FOOTBALL
1982 Season
As a freshman, the Nooksack Valley football team was pretty excited to bring the talents of Hanson into the fold quickly.
The Pioneers opened up their season on the road at Lynden, and came away with a 19-13 victory over the Lions. Hanson was inserted into the contest after an injury, and remained a starter at free safety for the remainder of the season.
Lynden turned it around after that game, and won the rest of their Whatcom County League games that season, and finished in 5th place at the state tournament. It went the opposite way with Nooksack Valley.
The Pioneers lost at home to Meridian, and on the road at Blaine, but was able to squeak out a 13-12 win against Lynden Christian at home.
Although they were 2-2 on the season, the rest of the season didn’t go well as Nooksack Valley lost the final five games to finish at 2-7.
The closest of the final five contests was a narrow 20-18 loss at home against Blaine, in which Hanson caught a pass for 41 yards.
1983 Season
Much was expected out of Hanson in his sophomore season, but a stress fracture in his lower left leg limited his abilities, and caused him to miss most of the season.
He did get eight carries later in the season, but the Pioneers suffered through one of the toughest seasons in school history as they went winless and managed to score just two touchdowns in the entire season.
1984 Season
Now at full strength, it was time for Hanson to show what he was made of, and Nooksack Valley was ready to feature the hulking 6-foot-3 running back as much as possible.
He ripped off a season-high 98 yards on 22 carries in week one at Civic Stadium against Blaine, but the Borderites came out on top, 23-0.
That would seem to be the trend as the season went on as in week two, on the road at Lynden Christian, he carried the ball 14 times for 55 yards, and caught a 16-yard pass, but the Lyncs won 20-7.
The Pioneers were then shut out by Mount Baker, Lynden and Meridian, despite Hanson totaling nearly 200 yards from scrimmage in those games.
In week five, needing a win desperately, Nooksack Valley was knotted up in a scoreless tie near the end of the third quarter against Blaine. The Borderites had the ball at the Pioneer 3-yard line, and it was fourth and goal. Blaine tried to pound it in, but the running back took a big hit, fumbled the ball, and Hanson scooped it up and sprinted 97 yards down the near sideline for a touchdown.
The Pioneers won the game 6-0, while Hanson also carried the ball 23 times for 92 yards in the game. It would be the only win that Nooksack Valley would celebrate that season.
He had another big game the following week against Lynden Christian with 107 yards from scrimmage, but the Lyncs won 7-6.
The season ended with shutout losses against Mount Baker and Lynden, despite Hanson totaling 146 yards on the ground in the two games.
At season’s end, Hanson had 716 yards from scrimmage, and the rest of his teammates combined for 486 yards. He averaged 4.2 yards per carry, and when a different Pioneer ran the ball the average yards per carry was 1.9.
His efforts did not go unnoticed, as Hanson was named All-WCL Team at running back, and in all my research, I believe it’s the only time a running back has been an All-League 1st Team selection without scoring on offensive touchdown the entire season. It’s needless to say that he had the respect of all the local coaches.
1984 OFFENSIVE STATISTICS
1985 Season
As a senior, it was more of the same. He possessed great size and speed, but victories were hard to come by.
The Pioneers were held scoreless in the first two games of the season against Meridian and Blaine, but in week three they rode Hanson to victory behind his 132 yards rushing and one touchdown on 29 carries. He also caught two passes for 29 yards, and also had a 70-yard touchdown reception called back due to a penalty.
Nooksack Valley again suffered two more shut out losses, this time against Mount Baker and Lynden before starting the second half of the season.
In the final four games, Hanson would average 24 carries, 101 yards and a touchdown. It also included a 22-13 win over Blaine, as well as a career-high 151 yards rushing at Lynden Christian.
He WAS the offense in 1985, as he accounted for over 75% of his team’s rushing yards. He also was second on the team in receptions with six, and he even completed four passes for 97 yards and a touchdown. He was again named All-WCL 1st Team at running back for the second consecutive season. The Pioneers finished 2-7.
1985 OFFENSIVE STATISTICS
Football Career
He caught passes, he punted, he played defense, he threw passes and ran the heck out of the ball. It’s hard to compare him to contemporaries, because of the lack of team success. He graduated as the third leading rusher in school history, behind Bill Van Diest and Billy Handy. He went on to star at running back for Western Washington University after a successful college basketball career at Everett Community College.
CAREER OFFENSIVE STATISTICS
BASKETBALL
1983-84 Season
It was a rough season for the Pioneers who were only able to enjoy one win on the year.
