BLOGS

This week is it…spring sports are underway big time.

BOYS SOCCER Back as coach for the 12th year is Dennis Tronson. Since taking over the program in 1999, Tronson has led Wenatchee to a 106-61-2 record.

Thursday, Sumner, away. Today the Panthers travel to Sumner in their second, and final, non-league match of the season. This will be the first match ever against the Spartans, who just happen to sport Purple and Gold as their colors.

Saturday, Moses Lake at home. The Panthers and Chiefs have battled 33 times with WHS having the upper hand 21-12. After Wenatchee ran off seven straight wins in the series, Moses Lake has come back to take two of the last three, including a 3-2 match last season. On their own turf the Panthers lead 12-4, and Tronson has done will, winning 12 of 15 against the Basin adversaries.

SOFTBALL For 32 years Wenatchee has had softball and for exactly half of that time Brent Grothe has been the coach. Grothe took over the program in 1991 and coached through 1996, then picked up again in 2000 and has guided his teams through 336 games, winning 174 and dropping 162.

Thursday, Cascade at home. The Panthers open today with their neighbors from the Upper Valley. A year ago the two schools played for the first time and WHS won 7-6.

Friday, Mount Si at home. The Purple & Gold host the Wildcats the same as they did a year ago, a game that ended with the visitors up 9-3. Once before that these two teams played, back in 1983 when Wenatchee took both ends of a doubleheader.

Saturday the Panthers will participate in a tournament at Eastmont where the schedule shows one of their games will be against Coeur d’Alene.

BOYS TENNIS Ron Zielinski, the all-time dean of Wenatchee High coaches, returns for his 23rd season. Of the 10 Panther sports I’ve worked on so far, Zielinski’s 23 years is the longest any person has coached a sport in school history. And his teams have been a tad successful. They have won 80.5% of their matches, going 234-56-2.

Saturday, Eisenhower and Davis away. League play begins with a couple matches in Yakima. In researching both tennis programs, I’ve been able to get complete results back to 1977, so all records until further notice will cover this season and the past 33. By the way the fellas take a 15-match league win streak into this weekend’s action.

The series with the Cadets has done a complete about face. For the first 22 years Eisenhower won 21 times. Over the last 11 years Wenatchee has won 10, including the last seven in a row.

With Davis it has been Panthers all the way. WHS has won 31 of 33, and that includes 15 consecutive victories.

GIRLS TENNIS Another veteran coach for Wenatchee is Norm Armstrong who took his position at the turn of the century and is returning for his 11th year heading the girl’s tennis program. And Armstong’s teams have compiled quite a record, being triumphant in 77.4% of their matches with a 102-29-2 mark.

Saturday, Eisenhower and Davis away. Like the boys, the Eisenhower series has taken a turn in Wenatchee’s favor. Through the first 17 games over the last 33 seasons he Cadets led 16-1, but since 1994 the wins and losses are knotted at eight apiece, and WHS has won the last three straight

With Davis the Panthers have an 8-game win streak, and overall have topped the Pirates 23 times in their last 33 meetings.

Did you know? The Wenatchee lady tennis players have won 32 consecutive league matches…a school record. Their last lost to a league foe was 3/30/06 to Eisenhower. The mark they shattered was 17 straight between the 1995 and 1997 seasons.

BASEBALL For the past two decades Ed Knaggs has been “the horsehide” coach at WHS. As Knaggs begins his 20th year his record in Pantherland is 189-216.

Friday, Lake Washington at home. The Kangaroos hop into town tomorrow for the season opener. The team from Kirkland played the local nine once before. Forty years ago in 1970 LW was here and lost to the Panthers 9-6.

Saturday, Cheney at home. This will be the first meeting ever between Wenatchee and Cheney. The Blackhawks are a 2A school and play in the Northern League (Clarkston, Colville, Deer Park, Pullman, Medical Lake, etc.)

Note in relation to that Lake Washington contest. For full disclosure of potential conflict of rooting interest, many years ago your friendly correspondent and his charming wife graduated from the school on the hill with a super view of the body of water that is its namesake. In fact my “sports writing career” began in Mrs. Spitzer’s journalism class covering the “Kangs” as the sports guy for the Lake Washington World.

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