"With over 530 student-athletes competing in one of our eight spring programs, that means two thirds of our student body is donning a Panther jersey and representing our community at courts, fields, tracks and waterways all around us."
2026 Spring Sports Recap - by Sam Reed, Athletic Director
With the dust fully settled on the 2025-2026 school year – and most pertinent to this piece, the 2026 spring sports season – let’s take a look back on the season that was. Spring sports at Seattle Prep is always a season like no other. With over 530 student-athletes competing in one of our eight spring programs (nine when you count golf, who picks back up in the spring for their state tournament), that means 66% of our student body is donning a Panther jersey and representing our community at courts, fields, tracks and waterways ALL around us. From Steve Cox to Magnuson, from the College Club to Lower Woodland, Montlake to SWAC and almost every field, park and school in between, Blue and White can be seen throughout the city almost every day from the beginning of March to the end of May.
"Our student-athletes did all this while serving our community, leading retreats, holding leadership positions on campus, deciding on colleges, picking prom dresses, graduating and oh yeah, maintaining a season GPA of 3.74."
Planes (to Florida, Texas, California and Arizona), trains (well, not this season), and automobiles (Big Blue, LOTS of carpools and plenty of charter buses in between) are used to shuttle our kids off campus daily, often requiring early dismissals and time out of their seats in class. This season saw over 315 competitions, lots of wins, some big celebrations, a handful of heartbreaking losses, and memories that will last a lifetime. Our student-athletes did all this while serving our community, leading retreats, holding leadership positions on campus, deciding on colleges, picking prom dresses, graduating and oh yeah, maintaining a season GPA of 3.74. Many, many individuals – coaches, faculty, school leadership, our athletic department staff, parents and families – play a role in the successes of each of our athletic seasons, but all that work is done so that our student-athletes can shine. So, pull out those sunglasses and have a read over some of those highlights from our 2026 Spring Sports season…
Roll Prep, Sam Reed Athletic Director
Let’s start on the tennis courts, where longtime Program Head Mark Frisby was recognized for his continued strong leadership by being voted Metro League Coach of the Year. Frisby and his staff helped lead the girls program to their first Metro League title this decade, using a deep and interchangeable roster to rack up points in the postseason tournament. The girls were led by the doubles teams of Lauren Rosauer and Hayden Fenkner (2nd in Metro), Ella Smith and Caitlin Raymond (3rd), and singles player Mica Mamplata (3rd), who each medaled in the league tournament and advanced to Districts. On the boys side, junior Ned Bishop was crowned Metro League champion in singles, eventually working all the way onto the State podium, where he placed 6th in all of 3A. Seniors Alex Ichikawa and Cole Skotdal provided great leadership all season long, while also working their way into Districts as a doubles team.
Our baseball program had a huge influx of young talent in Program Head Wes Long’s second year at the helm. A large freshmen class added to the depth of the program, showcased by the junior varsity team finishing 16-4 and winning their last 12 games. On the varsity end, the Panthers proved they could compete with any team in the state as they went 5-3 against teams against State-qualifying teams while playing the hardest schedule in all of 3A according to RPI. Sophomore Angelo White showcased some big power, slugging 4 homers on this way to earning 1st team all-league recognition, while juniors Ben Schwarz and Ben Cunningham (both 2nd team) and senior Khing Ljutic (2nd team) led the team in innings pitched and each had ERAs under 2.10 for the season. While seniors Ljutic, Anthony Caso and Kingsley Womac are set to play college ball next year, the Panthers will return a hungry young core after coming within 2 outs of earning a spot in State this past spring.
Over on the other diamond, our softball program made an exciting late season run, earning a trip to State for the 2nd time in the last three years under Program Head Joshua Magallanes. As has been the case for the past four years, Ohio State University-signee Hayden Downer found herself as a catalyst both offensively and defensively, slugging 13 home runs and stealing 52 bases on her way to her 2nd consecutive Metro League Most Valuable Player award. Downer and fellow seniors Erica Daher and Charlotte Larson (both 2nd team all-Metro selections) will be missed greatly – both for their on-field success and their consistent leadership – but a strong junior class led by 2nd team all-Metro players Amelie LaPorte-Manahan and Lucy Buckholtz now get a chance to lead the next generation of Panther softball players, a generation with a bright future bright thanks in part to a young battery of freshman pitchers Brooke Wilmoth and Sasha Worner and catcher Nichole Tucci-Ringstad.
