You’ll likely notice that there was a lot to cover in this months’ Newcastle News sports section.
That’s because it was a marquee fall sports season for Liberty sports teams. Patriot Athletic Director Loren Krogstad must be proud after his teams won two state titles and excelled across the board.
Let’s start with the swim and dive team. Coach Kris Daughters led her girls to a second straight championship, making Liberty’s one of the premier swim programs in the state.
I watched Daughters’ teams hoist the first-place trophy both times. Last year, the title was Liberty’s before the meet even started, but this year’s meet was a nail biter. Nearly every Patriot swam better on the season’s final day, and that’s what clinched the championship.
The girls cross-country team technically won two state titles. Liberty got it done in the classroom and on the course, winning academic and athletic state titles. The boys didn’t do too bad either, capturing second at state.
Liberty’s soccer team settled for third, but gave defending state champion Squalicum its best game.
We didn’t even have room to mention the football team, which made its first state appearance since 2010, the volleyball team, which qualified for state for the second straight year, and the boys golf and tennis teams, two squads that impressed during the regular season, but have to wait until spring for state.
It was a big season for the 2015 Patriots, and it was a lot of fun to cover. Congratulations to all of the fall sports teams. I can’t wait to see if winter sports teams can keep it going.
I’ve heard whispers from a few opposing teams and fans that the Patriots owe their success to the school’s 2A reclassification. Liberty previously played at 3A, before going down to 2A in 2014.
My response is, “So what?” Liberty evened the playing field by dropping down a classification and facing schools its own size. The Patriots were always one of the smaller schools in 3A.
It’s about that time again when schools need to reevaluate their classification sizes. I’m curious to see if Liberty will remain at 2A or go back to 3A. Either way, it’s hard to deny the success the Patriots have had at the smaller level.