Thumbs up to the repeat state champion tennis player from Kentwood High School, the champion long-jumper from Kentlake High and the near-champion baseball team from Kentlake.

For Max Manthou, the singles crown he won last weekend in the state high school tennis tournament is old hat. He retained the title he first won in 2007 as a freshman.

“My first one is the coolest because I was coming in as a freshman,” Manthou told the Reporter after his latest accomplishment, and added, “I don’t want to say this one isn’t as special.”

Indeed, to be the best at anything is special. And that describes Manthou. Keep an eye on him. Chances are good that he isn’t finished racking up big victories.

Also last weekend, Zach Smith of Kentlake won the boys’ long jump in the state class 4A track and field meet. His winning effort of 23 feet 3 inches capped a remarkable personal comeback from a fractured back two years ago that temporarily kept him on the sidelines.

“I wouldn’t have been as good of an athlete without getting hurt,” he said in the moments following his victory. “I had to work hard to get back. I’m lucky to be jumping, really.”

Kentlake’s baseball squad almost reeled in the school’s first team state championship. The Falcons, playing at Safeco Field on the biggest stage in Washington high school baseball, fell to Snohomish 10-1 in the class 4A title game. The margin of defeat doesn’t diminish the club’s already-storied season.

Similarly, other local prep athletes who competed in the state tourneys this spring but fell short of the ultimate goal can take great pride in the hard work and success they pulled from within.

Editor Pat Jenkins