October 2018
IN THIS ISSUE From the Athletic Director’s Desk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Ben Burr-Kirven found a home at UW. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 10 Questions With ... Volleyball's Kara Bajema. . . . . . . 11 Huskies’ stat man Craig Heyamoto goes the extra yard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 U.S. Soccer teammates reunited at Washington . . . . . 18 UW sustainability efforts lead the way. . . . . . . . . . . . 26 The Shot: Indelible Images. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
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GOHUSKIES VOLUME 12 / ISSUE 3 / OCTOBER 2018
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FROM THE ATHLETIC DIRECTOR’S DESK
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all is always a special time for me, as not only does our competition year begin, but our amazing student body is back on campus. Our students and student-athletes are at the core of everything we do as an institution and as an athletic department. I always know that the new year is upon us when the Dawg Pack makes itself known on Montlake Boulevard. A coveted ticket in the student section, the Dawg Pack amplifies the gameday experience for all of our student-athletes and fans. They fill our stands with a passion that is unmatched elsewhere in the country and they are a critical part of our game day atmosphere! The Dawg Pack, however, can’t do it alone; they need the rest of the Husky faithful to come alongside them to create an unstoppable force of noise and energy. Whether it be at the Greatest Setting in College Football, inside Alaska Airlines Arena, on the pitch or on the running trails, your support is essential in providing the world-class experience UW is known for. We are so appreciative of the ways that you invest in Husky Athletics to make this place so special. When we all join forces, we create an at-
Jennifer Cohen
mosphere that allows our student-athletes to be boundless in their endeavor to improve everyday and make a difference in the world. I hope to see you soon cheering on our beloved Huskies. GO DAWGS!
EDITOR Brian Beaky WRITERS Mason Kelley, Rich Myhre PHOTOGRAPHERS Matthew Lipsen (cover), Don Jedlovec, Jonathan Moore, Red Box Photography, UW Athletics ADVERTISING
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SPIRIT IN THE STANDS SUPPORT ACROSS THE STATE When Boeing supports what our employees are passionate about, it builds strong partnerships and stronger ties throughout our communities. That’s why we’re proud to be the title sponsor of the 2018 Boeing Apple Cup Series and celebrate two historic Washington universities.
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s a boy growing up in Menlo Park, Calif., Ben Burr-Kirven lived only a mile or two from the campus of Stanford University in nearby Palo Alto. Given the school’s proximity and his love of sports, Burr-Kirven was often at Stanford Stadium for Cardinal games. “I went because I liked watching football,” he says. “But I was never a big Stanford fan.” By his senior year at Sacred Heart Prep in Menlo Park, Burr-Kirven was drawing recruiting interest from a number of college football programs, including Stanford. A 6-foot, 200-pound running back and linebacker at the time, and a good student as well, he was
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Ben Burr-Kirven has found the spotlight at UW
BY RICH MYHRE eager to give the Cardinal a look because “you obviously want to get offered by your hometown team.” The problem was, Stanford had doubts. “The way they play defense,” he says, “I was kind of a ‘tweener’ for them. (The Cardinal coaches thought) I was too small to play inside linebacker for them, and they didn’t think I was fast enough to play safety.” Given their uncertainty, there was no scholarship offer. “They wanted me to walk-on,” he says, “but I wasn’t interested in doing that. It was just a situation where we didn’t fit.” Enter Washington. Under second-year
head coach Chris Petersen and defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski, the Huskies had no qualms about Burr-Kirven’s size, speed or anything else. They saw a young player of considerable talent — not to mention desire, commitment and heart. In other words, the kind of player who excelled under Petersen in his previous tenure at Boise State University, and then at Washington. As Kwiatkowski explains, “We just looked at the way he played football. (All) the plays he made and how hard he played. … All the stuff we evaluated him on, we loved about him.”
