Community Sports
2022-23 Super Seniors: Gig Harbor High School
With the 2023-24 high school sports season approaching — football practice starts Aug. 16 — Gig Harbor Now presents its Super Seniors for the 2022-23 sports year.
Super Seniors is a look at the seniors who had huge impacts on their teams during their careers at Gig Harbor or Peninsula high schools. This 2023 class persevered through a pandemic to display their skill and passion for sports.
Although many senior athletes excelled at multiple sports, an athlete can only be selected once on our list. We selected Super Seniors in South Sound Conference-sanctioned sports. The award is based on the athletes’ complete high school careers, rather than a individual season.
These are the Gig Harbor High School Super Seniors for the 2022-23 sports year. Click here to see the Peninsula High Super Seniors for 2022-23.
Girls cross country: Reese Morkert
Reese Morkert won the Class 3A state cross country championship in thrilling fashion, lunging over the line to win by 0.4 seconds in the closest finish ever for a Class 3A title.
“Race Day Reese” relied on her determination, endurance and excellent kick to catch and lean past Clare Herring of Central Kitsap to claim first place on Nov. 5 in Pasco. Morkert‘s career also included top conference and district finishes, a second-place team finish in Class 3A and a at the prestigious Nike “Hole in the Wall” race against top individual runners from across the country.
Gig Harbor’s Reese Morkert lunges past Clare Herring of Central Kitsap to win the 2022 Class 3A girls cross country championship. Photo by WIAA.
Football: Will Landram
Will Landram was a two-year starting quarterback for the Tides. He threw for 4,729 yards and 49 touchdowns against only 15 interceptions during his career.
Landram’s scrambling ability and 6-foot-6 frame made him a threat to both run and pass. He scored eight rushing touchdowns during his high school career and was also a excellent punter. He led the Tides to back-to-back playoff appearances and once threw for six touchdowns in a win over River Ridge.
“Will had a fantastic career and is one of the top QBs to ever play at Gig Harbor,” Tides coach Darrin Reeves said. “His ability to keep his composure and make plays on his own, made him stand out.”
Ladram, also a basketball standout, is attending the University of Washington and will be a walk-on for the Husky hoops team.
Gig Harbor quarterback Will Landram threw for 4,729 yards and 49 touchdowns with the Tides. Bryce Carithers
Gig Harbor senior Samantha Heim gets ready to sky for a kill against Peninsula in a game played earlier this year. Bryce Carithers
Volleyball: Sam Heim
Outside hitter Sam Heim, a three-year letter winner and captain, compiled 210 kills and 253 digs during her senior season. The most important came against Auburn Riverside, when Heim ended a long rally by leaping high above the net and spiking a winner to send the Tides to state. She was also a vicious server who set a new Tides school record with 64 aces in one season.
Gig Harbor’s Elliot Strachan sprints to send a back hand winner down the line. Bryce Carithers
Boys tennis: Elliot Strachan
Elliot Strachan was the Tides’ No. 1 singles player for two years. The SSC was highly competitive in boys tennis, yet Strachan finished fifth in the league championships in 2022. He narrowly missed the state tourney in 2023. “Elliot was also the team captain for two straight years and that is where he also shined,” coach Lorrie Wood said. “He gave the team of 40 boys different pep talks before every single match. Forty kids! They would have followed him anywhere!”
Girls soccer: Sami Huber
Sami Huber was a prolific scorer for the Tides and a top performer despite missing significant playing time due to knee injuries. The resilient Huber was called up to the varsity in midseason as a freshman and scored three goals, including a couple of big ones in playoff games. She tore her ACL the following summer but returned for her COVID-delayed sophomore season. She scored six early goals, but then tore the ACL on her other knee.
Huber missed her junior year while recovering from the injury, but she returned in full force as a senior. Huber snapped off 10 goals and 13 assists and displayed a fierce intensity for the Tides during their league co-championship season and subsequent state tournament run.
