Good Sunday morning. Time now for the news. We are going to start with some football and some very exciting news for our community and two Mount Si High School football graduates. Both of them will have an opportunity to make it onto the Seattle Seahawks for this coming season and realize their boyhood dreams.
2018 Wildcat alums Jack Westover and Jesiah Irish last night received invitations to the Seahawks’ rookie mini-camp this coming weekend at the team’s training facility, the Virginia Mason Athletic Center in Renton. Both players signed contracts with the team as their acceptance of those invitations, which will see them compete against other rookie players and draft choices for spots on the Seahawks this fall. Westover, a tight end who is graduating this spring from the University of Washington, and Irish, a wide receiver and special-teams player who is graduating this spring from Oregon State University, were both not drafted in this year’s National Football League draft, which wrapped up yesterday, enabling the Seahawks to sign both players to give them this opportunity to realize their dreams.
While the odds are long to be sure, both players will give it their best and rep their Valley strong. But the two are not the first MSHS football alums to get this type of opportunity. About 15 years ago or so, lineman Michael Nelson got a rookie tryout with the then-Oakland Raiders following his college graduation, and a little under 20 years ago, kicker Brett Bergstrom got a similar opportunity and actually played in preseason games with the Buffalo Bills. Neither of those players made the fall roster with those teams. The most recent Mount Si alum to suit up in an actual NFL regular-season game was during the 1987 strike year, when Eric Riley did that with the New York Jets.
We wish both Jesiah and Jack good luck this weekend. Go Seahawks!
In other stuff on this Sunday:
Softball: Strong showing for Valley teams in Olympia tournament
It was a really good day yesterday for club teams with ties to the Valley in the first day of a weekend tournament being run by the USSSA of Washington down in Olympia. Snoqualmie-based Wildcat Fastpitch Club’s 12U West and Duxbury teams along with the Sammamish-based SFC Spartans 14U’s featuring several players from the upper Valley went a combined 6-0-1 in play yesterday, putting all of the teams in good position for tournament hardware today in the weekend finale.
‘Cats West went 1-0-1. Their win came against a 10U team from Kenmore-based KB. Twin Falls Middle School’s Malaya Kingham was 2-2 in that game with a run and also pitched three innings and did fairly well helping WFC win that game 7-5. SFC went 3-0 outscoring foes 41-12 in the three games. Mount Si freshman Mary Salmon doubled twice and drove in six runs for SFC in a 17-2 blowout of the Hoquiam Lady Grizzlies from out on the Washington Coast. As for the ‘Cats Duxbury crew, they went 2-0, with pitcher Kate Duxbury not allowing a hit in two innings of work in a quick 15-0 shellacking of Seattle-based SSA Manuel.
Playoff action takes place as noted today.
Good day for Lowell at Auburn tourney: It was a strong day yesterday for Tolt Middle School’s Olivia Lowell, as she made solid contributions all day for her team, the Snohomish Shock Campbell, in a tournament in Auburn.
Lowell went a combined 4-6 in the three games, scoring five runs and driving in a sixth, as the 14U team went 2-0-1 in pool play at the Sidewinder Tournament being run by USA Softball of Seattle. Wins came against teams from Canada and Skagit County and in the win over the Skagit-based Northwest Crushers, pitchers Chloe Larsen and Charlotte Snook combined on a no-hitter. Larsen is a middle-schooler in Snohomish while Snook is also from Snohomish County.
Playoff action takes place today.
Senior Carter delivers in the clutch on Senior Day for Fordham: Down to her final strike with the game’s final out on the line, Duvall’s Michaela Carter delivered a dagger, walking it off with a two-RBI single lifting Fordham University’s ladies to a 3-2 win in the first of two yesterday over the University of Saint Louis in New York City. Carter, a senior and 2019 Cedarcrest HS grad, was playing in her final home games as a collegian. The Billikens rebounded for the win in the nightcap 4-3 to split the twinbill, with Carter going 1-4 with a run. The series is wrapping up right now with Senior Day festivities in New York and you can see the game on ESPN+.
Kreidel-Reimer finishes season on good note: North Bend’s Emery Kreidel-Reimer went 1-4 in the regular season finale for Simmons University’s ladies as they posted a 7-4 win in the nightcap of their doubleheader last night in Rhode Island with Johnson & Wales University. J&W took the opener to split the pair 6-0, with the 2022 Mount Si HS grad, a sophomore, not playing in that game for the Sharks. Simmons finishes 13-22 on the season and 9-7 in Great Northeast Athletic Conference play. They advance to the NCAA Division III’s postseason tournament, but an announcement on their opponent is to be determined.
Bonham in action for Skidmore: Sophomore Madison Bonham was in action last night for Skidmore College’s ladies as they played a doubleheader in upstate New York against the University of St. Lawrence. Bonham, a 2022 Mount Si HS grad, went 1-3 for the Thoroughbreds in a 7-1 loss in the nightcap of the twinbill. SLU won the opener 1-0 with Bonham not playing in that game for Skidmore, who hopped on the bus afterwards headed for Ithaca, NY, for a makeup twinbill today with Ithaca College.
Knowles in action deep in the heart of Texas: Freshman catcher Maddie Knowles saw action in both games of a doubleheader for Iowa State University against the University of Texas last night in Austin, TX. Texas won the games 8-0 and 9-1 with Knowles, from Duvall and a 2023 CHS grad, going 0-1 with the lone ISU run of the doubleheader in the nightcap that wrapped up the weekend set.
Stanwood cruises: In Wesco Conference high-school action, Stanwood cruised yesterday at home over Peninsula from Pierce County 22-4 in a non-league game. Rubi Lopez homered twice for the Spartans, who took a 16-0 lead after two and never looked back. As for Cedarcrest, their game with Arlington yesterday was rained out.
Snoqualmie Valley Sports Journal 