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So, the Huskies kept pushing hard, and Burr-Kirven found himself increasingly drawn to Petersen and his program. “It really started with (Coach) Pete,” Burr-Kirven says. “Washington really wasn’t a place I was looking at until he came (in December of 2013, Burr-Kirven’s junior year of high school). But, once I met him, it just kind of clicked. He was preaching the same kind of values I’d gotten from my high school team. “My parents loved everything about the program,” he continues. “They loved Seattle, and it just felt like home pretty quickly. It felt like the right fit.” As for the “tweener” label, Burr-Kirven has pretty much dispelled that notion, at least as it applies to him. As a true freshman in 2015, he played in every game except the Heart of Dallas Bowl, which he missed with an injury. A backup linebacker, he saw considerable action on special teams, and after the season he received the team’s Most Outstanding Special Teams Player award. Over the last two seasons, Burr-Kirven has appeared in every UW game, including eight starts in 2017 when he was named to the AllPacific-12 Conference second team. As a junior, he was the team’s top tackler, with 84 tackles in 13 games (an average of 6.5 a game) to go with a sack, an interception and two recovered fumbles. “Ben’s in the middle of the defense, and he’s a smart guy,” Kwiatkowski says. “He’s getting guys lined up (properly). And the way he flies sideline to sideline … the energy he plays with, the passion he plays with, and then how productive he is, that’s what you want in a football player.” As he progresses through his senior season, Burr-Kirven would like to see the Huskies address some unfinished business. The team reached the College Football Playoff in his sophomore year, but lost to Alabama in the semifinals. Last season, Washington failed to repeat as Pac-12 champion, and then lost to Penn State in the Fiesta Bowl. “We’ve had success here,” he says, “but every year we kind of get stuck and can’t get over the hump to win that big game. You definitely want to leave a legacy here and go out the right way, so I think everyone in our senior class and really everyone on our whole team wants to go out this season and play up to the ability we know we have.” Burr-Kirven calls his years at Washington “a great experience,” and he gives much of the credit to Petersen, whom he calls “the best coach I’ve ever been around.”
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“I think the biggest thing with (Coach) Pete,” Burr-Kirven says, “is that he’s exactly who he says he is. There’s no hidden monster behind him. He’s a real man of integrity, and I think that’s what draws so many good guys up here to play for him. He really is an honest, truthful man. He’s demanding and he’s tough, but he also loves you and he shows it. “There are many different ways to coach, but what he’s doing works," he continues. "That man has won so many games in his career, both here and at Boise, and it’s just good to see someone who’s so natural and real with us. It’s easy for a head coach to be kind of a removed, overarching power, but he’s really there (for his team). He’s somebody you can talk to. If you have any questions, whether it’s on the football field or personal or anything like that, he’s really there and he really cares about you as a person outside of football.” Burr-Kirven will leave Washington with a degree in cinema and media studies, which he hopes will lead to a future career in Hollywood. “Film is where my passion lies,” he says. But, first there is the matter of football, beginning with the 2018 UW season and then continuing, he hopes, in the National Football League. However the coming years play out, Burr-Kirven expects his time at Washington to serve him well. “The biggest thing this program does is teach you how to live your life (beyond) football,” he says. “Our coaching staff does a real good job of preparing us for the real world. … (Washington) is definitely a place that’s going to get you ready for not only what you’re going to do here, but what comes after.”
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10 QUESTIONS WITH... VOLLEYBALL’S KARA BAJEMA
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ellingham native Kara Bajema grew up watching Husky volleyball and dreaming of the day when she would put on the purple and gold. When that day came in the fall of 2016, Bajema made the most of it, earning a spot on the Pac-12 All-Freshman Team despite moving to a new position, middle blocker, that she had only rarely played before. Bajema started 32 of the Huskies’ 34 games and was the team’s leader in attack percentage. After moving back to her primary position, outside hitter, as a sophomore, Bajema finished third on the team in kills, despite appearing in just 21 of the team's 33 matches. What’s in store this year? We sat down with her to find out.
What made you want to become a Husky? "For one, the great competitive volleyball here at Washington. The coaches and culture that they create made we want to come here. Also, it has such great academics, which is exciting."
What is something you want to learn? "I’m taking sign language classes so I want to become fluent in sign language."
What is your favorite part of the UW campus and Seattle? "The cherry blossoms when they come out on campus. I had a class overlooking all of the cherry blossoms, so that was pretty. During the summertime, it’s fun to check out all of the lakes and areas."
What is your favorite volleyball memory? "Winning the Pac-12 Championship my freshman year against UCLA. It was a crazy environment. And, after winning it, coming together as a team."
What is the coolest place you’ve traveled to with volleyball, or just on vacation? "When we went to Europe as a team. I think Croatia was my favorite place; Lake Bled (Slovenia) was so pretty and Croatia itself was just so pretty."
What is the best volleyball play that you have ever made? "Freshman year at Hawaii, a team was free-balling it back and they were trying to play it short and I just came up and hit it. That was pretty fun."