In the final year of basketball coaching for Kay LeMaster, Hanson, a 6-foot-2 sophomore forward, was one of the true bright spots for the Nooksack Valley team.
He scored 11 points in the opener, and also poured in 13 points and eight rebounds at the end of December against South Whidbey.
He scored a season-high 17 points against Lynden Christian, and followed that up by leading a comeback against Lynden that fell 10 points short. Against the Lions he scored nine points and pulled down seven boards in the fourth quarter alone. He finished with 12 points and 13 rebounds.
A tenacious rebounder, Hanson finished eighth in the WCL per game. He also finished the season averaging 7.7 points per game.
1983-84 SEASON STATISTICS
1984-85 Season
It was a much improved season for the Pioneers in Hanson’s junior season.
Nooksack Valley opened up with a win over Lynden Christian, and topped Mount Baker 52-46 behind Hanson’s 12 points in late December to pick up its second win of the season.
Hanson battled injuries during most of January, and into February, but he picked up the pace late in the season and scored 11 points against the Mountaineers and a season-high 13 points against Meridian to close out league play.
The Pioneers were back in the district playoffs, and did get a convincing win over Sultan, 73-54, before being eliminated by Lynden 68-45.
Hanson finished the season averaging 4.6 points, and nearly seven rebounds a game for the 8-15 Pioneers who finished 4th in the WCL.
1984-85 SEASON STATISTICS
1985-86 Season
It was a dominant season for Hanson, and although undersized in the post at 6-foot-3, his overall athletic ability and toughness made up for it.
It was apparent right off the bat in the opener as the Pioneers dropped a close one to Lakewood, 54-53. Hanson led his team with 21 points and 18 rebounds.
A 62-53 win over South Whidbey followed, as Nooksack Valley was again led by Hanson who had 19 points and 16 rebounds.
After a pair of losses, the Pioneers won back-to-back games against Lynden Christian and Port Townsend, in which Hanson totaled 39 points and 31 rebounds.
Nooksack Valley then went on to lose the last 14 games of the season, with some of them being extremely close.
Hanson led his team in scoring in every single game during the year, except for two of them.
In a 68-52 loss against Mount Baker he had an amazing game with 20 points and 24 rebounds.
He finished the year averaging a double-double with 15.5 points per game, and 12 rebounds per game, and he was named All-WCL 1st Team.
1985-86 SEASON STATISTICS
Basketball Career
All effort, all of the time. Tough inside, great touch at the foul line, and one of the best rebounders in school history. He’s one of the few players for the Pioneers to score over 500 points in the decade of the 80’s. His talents landed him at the next level, playing basketball at Everett Community College.
CAREER STATISTICS
TRACK AND FIELD
1983 Season
As a freshman, his initial first-place finish came in late March in a meet against Lynden, in which the Pioneers won 80-64. Hanson took first in the 400 meters with a time of 54.9, and he was also a part of the 4×400 relay team that won with a time of 3:56.7.
In the same meet, he also got second place in the 100-meter dash and the 200-meter dash.
A week later against Mount Baker he finished second in the 400-meter dash, and third in the 200-meter dash.
The following meet was against Lynden Christian, in which the Lyncs just nipped the Pioneers 75-69. He finished first in the 200 (24.6), the 400 (55.3) and as a part of the 4×400 relay team (3:47.6). He also finished second in the 100.
Nooksack Valley then came up short against Meridian in a home meet. Hanson took first place in the 200 (24.4) and took second place in the 400.
At the end of April the Pioneers defeated Blaine 81-62, behind Hanson’s first place finishes in the 200, the 400 and the 4×400 relay.
At the Whatcom County League meet, Hanson finished in 4th place in the 400, and followed that up by finishing in 4th place again a week later at the Class A-B Sub-District meet.
1984 Season
During his sophomore year, he picked up first place finishes in every league meet as a part of the 4×100 relay team, including a first place finish in the WCL Championships.
The best time his relay team gathered was 45.7 seconds, with was good enough for fifth place at the district meet.
He also placed second in the 100 meter dash against Lynden Christian, Lynden and Meridian.
He also received second place in the 200 against, and third place in the 400 against Meridian. Both the Pioneers and the Trojans tied with 110 points at the Whatcom County League Championship meet.
Track and Field Career
After only competing in the track as a freshman and sophomore, Hanson took a year off as a junior before playing baseball as a senior. A broken hand early in the season derailed his senior year on the diamond, but as a track athlete, he was part of some very dominant Pioneer teams that fared well around the county.
