CCS hall honors track, cross country, soccer stars

Soccer and cross country/track will share the dais when Community Colleges of Spokane conducts a fall induction ceremony into its Athletic Hall of Fame at noon on Saturday, Nov. 18, in the SUB on the Spokane Falls campus at Fort Wright.

A dozen individuals – 11 athletes and one coach – and five teams will be enshrined.

Individuals

Larry Beatty (coach, cross country/track & field, 1996-2011): Beatty won 35 NWAACC team titles and was named conference coach of the year 29 times before retiring in 2011. He continues as a tenured physical education and health instructor at SCC.

John Gould (men’s soccer, 1986-88): Gould was an NWAACC All-Star in both 1986 and 1987. After leaving CCS, he became a two-time All-American at Whitworth and has coached locally at the high school level.

Zane Higgins (men’s soccer, 1988-90) : Higgins was an NWAACC all-star and two-time team MVP who went on to receive All-America honors at Whitworth in 1991.

Doug Birdtail (football, men’s soccer, 1990 & 1995): The Ferris graduate was on the last football team at SFCC in 1989 and the first NWAACC championship soccer team in 1990.

Chad Brown (men’s soccer, 1996-97): The Central Valley graduate helped first Bellevue and then CCS win NWAACC championships and earn all-league honors at both schools. He played for the Spokane Shadow, for whom he later coached, and also played professionally for the Seattle Sounders (1999-2005).

James Berry (cross country/track, 1997-99): Helped lead CCS to consecutive NWAACC cross country team titles in 1997 and ’98, placing third and second individually his freshmen and sophomore years, respectively, earning All-America honors both years.

Christina (Werther) Nelson (cross country/track, 1996-98): A walk-on two years after being recruited by CCS, she had fourth- and second-place finishes to lead the Sasquatch to NWAACC cross country titles in ’96 and ’97 and won conference 800m and 1,500m track championships in 1998.

Angie Simmers (cross country/track, 1997-99): The East Valley graduate was a member of two NWAACC championship cross country and track teams with third- and second-place finishes in the former and top-five finishes in the 5,000 and 10,000 both years in the latter.

Devin (Huck) Town (cross country/track, 1997-99): A four-time scholar athlete at Chelan, she placed fifth on two NWAACC cross country championship teams, helping the ’97 team to a perfect 15-point score. On the track, she was the 5,000m champion in 1998 and helped CCS to two championships and was a JC/CC All-American.

Colleen (Huck) Miller (cross country/track, 1997-99). Also a four-time scholar athlete at Chelan, she placed fourth on the CCS championship cross country team that scored a perfect 15 points, then won the ’98 individual championship to lead another NWAACC title team. In track, she had two second-place finishes in the 5,000m and a second and sixth in the 3,000m.

Jenni Saling (cross country/track, 1998-2000): The Central Valley grad led CCS to two NWAACC cross country championships with a third-place finish in 1998 and the individual championship in ’99. On the track in 1999, she won both the NWAACC 800m and 1,500m titles.

Ashley (Hadway) Kapus (cross country/track 2002-04): The Northwest Christian graduate placed eighth and second in the ’02 and ’03 NWAACC cross country meets, respectively. On the track, she won both the NWAACC 1,500m and 5,000m races in 2004 after placing second in the 10,000m.

Teams

Men’s soccer, 1996-97: CCS Hall of Fame coach Cor van der Meer produced a second championship with a 17-3-1 conference season.

Men’s cross country, 1997-98: Coach Larry Beatty’s Sasquatch produced a second NWAACC title in a row in his second season and earned him a second straight coach of the year honor.

Men’s cross country, 1998-99: Scott Limbach was individual champion, winning by 45 seconds, to lead a 1-2-3 Sasquatch finish in winning a third straight team title.

Women’s cross country, 1997-98: Erika Colin led a sweep of the top five spots as the Sasquatch scored 15 points for an NWAACC record low score and 55-point victory, putting all seven runners in the top 10.

Women’s cross country, 1998-99: Colleen Huck was the individual champion as the Sasquatch scored 18 points in a 54-point victory.