TULALIP- The 0-11 Tulalip Heritage Lady Hawks picked up their first win of the season by defeating the 1-5 Lummi Lady Blackhawks in convincing fashion Friday night, 33-17.
The Lady Hawks trailed 2-7 after the opening quarter, but then locked in defensively and held the Lady Blackhawks to only 10 points the remainder of the game.
A 23-6 run that span over the second and third quarters was more than enough to secure the victory. Guard Michelle Iukes led the Lady Hawks with 12 points.
Lady Hawk point guard Myrna Redleaf guards a Lummi Nation Lady Blackhawk, Friday, Jan. 9, 2015, during the game played at Tulalip Heritage High School. (Tulalip News/ Michael Rios)
The dictionary-defined pejorative ‘Redskins’ was mentioned 27-percent less during NFL broadcasts this season, according to reports.
Timothy Burke of Deadspinreportedthat announcers said the word 472 fewer times in the 2014-15 regular season.
Meanwhile, use of the word ‘Washington’ to identify the team slightly increased during broadcasts. In 2014, ‘Washington’ was mentioned 1,390 times. In 2013, it was mentioned 1,380.
The team itself has been mired in controversy over its use and defense of its name. In June, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office stripped the team of six of its seven trademarks, finding the word to be “disparaging to Native Americans.”
Since then, a growing chorus of dignitaries, celebrities and former players have called on team owner Dan Snyder to change the name. Former Secretary of State and possible 2016 presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton called the team name “insensitive”, and even President Barack Obama said if he were the owner of the team he would consider changing the name.
Snyder said he will “NEVER” change the name.
On Dec. 28, The Washington PostAssociate Editor Bob Woodward predicted on FOX News Sunday that Snyder will sell the team this year to either Apple or Google.
“Danny Snyder, the owner of the Redskins, who’s had past success in business, will realize he’s part of the problem,” he said, “and he’s going to sell it; he’s going to sell the Redskins and the bidding war is going to be between Apple and Google. Think of it — the ‘Washington Apples’?”
The Tulalip Heritage Lady Hawks (0-9) hosted the Lopez Island Lobos (4-2) on Tuesday, January 6. This would be the second meeting of the season for these two teams; the first was played at Lopez Island where the Lobos won 56-20.
From the opening possessions it was apparent that the Lady Hawks would be in for a very challenging game. The Lobos were applying a full court defense and double teaming guard Michelle Iukes, the team’s offensive leader, whenever she would bring up the ball. Moving the ball with accuracy when they are going against heavy ball pressure has been a season long struggle for the Lady Hawks. For what seemed like the entire 1st quarter the Lady Hawks were under duress trying to move the ball against the Lobos press defense. When the quarter came to an end the Lady Hawks had committed 15 turnovers and were trailing 0-20.
In the 2nd quarter the Lobos ball pressure continued to frustrate the Lady Hawks. The turnovers continued to come as errant passes were resulting in easy buckets for the Lobos. Coach Cyrus “Bubba” Fryberg called a timeout to tell his players to focus on executing good solid, chest passes and that the offense would immediately get better once they started making better passes. Shortly thereafter guard Myrna Red Leaf scored the first Lady Hawks bucket of the game, with an assist from center Nina Fryberg. The passes were improving but the quick handed Lobos guards were still finding ways to come up with steals, forcing 10 Lady Hawk turnovers in the quarter. Going into halftime the Lady Hawks trailed 2-37.
During the halftime intermission the Lady Hawks were urged to not pay attention to the scoreboard. Even though they were trailing the focus would be getting better as a team and making better passes. Defensively they were urged to hustle, hustle, and hustle.
