Islander Middle School student, seventh-grader Vanessa Gaffney placed first in the Washington State Gymnastics Meet Level 6 competition at Meydenbauer Center on Dec. 3-4. Vanessa competed in the 11-12 year old age group, receiving an all-around score of 36.00, the highest of any age group in the level 6 competition.
Catherine Seifert from Mercer Island place 17th in the 8-year-old large gym division all-around. She also placed eighth on vault in her division with a score of 8.9, 18th on bars with a score of 7.900, 20th on beam with a 7.8 and 19th on floor with an 8.0.
Kangs take third in state
The U-12 MIYS club team Kickin’ Kangs finished third in state, losing to the eventual state champs in the semi-finals. There are over 300 teams in the state. The tournament was held in Silverdale.
IBC Cascade Pony registration
The Island Baseball Club’s Cascade Pony baseball league 2006 program is open to all Mercer Island residents with league ages 13 and 14 (age as of July 31, 2006). Sign-ups are by mail and will run from December to Jan. 31. The registration forms may be downloaded from the Handout section of the Island Baseball Club website at eteamz.com/islandbaseballclub. E-mail questions to islandbaseballclub@yahoo.com
Fourth-grade basketball team takes second
A Mercer Island basketball team competing in the 4th grade division placed second in the Seattle AAU tournament over Thanksgiving weekend.
The Islanders stingy man-to-man defense was the key in the first game as the team started the tournament with a 29-18 victory over a tough Emerald City squad. In game two the Islanders were defeated soundly by the Inner City Players (ICP) from Portland, Ore. The pressure defense from the ICP team created numerous turnovers as ICP ran away with a 37-11 victory.
The Islanders rebounded from the loss with a strong game on Saturday against the Seattle Smoke. The Islanders jumped to an early 8-2 lead after one quarter and never looked back en route to a 38-22 victory. The win qualified the Islanders for a rematch with Portland’s ICP team for the championship. In the championship game on Sunday, the Islanders stayed close early, trailing 10-6 at the end of the first quarter. But the relentless pressure from ICP was more than the Islanders could handle and ICP gradually pulled away for a 40-20 win and first place finish.
IMS wrestling team starts season with a win
The Islander Middle School wrestling team defeated the Beaver Lake Middle School wrestling team by wide margins in both the varsity and junior varsity divisions, Dec. 7. The varsity score was 71-42, and the Junior Varsity score was 46-17.
Individual match scores:
IMS varsity: Varsity: 78 pounds — Kyle Shanafelt — win, 8-1; 85 pounds — Connor Kelsay — pin, 2nd period; 90 pounds — Zach Miller — pin, 1st period;100 pounds — Doug Mahony — win, 12-6; 105 pounds — Jon Wettack — pin, 1st period; 115 pounds — James Kashima* — pin, 1st period; 130 pounds — Colton Knebel — pin, 2nd period; 137 pounds — Cole Johnson — win, tech. fall (15-0); 145 pounds — Evan Moline — pin, 2nd period; 154 pounds — TJ Blackburn — pin, 2nd period; 175 pounds — Steve Leighton — pin, 1st period. * Defending League Champion.
Junior Varsity: 78 pounds — Marco Magnatto — pin, 1st period; 78 pounds — Jefferson Fischer — loss, tech. fall (15-0); 90 pounds — Erik Hermanns — pin, 3rd period; 95 pounds — Blake Johnson — pin, 3rd period; 95 pounds — Anders Hornor — pin, 1st period; 95 pounds — Scott Mills — pin, 1st period; 115 pounds — Peter Brockway — pin, 2nd period; 130 pounds — Eliott Wittenberg — win, 12-3; 137 pounds — Phillip Frazier — pin, 3rd period; 145 pounds — Kyle Moline — pin, 3rd period; HVY pounds — Derek Nelson — pin, 2nd period.
