September
10, 2008
Kang
Alumni Updates
It was a great 2008 for a number of reasons in the Kangs
baseball family. The ’08 version of the
Kangs fought through some mid-season adversity to finish the year tied for
second in the KingCo 4A conference. A successful
post-season run brought Lake Washington within one game of the 4A state
tournament before a heart-breaking loss against Battle Ground ended their
season. Three members of this year’s
team will have a chance to continue their careers at the next level, as Chris
Hashimoto and Joey Semler will head to Edmonds
Community College, while Ryan Neumann will continue his playing career at
Olympic College in Bremerton.
In addition, a number of former Kangs experienced great
success in the college and professional ranks.
Three LWHS grads made their mark in the professional ranks while six ’05
and ’06 graduates experienced the thrill of winning collegiate championships in
2008:
·
Congratulations
to 2002 Lake Washington HS graduate Nick Hundley for reaching the major leagues
with the San Diego Padres. Hundley was
called up to the big club in early July, getting his first MLB start and hit (a
single) on Independence Day, July 4th. He followed that up a few weeks later with
his first big league home run. Since
then, Hundley has been entrenched as the Padres’ regular catcher, and appears
to be a major part of San Diego’s future.
·
Two
other former Kangs in the professional ranks moved up the minor league ladder
this year. 2007 graduate Hilton
Richardson spent the majority of his second pro season with the Single-A
Burlington Royals. He finished the
season at Burlington hitting .229, leading the team with 5 triples and
finishing second on the club with 10 stolen bases. David Marks, a member of the 2005 Kangs
KingCo championship team, spent the year in Greenville, North Carolina, playing
for the Single-A Drive, an affiliate of the Boston Red Sox. Marks ended up with a .227 batting average on
the year, collecting 30 extra base hits along the way. His 10 home runs were good for third-most on
the team.
·
Three-year
Varsity starter and 2006 graduate Josh Ashenbrenner
was a key member in Lewis & Clark State College’s 16th NAIA
National Championship. The sophomore
infielder started 58 of the Warriors 65 games, hitting .357 with 49 runs scored
and 41 RBI in the process.
·
Five
former Lake Washington HS baseball players were a part of the NWAACC champion
Edmonds Community College baseball club this past season. 2006 graduates Nick Pizzuto,
Nate Sadler and Kirby Young joined ’05 grads Ben Thielsen
and Kurt Haakenstad on the Tritons, who defeated
Lower Columbia College 6-4 in the conference championship game. In addition to the team’s success, Pizzuto and Thielsen were both
selected to the All-NWAACC North Division first-team. To top things off, BenThielsen
was able to turn his two years at Edmonds into an opportunity to play Division
I baseball for the UNC-Wilmington Seahawks.
·
Will
McKenney, who graduated from the program in 2007,
enjoyed great success in his first season at Tacoma Community College. Will turned in a great performance as a
freshman, hitting .371 with 6 home runs and 24 RBI to earn first-team
All-NWAACC Western Division accolades. McKenney joined fellow ’07 grad Evan Wilson on the Titans
club.
Check the Kang Alumni page to see where former Kangs have continued
their playing careers.