The 3rd quarter was a total team effort by the Lady Hawks that displayed their desire to improve as a team and not to focus on the scoreboard. They hustled back on every time they were on defense, they got their most rebounds of the game, and they made sure every Lobos’ shot was a contested one. Offensively, the Lady Hawks cleaned up on their passing by making straight-line passes and making sure each other were in good position before making a pass. By doing so the Lady Hawks cut their turnovers down and had much more time to setup their offense. With the crowd and their coach urging them the offense started to come. Forward Mikaylee Pablo assisted on fellow forward Jaylin Rivera’s basket to give the Lady Hawks their second made field goal. Then, with 0:13 to go in the quarter guard Michelle Iukes pulled up and hit a 3-pointer. Going into the 4th quarter the Lady Hawks trailed 7-41, but with their effort on both sides of the ball they had managed to win the 3rd quarter by outscoring the Lobos 5-4.
In the final quarter the Lobos caught fire and the Lady Hawks weren’t able to carry over their defense intensity from the 3rd quarter. The Lobos went on a 20-0 run to put the game well out of reach, but just as they have done all season, the Lady Hawks continued to fight until the end. In the final thirty seconds the Lady Hawks nearly doubled their point total when first Michelle scored a 3-pointer and then on the very next possession, Myrna pulled up from just inside half-court and swished a 3-pointer to beat the final game buzzer. The Lady Hawks lost 13-61, but showed a winner’s mentality by playing until the final buzzer.
The Tulalip Heritage Hawks (6-2) hosted the Lopez Island Lobos (0-6) on Tuesday January 6, 2015. These two teams last played December 17, 2014 at Lopez Island, where the Hawks won 63-35 in a convincing fashion. The Hawks were on a 4 game winning streak until losing 53-57 at Three Rivers Christian on Saturday January 3, and wanted to get back to their winning ways in a hurry.
The Hawks came out looking to make an early statement by playing a full-court defense and making sure every Lobos shot was contested. Their defense forced the Lobos into committing six turnovers on their first nine possessions. The Hawks turned those Lobos turnovers into transition buckets, going on an 11-2 run to open the game. The 3-ball was falling early as center Robert Miles, point guard Jesse Louie and guard Ayrik Miranda each made a 3-pointer during the run. The Lobos were able to successfully break the Hawks’ press a couple times in their next two possessions that led to them scoring easily at the rim. The Hawks responded by moving the ball on the offensive end and finding the open shooters. When the Lobos called timeout with 1:52 remaining in the first the Hawks led 18-8. The Hawks ended the quarter missing their last five shot attempts, but led by their stellar defense, including 4 steals by Robert Miles, the Hawks led 18-10 after the 1st quarter.
Guard Ayrik Miranda hit his second 3-pointer to open the 2nd quarter. The Lobos answered with a jumper of their own. Forward Willy Enick collected two offensive rebounds on the next possession and scored a bucket of his own. The Lobos again answered with a bucket. When the Lobos called their 2nd timeout at the 5:00 mark of the quarter, the Hawks were leading 23-14. The rest of the 2nd quarter continued to be a back and forth affair with both teams seemingly trading buckets until the quarter ended. Going into halftime the Hawks led 31-22.
“Offensively we are lackadaisical. You guys need to move the ball, pass more. Defensively quit reaching, slide your feet and get into position. You guys have to will yourself to work harder. You have to work hard. Stop the ball. Every time we pressure the ball something good happens,” coach Cyrus “Bubba” Fryberg stated as he urged his team to not play down to the level of their opponent.
In the 3rd quarter both teams continued to trade baskets. The score was 40-28, following Ayrik’s third 3-pointer, when the Hawks called a timeout to give their starters a quick rest. On the very next play following their timeout Robert stole a Lobos inbounds pass and found Jesse wide open in the corner who hit his second 3-pointer of the game. The Hawks had their largest lead of the game 43-28 with 3:45 to go in the quarter. Moments later Ayrik displayed the defensive hustle his coach had asked for at halftime when he sacrificed his body and took a charge. For the next several offensive possessions the Hawks got 3-point happy and went 0-5 from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, the Lobos capitalized on their free throw opportunities by sinking four from the charity stripe. Robert finally ended the Hawks drought by scoring on a putback layup to put the Hawks up 45-32 with one more quarter to play.
