Episodes

Courtesy of Pete Toye – The indomitable spirit and toughness that defines the Nordic skier was once again on display this past weekend at the 2017 Valdez Invite. The horrific wind conditions of January 6 made that day’s relay race far too dangerous in every way imaginable and had to be cancelled to the great chagrin of all involved. Such is the unpredictable, and at times very threatening, world of Alaska outdoor winter sport. Negotiating the gamut of these weather realities on a daily basis is precisely what compels Nordic skiers to develop a level of mental and physical toughness that is unique to all other sports. It is important to remember that these young athletes race in material about as thick as nylon stockings and are not afforded the comfort, or safety, of the Iditarod style survival wear. The great winds finally subsided enough for Saturday’s main event classic races to commence despite some challenging wind chills and drifting on certain sections of the course. The threats of severe weather for this race made many coaches give their skiers the individual choice of racing or not. Fortunately, the threat of continued violent weather did not come to fruition and the race was on for nearly every skier.

The varsity girls 5.4K race ended with two Bucs in the top 20 in their final Valdez Invite. Senior Rylee Norris was the top finisher of all VHS skiers this day with a very impressive 7^th place finish in a field of some of the best high school skiers in Alaska. Top 10 finishes in these varsity events are special performances for Valdez skiers. Senior Taylor Huston had the best classic race of her three year career finishing a very respectable 18^th.  The varsity boys were led by Junior Ben Swanson who earned a hard fought 16^th place finish in the 8.4K event. Just like the varsity girls race, the competition level for the skiers was extremely high with only 50 seconds separating 16th from 10^th.  Following Swanson, three seniors gave their best efforts of the season to date: James Hancock (28^th), Chris Cummins (31^st), and Colton Prevost (32^nd).

The JV girls, under the tutelage of assistant coach Timi Miner, had quite a successful outing. Senior and 2^nd year skier Angie Alfaro led the way with an impressive 3^rd place finish followed by four first year skiers. Freshman Grace Keller impressed all with a 5^th place finish; sophomore Victoria Korenev skied hard to a 9^th place finish; sophomore Rowan Miller finished a respectable 14^th place. This team finished 2^nd among all JV girl teams. Senior Caitlin Connell was also having a great ski until she broke a binding and could not finish. Senior, and also first time skier, John Banner was the lone Buc JV boy and finished a respectable 20^th place in his first and only invite experience.

Teams joining Valdez in this year’s event were Palmer, Colony, Hutchinson, West Valley, Lathrop, and Wasilla. West Valley took home both 1^st place team trophies with Lathrop earning both 2^nd place awards. The Bucs now enter the heart of their competitive season and will next see action at Government Peak this weekend.

Click Here To View Message From VHS Ski Coach Pete Toye

This past weekend the VHS basketball teams played their first games at home against the Mt. Edgecumbe Braves. The boys varsity team had a strong victory Friday, winning 78-70. After a very closely contested first quarter, Valdez outscored Mt. Edgecumbe by 16 points which gave the Bucs a 57-36 at the half. In the second half the braves went on numerous runs, but Valdez kept composed and never gave up the lead and won 78-70. The Bucs were led by sophomore Bennett Hinkle who scored 21 points on an efficient 8-11 shooting.  The boys’ varsity team excited the hometown crowd with an 86-65 win over the Braves on Saturday. The boys started off hot scoring 25 points in the first quarter where the Bucs held onto the lead for the rest of the game. Bennett Hinkle once again led the Buccaneers in scoring with 22 points. In addition, sophomore Tyler Mann and senior Seth Auble also contributed, both scoring 17 points. The basketball teams will leave this Thursday for one game against Delta then leave to play Hutchison on Friday and Saturday. These will be the first conference games for Valdez.

The Lady Buccaneers played their first home game this past Thursday in a last minute endowment game against the Cordova Wolverines. Valdez consistently throughout the game stayed in control and won 46-35. (No Stats Available) The basketball team will leave for their first conference games this Thursday for one game against Delta then travel to play Hutchison on Friday and Saturday.

