FRIDAY HARBOR HIGH SCHOOL

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Friday Harbor three-peats at Orca Bowl

updated 2/13/2006 - posted 2/12/2006
Friday Harbor High School won its third consecutive Washington State Ocean Sciences Bowl -- a.k.a. the Orca Bowl -- Saturday, Feb. 11, 2006. A second Friday Harbor team placed fifth in the regional competition.

Members of the winning team -- senior Sarah Anderson, senior Andrew Dunn, junior Katie Schmidt, junior Steffan Iverson and sophomore Theo Pratt -- won 11 of 12 matches at the regional competition at the University of Washington and advance to the national Ocean Sciences Bowl in Monterey, Califorinia in April.

Friday Harbor's other team -- senior Lillan Roquet, senior Anna McLaskey, senior Felipe Lopez, junior Jenny Guard and junior Alia Knight -- finished third in its bracket, barely missing the cut for the finals.

"I'm really proud of both teams," said Marc Vermeire, the Friday Harbor High school teacher who coaches the teams with his wife Deb. "Everybody did a great job."

"It was really sweet," said Anderson, who competed on last year's team. "We had a more well-rounded team this year. There was a lot of input from everyone."

"It was great fun and very unexpected win," Dunn said. "I had much lower expectations walking into it."

"I felt like I was on an adrenaline drip bag all day," Iverson said.

"It was an incredible experience," said Theo Pratt, the team's alternate. "I'm looking forward to competing next year."

Team One beat Ocean Research College Academy -- a.ka. ORCA, an Everett high school specializing in marine sciences -- in three of four matches.

Friday Harbor's second team entered the Orca Bowl without any competition experience but won five of seven matches. "They were kind of a JV team," Vermeire said. "To win third in their bracket and to win fifth total, is awesome."

"We exceeded all expectations beyond our wildest dreams," McLaskey said.

"We had a blast," Roquet said.

The teams might put on a exhibition, possibly as a fund-raiser.

"I'm issuing a challenge," Roquet told the winning squad. "My team will be ready."

Charlie Vermeire, Deb and Marc's 15-month-old son, was promoted from mascot to "roadie." He performed as well as the high schoolers, taking care of the team's good-luck charm -- Capt. Coco the Monkey.

A talisman accompanied each of Friday Harbor's teams to the national competition. Elliot Thomsen brought a baseball on the first nationals trip to Charlston, South Carolina. The team signed the "JuJu Ball" and tossed it into the Atlantic Ocean.

The team found their second charm during a trip to Bermuda, a prize for finishing second in the nation. They plucked a barnacle-encrusted golf ball while SCUBA diving.

After placing 12th in 2005, the team chucked the golf ball into the Gulf of Mexico. They bought Capt. Coco at Sharkheads in Biloxi, Miss., which was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina.

Coco will be joining the rest of the souvenirs from Sharkheads in the sea. "No matter how we do, Capt. CoCo ain't coming back," Vermeire said.