MARYSVILLE — Marysville sports rose to new levels in 2011. The launching of Marysville Getchell varsity sports added a new competitive rivalry between friends and former classmates. Lakewood elevated its competition to show the community what a small school can do. Marysville-Pilchuck stayed strong. Also, 2011 proved that a team made of regional rivals can come together to dominate a sport year after year.

Tomahawk wrestlers contend at State

Marysville-Pilchuck wrestlers, soon to split with the inception of Marysville Getchell wrestling in the fall of 2011, knew that this was the year to make an impact. Brandon Blevins, who beefed up to 135 pounds from 125 the year before, was only Tomahawk wrestler who had gone to State the year before. Marcus Haughian beefed up to 189 pounds and Demitri Robinson, who joined the Tomahawks after winning the 103-pound class 1B championship at Tulalip Heritage High School, beefed up to 152 pounds.

The Tommies started out 4-0 entering Winter Break and earned a record eight pins against Cascade. They won the Paul Reiman Invitational and beat Arlington for the first time in three years to improve to 3-1 in the conference and 12-2 overall. M-P sent three wrestlers to Mat Classic XXII where Brian Donaldson took fifth in the 140-pound bracket. Of the six Tomahawks who made it to State, Haughian earned sixth place and Blevins took eighth.

Lakewood girls basketball defies expectation, reaches Districts

Lakewood’s girls were predicted to finish last of the eight teams in Cascade Conference, but they went 8-6, 9-12 overall to take third place in the conference. The Cougars started out 5-5 after beating Granite Falls and moving into a tie with the Tigers for third place. Lakewood pulled into a tie for second place in the conference just three games later, against Coupeville.

Burlington-Edison sent the Cougars to the consolation bracket in first round of Districts by taking a 75-27 victory, before Mount Baker ousted the Cougars, 48-27, in the Cougars’ first consolation game.

Tomahawk softball reaches State championship

M-P softball featured six returning all-league players. M-P had earned a State playoff berth 23 times since 1980, including 11 straight visits from 1992 to 2001 and a third-place finish in 1997.

Returning eight seniors from the 2010 team propelled the Tomahawks to the 4A State Tournament as the second seed from District 1, the highest seed in M-P softball history, with a 23-4 overall record.

The Tomahawks beat Kentlake 5-3 in first round, knocked out Richland 8-3 in the second and powered through Woodinville 7-2 in the semifinals. M-P outscored their tournament opposition, 20-9, but lost a 1-0 nail-biter to Walla Walla, in which they left the bases loaded in their final at-bat, at Merkel Sports Complex in Spokane.

Four-year letterman Megan Rollings batted .583 in tournament and went 6-for-6 with two home runs, three doubles and five RBIs in the first two games.

Lakewood girls golf wins Cascade Conference

Lady Cougars golf beat King’s by a stroke and scored enough points just in time to jump from third to first in the league standings.

Senior Kayley Mizell finished second in the league tourney and second in the league standings for the season. Her record-setting score of 90 was best league championship score ever for a Lakewood golfer.

Mizell was complemented by senior co-captain Jessica Spears, juniors Kaylee Diggs and Chelsea Blackwood and two sophomores, Hannah Eneix and Nina Forsell.

Washington Rush win seventh straight National Cup Championship

Extreme heat in Boise, Idaho could not stop the Rush from winning their seventh consecutive soccer championship that capped a 17-2-2 year and a 13-game win streak. The Rush defense gave up only one goal in games against Rochester FC (6-0), Platinum FC (2-1) and Storm FC (1-0) before the championship game, and only surrendered 14 goals in 21 games all season.

The team included players from Marysville-Pilchuck, Arlington, Jackson, Kamiak, Lake Stevens and Archbishop Murphy high schools, including M-P’s Becca Lentz and Arlington’s Sadie Hitsky.

Lakewood’s Scott takes first place in long jump at State

Five months ago, Lakewood senior Andre Scott found himself lying on the side of a mountain writhing in pain following an ill-fated snowboard trick. And the only thing coursing through his mind was whether or not his final track and field season had come to a pre-mature end.

Luckily for him, it hadn’t. Scott went on to have his best year in four uncertain track and field seasons.  He capped it off  by capturing the state title in the long jump at the Class 2A State Track and Field Championships, held May 26-28, at Mount Tahoma High School.

Scott’s winning jump measured 22-feet, 5-inches, a few inches shy of his personal best of 22-10, which he set a week earlier at Districts.

Marysville Getchell launches varsity sports

The Marysville School Board decided by a 4-1 vote on Jan. 10, 2011 to postpone start of Getchell athletics because it could not accommodate the $576,000 startup costs. The Board changed its mind and resumed the varsity sports program on Feb. 22 after cost-saving steps and meetings with parents to find a way to cut net costs in half. Football, girls soccer and volleyball celebrated inaugural seasons in the fall.

MG hired head football coach Davis Lura, previously a West Seattle High School coach and Ballard and Mountlake Terrace assistant. Lura graduated from Stanwood High graduate and received college degrees while playing football at Central Washington University. Wayne Nash was hired as the girls soccer coach. Nash co-coached girls soccer at Jefferson High School in Federal Way and assists Cascade High boys soccer. Mindy Staudinger, a multi-year all-conference athlete at M-PHS, who later starred at Montana State University, became MG’s volleyball coach. M-P swim and dive coach Jaci LeGore became MG’s coach as well.

Getchell senior cross country runner Rachael Lefstad, who ran as a Tomahawk last year, set the bar for success by returning to the state tournament for the first time since going as a freshman in 2009. She took seventh place at Districts and finished 21st in the 3A girls 5,000-meter championship race.

Lakewood girls soccer goes to State

The Lady Cougars, who went 11-3 in the Cascade Conference and 15-5-1 overall, can say that they battled the best teams in their playoff run. They beat No. 3 seed Anacortes 2-1 in the first round of 2A Districts. They lost 4-1 to No. 1 seed and defending champion Sehome. They beat No. 2 seed Squalicum 2-0 and No. 1 seed Cedarcrest to get to State before being vanquished 2-0 at the hands of eventual state champ Interlake.

Lakewood seniors run at State

Lakewood High School Senior runners Kris Mugrage and Rachel Cundy advanced to State when Mugrage finished ninth at Districts and Cundy finished eighth.

Mugrage took 24th in the boys 5,000-meter championship race at Sun Willows Golf Course in Pasco. Cundy took 15th.

Lakewood football makes it to State quarterfinals

Cougar football enjoyed its first conference championship in 17 years after going 1-6 in the conference in 2009 and 5-2 in 2010. A 6-1 mark and a 26-22 homecoming win against Archbishop Thomas Murphy, the first time the Cougars had ever beaten them, made all the difference as it gave the Cougars the head-to-head tiebreaker when Murphy finished the season with the same record.

Lakewood beat South Whidbey 34-7 in the final game of season to share Cascade Conference championship with ATM. The Cougars took revenge on Burlington-Edison, who had knocked Lakewood out of the playoffs in 2010, trouncing them 55-0 and earning the No. 1 District 1 seed in 2A State Tournament. Lakewood beat Lindbergh 43-13 in first round of State to become Lakewood’s first-ever 10-win football team. The dream season came to an end when W.F. West ran over the Cougars 33-18 at Quil Ceda Stadium.