Glacier Peak High School’s first head boys soccer coach is Daghan Kesim.
Kesim’s hiring was announced Wednesday by Snohomish School District athletic director Mark Albertine. Kesim, 28, had been Cascade High’s head boys soccer coach the past four seasons, guiding the Bruins to a third-place finish at the 2007 Class 4A state tournament. He also coaches Lynnwood High’s girls soccer squad.
Glacier Peak is a new 3A school that will open this fall. It won’t have seniors its first year.
“It’s exciting. It’s really a big new challenge, but I’m always up for a challenge,” said Kesim.
Albertine announced three other head coach hires: Brannon Jackson (Glacier Peak track and field), Matt King (Glacier Peak girls tennis) and Ken Roberts (Snohomish girls golf).
Kesim, who accepted the Glacier Peak job offer Wednesday, said it’s difficult to leave Cascade, where he coached the Bruins’ junior varsity squad one season before taking the varsity position in December 2004.
Kesim thanked the Cascade community and praised the school’s athletic director, Doug Kloke. Kesim, a former professional player who is a native of Istanbul, Turkey, said Kloke was a good mentor who helped him “grow up” as a coach.
“I was a young European coach and very passionate,” Kesim said, “and no matter what (happened) he always supported me throughout the years.”
Kesim said he didn’t want to take a job that would require him to coach against Cascade. He won’t have to, at least initially. Cascade is a 4A school that competes in the Western Conference North Division and 3A Glacier Peak is a member of the Wesco South.
Kesim said he achieved his goal of putting Cascade players on the map as athletes and students. In four seasons he guided Cascade to 47 victories and three postseason appearances, and the Bruins received Washington Interscholastic Activities Association team academic achievement awards the past three years.
Everett High loses baseball coach: Ron Burdett, Everett’s head baseball coach the past eight seasons, did not have his coaching contract renewed for the 2008-09 school year, Everett School District athletic director Robert Polk said. The district plans to take the program in a different direction, Polk said.
“We appreciate the years of commitment Ron Burdett has made to the Everett High School baseball program. He invested a great deal of time and energy to teach the game to his players,” Polk said in an e-mail.
This past season Burdett guided the Seagulls to a 7-17 record and a trip to the 3A District 1 tournament. Everett was within one victory of qualifying for the state tourney.
Othello girl wins Gatorade track and field award: Courtney Kirkwood, a Class of 2008 athlete from Othello High, is the 2007-08 Gatorade Washington Girls Track and Field Athlete of the Year. Kirkwood, a two-time winner of the award, won the javelin throw and 100-meter hurdles race last month at the 2A state meet. She is a Washington State University recruit.
Writer Mike Cane: mcane@heraldnet.com. Check out the prep sports blog Double Team at www.heraldnet.com/doubleteam.
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