What is your favorite hobby or activity outside of volleyball? "Definitely anything on the lake or on a boat. Paddle boarding, anything with friends and family."
What is your favorite movie, TV show, and book? "My favorite movie is The Proposal, favorite TV show is "Prison Break" and favorite book is Hunger Games."
What is your go-to music or music artist? "Definitely hip-hop and rap. Post Malone is pretty cool, Ty Dolla Sign."
What is an inspirational quote that means a lot to you? “'If it doesn’t challenge you, it won’t change you.'” GoHUSKIES
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If you don't know UW statistician CRAIG HEYAMOTO, you certainly know — and appreciate — his work. If you do know him, then you know that iconic work is only a small part of a remarkable man.
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hen Craig Heyamoto was a student at Washington in the early 1970s, the process for keeping sports statistics was drastically different. Using a computer wasn’t an option, because the software didn’t exist. Everything had to be totaled by hand. Heyamoto saw an opportunity. He was taking a business class at the university and he “convinced the professor that writing a stat-keeping program for basketball was kind of like doing an inventory system for business,” Heyamoto says. The argument worked. The professor signed off on the project. Heyamoto built PAGE 12
BY MASON KELLEY
the software — believed to be the first statkeeping application ever created for a college sports program. Statistics, and Washington athletics, have been woven into Heyamoto’s life ever since. Heyamoto is now in his 42nd season running the Huskies’ stat crew and, by finding the right people and the proper process, he has created a consistency that puts Washington among the best in the country when it comes to compiling accurate statistics. Not only is Heyamoto’s crew recognized throughout the Pac-12 for its innovation and efficiency, but it is considered the nation's best — called upon each year to provide its services at both the
Rose Bowl and the CFP Championship Game, regardless of where it is played. Heyamoto also serves as the head statistician for the Seattle Seahawks and Seattle Storm. “Sports statistics is a very specific field and it’s not something most people really give much thought to beyond the surface,” says Jeff Bechthold, an assistant athletic director for communications. “But, it’s much more complex than you’d think, in lots of different ways. There’s no one in the country, I’d bet, who has spent as much time, effort and consideration on the subject than Craig. He may literally have no equal. "But, what’s best is that he loves it, and GoHUSKIES
his friendly, helpful nature sets him apart even more," Bechthold says. "I hope I’m not the one who has to figure out how to replace him when he decides to turn in his clipboard.”
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ack in the 1970s, Heyamoto wasn’t looking to forever change the way college sports statistics were kept — he just wanted to work at the games. “You just kind of run around,” he says of his introduction to working in the athletic department. “You hand out stats. You don’t really do any of the really tricky stuff. You’re a grunt, but happy to be in the press box.” His days as a grunt didn’t last long. After his first season with the Huskies, a new scoreboard was installed at Husky Stadium. It was run through a computer and, since Heyamoto understood how it worked, he was asked to be the scoreboard operator. From there, it was just a short step to reach his ultimate goal, a place on the university’s stat crew. Heyamoto had worked on the stat crew for the Seahawks during their inaugural season in 1976, filling in for a few games and gaining valuable experience. The following year, a spot opened up on Washington's stat crew, and before he knew it — still in his first year — Heyamoto was named the crew chief. He was 24 years old and his goal for the season was simple — survive. Before his first game, a co-worker pulled him aside and shared a lesson that is still a core principle for
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the way he runs a game. “Craig, you may be right, you may be wrong when making a call, but you’ve got to do it with conviction,” the co-worker told him. That idea provided a baseline. The next step was to refine the process. Heyamoto didn’t make any significant changes right away, working within the framework he was given. Then, two things happened. First, there was a game that didn’t go well. The stat totals weren’t adding properly, and Heyamoto decided on the spot that a change in methodology was needed. “Guys, we’re not doing things this way anymore,” he remembers saying. Sometime not long after, Heyamoto traveled with Washington to Stanford – the infamous 1982 game where “(John) Elway lit us up,” Heyamoto recalls. While the rest of the people in the stadium, and those watching on TV, were buzzing about Elway's performance, that wasn't what caught Heyamoto's eye that day, or made it so memorable. Instead, Heyamoto heard in the press box that the Cardinal’s stat crew had a computer, and went to check it out. He found out they were using a machine created by a local startup: Apple. Back at Washington, the Huskies had a computer, but they didn’t have a program. And, back in the days before software was easily accessible, it wasn’t like there was an app store or an online marketplace where Heyamoto could easily go purchase the software he needed. So, Heyamoto created his own. “I wrote a program that just fit what we
did,” he says. “It was not very sophisticated compared to what’s out there today, but it did what we wanted it to do.” Heyamoto's program was, again, one of the first of its kind in the industry. The industry standard these days is called StatCrew, a program that evolved largely from those original, home-built programs created by innovators like Heyamoto. Indeed, the respect for Heyamoto is so great in the industry that his input is often taken into account when changes to the StatCrew program, or even NCAA statistical rules, are made. A few years back, Heyamoto felt that it was wrong for a basketball player to be charged with a missed shot on a desperation half-court or full-court heave at the buzzer. So, he called the NCAA's statistics office. They agreed, and the following year, the change was made in the NCAA rulebook and the StatCrew program. Now, the shot is only counted if it goes in. Heyamoto may have been a pioneer of sports statistics, but he didn't set out to be an innovator. He just wanted Washington's process to be as efficient as possible. “If you can get one-percent better every year on something, you’re going to improve your process,” he says. “The objective is never to be perfect, but to always be better. Can you be a little faster? Can you be a little more accurate? It evolved over time.”
