PORT ANGELES — You could condense the seasons, but there was no way to limit Millie Long at the high school level in 2021. And there’s been little reason to suggest her Peninsula College opponents have any better idea on how to stop Long, the Peninsula Daily News’ Athlete of the Year for 2021.
With her senior year of sports sidelined for six months due to the pandemic, Long wasted no time in leading Port Angeles to the Olympic League’s North Division girls soccer title, two wins over Class 1A power Klahowya and an undefeated home record. She also improved her school record goal tally to 86 goals in her four seasons.
As sublime as she was on the soccer field, Long may have been even more impressive in pushing the pace for Port Angeles fearsome pressure defense on the basketball court.
Long raced to the Olympic League MVP award for the second straight season, posting team-leading scoring totals of 18 points, leading the team in steals and rebounding well on both sides of the floor.
She wrapped her career with 1,069 points. Long and the Riders went 15-0 in the shortened season, including a league title win over Sequim.
With COVID impacting rosters at the collegiate level, many of the scholarships typically available to an athlete of Long’s caliber were already pledged to existing players which narrowed some of the options for Class of 2021 graduates.
Making choices
Long made the best choice possible for herself and for sports fans on the North Olympic Peninsula, staying home to play for the powerhouse Pirate women’s soccer program and Peninsula’s women’s basketball team.
Pirates women’s basketball coach Alison Crumb whose Pirate Pals mentorship program worked with Long and other Port Angeles athletes since Long was in the fourth grade, was thrilled to land the biggest recruit in years.
“Obviously, she comes very decorated in all sports, but for her to stay home and have us be able to appreciate her athleticism, competitiveness and character for two more years is really exciting … Her motor is off the charts, her skill set is unmatched and her competitive drive is very unique,” Crumb said when Long signed her letter of intent.
“One of our biggest selling points to her was to create a legacy, and I think she can do that in this community that knows, respects and cares about her success,” Crumb said.
“The great thing about Millie though is that she doesn’t really even think of that; she just wants to play and compete.
“She actually doesn’t even want all the attention, but I think it is important that we recognize the type of player and person that she is, which is unique.”
Long for her part, was focused on being coachable, bringing a positive attitude and hanging championship banners as she joined the Pirates.
After one fall soccer season, Long came through in every regard.
She was second on the team in goals with seven as Peninsula utilized its talent and depth to secure its fifth ever NWAC championship in November.
Since joining the Pirates on the basketball court, Long leads Peninsula in scoring with 15.1 points on 50.5 percent shooting from the field and 84 percent from the free-throw line, is third in the conference in steals with 3.3 per game and also hauls in five rebounds a game.
Let’s see what Long and the Pirates can do in 2022.
