District honors athletes

Two Edmonds-Woodway High School standouts took top honors at the sixth annual Edmonds School District Scholar-Athlete Banquet.

Scott Sheldon and Kate Southcote-Want were among 17 seniors honored May 23 in the Great Hall at Edmonds-Woodway High School.

Sheldon, a baseball and tennis player, was awarded a $4,000 scholarship from First Horizon Loans. Southcote-Want, who runs cross country and track, was the recipient of $4,000 from the Bryan Rogers Memorial Scholarship.

“That was a great honor to get that scholarship,” said Sheldon, who is headed to Pacific Lutheran University where he plans to continue his tennis career. “It was just really nice to know that my hard work has paid off.”

The last few weeks were an especially hectic time as Edmonds-Woodway was playing in the district and regional baseball playoffs and Sheldon and doubles partner Willie Guo were preparing for the state tennis tourney. Sheldon and Guo finished fifth in the Class 4A doubles tournament on May 26. The baseball team’s season ended at regionals a week earlier.

Sheldon plans to study business at Pacific Lutheran. It is important for him to continue his tennis career.

“I really have a passion for it,” he said. “I really like to work hard at it. I feel I can continue to improve and be able to excel.”

Sheldon’s parents, Doug and Carol, supported him throughout his high school career. The two attended almost all of Sheldon’s games and matches, which he appreciated.

“It just helps to have someone there, looking at what you do,” Sheldon said. “It’s always just nice to talk to someone afterwards and see what they have to say.”

Edmonds-Woodway head tennis coach Dan Crist describes Sheldon as a hard worker who made a significant jump from his sophomore to junior season.

As a sophomore he played mostly exhibition doubles but by the next year he passed over several players and ended up at No. 1 doubles with Nico Clairmont. That year Sheldon and Clairmont advanced to the state tournament.

Crist remember saying to himself, “Wow, this kid is really motivated.”

Edmonds-Woodway baseball coach Matt Barker describes Sheldon as the model player.

“He accepted coaching really well,” Barker said. “He does anything the team needs him to do. He switched positions to help us cover some injuries.”

Sheldon, a third baseman, played some first base for the Warriors.

In addition to his exploits as an athlete, Sheldon also experienced a different perspective on sports as an umpire for Pacific Little League and Mountlake Terrace Youth Athletic Association. In addition, he was a basketball referee for the Sno-King Youth Club.

“It taught me that it’s a hard job,” Sheldon said. “I’ve never really been one to talk back to umpires. It just showed me how challenging it is to do that part of the game.”

Southcote-Want was surprised to be accorded the top honors along with classmate Sheldon.

“I was definitely very excited and very honored,” she said. “I definitely wasn’t expecting it. … I’m very grateful to everyone who helps put the scholarships together and the banquet. They did a great job.”

Southcote-Want’s senior year wasn’t her best athletically due to an ACL injury suffered last summer. Southcote-Want nevertheless kept an upbeat attitude throughout her recovery, said Edmonds-Woodway cross country coach Regina Joyce.

“How an athlete deals with adversity probably tells more about how they are as an athlete,” Joyce said. “I know she was very disheartened. She managed to come out and be around her teammates and always have a positive attitude.”

Southcote-Want will continue her cross country and track career at Vanderbilt University, where she plans to study biomedical engineering. Southcote-Want is grateful for the support of her parents, Lora Petso and Colin Southcote-Want, and her coaches.

“They always believed in me and gave me the confidence to really shoot for high goals in my athletic and academic pursuits,” Southcote-Want said.

Joyce expects Southcote-Want to do well at the collegiate level just as she did in high school.

Southcote-Want’s mental approach is what sets her apart, said Joyce, who first met the Edmonds-Woodway senior when she was in the eighth grade.

Joyce could tell almost right away that Southcote-Want had a different mental approach than most athletes.

“She’s very meticulous about how she goes about her training physically and mentally,” Joyce said. “I’ve coached a lot of pretty good athletes. Kate is probably the most intelligent of all the athletes I’ve ever coached.”

A 3.96 GPA supports Joyce’s conclusion.

“She used that (intelligence) in her approach to running,” Joyce said.

During her rehabilitation, Southcote-Want followed her physical therapist’s suggestions and progressed faster than expected.

“I’m very sad to be done coaching her,” Joyce said. “It’s been a great experience … she’s just made everyone else around her better. That’s true leadership.”

Other scholarship recipients included Lynnwood’s Joshawa Miller ($3,500, First Horizon Home Loans), Lynnwood’s Heather McCartney ($3,500, First Horizon Home Loans), Edmonds-Woodway’s Ben Hait-Campbell ($2,500, Northwest Nationals Premier Soccer Club and Mike Pittis), Edmonds-Woodway athletic trainer Robert Bissett (Ken and Pat Allen), Mountlake Terrace’s Eric Doyle ($2,500, MTYAA, Alumni Athletes/Parents of MTHS and ESD Coaches and Community), Mountlake Terrace’s Jon Floresca (Kim and Katy Wilson, Richard Gourley and Alumni Athletes/Parents of MTHS), Meadowdale’s Brenna Hanson ($1,000, Waterfront Sport and Physical, Reliable Floor Coverings), Meadowdale’s Matt Johnson (Family of Jim Clemans and ESD Coaches and Community), Mountlake Terrace’s Rene Noeun ($1,000, Patrick McMahan, Clif Bar and Company), Lynnwood’s Gilbert Martin ($1,000, Alderwood Little League and Limback Lumber), Edmonds-Woodway’s Jennifer Quick (ESD Coaches and Community and Seaview Chevrolet Pontiac GMC), Meadowdale’s Melissa Davis ($1,000, OrthoSport Physical Therapy and First Horizon Home Loans), Lynnwood’s Taneal Detschman (Brie McGaughey Memorial and ESC Coaches and Community), Mountlake Terrace’s Corina Cheever ($1,000, First Horizon Home Loans) and Meadowdale’s Alex Wipf ($1,000, Pacific Little League).

Eight coaches, one with five or more years experience and one with less than five years of experience, from each school were recognized and awarded a $300 professional development stipend. The eight were Edmonds-Woodway’s John Gradwohl (Billie Eklund Memorial Coach’s Award), Edmonds-Woodway’s Gail Pintler (First Horizon Home Loans Coach’s Award), Lynnwood’s Nate Cogdill (First Horizon Home Loans Coach’s Award), Lynnwood’s Darrell McNeal (Bill Hatch Sports Coach’s Award), Meadowdale’s Brian Boardman (Les Meredith Memorial Coach’s Award), Meadowdale’s Machen Shrum (Anthony HomePort’s Coach’s Award), Mountlake Terrace’s Chris Ellinger (Soccer West Coach’s Award) and Mountlake Terrace’s Johnny Phillps (MTYAA-in honor of Sam and Cathy Schuyler Coach’s Award).

Community Contributor award recipients received an overnight stay at La Conner Channel Lodge. The four recipients were Lisa Alfi (Edmonds-Woodway), David and Elma Hampton (Lynnwood), Pam Hanson (Meadowdale) and Michelle Hough (Mountlake Terrace).

The Director’s Award went to Doug Sheldon, President of Pacific Little League, and Sylvia Young, Board Member and Treasure of the Northwest Nationals Premier Soccer Club. The two played a major role in leading the way for partnerships to improve fields in the district. More than $1.75 million has been raised with community partners to supplement $4.5 million approved by voters in the 2005 Capital Levy.