Gig Harbor forward Samantha Huber shared South Sound Conference offensive MVP honors with teammate Sophie Blake. Bryce Carithers
Micah Galeana. Photo courtesy GHHS
Boys cross country: Micah Galeana
Micah Galeana had a smooth stride, a powerful kick and lungs that were made to run long distances. The Tides cross country star was a track specialist but put together quite an cross country career that included top finishes in the South Sound Conference and district meets and culminated with his sixth-place finish at the Class 3A state championships. Galeana, who owns a personal best of 4:14 for a mile, preferred to reel runners in from behind. In the state finals he was only in 21st place after the first mile but closed to seventh after the second mile before ultimately finishing in a time of 15:59. Galeana’s Tides finished fourth as a team at state.
Girls swimming: Amelia Henkel
Amelia Henkel improved tremendously over the course of her high school swimming career. After finishing 12th in the 200 intermediate medley at the South Sound Conference championships as a freshman, she improved to eighth in the 100 freestyle and ninth in the 200 freestyle as a junior. Her teammates voted Henkel captain for her senior year, when she finished fourth in the 200 IM, fifth in the 100 freestyle, second in the 200 medley relay and third in the 200 freestyle at the league met. The Tides won the conference championship in the team competition.
Boys basketball: Luke Browne
Luke Browne amassed 1,503 career points to finish as the area’s second-leading all-time scorer, behind only Peninsula star JaQuori McLaughlin and slightly ahead of Tides career leader Mathias Ward. This despite missing 14 games due to a COVID season.
Browne collected 469 rebounds and is third all-time in scoring for Gig Harbor, despite playing just two and a half seasons with the Tides after transferring in from Peninsula as a sophomore. He owns two Gig Harbor 3-point records, had a career-high of 37 points and scored over 20 points 32 times. He helped the Tides win a league title with 24 points versus Timberline and led the Tides to state as a junior and a senior. “Luke makes other players better and is certainly cool under pressure,” coach Billy Landram said. “We want the ball in his hands when it counts.”
Gig Harbor’s Luke Browne gets by a defender on his way to scoring 32 points against Capital in the Tides 66-65 victory. Photo by Christi Adams Photo by Christi Adams
Girls basketball: Riley Peschek
Riley Peschek set Gig Harbor rebounding records for a season (328) and a single game (a remarkable 26) that could stand for a very long time. A four-year letter winner, Peschek once scored 25 points with 23 rebounds in a district playoff game. As a senior, she averaged over 16 points and 14 rebounds a game, including 18 double-doubles, second-most in the state. She also recorded a triple-double during her senior year and led the team to the state tournament. Had she not missed much of one season to COVID, Peschek would have probably eclipsed the career rebounding record at Gig Harbor.
Gig Harbor’s Riley Peschek broke her own school single-game rebounding record with 26 on Friday, Feb. 17, against Central Kitsap. Peschek also set a new season rebounding mark. Bryce Carithers
Wrestling: Ian Westcott
Ian Westscott was a four-year varsity wrestler who qualified for Mat Classic as a senior. Westscott wrestled at 138 pounds and went 24-11 with 10 pins during his senior season to get to state. “I started out my first two years as a guy that didn’t know how to wrestle and I got pinned a lot,” Westcott said. “But by my junior year, I kept climbing the ladder and improving. Getting to state this year was a big goal accomplished for me, I’m very happy with what I’ve achieved.”
Boys swimming: Ryan Nagata
Ryan Nagata had a very successful four-year varsity career. During his freshman season he swam legs on two relay teams that won conference and district titles. After the COVID season, Nagata won South Sound Conference titles in the 100 backstroke and the 200 freestyle relay as a junior. Teammates voted Nagata captain as a senior, when he repeated his SSC 100m backstroke title and placed second in the 200 IM. He won a district title with the Tides’ 400 freestyle relay and swam several events at state, helping the Tides place seventh at the 3A championships.
