Monday, September 14, 2020

Gardner named Snohomish County Collegiate Female Athlete of the Year

LYNNWOOD -- Edmonds College volleyball player Sadie Gardner has been named as the 2020 Snohomish County Collegiate Female Athlete of the Year. The award is given annually by the Snohomish County Sports Commission as part of the County's Hall of Fame banquet. This year's ceremony is being done virtually.

Gardner finished her stellar two-year career this past fall and will continue her academic and athletic journey at NCAA D-I Idaho State University in Pocatello, Idaho. The Bengals compete in the Big Sky Conference.

Sadie Gardner

The outside hitter prepped at Uintah High School in Vernal, Utah and was a stalwart at EC for coach Tony Miranda. The talented sophomore led the team in kills and was an overall contributor, consistently notching aces, digs, and blocks in most matches. Gardner earned the North Region Offensive Player of the Week the final three weeks of the season, and was a two-time NWAC North Region 1st Team selection.

In her two years as a Triton she helped the program to back-to-back NWAC playoff appearances, including the North Region title and a 4th place finish in 2018. In Gardner’s time on the floor, Edmonds was 60-22 overall, including a 21-3 mark in the North Region. The two-year stretch will go down in program history as one of the most successful ever.

Gardner, a captain on the 2019 squad, received AVCA NWAC All-American honors and was named to the NWAC All-Academic Team for her work in the classroom. She moves on with her Associate in Arts transfer degree and plans to major in Nutrition and Dietetics with aspirations to become a registered dietitian and start her own business. 

Video of Sadie Gardner 

Thursday, August 13, 2020

Men's Soccer, Softball add assistant coaches

LYNNWOOD -- The Edmonds College men's soccer and softball programs have recently added new assistant coaches to the fold. Kris Lowry joins the men's soccer staff and Alyssa Reuble has been added to the softball staff. 

Lowry is a Triton alum and was captain of the 1992 team that reached the NWAC championship game. He attended Arizona State University after EC and played for many indoor, pro, semi-pro and amateur teams before transitioning to the sidelines. He prepped at Shorecrest High School and played under women's soccer coaching legend Teddy Mitalas, who earned two NWAC championships at Edmonds College. 

Kris Lowry
Lowry has worked soccer camps under Cliff McGrath and served as Olympic College's head men's soccer coach from 2008-2011. He was also with the Kitsap Pumas of the PDL during that time. In 2015 he assisted Brandon Mitalas and helped the Tritons to a 3rd place finish at the NWAC Tournament. 

Lowry is currently a senior coach for Sound FC (formerly Surf) and leads three teams. "I am excited to return to Edmonds and be part of a great institution, community, and tremendous culture that Coach Erkut has put together," Lowry said. 

"We are excited to have Kris join our coaching staff. As a former Triton, Coach Kris will be instrumental in maximizing our student-athlete experience," said men's soccer coach Ozzy Erkut, who begins his sixth season as head coach in 2020-21.

Erkut's mainstay, assistant Lucas Bates, will return for his fifth season in 2020-21 and was named as the new boys varsity head coach at Everett High School this past spring.

Alyssa Reuble also has local ties, graduating from Meadowdale High School before signing to NCAA D-I Seattle University. She was a four-year letter winner with the RedHawks, starting 68 games in the circle, and logging over 454 innings. She finished her career with 21 wins, 234 strikeouts, 121 appearances, 23 complete games, eight saves and two shutouts.

Alyssa Reuble
Reuble's last stop was at NCAA D-II Central Washington University where she joined the Wildcats staff in August 2018 as the pitching coach. CWU had won four straight GNAC regular season titles headed into last season. Reuble served as interim head coach of the program from September 2019 to January 2020.

"Alyssa's going to give our pitchers the edge and support they need to succeed in the NWAC and beyond. Her experiences and positivity are exactly the right fit for this program. I couldn't be happier to have her joining the Triton family," said head coach Ashley Lokey. 

In her first season, Lokey guided the Tritons to a 5-3 non-league record in 2020 before the COVID-19 pandemic halted their season. Edmonds made it to the NWAC championship game in 2019 and placed 3rd overall in 2018. With Reuble on staff, the Tritons' bench now has three RedHawks alumnae. Current assistant Nicole Bolasky, a former NWAC standout at Lower Columbia, still holds the all-time individual single season record for stolen bases (27) at Seattle University.

