Male Athlete Of The Year / Garrett Pagon, Monroe High School -- Pagon, Three-Sport Star At Monroe, Skips To A Positively Higher Level

Monroe basketball coach Dave Brekke wishes nothing but the best for senior Garrett Pagon.

Brekke has coached Pagon the past four seasons, the first on the freshman team, the last three on the Bearcat varsity.

Pagon was a three-year varsity starter, earning all-Western AA Conference honors the past two seasons.

Still, Brekke wonders what Pagon could do if he wasn't playing a year ahead of schedule.

Pagon, after all, skipped the second grade. Technically, he should be in the class of 1995, instead of getting ready for the June 10 commencement ceremonies.

"The only thing else, the only thing, I could ask from Garrett is that he not graduate early," Brekke said. "He's graduating at 17, but he could've given me one more year."

Pagon, who excelled in athletics and academics, is The Seattle Times' North End male athlete of the year.

Pagon earned 11 letters at Monroe, four each in soccer and tennis and three in basketball.

Think about that for a second. Pagon lettered in soccer and tennis as a freshman, even though he should've been in the eighth grade.

That's not much of a shock, since the 6-foot-3 Pagon has always performed at a higher level.

He has a 3.96 grade-point average. His only B came in sophomore geometry, which Pagon took as an eighth grader.

Pagon will attend Stanford and study electrical engineering on an ROTC scholarship. His parents, Gary and Bonnie, both are Stanford grads. They're also his biggest fans.

Brekke and Monroe soccer coach Bill Davidson say Pagon's relentless work ethic pushed him to all-league status. Pagon developed that attribute through backyard battles with older sister Blye, an all-WesCo player at Monroe who will play for Santa Clara next season.

"That comes from competition in our family," said Pagon, who turned 17 in February. "I'm a year younger than Blye, so when we played against each other, physically she was more mature than I was. That made me work that much harder, and it carried over."

Pagon is the school's all-time leading scorer, and he led the Bearcats to their first state tournament appearance in 41 years.

Pagon, though, refuses to take credit for Monroe's success.

"Really, everything that's happened to me is the byproduct of our team," he said. "Guys like (Colin) Resch and (Greg) Ortman and (Ryan) Gilmore, all their skills contributed to our team, which helped make me a better player."

Pagon led the Bearcats in scoring (21 points per game), rebounding (9.4) and steals (3.6) and was second in assists (2.5). But Pagon's strong point, according to Brekke, was defense, where desire is the difference between a good and great defender.

"We could put him on anybody, and he'd rag them to death but he wouldn't foul out," Brekke said. "It doesn't matter where they went, because they knew he was there."

Pagon plans to walk-on for the Stanford basketball team. Whatever the result, Pagon looks at it as a bonus part of his college education.

"I'll go out there and do my best with the aspiration of making the team. Really, it's a no-lose situation for me," he said. "If I do make it, it'll be one of the best experiences I've had. If I don't make it, that'll leave me more time to do the other things I want to experience in college."

Pagon's stellar GPA is not inflated by courses such as Basket Weaving 101, Advanced Lunch and Beginning Basketball Theory. His current class load consists of physics, advanced biology, economics, contemporary social issues, government and advanced placement Western literature.

Pagon absorbs information by reading books, newspapers and magazines. The Pagon family does not watch television, which may explain, in part, why the children excel in school.

For all of his success in sports and academics, Pagon is refreshingly humble. When talking about their achievements, how many star athletes blush like Pagon does?

"Because of his humility, the kids naturally gravitated toward him," Davidson said. "He never gave the impression of being the superstar; he was just one of the guys and he always had positive words of encouragement to his teammates. I never heard him put anyone down."

Pagon will make one more speech full of positive encouragement since he's one of the student speakers at Monroe's graduation. Then it's off to Nantucket, Mass., where he'll work at his uncle's seafood restaurant for the summer.

Pagon competed at state in three sports and earned straight A's in the classroom this year. A fitting end to a brilliant high-school career.

"We'll never see another one like Garrett at Monroe High School," Athletic Director Dennis Coates said. "Sure, we might see a better athlete. But we won't see a better kid than Garrett."

------------------------------------------------------. Garrett Pagon / bio.

High school: Monroe.

Sports: Basketball, soccer, tennis.

Year: Senior.

Height/weight: 6-3, 190

Honors/highlights: Two-time all-WesCo in basketball and soccer. Led WesCo in scoring as senior in basketball (21 ppg) and soccer (21 goals, a school record). Also WesCo's leading scorer in soccer as junior. Holds seven school records in basketball, and led Bercats to first state tournament berth in 41 years. Monroe career scoring leader in basketball (995 points). Soccer team advanced to quarterfinals of state playoffs this season, and 14-2-2 record was best in school history. Qualified for Class AA state tennis in doubles as a senior. Had 3.96 GPA (only B was in sophomore geometry, which he took as an eighth grader) and scored 1,350 on SAT. Earned 11 varsity letters.

Hobbies: Biking, hiking, enjoying outdoors, reading (James Clavell is one of Pagon's favorite authors).

Personal: Dad, Garrett (Gary) Sr., works in real estate; mom Bonnie is professor of pediatrics at the University of Washington; older sister Blye is freshman at Santa Clara; younger sister Alyssa is freshman at Monroe; younger brother Alex is in fifth grade.

College: Stanford.

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BEST ATHLETES IN THE AREA.

At the end of each school year, The Seattle Times selects female and male athletes of the year in each circulation area. Today, the male athletes of the year:

City - Michael Johnson, Cleveland, junior; football, basketball, baseball.

Eastside - Tony Carr, Inglemoor, senior; football, wrestling, track and field.

South - Bryan LaBelle, Kentwood, senior; football, wrestling, track and field.

North - Garrett Pagon, Monroe, senior; basketball, soccer, tennis.