The 4th quarter saw Robert Miles attack the hoop and come away with four quick points and Trevor Fryberg hit his first 3-pointer of the game. Following a pair of Lobos free throws the Hawks had pushed their lead to 16 points, 52-36 with 5:33 to play. The teams again took turns trading baskets with both Robert and Ayrik countering Lobos baskets with 3-pointers. In the closing moments Robert collected his 8th steal of the game to go along with his game high 22 points and 14 rebounds for a near triple-double. The final score was 62-47 in favor of the now 7-2 Hawks.
His stories usually start and end with head-shaking disbelief.
More or less at the same time in the early 1900s, Jim Thorpe (Sac and Fox) was the world’s best college football player, professional football player, hurdler, short-distance runner, shot-putter and discus thrower. He played professional baseball and basketball as well and even was recognized for his dancing ability.
Before Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders, Thorpe was the original multi-sport athlete. But he didn’t just play, he dominated.
His Olympic feats in 1912 are asterisked because it was uncovered that he was paid to play baseball during his time at Carlisle Indian School. However, the Stockholm Summer Games gave Thorpe international recognition and legendary status as he won gold medals in the pentathlon and decathlon in record fashion. Thorpe competed in 15 events and won eight of them, all while wearing mismatched shoes.
Take that in for a moment. His shoes didn’t match.
Thorpe still won four of the five events in the pentathlon and finished third in the other.
A true testament to his glory is Thorpe’s time in the 1,500-meter run—he finished in 4 minutes, 40.1 seconds in the decathlon event at the Stockholm Games in his second time running the event in two days. The time wasn’t beaten by another decathlete until 1972, and even with all of the technology, specialty (and matching) shoes and training available to athletes today, 100 years later, American silver medalist Trey Hardee ran the same event in 4:40.94 at the 2012 London Games.
Even the simple stories surrounding Thorpe carry a legendary, schoolyard prowess.
His Olympic roommate, Abel Kiviat, recalled one instance where Thorpe ended an elementary competition of trying to touch a hanging chandelier in the grand ballroom of the S.S. Finland—the ship that transported the Americans to the Games and served as the boarding house in Stockholm. It was a simple feat, but in a room full of athletes, no one came close until Thorpe leaped and grabbed the chandelier.
Kiviat said Thorpe only had to watch someone do something once and he’d try it and do it better.
Thorpe was born on May 28, 1888, near Prague, Oklahoma, on Sac and Fox Indian land. When Thorpe was 11, he was sent to Haskell Institute in Lawrence, Kansas, and in 1904, he entered the nation’s other Indian school set up by the government and military in Pennsylvania: Carlisle.
This is where Thorpe began his track-and-field career in 1907, and just like the chandelier on the S.S. Finland years later, Thorpe turned heads by clearing a high-jump bar on his first attempt with ease when others were failing.
Carlisle also launched Thorpe’s football career. Books are dedicated to single games, like when the Thorpe-led Indian school toppled defending-champion Harvard 18-15 in 1911, or the famous game a year later when Thorpe scored two touchdowns and drilled three field goals to lead Carlisle to a 27-6 dismantling of Army at West Point.
“It was like trying to clutch a shadow,” wrote TheNew York Times on Thorpe’s running against Army. Carlisle won the college national championship in 1912, led by Thorpe’s 25 touchdowns. He was named an All-American for the second straight year.
In 1913, he signed to play professional baseball with the New York Giants.
Thorpe’s fame from his college days at Carlisle carried over onto the football field as well, where he helped lay the foundation for the league that became today’s mighty National Football League while playing for the Canton Bulldogs. Canton happens to be where the NFL Hall of Fame is located.
Thorpe was recognized as the greatest athlete of the first half of the century by the Associated Press in 1950 and in 1999, with the AP ranking only Babe Ruth and Michael Jordan ahead of him.
Thorpe died of a heart attack at the age of 64 on March 28, 1953, and yet his story continues both in history books and in the news.
Just in October, a federal appeals court ruled that Thorpe’s remains would stay in Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania, a town named after the legendary athlete, despite the objections of two of his sons. They had wanted Thorpe’s remains to be returned to Sac and Fox tribal lands in Oklahoma.
