J's World: UAA strikes gold in 49th state

UAA strikes gold in 49th state

In a press release issued by the UAA athletic department announcing the addition of Colony High School standout Eve Stephens, Seawolves volleyball head coach Chris Green said it best.

“Keeping one of the best volleyball athletes in Alaska at home to become a Seawolf is always a major positive for our program,” Green said.

It’s not just a major positive. It’s a necessity for UAA, and the Seawolves’ neighbor to the north, UAF.

UAA and UAF must find a way to consistently keep Alaska’s top talent home.

Earlier this month, UAA accomplished that. UAA teams officially signed five of Alaska’s top talents spread across four different sports. A sixth announced his verbal commitment.

All within a week.

Let’s take a look.

The men’s basketball program made a big splash, landing Alaska’s two top players in the 3A class. Grace Christian senior Tobin Karlberg and Barrow senior Travis Adams each signed with the Seawolves. Adams helped the Whalers win the 3A state title in 2015 and 2016. Karlberg led the Grizzlies to the state crown last year. Karlberg earned the Alaska Association of Basketball Coaches 3A State Player of the Year Award. Adams was a close second in the voting.

I should know. I am the one who collects the ballots.

Let’s move to women’s basketball. Head coach Ryan McCarthy continued his stellar run recruiting Alaska’s best, signing Dimond standout Jahnna Hajdukovich. The second-generation Seawolf (her dad is a UAA legend) is an all-state talent who helped the Lynx advance to the 4A state title game last year.

And now to cross-country running and track.

Interior standout, Galena senior Jacob Moos, is set to run for both programs. Moos already has six state titles, two in cross-country running and four in track and field, to his credit.

And then there’s Stephens, Colony’s phenom in the middle who earned back-to-back Northern Lights Conference Player of the Year awards after leading the Knights to consecutive conference titles.

“Other coaches talked to me, but I knew I wanted to stay in state,” Stephens said. “Staying here was one of my top priorities. UAA calling me, recruiting me, fell in line with what I wanted.”

And to top it off, the Fairbanks Ice Dogs of the North American Hockey League announced Tanner Schachle, a former Wasilla High standout, had verbally committed to the Seawolves. Schachle, a big power forward, has nine goals and nine assists for the Ice Dogs, who currently lead the NAHL’s Midwest Division.

“I talked to a few other programs, but UAA expressed the most interest,” Schachle said. “It’s the right fit for me as a hockey player.”

These players are a great fit for the UAA programs, and the additions are important to the UAA athletics department on a variety of levels. It’s no secret the University of Alaska system have been under tremendous stress recently.

Budget cuts.

The potential loss for academic and athletic programs across the state remains. Some have their target set on athletics. Cutting programs is an unfortunate option.

But creating more excitement can help preserve these programs.

What creates excitement?

Giving local fans the opportunity to see Alaska’s best suit up for the green and gold in Anchorage or blue and gold in Fairbanks.

Let’s take the UAA women’s basketball team for example. The team has been a national power. Wasilla’ Alysha Devine, Dimond’s Sierra Afoa are among those who helped UAA have success on the national scale. And Alaska grown products continue to standout for the UAA women. Kodiak’s Hannah Wanderee and Dimond’s Tara Thompson combined for 25 of UAA’s 59 points during a 59-53 win over Tulsa in the Great Alaska Shootout women’s title game.

The UAA athletic department will have six more local standouts starting in 2018.

Karlberg, Adams, Hajdukovich, Moos, Stephens, Schachle.

Six for six.

A double hat trick.

Six home runs.

A great week for UAA.

A trend that has to continue in the future.

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