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July 10, 2013
COMMUNITY
SAMMAMISH REVIEW
Sammamish celebrates Fourth on the Plateau
Garrett Steinnetzer tosses a Frisbee to Michael Moore during the Fourth on the Plateau festival at the Sammamish Commons. Thousands of people turned out for the annual Independence Day and fireworks celebration
Guitarist Jye Paet of the Seattle-based band @Five strums along as the group performs for festival goers at the Fourth on the Plateau event.
Janeen Nelson proudly waves American flags while dancing along to music at the Fourth on the Plateau festival.
At left, Sophia Hu gives 7-year-old Sierra Cox a colorful design on her cheek during the Fourth on the Plateau festival at the Sammamish Commons. Children like Cox enjoyed various games and events prior to the fireworks. Aditi Waghray diligently works away on a painting of an American flag during festivities at the Fourth on the Plateau event.
The Foxman family - from left, Adam, Melissa, Noah and Heidi - enjoy a picnic dinner at the Sammamish Commons during the Fourth on the Plateau festival.
Photos by Neil Pierson
Andrea Jensen, left, and Serafina Korf dish up kettle corn for hungry guests at the Fourth on the Plateau festival at the Sammamish Commons
Katherine Hedrick, 6, giddily slides down an inflatable slide that was part of the July 4 Fourth on the Plateau festival at the Sammamish Commons.
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SportS
July 10, 2013
SAMMAMISH REVIEW
Eastside FC girls look to make history at national tournament By Neil Pierson
The group of girls who form the Eastside FC 95 White soccer squad have tasted unprecedented success over the course of the 2013 season. First came a strong regular season in which the 18-and-under club went 10-3-1 and outscored its opponents 30-6. Many of the players had been with coach Ryan Dortch since they were 11, but none of them had hoisted a state-championship trophy. That changed when Eastside FC obliterated the opposition at the Virginia Mason Washington Youth Soccer Challenge Cup. Their offense erupted for 27 goals over seven games. Winning the state cup sent Eastside FC to Boise, Idaho, in June for the Region IV Presidents Cup. After some easy victories in the group stages, the knockout rounds proved much more
difficult. Eastside FC survived a penalty-kick shootout to beat an Idaho team in the semifinals, then got a late goal from Viktoriya Vasina to win the regional title, 1-0, over a Utah opponent. Now the team faces one more test: Win the National Presidents Cup tournament, which takes place July 11-14 in Auburndale, Fla. Eastside FC will face opponents from Texas, North Dakota and New York in the round-robin format. Another claim to fame is on the line. According to club records that date back to 1998, no Eastside FC girls squad has won a national title. Most of the girls attend different high schools, but they’ve bonded through their club schedule, which comprises a big chunk of the year. “I think we’ve really gotten to know how everyone else on the team plays,” said Emma Elder, a
Skyline High senior-to-be. “We’ve really been able to mesh well together, so we’re really in synch, and I think that helps out a lot.” While the team practices together only twice a week, their sessions are an intense, lunch-bucket approach to soccer. They’ve been playing in sweats to prepare for the heat in Florida. Dortch has asked them to wake up earlier than normal so they can adjust to the three-hour time change. “We work really hard together, and we’ve just been taking one step at a time and checking off the to-do list to get to where we need to be,” said Kelsey Lindor, a Mount Si senior-to-be. While the offense gets much of the accolades for Eastside FC’s winning ways – they had eight different goal-scorers in a 9-1 regional-tourney win – the defense has been just as good. See SOCCER, Page 11
Photo by Neil Pierson
Eastside FC’s Amanda Ulrich tries to maintain possession as Rachel Waddell, left, and Sydney Smith apply pressure during a July 3 team practice. The 18-and-under squad has dominated its opposition enroute to state and regional titles, and will play for Eastside FC’s first girls national crown this week.
Sammamish girls synch up with a strenuous sport By Neil Pierson
As first-time competitors at the national level, synchronized swimmers Leeza Polyakova and Meili Hobson were a bit tense. Polyakova and Hobson, who are both Sammamish residents, had to ignore their apprehension last month as part of the Seattle Synchronized Swim Team’s performance at the eSynchro Age Group Championships in Riverside, Calif. It wasn’t an easy task. The girls are relatively new to the sport, having gotten involved within the last two years, and they were competing in front of several hundred people at the meet — easily the biggest crowd they’ve seen. Hobson, 11, who will enter the fifth grade this fall at Creekside Elementary School, felt a lot of nerves as she entered the pool at Riverside City College for the first time. “I kind of blocked all that out, but when I was in the middle of the routine and I was underwater, I just felt like staying there,” Hobson said. “But I just kept going on.” Seattle Synchro – comprised of Polyakova, Hobson, Ivy Huang of Bellevue, and Sonja Hendricks and Lauren Watson of Kirkland – placed 25th out of 32 teams in the 11- and 12-year-old division. With
Contributed
Sammamish residents Leeza Polyakova, left, and Meili Hobson enjoyed their time at a national synchronized swimming meet last month. Polyakova and Hobson compete with the Seattle Synchronized Swim Team. none of the girls having experience at nationals, it wasn’t a disappointment, they said. The team has proven its dedication over the past year, meeting at least three times per week for workouts and practices. A
typical practice lasts two to three hours, and includes plenty of strength and core training along with working in the water. “It would take us a couple months to learn the full routine, and it would just be very dif-
ficult for some people, and by some people, I mean me,” said Polyakova, 11, who will move from Carson Elementary to Inglewood Middle School this fall. “Sometimes it can be really fun. Sometimes it can be really
challenging. Sometimes it can be both. But you just have to practice and get the routine down.” Along with the five-athlete team event, the girls also formed competitive duets. Out of 37 teams in the 11-12 division, Hendricks and Watson placed 29th, while Polyakova and Huang were 31st. The team qualified for nationals in May at a regional meet in Oregon, winning a bronze medal. Polyakova and Huang won bronze in duet competition. Endurance is a huge key for success, the girls said. They often hold their breath for 15-30 seconds during their underwater maneuvers, and they have to tread water the entire time. Touching the bottom of the pool results in point deductions. “Basically, it’s not that challenging as you do it more,” Hobson said. “But when I first started, it was challenging for me, and whenever our coach would add something or make it more challenging, it would take me a while … to finally learn.” Polyakova and Hobson have prior training in traditional swimming, but they say they prefer synchronized swimming for its creativity. Hobson is a multi-sport athSee SWIM, Page 11