2017: A year of Valley sports milestones

As I get older, the first evening in January seems to bring a similar feeling each year.

It’s after 11 p.m., and the house is quiet as I begin to write. And much like the night of Jan. 1 in each of the past several years, I sit here in a state, of basically, disbelief.

How did the last year go by so fast? It feels like just a few days ago I was wondering what 2017 would bring.

But time continues to fly. And 2017 is history.

Once again, it was a very busy year both personally and professionally. The world of Valley sports certainly left me with no shortage of storylines.

As I reflect on the past year, I like to take time to look back at some of the top stories from my coverage for the Frontiersman. Below are my top 10 Valley prep sports storylines in 2017.

10. Knights make school history in state hockey

The Colony Knights made school history on the ice, placing third in the 4A state hockey tournament.

Cooper Smith the game-winner in overtime to lift the Knights to a 4-3 victory over Eagle River. It marked the first time Colony notched a top-3 finish in state. Its previous best was fifth in 2015.

9. Ryan Engebretsen and the Wasilla boys basketball program

I’ve had the opportunity to cover a number of high school coaches who have hit major milestones. Wasilla boys basketball head coach Ryan Engebretsen became part of that list in February when his Warriors scored a 57-48 victory over West Anchorage, the 200th victory of his career.

It’s a great achievement, but what amazes me most is how quickly Engebretsen hit 200. He needed only 10 years to reach the milestone. The 2016-17 season was big for the Warriors, who earned their fifth Northern Lights Conference title and second trip to the 4A state championship game under the guidance of Engebretsen.

8. Redington football makes history

The Redington Huskies have enjoyed fast improvement during the program’s first three seasons. Redington finished 0-4 as a junior varsity team in 2015 and 0-8 in its first year of varsity football in 2016. But in 2017, the Huskies were 4-4 and in the playoff hunt.

Redington scored its first win in school history, first road win, first home win and first conference victory.

A lot of firsts to celebrate for the third-year program.

7. Warriors notch baseball four-peat

The Wasilla Warriors have been the team to beat in the Southcental Conference in recent years, and they extended their streak in 2017. Wasilla used a 15-5 victory over rival Colony to earn its fourth straight region title.

“We find a way to win. We’re family,” Former Wasilla standout Hank Boyer told me after the game. “We pick each other up. If one person is having a bad day, then another person is having a great day.”

6. Wasilla girls win second straight hoops title

The Wasilla Warriors girls basketball squad notched his second straight 4A girls state title, and seventh since 2007, with a 51-34 victory over Dimond.

The game plan scripted by longtime Warriors head coach Jeannie-Hebert Truax and her assistants was better than anything I personally witnessed in 2017. And the Warriors executed that game plan. In a prior meeting with Dimond, Alaska Player of the Year Alissa Pili enjoyed a monster 37-point, 18-rebound effort during a regular season win over the Warriors. But in the state title game, Wasilla held Pili to 13 points.

Overall, the Warriors held Dimond to 28 percent shooting from the field and 13 percent from behind the arc.

5. Tanner Schachle, Jarek Schultz and Eve Stephens

Each year, dozens of Valley athletes earn their opportunity to compete at the next level. While I congratulate all who make their commitment or signed a letter of intent in 2017, I selected three who stand out in my mind.

Former Wasilla hockey standout Tanner Schachle, and a pair of Colony seniors, Jarek Schultz and Eve Stephens.

Schachle, who currently skates for the Fairbanks Ice Dogs of the Junior A North American Hockey League, announced he will play hockey at Division I UAA. Schultz, a Colony football standout, signed with Division I Northern Arizona. Stephens, a Colony volleyball star, will also go to UAA and play for the Division II Seawolves volleyball squad

Schachle earns the chance to skate at the Division I level after a long youth, high school and junior career. He high school following his junior year to play at the junior level, and has since skated in Kenai, Alberta and Fairbanks.

Both Schultz and Stephens scored their chance to play at a high level after only three years of prep experience in their respective sport. Schultz is a former hockey player who made the move to the gridiron, and is now one of about seven Knights to earn the chance to play Division I football.

Stephens hit the high school hardwood as a sophomore for the first time. In three years, she led Colony to back-to-back Northern Lights Conference titles and was named NLC Player of the Year in 2016 and 2017.

4. Ceil Dunleavy

Ceil Dunleavy made Alaska track and field history in 2017. Dunleavy, now a former Wasilla Warriors track and field standout, earned her fourth straight state title in the 4A girls’ high jump.

Dunleavy is now the only athletes in state history to have at least three titles in the girls’ high jump. She’s also the first to four-peat, girls or boys. Dunleavy also owns the Alaska state girls record in the event, a mark of 5 feet, 6 ½ inches notched during the 2016 state meet.

3. Allison VanPelt

I had never seen a junior varsity athlete earn region MVP honors until Allison VanPelt earn a top Region III award during the cross-country running season.

VanPelt is a junior at Mat-Su Career and Technical High School who opted to run at Wasilla High in 2017 after spending her first two seasons with the Houston Hawks cross-country team. VanPelt decided to make the switch to drastically cut her daily commute and not risk missing any class time to make the Houston afternoon practice in time. But due to ASAA’s transfer policy, VanPelt was not eligible to run at the varsity level this season. And that didn’t stop VanPelt from running, and beating just about everyone. VanPelt ran as a junior varsity runner, and posted the third best time in the state. She would have won the Region III 4A girls’ title if eligible. But regardless of it all, Region III coaches looked past her status as a JV runner and her times, and named VanPelt Region III Co-MVP.

2. Valley products help Miners win ABL title

It’s not unusual to see a local product on the Mat-Su Miners roster. But more often than not, Valley grown baseball players don’t see a ton of playing time for the Miners of the famed Alaska Baseball League.

This year was different.

A pair of Valley graduates, former Colony High standout Jake Butcher and former Wasilla standout Nolan Monaghan, helped the Miners win an ABL titles. Both pitchers — Butcher a right-hander and Monaghan a lefty ¬— worked big innings for the Miners, and earned key victories on the mound. Each made a bigger impact than any other Valley product who has suited up for the Miners in decades.

1. Rod Christiansen sets all-time record

Whenever I do decide to hang up the notebook and call it a career, this will be among the biggest stories I have followed and covered during my long tenure with the Frontiersman. Longtime Palmer High School head coach Rod Christiansen is now the winningest head coach in Alaska high school football history.

Christiansen earned his 150th career victory with a Moose win over Eagle River. That tied him with the late Buck Nystrom, who collected a combined 150 wins at Eielson and North Pole. The following week, Christiansen set the record with a Palmer victory over Kenai.

The Moose will continue the seasons with wins over Wasilla and Thunder Mountain, and played their way into a state title game for the second straight year. Christiansen now has 153 wins in 27 wins as Palmer’s head coach.

Well, that does it for another year in Valley sports. Congrats to all. Tremendous achievements certainly. There are many more individuals and teams worthy of recognition as we reflect on the past year. There’s never a shortage of stories, and individuals and teams from across the Valley in just about every sport enjoy a tremendous amount of success.

As I continue to reflect, I’m happy to have had the opportunity to write about these coaches, athletes and teams. I honestly believe I have the best sports writing gig in the state.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.