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f course, even the best process doesn’t work with the wrong people. Part of the evolution of stat-keeping at Washington has been finding the right individuals to fill the various positions on the stat crew. There is a language that goes along with keeping statistics and Washington does it so well, “we can almost finish each other’s sentences,” Heyamoto says. To be in the stat booth at Husky Stadium today is to see a well-oiled machine in action. Each individual has their own prescribed role — one calls run or pass (a distinction that can be tricky in the era of spread offenses, screen passes and trick plays) and the uniform numbers of the offensive players involved in the play, while another notes the defensive players responsible for the tackle or pass breakup. Heyamoto is primarily responsible for determining the yard lines on which each play occurs — a relatively simple task on a standard four-yard run (so long as the officials don't move the ball a few inches one way or another when spotting it, a not-uncommon annoyance), but a trickier one when turnovers, laterals or other more complicated plays occur. There is also an individual tracking players coming in and out of the game, another inputting all of this data into the computer, and yet another writing everything down by hand, should the computer system fail. Each speaks in turn, a perfect, practiced rhythm of timing and cadence that can only come from years of experience working side by side. “He’s an absolute machine,” says Bob Rondeau, the former voice of the Huskies. “He’s encyclopedic in his knowledge of all things, but particularly when it comes to sporting events and keeping numbers for those. "I always likened him to Radar in the M.A.S.H. series, because he would have stuff available to me before I was thinking of it and, as soon as I was calling for it, it would be there," Rondeau adds. "He was a step ahead of me. He is remarkable that way.”
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s important as it is to find the right people, it is equally important for Heyamoto to create opportunities for students — after all, he is working at a university. “We should be giving students the opportunity to do some things they might not otherwise have a chance to do,” he says. Putting students on the stat crew is an important part of what
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Heyamoto does. He wants younger generations to have the same opportunities he was afforded during his time at Washington. When Heyamoto was in school, his tuition was $144 per quarter. Even when accounting for inflation, that’s relatively inexpensive, which afforded Heyamoto the opportunity to work in the athletic department while pursuing his law degree. A lawyer for Boeing by trade, Heyamoto has saved much of the money he has been paid for his stat-crew work over the past 42 years, and used it to fund a scholarship that benefits a student working in the sports information office. “A few years ago, I started to realize that students today don’t have that same opportunity [to attend college at a reasonable cost],” he says. “I contribute more each year and it’s in my will. It’s starting to put out some money that will help some students. That was the goal, to allow students to have the same opportunity I did.” He didn’t establish the scholarship for attention. It's just who Heyamoto is — someone who goes out of his way to help others. Without expecting anything in return, Heyamoto
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bakes cookies during the holidays, delivering care packages to many who work in the athletic department. See him in the press box and he will always take the time to talk sports and ask how you’re doing. When it comes to high-caliber people, Heyamoto sets a standard. Just ask Rondeau. Not only do the former co-workers – Heyamoto kept stats for the broadcaster at Washington road games – live about half a block from each other, but they grow tomatoes together and have developed a lifelong friendship. “He’s one of the nicest people I’ve met in my life and always will be,” Rondeau says. "He’s the smartest guy I’ve ever known, a fountain of knowledge of all things. It’s just amazing. He’s just so quietly purposeful in everything he does.”