Gig Harbor’s Ryan Nagata explodes from the blocks in a relay victory. Mike Kelly
Baseball: Garrick Cosmos
Garrick Cosmos was a three-year varsity pitcher for the Tides who possessed a sneaky fastball, a quality breaking ball and the strike-zone command to limit his walks allowed. Cosmos was also clutch during pressure situations, as he was the winning pitcher in the game that got the Tides to state in 2023. He had a 3.36 ERA in 2023 and held opposing hitters under .250 for his career. “Garrick was an anchor for us who always gave us a chance to win,” coach Shane Hanon said. “I can’t say enough about his character and consistency as our ace, the last few seasons.”
Gig Harbor ace Garrick Cosmos only allowed two runs in a complete game victory over Yelm. Courtesy of Ed Johnson
Sarah Holland
Fastpitch: Sarah Holland
Sarah Holland caught every inning for Gig Harbor during her senior season. She finished her senior season with 52 RBI, fifth in the state, and only struck out 10 times in 108 plate appearances. For her high school career, Holland posted a .358 batting average, .435 on base percentage and .643 slugging percentage. She finished her career she with 78 hits, 17 doubles, five triples, 13 home runs and 80 RBI.
Boys soccer: Matt Ludlow
Matt Ludlow was a three-year starter for the Tides and part of the 2023 team that won 21 games in a row. The ’23 Tides won league and district titles and were the top seed at the state tournament before being upset. Ludlow found the net a remarkable 48 times and added 25 assists despite missing time with injury. “Matt was always an important and pivotal impact player for us. He was the spark and leader we looked to that would change the momentum of a game,” coach Joe Ross said.
Gig Harbor’s Matthew Ludlow (13) puts pressure on Central Kitsap goalkeeper Elijah Adkins as he clears the ball during their game in Silverdale on Tuesday, April 18, 2023. Meegan M. Reid/Kitsap Sun
Girls track: Baylee Young
Although this award focuses on the overall career of athletes during high school, Gig Harbors track coach’s forceful nomination of first-year sprinter Baylee Young pointed out her accomplishments last season. Young made state in three events, including the 200 meters. “In my 20 years of coaching, I have not had an athlete embrace our culture and fit in, as a first year senior as well as Baylee did,” coach Kevin Eager said.
Gig Harbor’s Baylee Young sprints down the back stretch for the Tides 4 x 100 relay team. Photo by Christi Adams
Boys track: Nick Grover
Nick Grover is a 400-meter specialist who owns three all-time top-10 marks at Gig Harbor. Grover ran a personal best of 49.29 to finish fourth in the Class 3A state meet and was a member of some blistering relay teams. He anchored a 4×100 team that finished fourth in the state at 42.01 (second all time at GHHS) and ran leadoff on the 4×400 team that was the state runner up in 2022 (second all time at GHHS).
Nick Grover takes the baton from Brian Wheelus in the 4×100 relay to run the third fastest time in 3A track this year at famed Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon. Courtesy Gig Harbor High School
Boys golf: Zavier Feasy-Allen
Zavier Feasy-Allen was a three year varsity member and a big part of two top-10 Class 3A state finishes for the Tides: seventh in 2022 and fourth in 2023. Allen possessed an excellent short game and shot a career best of 35 for nine holes during a Tides victory. He was very steady on the greens with a impressive career average of 39.14 for nine holes. He collected two state medals his junior and senior years and helped his team to a championship at the prestigious Gamble Sands Invitational as well.
Girls tennis: Alexa Lavender
Alexa Lavender was a three year varsity player who combined snappy ground strokes with an aggressive playing style. She reached the state tournament as a junior playing doubles after an undefeated league season. She played second singles as a senior, racking up a 14-0 record against league opponents. For the postseason, she paired with Lindsey Muske to form a doubles team that finished second at districts and reached the Class 3A state quarterfinals. “Alexa was such a talented player that always was so encouraging to her teammates,” coach Lorrie Wood said.
The Gig Harbor doubles team of Alexa Lavender (top) and Lindsey Muske finished second at the district championships.