In Focus: The Chronicle Honors Athletes of the Year at Banquet

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The Chronicle held its Athletes of the Year banquet on Tuesday night at Jester's Auto Museum and Events Center.

The top three athletes in each high school sport were honored. The Chronicle also announced the Boys Athlete of the Year and the Girls Athlete of the Year. 

The finalists and winners are listed below. The results will also be included in the Thursday, June 1, edition of The Chronicle. Winners received a plaque while all finalists were given certificates. Each athlete was also provided a poster featuring their photo and a special program commemorating the 2022-2023 Athletes of the Year. 

Boys Athlete of the Year

Winner: Daniel Matagi, W.F. West

The senior Bearcat was the most imposing lineman in the area on the gridiron, winning 2A EvCo MVP honors for his play in the trenches, and rolled all the way to a wrestling state championship in the winter, pinning each opponent in a dominant run. 

Girls Athlete of the Year

Winner: Karlee VonMoos, Adna

A league MVP in each of the three sports she played this year, VonMoos dominated the soccer pitch, basketball court, and the softball diamond en route to one of the strongest all-around sports careers in Adna history. 

Football

Winner: Daniel Matagi, W.F. West

The 2A EvCo MVP was a force on both sides of the ball, helping lead the Bearcats to the State semifinals for just the second time in program history. On offense, he led a line that blocked for 150 yards per game on the ground, and on defense, he finished with 12 tackles for loss.

Ashton Demarest, Napavine

The junior accounted for 3,306 total yards and 54 touchdowns at quarterback, helping guide the Tigers to a 2B state title in the fall. 

Dylan Spicer, Tenino

One of the most electric running backs in the state, the senior finished with 1,492 yards on just 145 carries (good for over 10 yards a run) and added 19 touchdowns in just nine games played. 

Girls Soccer

Winner: Brooklyn Sandridge, Onalaska

Sandridge’s 18 goals in 2022 weren’t an Onalaska program record; her junior season with 21 still holds that mark. But those 18 this year helped her reach 70, holding the Logger career mark, and they helped her team reach the State tournament for the third postseason in a row after only making the dance four times before her arrival. 

Cameron Sheets, W.F. West

The 2A EvCo’s OPOY, Sheets scored 19 goals and added 17 assists, accounting for 36 of the Bearcats’ 47 total goals.

Emalyn Shaffer, Tumwater

The 2A EvCo’s MVP scored 25 goals to go along with seven assists, and helped the T-Birds to their highest finish as a girls soccer program ever. 

Volleyball

Winner: Payton Torrey, Mossyrock

Torrey’s 293 kills — on .409 hitting — 217 digs, and 58 aces helped earn the senior all-area MVP honors along with a return to the WSCVA All-State team. She leaves Mossyrock as the Vikings’ most decorated player on the volleyball court by far, after leading them to the state title game in three straight postseasons.

Morgan Hamilton, Napavine

The senior did a bit of everything for the Tigers, totaling 463 digs, 295 kills, and 58 aces, helping guide a young team to the state tournament. 

Kendall Humphrey, Adna

Adna’s top hitter finished with 381 kills, 109 aces, and 444 digs on the season, helping the Pirates take fifth at the 2B state tournament in Yakima. 

Boys Basketball

Winner: James Grose, Napavine

The 2022-23 boys basketball season in Southwest Washington was one explosive scoring performance after explosive scoring performance, and Grose led the movement from the front, breaking Napavine’s single-game scoring record, single-season scoring record, and career scoring record. The junior averaged 26.5 points per game, shooting 49% from the field and 42% from beyond the arc, and now gets an entire season next year to distance himself from the field in the record books in Tiger Town.

Josh Salguero, Morton-White Pass

The senior averaged 17.7 points and 10 rebounds per game, all while shooting 58% from the field to help the Timberwolves take fourth at the 2B state tournament in Spokane. 

Soren Dalan, W.F. West

One of W.F. West’s all-time great big men, Dalan scored 20.5 points per game and hauled in 15 more rebounds per contest to lead the Bearcats from the low block. 

Girls Basketball

Winner: Julia Dalan, W.F. West

Statistically-speaking, Dalan had arguably the most dominant season down low in W.F. West history, setting new single-season records for points (563), points per game (20.9), blocks (172), and double-doubles (21), and nearly doing so in rebounds (335) — and that was as a sophomore. Next year as a junior, she’ll be coming for the career records.

Payton Torrey, Mossyrock

A three-time league MVP, Torrey averaged 20.1 points, 8.5 rebounds, 4.6 steals, and 4.5 steals per game to help the Vikings place second at the 1B state tournament in Spokane. 

Karlee VonMoos, Adna

The senior Pirate averaged a double-double, scoring 15.3 points and hauling in 12.1 rebounds per game while shooting 54% from the floor as a key piece of Adna’s sixth-place team at the 2B state tournament. 

