Community Sports
Sports Beat: Football playoff spot on the line for Peninsula
Both local football teams are in action tonight (Friday, Oct. 27). The Gig Harbor Tides (7-1, 6-0 South Sound Conference) travel to Yelm (8-0, 6-0) to take on the Tornados for a conference title, while the Peninsula Seahawks look to clinch third place in the conference and a Class 3A playoff spot against the Timberline Blazers at Roy Anderson Field at 7 p.m.
Peninsula (4-4, 4-2) is a game in front of the Blazers (4-4, 3-3) and could lock up the third and final playoff spot with a win. A loss would leave them tied with Timberline and probably Capital (4-4, 3-3). The Cougars play the winless River Ridge Hawks tonight.
If that scenario happened, a formula encompassing who beat who by how many points would decide the third-place spot. The Seahawks hope to make it simple for everyone by taking care of business at home and preparing for a playoff game the following week.
The Seahawks ran into a Tornado on Oct. 20, as their four-game winning streak ended with a 59-9 loss to Yelm.
The Seahawks’ game against Timberline could be a close one, judging by scoring differential versus common opponents. The Seahawks lost to Gig Harbor by one point, 21-20, while the Tides beat Timberline 17-14. The Tides scored on their final drive to win both games.
Playoff positioning at stake for volleyball teams
The Peninsula (10-4, 9-3) volleyball team split a pair of matches this week, losing in straight sets to Class 3A No. 1 North Thurston on Tuesday, Oct. 24, before sweeping a 2-14 River Ridge team on Thursday, Oct. 26.
The Seahawks face a middle-of-the-road Timberline Blazer (6-8, 6-6) team at 7:15 p.m. Monday, Oct. 30 at home. The Blazers knocked off Gig Harbor, 3-2, on Thursday, Oct. 26.
If the Seahawks can get by Timberline on Monday, it would set up a possible showdown for second place in the South Sound Conference against the Tides at 7:15 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 1, at Peninsula.
The Tides (10-5, 8-4) lost a 3-2 heartbreaker to the Seahawks on their home floor earlier this season and will be looking for some revenge on the Seahawks’ home court. After the Tides’ loss to the Blazers, they bounced back on Oct. 26 with a 3-1 victory over the Capital Cougars.
The second match of the season between the Tides and Seahawks promises some excellent volleyball and heart-stopping action if the match is anything like the first meeting between the two schools.
Tides tennis doubles team earns top seed at district tourney
The Gig Harbor tennis doubles team of Hugh Vicente and Rylan Coovert ran roughshod over the competition at the South Sound Conference tennis tournament at Central Kitsap on Oct. 21. The duo blasted every team they faced without dropping a set.
They beat a team from Central Kitsap with ease 6-2, 6-2, to win the SSC championship. Vicente and Coovert reeled off four straight victories during the three-day tournament and enjoyed a 48-7 combined game score during the four match sweep.
The pair is looking for a return trip to state in the spring but must get through a tough bi-district field of 16 teams at the Boeing Tennis Center in Kent on Oct. 27 and 28 to qualify. The team has earned the respect of the event organizers, who rewarded Vicente and Coovert with the district’s No. 1 seed.
Coovert is the taller of the two and uses a big serve to get opponents out of position. Vicente uses his quick hands and reactions at the net to hit volleys for winners. Coovert has a snappy inside-out forehand that is dependable while Vicente anticipates everything and is rarely out of position. They both combine strategic intelligence and are quick enough to cover the court well.
The Tides team of Braden Smee and Jaron Simler finished fourth at the SSC tourney and earned the 12th seed to districts. They open up against the tournament’s fifth seed, the No. 2 team from the North Puget Sound League.
Rylan Coovert (left) and Hugh Vicente of Gig Harbor won their second straight South Sound Conference doubles title. Photo courtesy Gig Harbor tennis
Tides against Tides
Gig Harbor’s Vicente and Coovert open against familiar faces at districts. The Gig Harbor doubles team of Jonah Eilers and Luke Jolibois placed fifth at the SSC tournament, surviving a tough battle against Peninsula’s first doubles team of Tyler Ahrens and Thomas Cardinal.
In that match, both teams knew a trip to districts was on the line. The Seahawk team won the first set 6-4 but Eilers and Jolibois came back to win the second, 6-2. With one set to decide the winner, the intensity was turned up, especially among cross-town rivals.