The NWAC has announced return-to-play guidelines that have moved the majority of fall sports to winter and spring quarters. Softball and soccer won't play official games until February 2021. 

Sunday, January 12, 2020

Men win OT thriller at Peninsula, improve to 2-0

PORT ANGELES -- Edmonds men’s basketball is off to a 2-0 start in the NWAC North after hanging on to defeat Peninsula College on Saturday night.

The Tritons held a 37-31 advantage at halftime, and opened the second half on a 17-6 run to extend out to their largest lead of the game at 54-37. In the final 13 minutes the Pirates clawed back on their home hardwood and ended up forcing overtime after Everett Torres-Kahapea’s layup tied the game at 79 apiece just before the end of regulation.

In overtime Curtis Walker dominated, scoring 10 points to lift Edmonds to a 96-88 victory. He finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Tre’Var Holland notched 26 points and dished out 10 assists to pace the Tritons. Holland was also a perfect 10-of-10 from the free throw line. The sophomore is near the top of the NWAC leaderboard in steals (2.4) and assists per game (6.5); he is shooting 87% from the charity stripe this season.

Amanuel Gebreziabher
Winning in Port Angeles against the Pirates (1-1 North, 11-3 overall) is never an easy task. Edmonds snapped Peninsula’s six-game win streak. “It was a gritty win for us. We battled through a lot of adversity at the end when Peninsula hit some tough shots and found ways to get to the free throw line,” said head coach Kyle Gray. "I'm really proud of how we stuck together and found a way to get a road win in a tough place. We focused on what we could control."

Wednesday’s home win over Shoreline saw freshman Amanuel Gebreziabher pour in a season-high 20 points. The freshman guard has worked his way into the starting lineup the past four games and has reached double-digits in four of the past five games. Edmonds led wire-to-wire to top Shoreline 82-75. The Tritons’ bench played a part in the victory, netting 33 points to the Dolphins 16 bench points. Skyler Hammer chipped in 10 points and 7 rebounds. Hammer, Naji Ibraham (who scored 14 points and had 4 steals at Peninsula), and Simran Parmar have all played key roles, and Parker Landdeck is now back from an injury.

Edmonds (2-0 North, 10-6 overall) has now won four in-a-row, and will hit the road again on Wednesday when they cross the Puget Sound to face Olympic College (1-1 North, 4-12 overall) in Bremerton. Stay up-to-date with any schedule changes or cancellations by following the Triton Athletics Twitter. Western Washington is supposed to receive snow this week along with subfreezing temperatures for several days.

Edmonds downs Peninsula, moves to 2-0 in region play

PORT ANGELES -- The Edmonds Community College women’s basketball program has started regional play with two wins after Saturday’s triumph in Port Angeles over Peninsula College.

The Tritons shot 48% from the field and held the Pirates to 32% shooting. Just over one minute into the game they took a lead they would not relinquish. At the break, they led 35-27 and hung on to claim the important 74-67 road victory. Jerzie Pluid recorded her second double-double in the past three games with 14 points and 10 rebounds, and was one of four players to reach double figures (Kalei Cates scored 19, Rachael Balagso had 16 and Gieani Balino added 11). Edmonds withstood Leilani Padilla’s 27-point effort by the Pirates (1-1 North, 8-5 overall). When it mattered in the fourth quarter, Padilla was limited to just three points, all coming from the charity stripe.

Sophomore Gieani Balino
In Wednesday’s NWAC North Region opener at home versus Shoreline, the Tritons fought off a pesky Dolphins team 96-83 behind Gieani Balino’s offensive explosion. The sophomore guard scored a career-high 28 points and also swiped 10 steals. She is now averaging just over 18 ppg, which is 7th best in the NWAC. It was a back-and-forth battle through three quarters before the Tritons pulled away in the final stanza. Edmonds outscored Shoreline 34-24 in the fourth quarter. The Tritons shot a blistering 53% from the floor and forced 35 Dolphin turnovers, 11 of which came in the fourth quarter.

Edmonds (2-0 North, 5-10 overall) is scheduled to play in Bremerton at Olympic College (0-2 North, 3-8 overall) on Wednesday, January 15. Follow the Triton Athletics Twitter for the
most up-to-date information on any game changes or cancellations. Western Washington is supposed to receive snow this week along with subfreezing temperatures for several days.