Second-year successes for Ridgeline High spring sports teams

By John McCallum Splash contributor Baseball

The Falcons are 6-8 in the GSL, 7-9 overall and in seventh place in league standings with four games remaining. Ridgeline ran off a fourgame winning streak that included a remarkable 9-7 come-from-behind win over fifth-place Gonzaga Prep on April 11; a game where the Falcons trailed 7-1 heading in to the fifth inning and scored four runs in the top of the seventh, sparked by a home run from Nate Fitzpatrick, for the win.

Ridgeline also own wins over GSL leader Mt. Spokane, thirdplace Mead and second-place Central Valley School District rival University — the latter a 4-3 decision at home via an eighthinning, two-out walk-off RBI double by Easton Amend.

“The other thing that is special about this team is the fact they never give up,” Falcons head coach Jeramie Maupin said. “We have been down in the seventh inning five times this year and come back to either tie or take the lead.”

The Falcons are hitting .219 this season. Amend, a junior, leads the team with a .333 batting average, with seven runs scored, seven RBIs and nine hits. Caden Andreas, one of six freshmen on the team seeing significant innings, is batting .300 with 11 runs, two RBIs and nine hits while Fitzpatrick, a junior, is batting .217 with four runs, four RBIs, five hits and the homer.

What’s keeping Ridgeline’s games close is their pitching and defense. The Falcons currently have a 0.929 overall team fielding percentage, and are led by

Andreas, Amend and freshman Jack Vigliotta.

One the mound, Fitzpatrick currently posts a 2.00 ERA with 23 strikeouts and two wins, followed by junior Luke Ferguson with a 2.722 ERA, 12 strikeouts and one win, sophomore Jaxon Barcus at 0.00 ERA, seven strike outs and one save and freshman Ben Wartinger at 2.692 ERA, 10 strikeouts and three wins.

While a young team, Maupin said one would never know the difference between grade levels when coming to a practice or game. This is due to a strong relationship between the players and a respect for each other and the game of baseball.

“Each and every player has come up big for us at least once this season, (and) have contributed to the success we have had up to this point,” Maupin said.

Fastpitch softball

The Falcon girls have already improved on their inaugural season record of 3-15, posting a 4-8 overall mark in the 2023 campaign. That mark puts them in sixth place in the GSL with six games remaining, four of which are against teams behind them in the standings.

Offensively, Ridgeline is batting .384 as a team, led by Maggie Carvo, Savannah Smith and Sam Mowery. Carvo is hitting .481 in 27 at bats, banging out 13 hits while scoring eight runs and driving in 10 more. She also has five walks and six stolen bases.

Smith is hitting .538 in 26 at bats with 14 hits, 16 runs, nine RBIs, four walks and seven stolen bases while Mowery averages .550 in 20 at bats with 11 hits, 10 runs, five RBIs, two walks and eight steals.

Mowery has also been a pitching leader, posting a 1-1 record with a

4.67 ERA over 21 innings pitched, striking out 17 and giving up 14 earned runs. Elli Thompson has been the Falcons workhorse in the pitching circle, posting a 3-4 record with a 9.07 ERA over 27 innings, striking out 15 with 35 earned runs.

Defensively, head coach Alyssa Rasmussen said her leading fielders are Mowery, Natalie Willmon and Smith. Rasmussen points to her two seniors, Mowery and Smith, as key players for Falcon success.

“These two have led the team well, especially through adversity,” Rasmussen said. “They have stayed positive, encouraging and leading by example.”

Rasmussen also said Carvo has proven to be “another amazing spotlight player, on and off the field.”

Golf

Ridgeline girls golf has five returning letter winners from 2022. The team is led in scoring by Carolyn Rose, who shot a personal best 81 this season at Wandermere, a product of a lot of hard work on her swing in the offseason, head coach Brittany Wilcox said.

“We will continue to work on her putting, and when that starts to improve, we are going to see her scores drop even lower,” Wilcox added

Kate Mulligan best in 2023 is 97, just three strokes off her personal best last season but has only played in two tournaments. Reagan Rothley shot a personal best 95 at Indian Canyon this season while Brooke Robertson’s personal best of 109, 15 strokes lower than her 2022 score, took place at Wandermere in only her second season of playing golf. Alaina Mitrovich saw her personal best of 116 at Esmeralda, April 17, while freshman Sawyer Anderson shot a personal best of 107 at Moses Lake, March 17.

“The girls have been working hard this season to improve their games,” Wilcox said. “We have a very young team and in just a year they have improved dramatically. I am really hoping that we can qualify as a team for districts rather than just individuals for districts.”

Soccer

After finishing 8-6 and one win away from a state playoff appearance in 2022, Ridgeline boys’ soccer is on the cusp of making even bigger strikes in year two. As of April 24, the Falcons were 6-1 and in third place in the GSL, 8-2 overall with two games remaining — at home against league-leading Gonzaga Prep (7-0, 10-3) and on the road at second-place Mead (6-1, 7-2-2).

“We continue to play wellorganized soccer, possessing the ball and relying on high soccer IQ to move the ball quickly into the attack,” head coach Ernie Merino said. “With a healthy gameplan and playing the game the right way, our team really has come alive.”

