Sports
Sports Beat: Gig Harbor girls tennis team unbeaten on season
In this Friday’s edition of the sports beat — a weekly sports capsule of local prep athletic news — we will start with the undefeated.
There are some very good high school teams in the area, but the only local team currently undefeated is the Gig Harbor girls tennis team at 5-0. They sit atop the South Sound Conference with a 4-0 league record, including recent wins against North Thurston and River Ridge, beating each 5-0.
A tennis team consists of three singles players and two double teams. Each singles player or doubles team that wins scores a point for their team.
Gig Harbor continues to win matches 5-0, indicating their overall talent and depth. Gig Harbor will have a big road match against the 2-1 Peninsula Seahawks at 3:30 p.m. Thursday, April 7. Gig Harbor will then face a strong Yelm team on April 21 in a matchup that could produce the league champion.
Seahawks top SSC baseball standings
The Peninsula baseball team leads the SSC with a 5-1 league record.
After a tough 7-6 loss against the talented O’Dea team on Saturday, the Seahawks returned to league play and collected two wins over Central Kitsap. Thursday’s win over the Cougars 4-3 featured a superb pitching performance by left hander Hunter Bennett, who threw looping breaking balls and sneaky fastballs in a 2-1 win. The game ended when Gonzaga-bound Peyton Knowles, who has been a vacuum at shortstop and smashing the ball at the plate, hit a walk-off single to win it.
Peninsula will be back on the home diamond at 7 p.m. Saturday, April 2, against Stadium.
Peninsula’s Payton Knowles hits a walk-off single to beat Central Kitsap, 2-1. Courtesy of Ed Johnson
GH, Peninsula near top of league in softball
The Gig Harbor girls softball team has a fine 5-2 record and is 5-0 in league play after impressive wins over Capital (by a 12-4 score) and River Ridge (15-10). The Tides played Yelm (7-2) late on Friday, April 1.
Gig Harbor, Peninsula and Yelm are among the top contenders in the SSC.
Peninsula has been scoring like a pinball machine and is second in the league at 3-0 (7-1 overall). The Seahawks outscored their opponents this week 17-3. The Seahawks and Tides face off at 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 6, at Peninsula. The bleachers should be full for this one as both teams are undefeated in league play and desperately want some local bragging rights, a conference championship and a first seed in the 3A playoffs.
Soccer: Two shutouts for Gig Harbor
The Peninsula boys soccer team (4-1) sits in 3rd place of the tough SSC after mixed results this week. The Seahawks defeated Capital 3-1 on Tuesday before dropping a 4-2 decision to Central Kitsap on Thursday.
Gig Harbor is close behind, in fourth in the league with a respectable 4-2 record. The Tides earned two shutouts this week, 4-0 over North Thurston and 8-0 over River Ridge.
Gig Harbor track dominant in win over CK
The Gig Harbor boys track team got off to a fast start with a victory over Central Kitsap.
The Tides took the top seven spots in the 100-meter dash. Sophomore sensation Ben Stevens laid down the fastest 100 meter time, a 11.55 to win the event.
In the 200, Stevens ran 23.26, beating Cole Rushforth and his respectable 24.7 time, for the victory. Junior Nick Grover won the 400 meters in a time of 54.28, sprinting out to a big lead before gassing out but holding on in the end to win by just three-tenths of a second over Steven Dunbar from Central Kitsap.
Will Newburgh of Gig Harbor blew away the field in the 1600 meter, running a personal record of 4:28.9. The senior could have stopped for a sandwich and a glass of lemonade along the way as he won by an impressive 35 seconds.
The Tides dominated the field events, with Kael Probst clearing 6 feet to win the high jump; Ty Berry heaved the shot put 43 feet for a win; Joshua Felt won the javelin by an impressive 40 feet with a fine toss of 161; Isaac Gary won the long jump with a leap of 17.02 feet; and Julien Fisher finished a close second in the discus with a throw of 88.9 feet.
Gig Harbor will be tested at the Hazen Invitational track meet, which will attract over 25 quality teams to Renton Memorial Stadium, starting at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, April 2.
The Peninsula track teams will compete against more than 25 other high schools in the 61st annual Shelton Invitational track meet on Saturday, April 2. Almost every school from Port Angeles to Olympia will be there and bring their finest to this prestigious track event starting at 1:00 PM.
Cosmos mows down Tornadoes
The Gig Harbor boy’s baseball team split a pair of games this week against Yelm and will play again at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Silas in Tacoma.
The Tides looked very complete in a 10-2 victory over Yelm on Thursday, as junior Garrick Cosmos threw a complete game, allowing only two runs. Cosmos is undefeated on the hill, going the distance in both, striking out 14 with an ERA of 3.14.
“Cosmos has been fantastic,” Gig Harbor coach Pete Jansen said.
Gig Harbor ace Garrick Cosmos only allowed two runs in a complete game victory over Yelm. Courtesy of Ed Johnson
Ryland Heckman also has the coaches’ attention with a 1-0 record and a stingy ERA of 1.11. The Tides smashed the ball Tuesday and defeated Yelm 10-2, but surprisingly lost to the Tornadoes 2-1 on Thursday.
Jansen, a two-time state champion who owns more than 500 wins in his career, said his young Tides have “quite a few new varsity players and we are now starting to see how the puzzle pieces will fit together for a successful season.”
Four Tides are hitting over .300: Jac McClellan, Trevor Hellwich, Brady Altman and Ryland Heckman.
GH golf second in league
The Gig Harbor boys golf team is 3-1 and in second place in the SSC. Several Tides appear set to qualify for the district championships.
Sophomore Chet West has been very consistent and has a really strong short game as he was the medalist at the Central Kitsap match, shooting a 37 for nine holes. Junior Colin Morkert has the number two spot because he’s a very straight hitter that is consistent, evidenced by him shooting a 40 against both North Thurston and Capitol. Junior Zavier Feasy-Allen is in the third spot with good power off the tee and a soft touch around the greens, shooting a 40 against Central Kitsap.
Peninsula has begun the season with a rough start at 1-3 but just finished playing Central Kitsap at the acclaimed Gold Mountain Golf and Country Club. The score is yet to be recorded but a win against the Cougars would put them in the middle of the pack in the SSC and looking ahead to a crosstown matchup against Gig Harbor on Thursday April, 21st at Canterwood Golf and Country Club.