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ince watching his first Washington football game in 1960 (the Rose Bowl against Wisconsin), Heyamoto has either attended, watched on TV or listened on the radio to all but two games. The Huskies are part of his life. Saturdays on Montlake are
a treasured time for Heyamoto. But, it’s not just the game, or the stats. It’s the people that make the job special. “For me, the best part of the game is the hour or two before when you have a license to talk sports all you want,” he says. “I just love visiting. You meet the best people.” Heyamoto literally wrote the program (twice) for keeping statistics at college football and basketball games, and is at the helm of the most respected stats crew in the nation, developing a process that places him in rarified air. But, for him, each college football Saturday isn't an opportunity for recognition. Instead, it's about doing something he loves with people he enjoys,providing opportunities for UW students to gain valuable new experiences, and making Washington’s stat crew just a little bit better. “He expects so little in return and gives so much,” Rondeau says. “[The scholarship endowment] is strictly out of the goodness of his heart, the purpose that he wants to see in his own life and affect in other people’s lives, while expecting absolutely nothing in return. "He’s a remarkable individual.”
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On-and-off teammates since they were 12 years old,
Summer Yates & Shae Holmes are together for good at Washington
BY RICH MYHRE
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hey met six years ago at a California summer soccer camp. Summer Yates was from the eastern Washington city of Pasco, Shae Holmes from outside of Denver in Highlands Ranch, Colo. The two of them hit it off right from the start. The early bond can perhaps be traced to a corny joke by Holmes. It was the kind of quip that for some reason leaves 12-year-old girls in stitches. It went like this. Holmes asked her new friend, Summer, “If your mom had three other kids, would they be Winter, Spring and Autumn? Because then your mom could just say, ‘OK, c’mon seasons, it’s time to go.’” Yates’ reaction? “I was laughing so hard,” she said, laughing again at the memory. From that bit of playful banter, a friendship was born. Given their ages and the geographic distance between them, it would not take real hold for a few more years. But, they reconnected as members of the United States national-team pool, traveling together as teammates to soccer tournaments around the world, and then once more this fall as promising freshmen on the University of Washington women’s team.
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In recent years, “Summer and Shae have spent a lot of time together playing in the national-team pool,” says UW head coach Lesle Gallimore. “They were in a lot of different camps together from U16 on up … and they’ve worked hard to become very talented youth players.” Yates and Holmes are the only two players on this year’s UW roster with U.S. national-team experience, though sophomore Mireya Grey of Seattle has played for the Jamaican junior national team. A few other Washington players have also spent time in the nationalteam pool in recent years, including Jessica Udovich and, from the 2017 squad, Shannon Simon and Kimby Keever. Yates (above), who started playing soccer when she was five years old, joined the national-team program the summer after eighth grade. A U14 player, she was invited to a camp that included about 50 girls. “It was nerve-wracking because there were so many people,” Yates says, “but obviously it was also super cool. It’s a big experience for any youth player. Just being able to wear the (USA) crest is an honor.” Holmes took up soccer when she was four, and her initiation to the national-team program came at the beginning of 10th grade. There were about 25 girls at her first camp and it was, she says, “kind of eye-opening. My club team had been at a high level, but once I got to that camp it was like five times (higher). The speed of play was better, the competition was better, and everything was beyond my (expectations). It was all truly the best of the best.” To help prepare young players for the challenges of international play, the United States Soccer Federation has a developmental program for U14 players, national teams for boys and girls at U15 and U16, and then men’s and women’s teams for every year from U17 to U20. There are also U23 national teams for both men and women. The goal, of course, is to produce exceptional players who will later join the U.S. national teams that compete at the World Cup, the Olympic Games and other international tournaments and events. Most top American-born players got their starts in the national-team pool, which is also a fertile recruiting ground for college coaches. For young players on the rise, it is a chance to get elite coaching and game experience while also traveling to tournaments around the world that generally last 12 to 14 days. Yates and Holmes played together at U16 tournaments in Italy and the Netherlands, and U18/19 tournaments in England, Australia and China. Unfortunately, Holmes suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in her knee last December that required surgery, and she has been sidelined since then. It left her unable to accompany Yates on subsequent overseas trips to Spain and Switzerland. The opportunity to travel “is something I’ve always wanted to do,” Yates says. “My parents tell me it’s something they never had the chance to do (while still in school). It’s super fun, especially when you’re with a team of your best friends and you’re able to experience it together.” Her favorite trip was to the Netherlands, because “we got to travel around a lot more,” she says. “We were able to see more of the culture, and we also got to interact with the Netherlands national team a lot.”
