Due to freezing temperatures and snowstorms, many basketball games on both Orcas and Lopez Island were postponed for the week of Dec. 15 – Dec. 22. For more information on the schedules, please go to: http://oihssports.olinesports.com/ and http://www.lopez.k12.wa.us/.
Coach Dennis Dahl, Orcas High School football coach, was named this week to the Washington State High School Football ‘Coaches Hall of Fame’ for a Lifetime Achievement award. Coach Dahl, who came to Orcas in 1990 and has been coaching the Orcas varsity football team for 19 years, will be inducted into the Washington State Coaches Hall of Fame at the winter clinic in Bellevue, Washington, on Jan. 24, 2009.
The history of basketball and the rules of the game are fairly well known throughout the United States, and indeed, most of the world, but an interesting fact about the game is that it was invented by a Canadian, James Naismith.
Starting in August, the cheering squad of Lopez High School practices four times a week, for two hours at a time, preparing not only for football season, but basketball as well.
The Washington Interscholastic Activities Association (WIAA) announced the 2008 Northwest All-League teams this week. For Orcas Island, the selections, representing offensive and defensive teams, are:
2008 was a prolific and fruitful year for football, soccer and volleyball at Lopez High School.
Lopez citizen scientists invite the community to join them on Sunday, Dec. 28 at Lopez Center for “Salmon-ation,” a celebration and recap of their first year of research on south end salmon nurseries.
After playing on Tuesday and losing to the Lummi nation basketball team 57-75, the game between the Lopez Lobos and the Tulalip Hawks was a physical and intense battle from the get-go.
It is inspiring to watch a very young team, with little to no varsity playing experience, transform over time into a smooth basketball playing machine in front of one’s eyes. The Lady Lobos played three games in five days this week, first at the Lummi nation on Tuesday, then at home, playing against the Tulalip nation on Friday, and on Saturday playing against the LaConner Braves at home as well. Each time, the Lady Lobos improved. Against Lummi, the ladies lost 14-78. On Friday, the ladies were down against Tulalip 18-65 and on Saturday the team succumbed 29-54. But if one watched their development over the last 10 days of game-playing, the girls have learned in leaps and bounds and steadily improved both the number of turnovers and the number of points scored. With every game that passes, the Lady Lobos have increased the points on the board.
Orcas High School student Morgan Borman is a serious contender in competitive cross country racing. Yet there is no cross country running club on Orcas Island and no team at the high school or anywhere in the San Juans.
The Lady Lobos lost to the Grace Academy Lady Eagles 10-34 Friday night.
The Orcas boys basketball team got off to a running start on Saturday, winning against the Pullman Christian Eagles 37-34 in a first game squeaker at Orcas. Orcas led in the first quarter, 15-9. Coach Joe Duenn said, “We want to be a good defensive team. The second quarter was tough. They changed up their defense and it took us a while to adjust to their new positioning, but we had some great rebounding.” Tyler Leidecker lead the Vikings in rebounds while Seadrick Wooding provided excellent leadership and demonstrated fine ball-handling skills as point guard. Alan Coe came out and played excellent defense as well, snatching the ball away from potential scorers and sending it down the court on numerous fast breaks.
The boys’ basketball team’s first game of the 2008 season started off with lots of points on the board and a packed house, the cheerleaders in full swing and Grace Academy looking to stop the Lobos on Lopez home turf. The Grace Academy Eagles, however, started off the game by fouling the Lobos twice in a row. The Lobos responded by putting plenty of points on the board, gaining the rebound in fast breaks and popping it into the basket with aplomb. Grace fouled Lopez again, suffering from first game jitters.
