Flash Gordon

At will, he seems to kick his speed into overdrive, zooming right by people before they know he’s there.

When he needs to, he can enlist his superior jumping abilities to scale over or around any opponent in his way.

And while he can easily take control of a situation, he is equally skilled in creating opportunities for others to help out the common mission.

While these attributes may sound like those belonging to a super hero, these are the skills that Central Kitsap senior JR Gordon uses to outwit, outhustle and downright outplay his opponents.

But aside from his physical attributes, it’s Gordon’s persona that make him so valuable to the team, CK coach Tim Fryer said.

“JR’s a special kid,” Fryer said. “You’ll never meet a nicer kid.”

Gordon is one of six seniors on a CK team hoping to drive back to districts and ultimately, back to state. Gordon knows that it will take a total team effort to get there. But he also said that’s no problem.

“That’s exactly how practice is,” Gordon said of the team getting along. “It all starts at practice. It’s fantastic. It does help that we are all good friends. We’re just there for everybody. Our bonding this year is great. The chemistry is there.”

And Gordon is a big reason why.

Fryer said in addition to being voted the unanimous team captain, Gordon’s example is followed by his teammates.

“In practice, he responds to every question with a, ‘yes coach’ or a ‘no coach,’” Fryer said with a chuckle. “Now they’ve all started doing it. I had to say, ‘OK, that’s enough.’”

And while being looked upon highly by your peers can be a bit of pressure, Gordon said just like the ball, he knows the pressure of leading the team will fall on many shoulders. At the same time, he’s grateful he was chosen to lead the charge.

“It’s a big role, but that’s what I look forward to,” Gordon said. “I consider that pretty big. But being the guy to go to isn’t necessarily

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