issaquahapress062712

The Issaquah Press

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SPORTS

Page B4

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

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Spartans to represent the Northwest at the Olympic trials

By Matt Carstens Issaquah Press reporter For a school that opened a mere 15 years ago, the fact that Skyline High School has produced two potential Olympic athletes is nothing short of phenomenal.

In fact, Katie Kinnear and Andie Taylor’s former coach was at a loss words.

“It’s just kind of unbelievable,” Skyline girls swimming coach Susan Simpkins said. “The Olympics are the pinnacle of swimming. When you swim, you want to swim at the Olympics.”

Taylor graduated from Skyline in 2010 and just finished her sophomore year at Stanford University. At Skyline, she was a seven-time individual state cham-

pion and led Skyline to the state title her senior year. The success continued at Stanford, where she earned All-American honors in both of her first two years.

Kinnear also was a seven-time individual state champion and she took Skyline to its second and third consecutive state championships. Kinnear just graduated and is planning to attend UCLA in the fall.

“Both Katie and Andie were incredible swimmers and assets to our program,” Simpkins said.

“They were really an inspiration to the other swimmers.

Their work ethic was incredible, they were highly motivated and everybody loved watching both of them swim. They added depth to the program and they were

really good students as well as athletes, their GPAs were way up there.”

With London looming, the Olympic trials for swimming are taking place this week in Omaha, Neb. It will be the second time for both swimmers at the trials, and both are equally thrilled this time around.

“I went four years ago, when I was 13,” Kinnear said. “And that was fun, but I was going more for the experience and this time I kind of know what to expect. I have a few more events than I had last time. It was really fun, but there’s more pressure this time around.”

Kinnear, who was ranked in the 100s in her previous Olympic trials, is ranked as high as 33rd in

one of her events, the 100-meter butterfly.

“This time, my main goal is to make semifinals, which are the top 16,” she said. “That would be really cool. From there you can make it to eight finals, but I just want to make the semifinals and get best time. I’m just looking at it like any normal championship meet I’ve been to before, just another opportunity to drop time.”

Along with the 100-meter butterfly, Kinnear will compete in the 200-meter butterfly and the 100and 200-meter backstroke.

As for Taylor, this time around is much more about swimming, as opposed to 2008, when she spent See SWIMMERS, Page B5

Katie Kinnear

Andie Taylor

Dodd Field gets new turf, opens to Little League

By Kira Clark

International

FRIENDLY

BY ZHENG LI

Kristof Hefty (left), of the Issaquah Soccer Club Gunners U11 team, faces off in a match against a member of Arsenal Academy during the local team’s recent tour in London.

Young soccer players fly to London to see how the English play

league games was a great experience for them,” Ball said. “To see live matches — pros playing, the speed of their play and … how

they kept the ball so well — was one thing that I was hoping they would learn, and they did.”

The players were able to watch

By Erica Thompson Four Issaquah Soccer Club teams traveled to London recently for a 10-day soccer tour to learn how the English play the game.

Jimmy Ball, the club’s director of football and coach of four Issaquah premier teams, used to play and coach in England.

He said his connections, along with a company called XLTravel that organized airfare, hotel and transportation and coordinated with the academies, allowed the young players to experience English soccer at its best.

“Just watching those premier

Pedro Miola (2), Skyline High School midfielder, battles an Eastlake High School player for the ball in a match during his junior year in April 2011.

BY GREG FARRAR

CONTRIBUTED

Jimmy Ball, Issaquah Soccer Club director of football and Gunners U11A coach, waits with some of his players to board the flight taking them and other ISC players from Seattle to London in April.

Manchester United and Everton matches, as well as tour Manchester United’s stadium and England’s national Wembley Stadium.

Playing against English teams was another pivotal part of the learning experience. Kristof Hefty, 11, said along with touring Wembley Stadium, his favorite part of the trip was playing Arsenal Academy.

“We learned a lot by seeing their skills and techniques,” he wrote in an email. “We know we need to work harder and train even when it is not scheduled.”

Kristof and his team also played matches against Leicester City and Pro-Touch Academy.

Ball said they are “like no teams they would get to play in America” based on their speed of play,

On June 9, Issaquah Little League celebrated the opening of two new artificial turf fields at Dodd Field behind Issaquah Valley Elementary School. The fields are named after Terry Dodd, former league president and 30-year volunteer.

The dedication included baseball-themed music provided by the Issaquah High School marching band, a ribbon cutting ceremony, three championship baseball games, and a variety of attractions including a dunk tank and speed pitching booth.

Issaquah Little League began the $320,000 project to add turf to Dodd Field in October 2010.

“This project would not have been even remotely possible without our ‘git ‘er done’ project manager, Greg Crockett,” Dirk Jongejan, player agent for the Issaquah Little League, said.

Crockett worked with the Issaquah School District, King County Parks, and a team of volunteers to raise funds to turf the fields. A number of major sponsors also helped.

In addition to adding turf to Dodd Field, 2012 has been a growing year for the Issaquah Little League, which now has more than 800 players, 150 coaches

HOW TO HELP The Dodd Field campaign still needs contributions. Donate or purchase a memorial brick at www.issaquahlittleleague.org/ dodd_field_campaign.

and 58 teams.

Colin Curtis, one of Issaquah Little League’s own, has played for the New York Yankees. Curtis recalled the days of playing against and with your friends and buddies. He said he couldn’t decide if his first homerun at age 10 was more exciting than his homerun in Yankee Stadium. His road to the Major League was anything but smooth, and it included a battle with cancer at age 15.

“We thank Colin for being a role model, overcoming illness, injury and having the determination to follow his dream … even if it is in those dreaded pinstripes,” Jongejan quipped.

On their way to the big leagues, Little League teams fought for the Issaquah championships. The Rangers won the AAA division (8-9) game, the Phillies won the Coast division (10-11) game and the Giants won the Majors division (11-12) game.

BY JUAN GONZALEZ

See SOCCER, Page B5

Project Manager Greg Crockett and son Torin Crockett cut the ribbon June 9 at the opening of Dodd Field.

Spartan Pedro Miola brought ‘Latin spirit’ to the soccer field

By Lillian Tucker Issaquah Press reporter

Dubbed one of the Kardiac Kids

by The Seattle Times, Pedro Miola made his mark on school history last year when he scored the game-winning sudden-death goal, advancing the Skyline High School Spartans to the state semifinals for the first time.

This year, Miola, and his 17-point season total, helped the team make history again by winning the KingCo 4A Championship.

“Pedro has a knack for being in

the right place in the right time,” Spartan soccer coach Don Braman said.

Miola played for Braman’s varsity team all four years of high school, started for the past three and filled the role of team captain this year. While forwards are traditionally the top scorers, the midfielder was second in total points his final season and graduated as the school’s third top scorer ever with 43 career points.

“That is rather impressive,” Braman said. “You want your best players in the middle of the field.

He is going to work harder than

anybody else. He is going to do the work defending and compete for every ball. He is a model for every guy to look up to and we are going to miss him.”

Miola said he was just happy as long as he was helping the team.

He didn’t focus on scoring; the goals came when they came.

The first-team all-leaguer has been helping on the soccer pitch since about age 5. He dabbled in other sports, like golf, tennis and football in elementary school and See MIOLA, Page B5