Coach Mo Basketball

The 2003 season came to a successful and thrilling end at the state & regional championships as the Cougars put forth an outstanding effort. -The boys team placed second in the Metro Region Championships -Individual region champions included the boy's 4x100 meter relay of Kyle Gingg, Geoff Burns, Sam Ledford and Danny Lazerri, Nate Huss won the region title in the low hurdles, Sam Ledford in the triple jump and Eric Perez in the long jump. -Other state qualifiers included CY Speck, Tom Ness, Paul Bell, Megan VanHofwagen, the boy's 4x800 relay, the boys 4x400 relay, Mark Robinson, Jack Vermeer, Josh Schlueter, Micah Kuiper, Matt Kredit and Brant Frazee At the State championships, Danny Lazerri, Kyle Gingg, Sam Ledford, Geoff Burns and Sam Ledford combined for a 4x100 meter relay state championship. Nate Huss won medals in the high hurdles (2nd), 100 meters (3rd) and in the low hurdles (3rd). Geoff Burns was 4th in the 200 and Eric Perez 4th in the long jump. The boys 4x800 & 4x800 meter relays finished 5th & 6th. Sam Ledford & Matt Kredit were 5th & 7th in the triple jump. For the girls, Megan VanHofwagen was 3rd in the 400 and 6th at 200 meters.

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Results for 3A meets/Fountain Hills invite

Richard Obert The Arizona Republic Apr. 16, 2004 12:00 AM Nate Huss knows he is half Black and half White. He knows the hard-luck story of his birth mother. He knows he has a father out there somewhere. But right now, none of that matters. The Phoenix Christian High senior sprinter concerns himself with winning the race, helping his school and church, and being a leader among teammates. He was one of the lucky ones, brought into a home where parents didn't care about color and race, didn't care about blood and history. Nate is the youngest of eight children of varying nationalities adopted by Dave and Sylvia Huss, transplanted New Englanders who came to Phoenix 23 years ago. "When I first met Nate, it appeared to me that he was a spoiled, rich kid who had it all," Phoenix Christian track coach Mo Streety said. "He drove a nice car. He had his own cellphone. "But he wasn't anything like you'd perceive. He's one of the most unselfish kids I know." Unable to have their own children, Dave and Sylvia Huss opened their hearts and their home. "We wanted a family, and this is the way the Lord provided them for us," Sylvia said. "Each one was a blessing." They couldn't stop at one. "At first, I wanted five boys, all tall," Dave said. "I wanted to coach them in basketball." Dave said that when the couple began looking to adopt in the 1970s, few babies were available for adoption and the process had become more difficult in the United States. "So we adopted back from Korea," Dave said. "It became apparent to us in a short time that nationality didn't matter. We realized it was not a priority at all." Twin girls are from Guatemala, left homeless after their mother died during their births. Another of the children is from Haiti. Just when it seemed the Husses were content at seven children, the phone rang. It was the local adoption agency. "They said, 'We realize you have seven, but can we send another one in?' " Dave Huss said. "We prayed about it." Nate came into the Huss home the next day. "If you have seven, what's eight?" Dave said. "He fit right in. "He was the last of the Mohicans." Nate was only 21 days old. He knows some of his story. He was born at St. Joseph's Medical Center in Phoenix. His mother was single. "She found a relationship," Nate said. "She got pregnant with me. She didn't want me to be raised in the atmosphere she was in and gave me up." That's all he knows. He doesn't know her name. For now, Nate excels in sports, church and school. He taught himself guitar and leads worship during Bible studies. And his family couldn't be prouder. Seven of the eight children live close enough that they all get together on Sundays for dinner. "The fact that all of us being adopted, it's a different bond," said Dan, the oldest at 34, who lives in Scottsdale. "We often talk about where we come from, where our mothers come from. We all talk about, had we not been adopted, our situations would have been much worse. "I think our parents are incredible people who just love the Lord and give kids an opportunity and decided to help kids. They gave us an opportunity to achieve in life." The family members rarely miss Nate's track meets, just as they were there to see him kick in football and soccer. In the fall, Nate made 63 of 64 point-after tries and 9 of 11 field-goal attempts, including a 42-yarder in Phoenix Christian's Class 2A championship win over St. Johns. He also started at cornerback on defense. He made The Arizona Republic's 1A-3A first team in soccer after scoring 37 goals to lead the Cougars. His brother Gabe, 21, who got a soccer scholarship out of high school to Oregon State, is now at Yavapai College in Prescott. Now, Nate is into only his third season of competing in track and field, and he's among the state's best in the 100 meters (10.9 seconds), 300 low hurdles (40 seconds) and 400 meters (50 seconds). "He's very well-grounded," Streety said. "He's like a sponge. He enjoys teaching others. "He's a take-charge kind of guy. I train Aeneas Williams, and he's like a baby Aeneas Williams. If he saw someone slacking, he was all over you. He has high expectations of his teammates and higher expectations of himself." Dave and Sylvia made sure sports were a main outlet for their children. After Dan, there is Mike, 32, Becky, 30, twins Ruth and Rachel, 26, Joel, 24, Gabe, 21, and Nate, 18. The oldest child at adoption was 18 months, and that was only because it took that long with paperwork for the Haitian government to release Gabe to the Huss family. "Every child is unique, regardless, perhaps a little more when adopted," Dave said. "There is a different set of genes you bring into the home, a different set of givens in their bodies. But when you have your own kids, they can turn into trouble. You just trust the Lord to do the best." Dave, a former engineer for the United States Bureau of Reclamation, and his wife had a five-bedroom, three-bathroom home in north Phoenix. "We had it all filled up with bunk beds," said Dave, now a science teacher at Phoenix Christian and an elder at his church. The family recently sold the house and bought a smaller one in southwest Phoenix with just Nate left. Some of the children have found their natural parents - with blessings from Dave and Sylvia. It brings closure. Some day, Nate might want to find closure. Not now. He is just beginning to live. "We're a close family," Nate said. "It's been a great experience."