2006 should bring more victories for Ballard High School sports. Here's a forecast for some of the winter and spring Beaver teams.

Former Beavers brings new energy and intensity

Winning has been in short supply for the Ballard Beavers girls and boys basketball programs in recent years. That's going to change with new head coach Billy Rodgers.

The former Beaver has returned to his old school to revive the boys program. Billy Rodgers has brought a new sense of urgency to the team and in his debut as coach on December 16, Ballard defeated Roosevelt 51-45 in front of a home crowd. It was a promising start and a sign of good things to come.

After years without a presence in the post, the Beavers have found a player who can rise above the competition in senior Cody Gregerson. The six-foot-seven-inch center scored 18 points to lead Ballard to the win over the Roughriders. Colin Belcher had 12 and Cameron Wells scored ten points. With three players scoring in double figures, Ballard will be harder to defend if the trend continues.

In the Bellevue Community College Holiday Tournament last week, Ballard dropped a game to Issaquah 62-42. Ballard was not affected by the loss and rebounded to trounce Liberty 42-20.

This season looks like a breakout out year for Gregerson. Last year he showed potential in the Holiday High School Tournament at Bellevue Community College when he held his own against White River's 7'2" Will Foster, who will play for Gonzaga University.

The new Beaver coaching staff is giving Gregerson plenty of opportunities to use his size in the middle and will give him the ball to provide Ballard with an inside game.

Colin Belcher, Nigel-Peter-Denman and Cameron Wells are all averaging 7 points a game to lead a balanced attack.

Rodgers has brought an exciting brand of basketball to his alma mater and this should ensure more victories and maybe a trip to the post season, which is long overdue.

Blair brings attitude of success to the lady Beavers

New girls Head Coach Karen Blair's winning ways have started the transformation of the Ballard girls basketball team from a loser, into a team that can beat any opponent on any given night.

The team started off with exhibition victories over Sammamish, Ingraham and Eastside Catholic to open the year. They followed that up with an inspired and confidence boosting loss to Roosevelt, one of KingCo's top basketball powers.

Blair earned 255 wins while coaching at Meadowdale and the early indications are that she has turned the Beaver program around.

Senior center Gillian Huggins played the game of her career against Roosevelt's McKenzie Argens on Dec. 16. Argens is a KingCo star who will play for the University of Washington next year.

Huggins outscored Argen 17 to 15. She scored 14 of those points in the fourth period. It was not enough to put away the Roughriders, but the effort showed immense promise.

Tracksters take aim at state again

The bad news is that Ballard runner Zack Gussin will graduate in June. The good news is that Ballard fans can still watch him race during the track and field season in the spring.

Gussin won the KingCo championship this fall and has dominated league opponents all four seasons in cross country and track and field.

Ballard finished in second place at the state 4A meet in 2005 and were within four points of beating Gig Harbor for the state title.

Despite losing some key seniors to graduation, the Beavers will be back for another run in 2006.

The team has been a strong performer under the leadership of Head Coach Bruce Draeger and Distance Coach Bob Mirenzi.

Draeger said last year's team was his best in 11 seasons at Ballard. He was named the Coach of the Year by the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

Girls softball program builds winning program

Fast-pitch softball is one of Ballard High's strongest athletic programs and much of the credit goes to Head Coach Al Lowe. In Ballard's last three seasons in Metro, the Beavers dominated other teams to win three consecutive league titles.

Since moving to KingCo, the Beavers have made the playoffs two out of three years and continue to build the program to move up in the standings.

Lowe emphasizes the basics of pitching, hitting and defense. Leslie Ellingsen will be back for her junior year. At one point last season, Ellingsen was had a .451 batting average and is equally talented as a pitcher.

Also back is senior Emily Gussin who is strong on defense. She is joined by Hallie Hemingsen, Kelly Ohm, Nicole Murray, Tara French and Heather Casper.

Win or lose, you can always count on strong support during home games from a group of loyal fans and parents at Lower Woodland.

Wrestling, swimming and baseball

In wrestling, the Ballard Beavers are in their third year of building a program for success. The team has wrestlers competing well in each weight class, except for one, where they are not represented, in 103-pound category. Coach Glenn Bell is pleased with his current team and is looking to move up in the league standings. Team members Jeff Whitney, Robert Mercer, Levi Kane and Colin Dunphy should score a lot of points.

The boys swimming team is aiming for a top three finish in KingCo this winter. To reach that goal, the Beavers will use their depth to score more points in secondary and third positions in individual and relay races. Perry Sharify, Shane Levine and Gabe Pratt will lead a relatively young team. Diver Nick Tsaglakis has already earned a first place finish.

Ballard has a great baseball heritage and a strong feeder program in the Ballard Little League. The Beavers are benefiting from the leadership of Head Coach Kevin Miller.

Miller was an All-American at the University of Washington and brings great tradition as a former Ballard Beaver. A year ago, Ballard fought its way through a tough schedule and finished one spot out of the playoffs. The Beavers will make another strong push for respect in KingCo and should earn it on the field.

Winter sports schedules

Girls basketball: Jan. 6 at Garfield, Jan. 11 vs. Eastlake, Jan. 13 vs. Skyline, Jan. 18 vs. Bothell, Jan. 20 at Redmond, Jan. 25 at Lake Washington, Jan. 27 vs. Juanita, Feb. 1 at Inglemoor, Feb. 3 at Woodinville, Feb. 10 vs. Garfield, Feb. 15 at Roosevelt.

Boys basketball: Jan. 6 at Garfield, Jan. 10 vs. Eastlake, Jan. 13 at Skyline, Jan. 17 vs. Bothell, Jan. 20 at Redmond, Jan. 24 at Lake Washington, Jan. 27 vs. Juanita, Jan. 31 at Inglemoor, Feb. 3 at Woodinville, Feb. 7 vs. Franklin, Feb. 10 vs. Garfielld, Feb. 14 at Roosevelt.

Boys wrestling: Jan. 10 vs. Bothell, Jan. 12 at Skyline, Jan. 17 vs. Ballard, Jan. 19 vs. Roosevelt, Jan. 26 vs. Garfield. Meets are at 7:30 p.m.

Gymnastics: Jan. 12 vs. Skyline, Jan. 20 vs. Inglemoor, Redmond, Juanita, Jan. 26 vs. Eastlake, Roosevelt. All meets 7 p.m.

Boys swimming: Jan. 10 vs. Lake Washington, Jan. 13 vs. Garfield, Jan. 17 at Redmond, Jan. 20 at Roosevelt, Jan. 24 at Franklin, Jan. 26 vs. Juanita. Meet times are 3:30/7:30 night meets.

*Call the school at 252-1000 for times that are not listed and for any schedule changes.