La Conner track, softball teams finish strong

The La Conner High track and field and softball teams made up for lost time in big ways last week.

After having their entire 2020 schedules shelved by COVID-19 and losing two weeks this season due to positive virus test cases, the two local school sports programs wrapped up their shortened 2021 campaign with a flourish.

The track teams competed twice last week, including their lone home meet, a Senior Day clash with NW2B rivals Mount Vernon Christian, Coupeville and Concrete on Wednesday that saw La Conner top both halves of the leaderboard.

Cole Hagen won both the 110 hurdles (0:17.96) and 300 hurdles (0:46.64) for the Braves, who amassed 199.5 points as a team. Isaiah Adams set personal bests in the 200 meters and triple jump for the victors.

On the girls’ side, La Conner’s Delaney Cobbs established new personal marks in the discus and shot put.

The La Conner thinclads resumed action at league title trials in Coupeville on Saturday that drew entries from multiple counties.

The Braves placed second overall while the Lady Braves claimed third place in team standings.

“Our kids were competitive all the way to the end,” La Conner head coach Peter Voorhees said afterward.

Hagen again swept the boys’ 110 and 300 hurdles while teammate Mason Murdock won the 200 meters and posted new personal bests in the discus and triple jump, where he added two silvers to the Braves’ medal haul.

Josh Jolly captured the long jump and triple jump and finished second in the 300 hurdles for La Conner.

Morgan Huizenga provided drama for the Lady Braves by winning the high jump crown in a jump-off. Ellie Marble was runner-up in the 300 hurdles.

With just nine athletes competing for La Conner in the girls’ half of the meet, several Lady Braves drew heavy duty chasing meet leaders Mount Vernon Christian and Grace Academy of Marysville.

Rachel Cram, for instance, ran the 800, 1,600 and 3,200 meters and a leg of La Conner’s 4x200 meter relay.

“Rachel picked up a lot of points for us,” Voorhees said.

The La Conner teams were just starting to hit their normal mid-season stride, he said.

“We only had a six-week season,” said Voorhees, “and missing those two middle weeks had an impact. We were still dealing with plateaus we had to push through, which would have happened during a regular (length) season.

“But, overall, everything was very positive,” he added.

It was also a positive end to the La Conner High softball season. The Lady Braves swept a league twinbill with Coupeville on Saturday by respective scores of 21-1 and 29-2 to finish with a 2-4 mark.

The Lady Braves, who had two NW2B doubleheaders and a pair of single league contests cancelled mid-season due to COVID-19 protocols, rebounded nicely on Saturday from a 23-4 loss at Darrington the day before.