Shaelynn Sanchey looks to pass the ball in the opening possession for the Lady Hawks. Photo/Brandi N. Montreuil
By Micheal Rios, Tulalip News
The Tulalip Lady Hawks (0-5) hosted the Orcas Christian Saints (2-1) on December 16, 2014. Coming off a narrow defeat to archrival Lummi in a previous game, the Lady Hawks were looking to rebound with their first win of the season.
Coach Cyrus “Bubba” Fryberg and his Lady Hawks would have their work cut out for them as they would be playing with only 5 eligible players, meaning no bench and no substitutions for the already thin roster.
The 1st quarter got off to a rough start for the Lady Hawks as the Orcas Christian Saints played a full court press defensively the first several possessions that resulted in consecutive turnovers by the home team. To make matters worse, the Lady Hawks looked slow and lethargic while not hustling to rebounds. Because of the lack of energy the Saints collected 5 offensive rebounds on one possession. With 3:00 remaining in the opening quarter the Lady Hawks found there hustle and looked like they were ready to play for real. There was an offensive focus to get the ball to the Lady Hawk bigs Nina Fryberg and Jaylin Rivera. Both were able to get into good offensive position and get off clean shots, but they didn’t fall. The 1st quarter ended with the Lady Hawks trailing 0-11.
Following the lackluster 1st quarter showing, Coach Fryberg urged his players to push the tempo offensively and for the guards, Michelle Iukes and Myrna Redleaf, to be more aggressive while looking for their shots. After giving up a quick bucket to go down 0-13, the Lady Hawks buckled in defensively to force back-to-back turnovers. Michelle Iukes showed her coach the aggression he was looking for by pulling down an offensive board and getting fouled on the put-back attempt. Michelle went one for two at the free throw line to put the Lady Hawks on the board 1-13. On the very next possession Myrna found a wide open Michelle who swished in a 3-pointer. Moments later Myrna forced a Saints turnover and Coach Fryberg called a timeout. He drew up a play that was executed to perfection and resulted in Michelle hitting another 3-pointer. The Lady Hawks were on a 7-0 run and brought the score to 7-13. The Saints responded by hitting a 3-pointer of their own, followed by a Nina Fryberg free throw and a baseline jumper by Michelle. With the score now 10-16 the Saints called a timeout.
Coming out of their timeout, the Saints ran a defense that this basketball enthusiast hadn’t seen before. Later I learned it was called the diamond press or 1-2-1-1 full court press. It’s a trapping man-to-man defense that only works if you have quick guards who can “heat up the ball” in a one-on-one situation. This means getting the ball handler out of control and blinding him from the impending trap, which comes from a secondary defender who’s lurking near half-court. For the remainder of the 2nd quarter, the Saints remained in their diamond press defense and the Lady Hawks committed eight turnovers while not scoring another point. At halftime the Lady Hawks trailed 10-24.
The Saints’ diamond press defense continued to stifle the Lady Hawks in the 3rd quarter. Following back to back turnovers, Myrna found an open Michelle who shot and made her third 3-pointer of the game to make the score 13-26. Over the remainder of the 3rd quarter the Lady Hawks would only score two more points, scored by Jaylin Rivera, as the Saints defense continued to slow down the visibly frustrated Lady Hawks. Meanwhile the Saints were getting easy buckets off of 14 forced turnovers. Going into the 4th quarter the Lady Hawks trailed 15-41.
After getting the short break to rest before the start of the 4th quarter the Lady Hawks came out hustling. They were running back on defense and not letting the Saints take uncontested shots. On offense the shots weren’t following until Michelle inbounded to an open Jaylen who made an elbow jumper to make the score 17-41. Unfortunately for the Lady Hawks that would be their last basket of the game as Jaylin soon after fouled out. Having no bench players for this game meant the Lady Hawks would play the rest of the game 4-on-5. This added challenge made it difficult to get any offense going. The game ended 17-49 in favor of the Orcas Christian Saints.