All four players were flying all over the court and Tide coach Lorrie Wood was on the edge of her seat. Eilers and Jolibois hit enough clutch shots to win the third set 6-4 and qualify for districts.
The match ended the season for the two Seahawk seniors, Ahrens and Cardinal, who have played four years of tennis together for Peninsula and gave it all they had in their final match together.
Gig Harbor wraps up girls soccer league title
The Gig Harbor (13-2-2, 12-1-1) girls soccer team finished as the SSC champions with an 11-0 thumping of Yelm at home on Oct. 24. The Tides scored at will versus the Tornados on a wet, soggy field to become back-to-back conference champions. The team then warmed up for the playoffs with a 2-0 win at White River on Oct. 26.
Gig Harbor was rewarded with the No. 1 seed in the District 3/4 tournament and host Capital at Roy Anderson Field at 6 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28. The Tides split with Capital during the regular season — the Cougars beat the Tides 1-0 early in the year before the Gig Harbor blasted Capital 8-2 at home on Oct. 12.
The Peninsula (11-2-2, 11-1-2) girls soccer team finished their regular season with a road victory over Central Kitsap. Sophomore sensation Ella Coates scored the game’s only goal after a beautiful dribble move and powerful kick sent the ball into the net.
Coates has been a consistent force for the Seahawks and could easily be a sprinter on the track team with her quick burst and top-end speed.
The win over the Cougars gave the Seahawks second place in the SSC. It was literally a hard-fought game, as a couple players exchanged a hard kick and a shove before tempers cooled. The Seahawks are a no-nonsense type of team that is not afraid of contact or defending themselves and their grit showed after the quarrel.
Their defense tightened and goalie Brooklyn Finch, who has been consistent all year, didn’t allow the Cougars a goal.
The Seahawks earned the district’s fifth seed. They open district play at fourth-seeded Prairie of Vancouver at 1 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, in the double-elimination tournament.
If the Seahawks and Tides both win their postseason openers, they will face each other at 5:30 p.m. Halloween night at Mount Tacoma High School. Gig Harbor defeated the Seahawks 3-0 early in the season before both teams tied 1-1 in the rematch on Oct. 17.
Peninsula’s Post wins fourth straight diving title
Peninsula senior Makenna Post accomplished a rare feat at the South Sound Conference swimming championships on Oct. 21, winning her fourth SSC individual diving championship in a row. She Posted a combined diving score of 343 points, 24 points better than the second-place finisher from Capital.
Peninsula’s Makenna Post won her fourth consecutive league championship on Oct. 21. Photo courtesy Peninsula High swimming and diving team
Post will look to win a district title next week before advancing to the state tournament.
The Gig Harbor Tides won another team championship for coach Mike Kelly, who has the conference on lock. Kelly’s Tides have won every swimming championship since the South Sound Conference’s inception eight years ago except one — when the pool was partially shut down and participants were scarce during the COVID pandemic. Before that, his teams won seven Narrows League championships in a row. Kelly, a former All-American swimmer at USC, shows no signs of slowing down.
His team won the SSC with their depth. They scored 515 points to win easily over second-place Peninsula, which compiled 320 points.
Ashlyn Pepich won three medals, including individual championships in the 200 freestyle and the 500 freestyle. The team got their third win when Eva Dahlin, Beau Ensminger, Jenna Nelson and Pepich won the 400 freestyle relay in a blistering time of 4:03.83.
Peninsula had an individual conference champion in the 100 meter freestyle race, where Lee Gjertson out-touched the Tides’ Karina Yevstifieieva by .55 seconds to win in 28.23. Several swimmers from both teams advanced to next week’s district championships.
The Gig Harbor High swimming team is the dominant force in the South Sound Conference. Photo by Bryce Carithers
District cross country this weekend
Boys and girls cross country runners from both schools converge on the Chambers Bay Park outdoor course for the district championships on Saturday, Oct. 28. The event, called the West Sound Classic, is the final race before the cross country state championships on Nov. 4.
The girls 5,000 meters race — featuring Peninsula’s Elektra Higgins and Gig Harbor’s Taylor Sletner, Lejla Carlsson and Alex Ferrier — will begin at 12:50 p.m. The boys 5,000 meter race — featuring Tides Jonathon Miles and Preston Fradet and Peninsula’s Cooper Leavengood — will begin at 2 p.m.