Mahealani Wong of the Snohomish Lacrosse Club was one of five girls from the state of Washington named last week to the 2012 US Lacrosse All-American Team.
The announcement caught Wong, a senior at Archbishop Murphy High School, by surprise.
“I never expected to even get nominated, let alone win,” Wong said in an email interview, “so I was really happy and honored.”
Wong, a midfielder, took up lacrosse the summer before her freshman year. Before that, she played soccer and basketball.
“The funny thing is at first I didn’t want to play lacrosse,” she said. “My brother was the first person in our family to start playing and once he started, my dad tried to get me to start lacrosse too but I refused. After my brother’s first season and seeing him play, I decided to give it a try … and I have loved playing the game ever since.”
Wong’s lacrosse career will continue next year at Pacific University in Forest Grove, Ore. The Boxers, who were 8-6 this past spring, compete at the NCAA Division III level.
“Playing sports in college has been a dream of mine and my parents for years,” Wong said. “I’m excited to start this new adventure at Pacific University playing for coach Wynne Lobel.”
The other All-Americans from the state of Washington are midfielders Kelsey Mackin and Grace Deery-Schmitt of Bainbridge, midfielder Claire Monsaas from Redmond, and defender Makayla DeJong of Lakeside.
Rowing
Western Washington University rower Megan Northey has been named to the Capital One Academic All-America second team. The squad, announced last week, was selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America.
Northey, a senior from Brier, is a kinesiology major with a 3.92 grade-point average. She was captain of the Western rowing team that placed second in both the team standings and the varsity eight race at last month’s NCAA Division II national championships in West Windsor, N.J.
Northey is a graduate of King’s High School in Seattle.
Softball
Samantha Munger’s first season of softball at Saint Martin’s University produced a glove full of honors.
Munger, a freshman pitcher-shortstop from Cascade High School, was named the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year, the All-GNAC first-team shortstop and a member of the National Fastpitch Coaches Association’s Division II All-West Region second team.
Munger hit .411 this spring and was 16-7 with a 2.43 earned-run average as a pitcher. She ranked third in the GNAC in batting and second in the conference in wins.
Soccer
Kaeli Eberth has accepted a scholarship to play soccer next season at Trinity Lutheran College in Everett.
Eberth, a graduate of Meadowdale High School, played last fall for the Everett Community College women’s soccer team. A defender, she helped the Trojans (13-6-2) reach the semifinals of the Northwest Athletic Association of Community Colleges tournament.
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