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Yates also enjoyed going to Australia, but recalls the best food being in Italy. Holmes (above) cites the Netherlands and Italy as being her two favorite trips. She enjoyed sightseeing in the Netherlands, with the team’s outings including a pro soccer game, but Italy was also memorable because it was her first trip outside of the United States. Yet, for all the many highlights of international travel and tournaments, there is probably nothing quite so meaningful as playing for a United States team while wearing a uniform of red, white and blue. Donning an American uniform “is a big honor,” Yates says. “You
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have goose bumps just walking into the locker room, and then when you’re staring at your jersey.” The emotion before her first game was so profound, she adds, “I was shaking almost. Walking out to the field was probably my most nerve-wracking moment. And then hearing the national anthem. You have to make yourself calm down and think about your game and think about who you’re representing.” Holmes had her initial international game in Italy, “and my first moment with the uniform — the full-on red, white and blue — was kind of jaw-dropping,” she says. “I think I took the most pictures I’ve ever taken in my life. I was (thinking), ‘Wow, it’s truly an honor and a privilege to be able to do this.’ Not everyone gets to experience it and I kind of just wanted to take it all in. “When I put the uniform on, it mentally settled my mind because then I could just go out and play the sport I love while representing my country,” Holmes adds. “And then, when the (national) anthem plays and you have your hand over your heart, I think that’s a moment, especially in my first game, when I was looking around and thinking, ‘Wow, I can’t believe this is happening.’ I definitely teared up because you’ve worked so hard to get to that point, and it was like a dream fulfilled. It was definitely amazing.” The transition to college soccer began earlier this summer when
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Yates and Holmes arrived in Seattle. Though different from their national-team experiences, becoming a Husky is no less significant, they agree. “When I was 11,” Yates says, “I wrote down some goals in a little book with my dad, and this was one of my goals. I literally wrote down, ‘I want to play soccer at the University of Washington.’ So, for me to finally be here and playing, it’s a dream come true. “This is such a fun team to be on, and so far I love everything about it,” she says. “All the girls are really competitive, but it’s also a great family atmosphere.” Though Holmes has done more watching than practicing in recent weeks due to her ongoing recovery, she believes the jump from high school to college is not unlike going from club soccer to the national-team pool. “Washington is such a big name and it’s one of the schools that has so much history behind it, so the competition here is just as high as the U.S (youth teams),” Holmes says. “If you think about it, the Pac-12 has many of the same players you play with at the U.S.
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level, so to me it’s just as big of a deal. “I always watched college soccer growing up and it was my dream to play Division One,” she continues. “So, now that it’s finally happening for me, it’s just as big of an emotional piece; goose bumps everywhere, (the thrill of) wearing the jersey and playing that first game, as it was for me with any U.S. team.” Yates, a 5-foot-4 forward, immediately found a place in Washington’s starting lineup this season. What stands out, Gallimore says, “is her technical ability with ball. Summer is crafty, skilled and perceptive. She has a calmness to her at a young age, and that’s going to serve her well. She’s very calming on the ball, and that’s something in the midfield where you want players leading the game. She can slow it down when we need to and she can speed it up when we need to. She has a lot of ability to make an impact on the game.” Holmes, meanwhile, will be eased back into action in the coming weeks. A 5-foot, 8-inch defender, she will likely become a fixture on Washington’s back line.
“I’ve seen Shae play quite a bit over the years, and she has great strength, great size and good speed,” Gallimore says. “She’s also a leader and a good voice on the field. She reads the game very well, and she’s a pretty good player with the ball. On both sides of the ball, she’s going help us have a solid back line and then be a threat to attack.” Though Yates and Holmes have already accomplished much, going forward “it’s what they do here (at Washington) that’s going to matter,” Gallimore adds. As players in a top college program, “they know they’re going to have to keep earning it every day and keep looking at how they’re going to get better. “But, what I’m truly impressed with is that they both really value the team and they value people," she continues. "They’re likeable kids that people like to play next to. So, from a leadership standpoint and an ability standpoint, and then with both of them being competitors, I think the combination of those three things will be worth their weight in gold for us if they can keep being the players I think they are.”
