MORGAN HILL — Senior year was a culmination for Lance Wolfsmith and Steven Rick.
Wolfsmith, Sobrato’s distance phenom, put the finishes touches on a stellar career by winning all but three races during track and field season. The Air Force Academy-bound two-miler captured a CIF-Central Coast Section championship in the 3,200 meters on top of sweeping the mile and two-mile at Blossom Valley Athletic League and Santa Teresa Division Finals. He clocked the nation’s fastest prep time in the 3,000 and made his second straight trip to the CIF State Championships. He also qualified for state in cross country during an injury-plagued fall.
“He couldn’t have asked for a better senior year,” Wolfsmith’s father and coach, Dave Wolfsmith, said. “His hard work and determination paid off this year. He got hurt in cross country season, but he never lost focus.”
As the face of Live Oak water polo and swimming, Rick never took his talent for granted. He put extra time in the weight room and pool this offseason, prepping for a coup de grace. Rick was named division Senior of the Year in water polo, defended his league title in the 200-yard individual medley and qualified for CCS Finals in the 200 IM and 100-yard breaststroke. Live Oak’s Scholar Athlete of the Year also reached the section preliminaries in the 200-yard freestyle relay.
Rick will attend UC-San Diego in fall and plans to major in pre-med bio engineering.
“I think Steven’s whole high school career was everything he hoped for,” Live Oak water polo coach Mack Haines said. “He’s someone who led by example. He worked hard for everything he accomplished.”