Boys Wrestling 

Winner: Blake Ely, WF West 

W.F. West continued its wrestling dominance in the area this past season, but only one Bearcat went the entire season without knowing defeat. Ely wrapped up his WFW career on the mat with a perfect 34-0 record, finishing things off with one last pin in the state title bout at 145 pounds.

Daniel Matagi, W.F. West

The senior Bearcat capped a dominant season with perhaps the most dominant showing at the Tacoma Dome for the Mat Classic, pinning all four of his opponents in the first period to take home a 285-pound title. 

Antonio Campos, Centralia

The Tiger had another strong season, getting all the way to the state title match at 120 pounds to finish second in the state. 

Girls Wrestling

Winner: Trinity Tafoya, Tenino (need photo)

Tafoya blazed through her season for the Beavers before finishing things off with a third-place finish at State at 190 pounds. After that, she continued to make history, becoming the first girls wrestler from Tenino to sign on to compete in college when she committed to Eastern Oregon.

Jade Hudson, Centralia

Hudson finished third at the Mat Classic at 110, pinning back-to-back opponents through the consolation rounds to climb back to the placement match. 

Courtney Jones, W.F. West

Jones fought her way through the consolation bracket to finish third at the Mat Classic in Tacoma at 140, earning two second-period pins to bring back some hardware. 

Bowling

Winner: Piper Chalmers, W.F. West

Repeating as the 1A/2A individual state champion, Chalmers helped guide the Bearcats to a team title as well, earning first in the individual portion with 1,206 total pins. 

Bailee Spriggs, Centralia

Leading the Tigers from the beginning of the season, Spriggs placed fourth at the state championships as an individual with 1,127 total pins. 

Savannah Hawkins, W.F. West (need photo)

The senior Bearcat finished 13th at the state championships with 1,033 total pins. 

Team of the Year

Winner: Napavine football

Outscoring opponents by an average margin of 52 points leading into the state title game, the Tigers capped a dominant season with a 2B state championship win over Okanogan, 41-27, for their first title since 2016.

Boys Cross Country 

Winner: John Hoffer, Tumwater

The T-Bird senior took both the 2A EvCo and District 4 titles last fall, including a personal best 15:39.0 run at Pioneer Park, and finished fifth at the 2A state championship meet. 

Jordan Stout, Adna

Stout won the 1B/2B District 4 title last fall at Rainier, and finished 11th at the 1B/2B state championships. 

Devin Harrison, Centralia

Finished 15th at the 2A District 4 championship meet, ranks in the top-10 on the Tigers’ all-time 5,000-meter times list. 

Girls Cross Country



Winner: Joan Wedam, Mossyrock (need photo)

The 1B/2B District 4 champion this past fall won her title by over 40 seconds with a time of 22:03.03. She went on to compete in the state championship meet, where she finished 17th — best of any local athlete in the field — out of 76 runners.

Elyse O’Dell, Centralia

As a freshmen, O’Dell is already in the top-10 for 5,000-meter times in Tiger history, and saved her best racing for last, running a personal best in the district championships to qualify for the state race. 

Brynn Williams, Tenino

Williams already ranks eighth all-time on Tenino’s all-time 5,000-meter list, and ran her best at the end of the season last fall, running a personal best in each race she ran in as a sophomore. 

Boys Tennis

Winner: Aaron Boggess, W.F. West

W.F. West’s top singles player spent just about the whole season as the cream of the 2A EvCo, rolling to a league title at the Sub-District tournament back in October before taking second in the district championship.

Javyn Han and Bryce Kuykendall, W.F. West

Though the pair lost in the district semis, Han and Kuykendall battled through the consolation bracket to finish third in the tournament and earn a state berth in Seattle. 

Jacoby Corwin, Centralia

The Tigers’ top singles player took second at the 2A Evergreen Sub-District tournament. 

Boys Golf

Winner: Von Wasson, Centralia

Taking both the 2A EvCo league title and a district championship a week later back in the fall, Wasson continued his dominance on the links in his junior season. Wasson won the 2A District 4 tournament at Orchard Hills Golf Club in Washougal in dramatic fashion, winning on the second hole of a sudden-death playoff, then finished second at State in the spring. 

Ben Halverstadt, W.F. West

The Bearcat finished second at the 2A EvCo championships at Newaukum Valley, then finished 14th at the district tournament with a 36-hole, two-day score of 165. 

Braeden Salme, Adna

The junior took the 1B/2B District 4 individual title before finishing 13th at the State Tournament at Tumwater Valley with a two-day score of 165, helping Adna place sixth as a team at the state level. 

Girls Tennis

Winner: Mari Ceesay, W.F. West

The top singles player on W.F. West girls tennis team won the 2A EvCo singles championship with a two-set win over Shelton’s Hannah Pratt — leading the Bearcats to a repeat as league champs — then made it further into the 2A District 4 tournament than any other local competitor.