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Going
Green
From compostable straws to LED lighting, Husky athletics leads the way in environmental sustainability
BY BRIAN BEAKY
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et’s be honest
— in the world of the purple and gold, green hasn't always been an entirely welcome color. For all of the accomplishments Husky squads have achieved on the field, though, it’s the Huskies’ Green Team that is currently outpacing them all. The Green Team is network of UW athletic department staff, volunteers, interns and other supporters (including many on upPAGE 26
per campus) whose mission is to reduce the athletic department's environmental impact to its lowest possible level. Led by Karen Baebler, Washington's Assistant Athletic Director for Sports Operations, the Green Team has implemented numerous efforts throughout the Husky athletics footprint over the past several years — initiatives that have caught the eye of some of the nation's most prominent environmental groups. Earlier this year, the Huskies’ athletic
department was one of just 10 organizations worldwide to be recognized as a 2018 Environmental Innovator of the Year by the Green Sports Alliance. The Alliance lauded UW’s ongoing efforts to encourage sustainability in and around all of its facilities, its partnerships with student groups and volunteers, and, in particular, its football gameday waste-diversion efforts. “That's really where it all started, with Husky Stadium,” says Baebler, referring to GoHUSKIES
the renovation of the football stadium, which was completed in 2013. “Prior to that, there had been some discussion of sustainability, but we recognized that [the renovation] offered us a great opportunity to put some of those ideas into action.” It started with the construction itself, which included low-flow toilets, LED lighting, more efficient HVAC systems and the use of sustainable materials wherever possible. Those efforts really took flight, however, after the stadium opened, including compostable paper towels in the bathrooms, a mandate that any in-stadium giveaway items be packaged in recyclable material (or, preferably, unpackaged), and the transition of all concession items (with the exception of chip and candy wrappers) to compostable packaging. Compostable straws were added this fall. On game days, a crew of hundreds pass through the stadium after fans leave, sorting through the compost and recycle bins (with little need, garbage bins no longer exist) to ensure everything goes to its proper place. Fans are encouraged to leave any non-compostable and non-recyclable items (or any that fans are unsure of) at their seats, for staff to sort later. “Just about anything you purchase in the stadium now can go in either the compost or recycle bins” Baebler says. “But, if you do have garbage, or aren't sure, just leave it at your seat, and we’ll take care of it.” Crews also drive through parking lots before games handing out recycle bags for tailgaters to use, while partnerships with Sound Transit, and the construction of the new light rail station at Husky Stadium, have significantly reduced the number of fans driving to games, further impacting the stadium's overall environmental impact. Those efforts over the past five years have taken Husky Athletics from a diversion rate (that is, how much waste is diverted from landfills) of under 70 percent all the way to 82 percent, among the highest of any athletics facility in the U.S. For the Green Team, though, it’s not good enough. “Our goal is zero waste,” Baebler says. “That’s defined as 90 percent diversion or better, and I definitely believe that we can get there.” The Green Team initiatives expand well beyond the walls of Husky Stadium, as well. Husky rowing was awarded a Campus Sustainability Grant this year to purchase electric motors for its coaching launch, LED lights were added to the team’s Dempsey Indoor facility in 2018 (becoming the first UW facility to go all-LED), while the Pac-12 Women’s Golf Championships at Broadmoor Country Club were among the greenest ever held, with the Green Team on-site to encourage sustainable practices by attendees, and audit waste afterward for further study. The UW has also begun examining studies focusing on Alaska Airlines Arena and other facilities, and recently completed a solar array feasibility study for Husky Stadium. Next year, Washington will host the third-annual Pac-12 Sustainability Conference in July, bringing together representatives from all 12 conference Universities to share insights and ideas, and encourage sustainable practices conference-wide. “It’s been exciting for us to really be at the forefront of this movement throughout the nation,” Baebler says. Fans interested in learning more about the Green Team, or other ways to get involved, are encouraged to visit GoHuskies.com and click on “Green Initiatives” under the “Inside” tab. GoHUSKIES
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Photographs by RED BOX PICTURES
DYNAMIC DUO
Scott Menzies (left) & Kyle Coffee (right) have helped the men’s soccer team get off to a hot start this fall. Both scored in the UW’s 2-0 win over perennial power Maryland earlier this season.
To purchase Husky Athletics photography, visit www.HUSKIESPHOTOSTORE.com
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GoHUSKIES