Following the game Lady Hawk Michelle Iukes was very upbeat about the team’s development. “We’ve gotten a lot better at beating the press. We didn’t panic or anything. But we have to look middle more because they [Jaylin and Nina] are open. I think everyone has improved and we are able to look inside more, down low more and not just high post.”
The Lady Hawks remain positive and are determined to get their first win on the season in the coming weeks.
Guard Ayrik Miranda pushing the tempo after a Saint’s turnover. Photo/Brandi N. Montreuil
By Micheal Rios, Tulalip News
The 2-1 Heritage Hawks hosted the 1-2 Orcas Christian Saints on December 16, 2014. The Hawks were looking to rebound from their first loss of the season, falling to Lummi Nation 55-79. Senior guard Ayrik Miranda was making his home debut vs the Saints and inserted into the starting lineup.
The 1st quarter got off to a rocky start as the Hawks failed to connect on their first four shots, while the Saints started off 3-3 from the field to take an early 7-0 lead. Two minutes into the opening quarter Center Robert Miles was fouled while shooting and subsequently made a free throw to put the Hawks on the board, 1-7. The Saints responded by converting two free throws of their own to take a 9-1 lead. That would be the largest lead of the game by the Saints as the Hawks got their offense going. The Hawks spread the floor offensively and focused on moving the ball from player to player. Over the next 3:00 of game play the Hawks stellar ball movement resulted in an 8-0 run to tie the game at 9-9. The Saints responded with a 7-0 run of their own, taking advantage of offensive rebounds on four straight possessions, to take a 16-9 lead. In the Hawks closed the quarter on a 4-0, scoring two straight transition buckets. At the end of 1 the Hawks trailed 13-16.
The Hawks carried their momentum into the 2nd quarter by scoring two quick buckets to take their first lead of the game, 17-16. Making his home debut in fashion, Ayrik was in the midst of scoring 10 straight Hawk points. Both teams traded baskets until the Hawks called a timeout with 5:16 remaining in the half, with the Hawks trailing 24-25. Ayrik and Trevor Fryberg hit back-to-back 3-pointers and Willy Enick hit an elbow jumper to put the Hawks up 31-29, leading to a Saints’ timeout. Following the timeout Aryik hit another 3-pointer to give the Hawks their largest lead of the game, 34-29. To this point Ayrik was on fire having scored 14 points in the quarter and 18 of the last 25 points scored by the Hawks. The initial defense of Hawks was forcing the Saints to take contested jumpers, but because the Hawks weren’t boxing out the Saints’ bigs were getting easy putback baskets. The offense continued to flow regardless, and Jesse Louie found his range hitting a 3-pointer and Willy Enick hit an elbow jumper to extend the Hawks lead to 44-36 at halftime.
Coach Cyrus “Bubba” Fryberg used the halftime intermission to motivate his Hawk players to improve their defense play. “Defensively we are being outhustled. They have gotten way too many rebounds and they are scrapping to go get the ball. Why? Because we are playing lazy. We have to play harder, box out more, and hustle after the ball,” Fryberg told his players.
With the defensive intensity turned up, the Hawks came up with two steals during a 7-0 run to open the 2nd half to push their lead to 51-36. Both teams would alternate scoring baskets over the next several minutes, all the while the Hawks maintaining a double digit lead. That is until they committed four turnovers in the final 1:30 of the 3rd quarter. The turnovers proved costly as the Saints converted them into buckets, closing the quarter on a 6-2 run. Going into the final quarter the Hawks lead was down to 8 points, 59-51.
The Hawks began the 4th quarter with the same defensive mindset their coach instilled in them at halftime. They forced six straight Saints turnovers to hold the Saints scoreless three minutes into the final quarter. Capitalizing on their defense and getting timely offensive rebounds and putback layups by Enick the Hawks were on a 6-0 that pushed their lead to 65-51 with 5:06 left to play. Seeing enough of his team committing turnovers the Saints coach called a timeout to have his team regroup. Following the timeout the Saints put their offense in the hands of their point guard Michael Harris. He drove to the basket aggressively on the next six Saints possessions, scoring two buckets and coming away with four made free throws. On the other end, the Hawks continued to move the ball well and were scoring at the rim. With 3:00 to go the Hawks led 70-59. Saints’ Michael Harris again drove to the rim scoring another bucket; he had scored the last 10 Saints’ points. The Hawks continued to score off their offense sets and adjusted defensively by packing the paint to stop the Saints’ point guard from driving to the hoop. When the game was over the Hawks were now 4-1 on the season as they beat the Saints 76-63.
