2002 season: Under the guidance of the 12th-year head coach, the Vikings finished third in the state tournament despite losing several key players from the 2001 team.
Mixing veterans with members of the 2001 undefeated junior varsity team, Lake Stevens won eight of its last nine regular season games to claim the Western Conference North Division title with a 13-3 record and finished 22-7 overall. The Vikings, who had only two seniors on the team, won their first two district playoff games to earn a state playoff berth before suffering a 1-0 loss to Shorecrest in the district championship game.
At state, the Vikings did something few teams have done. They lost their first-round game, then battled all the way through the consolation bracket – six games in two days – to claim third.
After the heartbreaking 1-0 loss to Heritage in the state opener on May 24, Lake Stevens trailed 3-1 to Moses Lake in the first consolation game. The Vikings scored five runs in the sixth to beat Moses Lake 6-3, then handled Auburn 4-0 to begin their improbable march to a trophy.
Lake Stevens shut out Eastlake and Thomas Jefferson on May 25 to reach the third-place game. Leiter’s crew trailed Skyview 1-0 after six innings, but scored three runs in the seventh and final inning for the best finish in Leiter’s career. The Vikings closed the season by winning 15 of 18 games.
Background: Leiter graduated from Shoreline High School in 1974. Like most schools, Shoreline didn’t have a softball program in the early 1970s, so Leiter played on an area women’s team. She played volleyball, basketball and softball at Portland State University. Leiter previously taught physical education at Lake Stevens. She and her husband, Allen, currently own a print shop in Lynnwood, where Leiter has worked for the past seven years.
Leiter’s teams have made four straight state playoff appearances, and five overall during her 12-year tenure. Her oldest daughter, Casey, recently finished her sophomore softball season at the University of Maryland. Her younger daughter, Kristi, a Lake Stevens junior pitcher/first baseman, was selected to this year’s All-Area first team.
Comment: “I thought we’d be pretty competitive this year,” Leiter said. “We had a lot of really good JV kids and a lot of kids who had played summer ball. I knew they could step up and do the job. We had good hitting depth, and the players all liked each other really well. The chemistry was good. We had great parents. (Volunteer coach) Tina Bauer, who’s been with me for 11 years, brings a lot of fun to the team. It was a very fun year.”
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