Stella Moore and Chloe Witcraft, Black Hills

The Wolves pair won a 2A EvCo Sub-District title in a three-set championship match, and had a solid run at districts.

Laura Yip and Katelyn Wood, W.F. West

Finishing as runner-up in the 2A EvCo Sub-District tournament, the top Bearcat doubles team won most of the matches it played in the regular season. 

Girls Golf

Winner: Natalie Eklund, W.F. West

The Bearcats’ top scorer all season long, Eklund finished second at the 2A EvCo league championship tournament, then helped guide W.F. West to its first district title in 20 years with an individual district title the very next week with a two-day score of 165, winning by one stroke. Eklund then took 10th at the state championship tournament in Liberty Lake. 

Samantha Johnston, Centralia

The Tigers’ top golfer, Johnston was match medalist in most of Centralia’s contests this season, and made the deepest run out of any Tiger, making the Day 2 cut at state. 

Isabella Masias, Rochester

Making it all the way to state, Masias finished seventh at the 2A EvCo Championships before taking 13th at the district tournament at Tumwater Valley.  

Boys Soccer

Winner: Cameron Kunz, W.F. West

The anchor of W.F. West’s defensive line led from the back, helping lead the Bearcats to seven shutouts. The senior also came up with two goals of his own, including a penalty kick against Tumwater that held up as the game-winner in a 1-0 victory.

Simba Osman, Centralia

The junior became a lion up top for Centralia, giving the Tigers their spark on offense and cashing in on the counterattack.

Alex Reichelderfer, Tenino

The senior left his spot in net and turned into one of the centerpieces of Tenino's lineup in the outfield, running things from the middle for the Beavers.

Baseball

Winner: Tristan Percival, Adna

Adna’s ace on the hill got better as the spring went on, leading the Pirates to two wins in the district tournament with two near-complete games that saw him surrender just three total hits. Then, Percival one-upped himself in the first round of the state tournament, coming an out shy of a no-hitter against Cle Elum-Roslyn in a 17-strikeout performance.

Caiden Schultz, Toledo

Toledo’s workhorse Schultz got off to a hot start, helping the Riverhawks take down Toutle Lake twice at the beginning of the season, and helped guide Toledo to yet another state berth as its leader on the mound and at the dish. 

Alex Overbay, Tumwater

The 2A EvCo’s MVP, Overbay guided the T-Birds on the bump and at the plate to a regular season league title and a runner-up finish at districts, with an area-high home runs and a near area-high ERA on the hill. 

Girls Swimming

Winner: Chihiro Bringman, Centralia

Bringman won a pair of events at the district championships in Shelton, and then finished fourth at state in the 200-meter freestyle and fifth in the 500-meter freestyle to cap a strong season. 

Suki Bringman, Centralia

Suki Bringman had a strong season for the Tigers as well, finishing 16th at state in the 50-meter freestyle and 12th in the 500-meter free.

Kaysee Smith, Rochester 

One of the area’s top swimmers, Smith qualified for the state meet in two events with a strong showing at districts. 

Softball

Winner: Karlee VonMoos, Adna

Adna’s do-it-all co-league MVP, VonMoos raked all year for the Pirates as one of their most deadly hitters en route to an undefeated regular season record against 2B opponents, while also contributing in the circle with several no-hitters.

Hailey Brooks, Mossyrock

No one inspired more fear in opposing pitchers more than the Vikings' Cal State Bakersfield-bound slugger, who enjoyed punishing those who dared throw to her at all with bombs.

Avalon Myers, W.F. West

The Bearcats' shortstop finished her season as one of the area's hottest hitters, smacking six home runs in May alone.

Boys Track and Field

Winner: Conner Olmstead, Toledo

A four-event standout, Olmstead won two individual district championships in the 400-meter dash and high jump, while also helping the Riverhawk 4x100-meter and 4x400-meter relays to titles.

Max O’Neill, Napavine

A four-event state qualifier, O’Neill is one of the most well-rounded athletes in the area, making it to state as a thrower, sprinter, and jumper. 

Lucas Hoff, W.F. West

Hoff had some of the strongest marks in the area in each of his individual events this season, making state in the javelin while clearing 14 feet, 6 inches in the pole vault and 6 feet, 2 inches in the high jump. 

Girls Track and Field

Winner: Amanda Bennett, W.F. West

The sophomore entered the state championship meet with the highest javelin mark in the state, and was both the 2A EvCo and District 4 champion in the event for the Bearcats, while also anchoring the 4x200-meter relay to a state-qualifying mark on the track. 

Charlie Carper, Pe Ell

A four-event state qualifier, Carper wrapped up her Trojan sports career on a high note, with good marks in the 100-meter dash, 100-meter hurdles, 300-meter hurdles, and long jump. 

Brooklyn Sandridge, Onalaska

A well-rounded athlete, Sandridge made state in the 300-meter hurdles, long jump, and discus.