The buzz as we head into 2009 is that the past 12 months have represented one of the best years in sports memory.We had a record-setting Olympics, a dramatic Super Bowl upset, Tiger Woods winning the US Open essentially on one leg ?Locally, we were equally enriched. From the highest levels of the world right down to the most local of levels, we had champions and we had drama.We also had serious issues to deal with that went deeper than what appeared on the scoreboard, too.It’s tough to pick the highlight of highlights. There were so many. But if there is, or was, one, it was the sight of Marblehead native Shalane Flanagan as it dawned on her that she’d captured the bronze medal in the 10-meter race in Beijing. Flanagan, who breezed through the Olympic qualifier by setting a U.S. record for the event, had been sick going into the race, and figured just finishing might be an accomplishment. But she kept pace with the leaders, overtook a few runners at the end, and crossed the finish line in third place.At first, she didn’t realize she’d won. She could be seen on the TV broadcast asking someone where she finished. When she realized she’d medaled, the emotion that followed, along with that of her mother, Cheryl Treworgy (who was in attendance) was, as the commercial says, priceless.Next up was the saga of former Lynn Tech star Antonio Anderson as he, and the University of Memphis, marched to the finals of the NCAA Division 1 men’s basketball championship.Anderson was, according to coach John Calipari, the glue man on the team – the guy who filled in the missing blanks on a roster comprised of No. 2 draft pick Derek Rose, among others.Memphis was the No. 1 ranked team most of the season, losing only one game. The Tigers kept up the pace, making the Final Four and beating UCLA to make the national final against Kansas.Memphis looked good in that game, building a nine-point lead with just over two minutes left. But the Jayhawks fouled, and the Tigers couldn’t hit their free throws. With 2.1 seconds left, Mario Chalmers hit an improbable three-pointer to tie the game, and Kansas went on to win it in overtime.Briefly, after the tournament, Anderson considered entering his name into the NBA draft. But just as quickly, he withdrew it and is back with Memphis for his final season.We did have national champions in our midst, however. Saugus’ Kyle Kucharski was a member of the Boston College national championship hockey team. And both Eric McGrath of Lynn and Swampscott’s Tim Kiely were on the Division 3 national champion Trinity College baseball team. Kiely was later drafted by the Los Angeles Angels baseball organization. Another Swampscott native, Chris Dwyer, was taken in the draft by the New York Yankees, but opted to go to Clemson instead.In addition, McGrath, a former Lynn Classical star, was the winner of the New England Football Writers’ Division 2 and 3 Player of the Year award this fall in football, as he set numerous school records as a quarterback.Coming down to the local level, the story of the year was the St. Mary’s girls hockey team, which completed a perfect 25-0 season and won the Division 1 state championship.The Spartans were everybody’s favorite coming into the season, and certainly drew everyone’s A-game throughout. But the highly-talented squad, led by Abby Gauthier (who finished her high school career as the state’s all-time leading scorer, boys and girls), was equal to the challenge.There was quality leadership at every turn for the Spartans, with the bulk of it coming from seniors Gauthier, Christen Hart, Bridget Mini, Susan Hennessey, Katelyn Gottwald and Kayla Shinnick.Gauthier received a full scholarship to Providence College. The Spartans are still on everyone’s radar this year, with a new cast of leaders, including Erin McAndrews, Courtney White, Courtney Winters and goalie Kelsey Magrane.The final major story of the season involved East Lynn Pop Warner, which became the first team from the North Shore to com