The VHS varsity basketball team travelled up to Anchorage this past weekend for the annual Lime Solar/Pepsi Invitational at ACS. The invite this year was held on December 29^th thru January 1^st  and ACS was host to seven teams from around the state of Alaska.  Valdez teams had strong performances over the weekend with this tournament being the first test for the teams.

The boys team played hard during the tournament, finishing in 4^th place with a record of 2-1. The boy’s first game was a close one, but due to poor free throw shooting the Bucs lost 46-43. In their next game the Bucs caught fire the whole game winning 78-46 against Point Hope. The boys were led by sophomore Bennett Hinkle who scored 30 points and grabbed 7 rebounds and 7 steals. Freshman Jalen Freeman also proved to be a huge asset scoring 20 points and shooting 50% from the three point line. On the final day, the Valdez Bucs had another dominant victory against Sitka winning 76-53. During the game, Seth Auble and Bennett Hinkle both scored 18 points to lead the team. Freshman Jalen Freeman also contributed scoring 16 points. Auble was selected to the boys All-Tournament team.

The girl’s team went 1-2 for the weekend which gave them a 7^th place finish. On the first day of competition the Lady Bucs had a hard fought game against Point Hope. During the game junior Bobbi Mott scored 35 points and shot 15-17 from the line. Unfortunately, due to multiple turnovers throughout the game the Lady Bucs lost 69-59 in overtime.  On the next day of competition Valdez faced off against the Kotzebue Huskies. This proved to be a tough matchup for Valdez as they lost another game 43-38. In the final game of the weekend, Valdez had a dominant win over Lumen Christi. Mott once again led the way scoring 24 points, tallied 6 steals, and 4 blocks. At the conclusion of the tournament Mackenzi Mott was selected as the girls tournament MVP.

KVAK Sports Shorts is brought to you by our local sponsors:

MVP Sponsors

Subway, Prospector, Napa, Harris Sand and Gravel, Valdez Native Tribe, and Foothills Dentistry

Other Sponsors

Crowley Petroleum, Safeway, Eagles Order 1971, Innovations Hair Design, Copper Valley Telecom, Sound Realty, Conoco Phillips, and Arts Design

The Valdez High School boys varsity basketball team has scheduled home games to play Mt. Edgecumbe this weekend in Valdez. The first game will be held in the VHS gym on Friday starting at 7pm. On Saturday the game will begin at 2pm.

KVAK Sports Shorts is brought to you by our local sponsors:

MVP Sponsors

Subway, Prospector, Napa, Harris Sand and Gravel, Valdez Native Tribe, and Foothills Dentistry

Other Sponsors

Crowley Petroleum, Safeway, Eagles Order 1971, Innovations Hair Design, Copper Valley Telecom, Sound Realty, Conoco Phillips, and Arts Design

Valdez High School in conjunction with the Parks and Recreation are pleased to announce the annual Valdez Invite Nordic Ski races this weekend. Two hundred student-athletes from teams throughout the state will join the Bucs for two days of competitive racing. Friday’s race will feature a freestyle relay beginning at 3:30 at USCG Housing. Saturday’s races will feature classic technique and will commence at 11:00 AM at the same location.

As always for safety and preparation realities, coach Pete Toye said he needs to close down the course to all foot, sledding, bicycle, and motorized usage from 6am Friday morning until Saturday at 5pm. Closure will include the East Dike, Mineral Creek Road, and the regular ski trails up in the canyon.

KVAK Sports Shorts is brought to you by our local sponsors:

MVP Sponsors

Subway, Prospector, Napa, Harris Sand and Gravel, Valdez Native Tribe, and Foothills Dentistry

Other Sponsors

Crowley Petroleum, Safeway, Eagles Order 1971, Innovations Hair Design, Copper Valley Telecom, Sound Realty, Conoco Phillips, and Arts Design