Lynnwood High School is ready to move on up.
As a result of the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association reclassification of schools, Lynnwood, along with Stanwood and Marysville-Pilchuck, will be moving to different classifications.
Lynnwood is moving up to 4A, while Stanwood and Marysville-Pilchuck are shifting to 3A.
Lynnwood football coach Mike Don doesn’t anticipate any significant impact for the Royals.
“We’re really looking forward to the new league,” he said. “We’re looking forward to playing new schools. I don’t see any negative impact at all.”
The overall numbers for the football program were in the mid-70s.
“This year I’m sure the numbers are going to be higher,” Don said. “I believe we’ll be in the 80s and continue to grow the program.”
Don, who went to small high school, doesn’t believe the gap will be that big between 3A and 4A, especially for football.
“Between Bellevue (3A) and Skyline (4A) there is not much of a difference,” Don said. “It’s not a big gap.”
Lynnwood girls basketball coach Everett Edwards also is excited about the changes.
“We are very excited to be able to play against teams that we haven’t seen in years,” Edwards said. “We’re very excited to visit some new gyms and just bring an element of newness.”
Edwards noted that the competition will be tough against the perennial powers such as Lake Stevens and Snohomish. “At least in basketball you can only play five at a time,” Edwards said. “A lot of our players aren’t the tallest. But we’re blessed to have speed and hustle. I think we’ll still be competitive with the switch from 3A to 4A.”
Here’s how Wesco 3A and 4A will look next school year:
Wesco 3A North: Everett, Marysville-Pilchuck, Marysville Getchell, Oak Harbor, Stanwood
Wesco 3A South: Glacier Peak, Meadowdale, Shorecrest, Shorewood, Mountlake Terrace
Wesco 4A North: Arlington, Lake Stevens, Monroe, Mount Vernon, Snohomish
Wesco 4A South: Cascade, Edmonds-Woodway, Jackson, Kamiak, Lynnwood, Mariner
The plan is to keep the traditional rivalries alive. Lynnwood’s preliminary football schedule has the Royals facing crosstown rival Meadowdale and district rival Mountlake Terrace.
The reclassification isn’t official until the WIAA executive board approves the new classification numbers later this month.
The Washington Interscholastic Activities Association reclassifies schools every two years based on enrollment in the fall. The schools are then classified according to percentages, with the largest 17 percent of state high schools placed in 4A, the next 17 percent in 3A, then 17 percent in 2A, 17 percent in 1A, 16 percent in 2B and 16 percent in 1B.
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