On the pitch, our boys soccer team entered the season with big expectations and owners of the last two Metro League champions trophies. Program Head David Smith had to switch up his formations this season, in part due to the year-long absence of captain Tadhg O’Mahoney who was injured just prior to the season. Seniors Luca Zuhorski (2nd team all-league) helped hold down the back line, while Henry Wells, Jack Giuzio and Miles Krosevic (each honorable mention) supplied ample fire power as the Panthers cruised to an 11-5 regular season record and secured a top 4 seed in the league’s State qualifying tournament. Unfortunately, a pair of tough losses in the Metro League tournament - in a season where Metro only received three bids to State - meant that the season came to an end a bit earlier than expected and broke a streak of four straight years with State Tournament appearances.
While a fall sport during the regular season, our golf program deserves a shout given their outstanding successes during their spring postseason. For the first time in his 5-year run as Program Head, Gilbert Quitlong found himself with a pair of teams that qualified for State. On the girls side the team featured only one senior playing at State and placed a pair of individuals inside the top 50 as Paige Remington finished 49th while Anna Ward earned a medal for her 17th place finish. Over on the boys side, the team finished the first day tied atop the leaderboard and then grinded out a solid second round to place 2nd in State as a team. With three of the boys team’s top placers – Jack Giuzio (17th), Will Hollingshead (27th) and Liam Downs (46th) – eligible to return next year, the future of both the girls and boys programs are incredibly bright.
Out on the water, our boys and girls rowing team was coming off a great training period in the winter and looked strong when the racing season started in March. The boat of the year for the Panthers was undoubtedly the boys varsity 4- (Joey Tilghman-Havens, Joe McDonald, James Sullivan, Carter Yeatman) who cruised through the spring in nearly undefeated fashion. Their boat narrowly missed a win in The Windermere Cup, then set a course record at Regionals before becoming the first boys boat in school history to medal at US Rowing Youth Nationals, where they placed 3rd. The top performing girls boat at Nationals was the 2V 4X (Peyton Lysen, London Reed, Macy Ferullo, Kaitlin Moran), who placed 16th, part of a large contingent of 28 rowers who headed down to Sarasota earlier this month.
Cheers to our 2026 graduates, including those who committed to row in college (Tilghman-Havens, McDonald and Maja Gowans – University of Washington, Lysen – Indiana University, Gigi Perrina – Santa Clara University) and a big thank you to outgoing Program Head Mark Davis who is moving on to help grow another local program beginning next fall. While our outgoing graduates and coaches will be missed, we are excited for the future of this program.
Speaking of making history, that’s just what some of our track and field athletes did in Program Head Andrew Walker’s second year leading the program. Our boys track team who returned to the top of the podium as team Metro League Champions for the first time since the 1997 season. The boys leaned on Metro Championship performances from Noah Ephrem (high jump) and Henry Herb (1600M; added a 1st place finish in the 3200M at Districts) and scored points in 15 of 16 events during the meet. At State the team got strong performances from Herb (5th in the 3200M, 7th in the 1600M) and outstanding senior Zhenyu Chee who placed 6th in both the 100M and 200M.
On the girls side, the Panthers showed they new how to compete both on the track and in the classroom, as they were crowned 3A Academic State Champs for the 2nd consecutive year. In competition, it was sophomore Elise Corr who was most often at the front of the pack, as she won the 1600M at both the Metro and District levels, breaking a school record that had stood since 1999. Corr (6th in the 3200M) was joined on the podium at state by fellow sophomore Macy Powell who placed 5th in the 800M.
Coming off of a 2025 State Championship, our girls lacrosse program began the season with an introduction of new Program Head Olivia MacIntire, who brought a passion and energy to that was well received by the girls. With a lot of new faces out on the field, this Panthers team had to learn how to incorporate a number of 1st year players, including talented underclassmen like Bella Yang and Annelise Lent-Wright (both all-league). Senior captains and all-state selections Pearl Steele, Campbell Downer and Grace Vanderslice led the team both vocally and with their play as the team was playing their best lacrosse of the season as the team headed into the playoffs. The game of the season was undoubtedly the State quarterfinals where Steele’s sudden death overtime goal sent the girls back to Starfire for the 3rd consecutive year. And while the dream of a repeat ended in the semifinals to the eventual champions, this is a strong program who will be set to return a talented group next year.
