The 2023-24 season was a monumental year for Seward High School athletics. Out of the nine sports, eight made it to state, and of those eight, five won championship titles.
Girl’s cross-country running kicked it all off by taking the Division II championship as a team. This occurred only a week after a regional victory at home. Senior Hailey Ingalls placed third overall, only falling short of two Sitka runners. Out of the top thirteen placers, six were Seahawks: (in addition to Ingalls), Selah Brueckner – sixth, Juniper Ingalls – eighth, Katie Van Buskirk – tenth, Maddie Haas – twelfth, and Indigo Leslie – thirteenth.
Later that same day, at Colony High School’s Pride Field, the Seahawk football team took the inaugural Denali Conference Championship, the state tournament for nine-man football. A nine-man championship had never been sanctioned by ASAA before, and the Seahawks kicked it off by going undefeated across seven games against Ben Eielson, Valdez, and Nikiski, the latter of which met Seward in the finals. Nonetheless, the Bulldogs were unable to score once in the final game, despite getting within one yard of the end zone.
One month later, in Juneau, Seward swimmers Bengimin and Nickolas Ambrosiani placed first in the 50 yard freestyle, and second in the 100 freestyle and 100 backstroke, respectively. Additionally, Ben finished 5th in the 100 butterfly, and the relay team, composed of the two Ambrosianis, as well as Oliver Trobaugh and Iver Gates, placed 4th in the 200 freestyle, and 5th in the 200 medley. Overall, the team was 6th out of 20.
SHS wrestling dominated their state championship, not only winning the team DII State Title over Haines, but also sending all eight of their qualifying wrestlers to either the finals or third place match. John Van Buskirk placed 4th; Emery Kirchner, Alejandro Sanchez, and Anthony Smith all placed 3rd; Aidan Schilling placed 2nd; and Hunter Forshee-Kurtz, Tommy Jarnig, and Ridge Conant all took the top step of the podium.
The previous sports all won at state, but many who did not offered good performance. Cross-country skiers Katie Van Buskirk and Indigo Leslie finished 6th and 10th in skate and 10th and 13th in classic, respectively. Basketball played at the state tournament for the first time since 2011, and placed 6th. Cheerleading won the region tournament and finished fourth at the DII state championship, and also won the academic award. Finally, track and field has not yet had their state championship, but the outlook is good for many athletes on the team, such as shot putter John Van Buskirk or triple jumper Robin Cronin.
