally wasn’t enough to erase another ice-cold shooting performance by the Wolverines. But they gave league-leading La Conner all it could handle in the final period before coming up just short in a 31-27 loss Friday on the road.
Cookies, casseroles and homemade chili may have taken an edge off the hunger. But by the time the main course was ready to air, appetites were as strong as ever as islanders crowded into the Friday Harbor High School commons to celebrate the swearing-in of the nation’s 44th president, Barack Obama, at a post-inaugural community potluck Tuesday.
At Spring Street International School, Inauguration Day was an opportunity to connect the dots. The day began with a general assembly during first and second periods that featured a double-dose of U.S. milestones. Prior to watching the inauguration in real-time on satellite feed, students got a glimpse of just how far the nation has come in bridging its racial divide by watching historic footage of Dr. Martin Luther King delivering his “I Have A Dream” speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial some 45 years ago.
Four points in the final period weren’t enough to keep the Lions at bay. With a frenetic comeback in the waning moments of regulation, Concrete shed a five-point deficit at the half and knocked down just enough free-throws at crunch time to deal the Wolverines a stinging 32-30 defeat Friday in Turnbull Gym.
The Friday Harbor boys basketball team controlled the boards and the scoreboard from start to finish to tally a convincing 62-45 victory at home Friday over a cold-shooting Concrete squad. The Wolverines, with senior guard Michael Sandifer contributing seven points and fellow seniors Austin Scheffer and Jordan Nash each adding six, took a 29-21 advantage into the locker room at the break. They withstood several third-quarter rallies and outscored the Lions 18-11 in the final period to seal the victory.
Friday Harbor faced an uphill battle even before the first wrestler hit the mat. But the Wolverines’ Maverick Blake, Michael Davis and Jordyn Taylor gave the home crowd plenty to cheer and a lesson or two for Darrington to ponder as the two Northwest 1A/2B rivals squared off Thursday in Hall Gym.
Bold. Unique. Innovative. A model for the rest of the state. There was no shortage of superlatives as the County Council gave a hearty endorsement to the San Juan Initiative and its final report and list of recommendations.
A San Juan Island woman was arrested for DUI following a bone-rattling detour off the road, up an embankment and into the brush late Saturday, near the intersection of Gladys Way and Turn Point Road.
As far as winter storms go, this latest one — though not as destructive as some — proved trickier to combat than most. Two weeks of sub-freezing temperatures only intensified problems created by the recurring blasts of ice and snow, and keeping local roads clear of frozen — sometimes treacherous — precipitation turned out to be a prolonged endeavor for San Juan County’s road crews. Ditto for the town of Friday Harbor.
Football has come to an end, at least temporarily, at Western Washington University. University officials announced Thursday that the Vikings football program will be eliminated as a cost-cutting move meant to ensure the excellence of all the school’s intercollegiate sports.