Speaking of repeating, it’s something that our boys lacrosse team has gotten used to doing, as they entered the season looking for their 4th consecutive State title. Program Head Sam Bennett knew he had his work cut out for him this year as a new division alignment meant a much tougher road to hoist the trophy. The Panthers proved up to the task however, winning early and often enroute to an 18-2 record with the only in-state loss coming to a fellow State champion. The offensive attack was potent and multi-faceted with Brady Meehan, Callum Skillestad and Jack Muska (each 1st team all-division) often leading the charge. Jacob Park (2nd team) was a face off extraordinaire, while All-Americans Beckett Archer and Win Chandler did a little of everything, helping the team earn an appearance in the State Championship game against a strong Bellevue squad. And what a game it was. With the Wolverines leading by 3 in the closing minutes, the Panthers scored the game’s last 4 goals, including a Skillestad shot in overtime to send the team, the crowd, and all of Panther Nation in hysteria, cementing dynasty status for Seattle Prep boys lacrosse.
There are so many individuals to thank in any sports season, but especially in a season as busy as the spring. We can start with our stable of coaches – program heads, varsity assistants, JV and C-team coaches and all the volunteers – that give up countless evening and weekend hours to help our students grow as athletes and as young people. Then there are all of the parents who supported the team with meals, endless support, car rides and plenty of loud cheers. Let’s add in athletic department staff like Andrew Carlson and AJ Middleton who did everything in their power to keep our student-athletes healthy and strong through a grueling season. To Zoe Haywood, Dan Tobin and others for organizing our transportation schedule and cueing up countless bus rides near and far. To Principal Dale Cote, President Robert Jordan and the school leadership team for supporting all of our athletic programs both in their presence at events and with the budget and resource support necessary to build championship programs. A huge thank you to the Parent Association for their partnership and support of athletics, including the new Panther Place truck and countless pop-up shops all around the city. To our faculty, who understand and support the passion in which our student-athletes bring to their sport and foster that same level of commitment to excellence in the classroom. Finally to the photographers who help me tell these stories and give our student-athletes and families high-quality memories that will last well after the last whistle is blown - thanks to Mason Kelley, Troy Zaboukos, Mike Jacobs, Catharine Meda and others. Each of these season ending recaps always bring me to the same conclusion – this is an amazingly special community to be a part of. I am humbled by the opportunity to lead this community and appreciate your participation – either as a player, a fan, a parent or a community member – in the journey that is interscholastic athletics. Roll Prep always, -SR
Social Impact
The Panther community showed up online to cheer on our spring sports teams in a big way. During the winter season our @seaprepsports Instagram account had 1,541,499 views, reached 51,280 different users and had 29,982 interactions on posted content. Here's a few of our top posts:
SENIOR POWER
Each year our seniors look forward to their "Senior Media Day". For the past 6 years we've partnered with Mason Kelley to highlight the last seasons for our student-athletes. Lights, cameras, action! *anyone not pictured below did not sit for a Media Day photo or did not complete the season.
all-league panthers
This spring saw an impressive 26 student-athletes earn recognition as a member of his or her respective all-league team. While these honors differ by sport in how they are selected, each represents a significant achievement and should be celebrated. In addition, an incredible 55 Panthers qualified as an individual to represent their team at their respective state or national level competitions.
Putting the 'student' in student-athlete
Each season our student-athletes impress not only in competition, but in the classroom. Our programs regularly rank among the best in the state in terms of GPA, propelling us to strong standings in the WIAA Scholastic Cup, which combines success in State competition with scholastic achievement and sportsmanship.
Congratulations to our varsity student-athletes who turned in the following team GPAs during their season:
- Girls Track & Field: 3.91*
- Girls Tennis: 3.87
- Boys & Girls Crew: 3.84
- Softball: 3.82
- Girls Lacrosse: 3.79
- Boys Tennis: 3.78
- Baseball: 3.71
- Boys Soccer: 3.68
- Boys Lacrosse: 3.65
*WIAA Academic State Champs
thank you!
Thank you again for your continued support throughout this season. If you see an error or misspelling that needs to be corrected, please let me know. Roll Prep! -Sam Reed
Credits:
Written and designed by Sam Reed.