Heritage Lady Hawk #3 Myrna Redleaf makes a drive down the court in game against Grace Academy, Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2014, at Heritage High School. (Tulalip News/ Brandi N. Montreuil)
Lady Hawk #3 Myrna Redleaf
By Brandi N. Montreuil, Tulalip News
TULALIP – Fifteen-year-old Myrna Redleaf can easily be described as the most athletic player on the Lady Hawks team, evidenced by her strong baseline drives and her speed. Although a dual athlete playing both volleyball and basketball, winning isn’t what she is about. Sure she loves the glory that comes with winning, but she’s about being there for her team.
When asked why she chooses to play both sports she said, “I like both sports. I like to switch on and off.”
Redleaf has been playing basketball since 8th grade. Now in 10th grade at Heritage High School, she is in her second season as a Lady Hawk. In the 2013-2014 basketball season, Redleaf started as a point guard. That season her team would have an incredible record 22 wins and 4 losses, only meeting their toughest opponent during the trip-district championship games in the Neah Bay Red Devils. This year, Redleaf is one of few returning players and considered a veteran on the team.
(Tulalip News/ Brandi N. Montreuil)
Redleaf says she is still getting used to the switch of playing style between the two sports. “I get nervous when a lot of girls come at me. It is hard.” Unlike volleyball where physical contact isn’t part of the sport, basketball can have a lot of physical contact. When players make a drive down the court during an offensive play to go up to make a shot, a lot of contact can occur.
This season is off to a rough start as the Lady Hawks adjust to building the team camaraderie that it had last year. Many of the players on last season’s team graduated or switched schools. Redleaf explains the loss of key players, such as Katia Brown, Adiya Jones and Kalea Tyler, can be felt, but she is hopeful that this season will be great.
Despite feeling nervous to step in the spotlight and test her skills as a leader, Redleaf credits the mentoring style of coaching she receives with new Lady Hawks head coach, Cyrus “Bubba” Fryberg. “Last year there were a lot of good girls on the team so we didn’t go over as many drills as we are this year. I think more one-on-one is helping me.”
Dedicated and focused on and off the court, Redleaf, who’s favorite subject in school is math, says playing basketball has helped her focus and build confidence on the court as well as in school. “It helps me work as a team and communicate my thoughts.”
Her goal this season? Play hard and get a lot of shots in. As a scoring point guard, her main goal is to distribute the ball and get the players involved while also having to score, which means she has to have a good long shot, something she practices daily. “I practice a lot! I am still working on my long shots.” Her concerns are, “mainly shooting and handling the ball.” Despite playing one of the toughest games this season against Grace Academy, where the Lady Hawks were only able to score four points to Grace’s 49 and had over 20 turnovers, Redleaf is looking forward to meeting them on the court again.
“Grace was a tough game. There is a lot of stuff that we need to work on but other than that, we hustled pretty well during that game. I am looking forward to playing them again, or Highland Christian,” said Redleaf with her signature smile. “You just keep going. This is probably rock bottom and the only place we can go from here is up.”
Redleaf plans to attend college after high school to study business. She hopes to work in the human services field with the Tulalip Tribes.
Brandi N. Montreuil: 360-913-5402; bmontreuil@tulalipnews.com
TULALIP – Heritage Lady Hawks hosted the Orcas Christian Saints last night and took a loss. 17-49, despite playing one of their best quarters this season.
“It’s hard playing with only five girls. I woke up this morning thinking we should just forfeit this game, but I thought no,” said Cyrus “Bubba” Fryberg, Lady Hawks head coach. “That second quarter was the best we’ve looked all season. We played it well. We just have to keep it going.”