Ridgeline lost its starting striker to a preseason injury, forcing them to become a more balanced, team offensively. Junior midfielder Braylon Helm-Renz leads in goals and assists with six each, followed by junior midfielder Zac Olson with four goals and four assists.

Junior forward Griffyn Rider has five goals while senior forward Landon Lee has four assists. Merino also pointed to the work of Cameron “Rudy” Malloy in the midfield as another element to the Falcons offensive success.

The defense is anchored by junior center back Caden Thompson, with junior Howard Hull alongside. Senior Cameron Kreider, a St. Martins University soccer commit, is also in the midfield defensive line.

And while a hole might have been created in goal with the departure of Landon Coddington, also to St. Martins University, it has been aptly filled by sophomore goalkeeper Brady McMahon.

“If our team can continue to perform at a high level, we have a chance not only to win the league, but also perform well into the post season in May,” Merino said.

Tennis

The Falcon varsity boys were 7-3 in matches through April 24, a big improvement over last year’s 4-5 overall mark.

According to head coach Freddie Rekhow, the top four players are senior Tyler Baker, senior Callen Johnson, junior Zander Palm, and freshman Jackson Hieb. Top doubles players are senior Jack Rau and senior Evan Andersen, senior Brock Brito and junior Braydon Harris, junior Luke Pell and junior Cameron Rehkow, senior Kam Lewis and senior Teagan Cummings.

“Our singles play has been very solid, and our doubles have been competitive in their battles for team position and holding their own within the league,” Rekow said.

Ridgeline’s program is growing, with 31 players turning out this season compared to last year’s 17. The Falcons finished fifth in the GSL last season, and with a 4-2 mark are currently tied for fourth with three matches remaining.

“We pride ourselves on having fun, working hard, supporting our teammates, and being great sports and being respectful of our opponents,” Rekhow said.

“These boys have been an absolute pleasure to coach, and I can’t wait to see them reach their goals.”

The girls’ team was 4-5 overall through April 24, 2-3 in the GSL.

The Falcons finished 2022 at 6-3 overall, 4-3 in the GSL.

Head coach Russell Tarmann said the team’s goal with four matches left is to finish the GSL at 5-4.

“The girl’s main goal is to have fun playing tennis and be competitive when doing so,” Tarmann said. “The girls wanted to be a strong team and set team goals along with individual tennis goals.”

Senior Avery Lewis is the top singles player, returning from a state appearance last year and currently undefeated in the GSL No. 1 bracket. She’s followed by seniors Cassidy Kuhlmann, Charley Palm and Sasha Takasaki. Freshman Eilean McLaurin is working her way back up the ladder after suffering an injury.

At doubles are senior Lexy Aitken and Gianna Longo at No. 1, sophomores Prasidha Krishnaswamy and Svetlana Wickham at No. 2 with sophomore Sophia Brinkman and senior Katelynn Fay at No. 3.

Like the boys, turnout is up this year from 2022, almost doubling from 36 to 65. Tarmann pointed to seniors Avery Lewis and Palm as showing team leadership and serving as the “backbone” this season.

“I am very proud of all the girls,” Tarmann said. “It has been a pleasure to coach these ladies and I look forward to seeing them reach all of their goals.

Track and field

According to GSL boys top-10 standings on Athletic.net, senior Isaac Richardson is tied for third in the high jump while junior Kale Kardonsky is fourth in the shot put and sixth in the discus. Senior Brayden Phillips is ninth in the discus, all of whom head coach Molly Kovacs said are performing well in their events.

In the javelin, senior Samuel “Sam” Schuben is seventh, junior Mason Fouty is ninth and senior Dallan Johns is 10th. Sophomore Lincoln Duggan is seventh in the triple jump and junior Duncan Vittetoe is 10th in the long jump.

On the track, junior Ryan Koppenhaver is sixth in the 300-meter hurdles and seventh in the 110 hurdles. Richardson is ninth

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“Right now, Ryan Koppenhaver is leading strong with good performances in the 110 and 300m Hurdles,” Kovacs said. “In addition, Isaac Richardson is a senior who just had a huge PR in the high jump at 5’10, as well as our top performance in the 100 dash.

“We also have a lot of young talent,” Kovacs added. “We are focusing on building a strong foundation that values commitment, teamwork, and building our character to create the best versions of ourselves.”

For the girls, junior Presley Young leads the GSL in the 200-meter dash, posting a personal record time of 26.5 seconds at the Pasco Invitational on April 15. Young is also third in the league in the 100.

Sophomore Izzie Olsen is seventh in the 400, freshman Claire Lamoreaux fourth in the 100 hurdles, senior Alivia Bruno fifth in the 300 hurdles and sophomore Paige Huntsinger is eighth in the 3,200-meter run.

In the field, senior Talia Emmerson is third in the javelin, seventh in the shot put and ninth in the discus, while junior KJ Haneke is fourth in the shot put and sixth in the triple jump. Bruno is in a four-way tie for fifth in the high jump with sophomores Brooklyn Hillman and Kyla Ross in a six-way tie for ninth.

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