Community Sports

Sports Beat | Gig Harbor soccer on a roll as state tournament begins

The state’s No. 1-ranked Class 3A girls soccer team will be in action tonight, Nov. 15, when Gig Harbor (16-1-1) faces University of Spokane (12-7-1) at Roy Anderson Field at 7 p.m.

The game is the state tournament opener for Gig Harbor. No. 17-seed U-Hi advanced to face the Tides by defeating No. 16 Mountain View of Vancouver, 4-1.

The Tides opened the season with a nonleague loss Class 4A Curtis (15-2-2) on Sept. 10. The 3-0 loss shocked the talented Tides but also set a defiant tone that lasted throughout the season.

Elise Miller of Gig Harbor and Sierra Bierman of Peninsula

Gig Harbor has not lost since that game. They mowed down five straight opponents before a scoreless tie against Central Kitsap on Oct. 1. Then the Tides shifted into high gear and reeled off 11 straight wins, including a 3-1 defeat of Central Kitsap in an Oct. 17 rematch. They beat Peninsula twice late in the season for conference and district titles.

Strong on both sides of the ball

Gig Harbor displays a balance between offense and defense that makes it difficult to pinpoint which area of their game is strongest. They score and defend at equally impressive levels and their game scores prove that point.

The Tides scored 98 goals while only allowing five in 18 contests this season. And three of the five goals they allowed came in the season opener.

When a team averages 5.4 goals per game while surrendering only 0.2 goals per game, they usually climb the rankings quickly and that is exactly what the Tides have done.

A No. 1 ranking is nice but it can cause internal pressure. How the Tides deal with that pressure may be their biggest hurdle going forward because the Tides are stacked with quality players and have backups that would star for most teams.

Four or five other 3A teams have legitimate chances to win the title as well. Gig Harbor is one of them but certainly not a clear-cut favorite.

The Puget Sound League and West Central District champion Gig Harbor girls soccer team.

Another home game on Saturday with win

A key that may propel the Tides forward is that game way back on Sept. 10, when Gig Harbor walked off the Curtis pitch with a 3-0 loss. That loss stung and made the Tides realize that they weren’t invincible, but if they kept working they could improve.

First-year Tides coach Robyn Saathoff is much like her team and vice versa. She’s understated, focused and prefers to walk instead of talk.

“We just need to go out strong and play our game,” Saathoff said. “We have a deep bench of 22 strong players. Everyone’s ready to go in and make an impact on the field at any given time. This team is fired up!”

That No. 1 ranking does have some perks, though. If Gig Harbor can get past University on Friday night, they get to stay home at Roy Anderson for their second game. That would happen at a time to be announced on Saturday, Nov. 16, against the winner of a game at 5 p.m. Friday between Mount Spokane (13-3) and Shorewood (13-4-2).

Peninsula dropped to a No. 7 seed at state

The Peninsula Seahawks (14-3-1) are probably steaming and can’t wait to get on the field for their girls soccer state tournament opener at 7 p.m. tonight, Nov. 15, against the Ridgeline Falcons (10-6-2) of Liberty Lake.

Steaming? Yes, and to me they should be. Last week they were ranked second in the WIAA’s Class 3A RPI rankings before losing to No. 1 Gig Harbor, 3-1, in the district final.

The Seahawks have just two seniors and have only lost to Gig Harbor (twice) and Class 4A South Kitsap early in the season. Yet they inexplicably fell to the seventh seed. They travel to Bellevue High School to play 10th-seeded Ridgeline tonight.

Usually if a team is ranked second and loses to a number one team they may fall a position or two. But five spots?

Fighting through injuries

Seahawk head coach Jose Barilla and his team will load up the bus and look to unload some frustration on Ridgeline in Bellevue.

The Seahawks have been impressive on both sides of the pitch as well. They have scored 49 goals while only surrendering 23.

And they have done all of that without one of their best players. Senior Hailey Shride  tore her ACL earlier in the year. Shride is a gamer who was instrumental in the Seahawks’ runs to the state tournaments over the last two years.

The Seahawks have had several injured players this season and recently lost freshman Kailey Dastrup due to a knee injury. But junior forward Sydney Smith has recovered and standout sophomore midfielder Maya Kiki Kalahiki will be cleared to play Saturday should the Seahawks advance to play the winner of a Nov. 15 game between Holy Names Academy (9-6-5) and Bellevue (10-3-3).

First-year Peninsula coach Jose Brambila is eager for the test at state and still has plenty of talent to advance.

“We must take it one game at a time and remain in the moment for each game,” Brambila said. “We must play composed, be aggressive and be selfless, but at times selfish. It’s a beautiful game but we must not let it get bigger than us.”

Karin Heikkila of Gig Harbor

Gig Harbor cross country third in team competition

The Gig Harbor girls cross country team brought home the third-place trophy from the state championships in Pasco on Nov. 8.

The Tides compiled 130 team points, behind second-place Bishop Blanchet and champion Mercer Island.

Senior Taylor Sletner and junior Lejla Carlsson led the effort. Sletner finished fifth in 17:36.9 and Carlsson sixth in 18:11.5. Sletner’s time would have won her the girls Class 4A state championship.

Other runners for Gig Harbor included Ella Savage, 36th in 19.:25.4; sophomore Clarabelle Simmond, 55th in 19:51.6; sophomore Laila Flynn (20:18.1) and Ruby Savage (20:27.6).

Taylor Sletner of Gig Harbor. Photo by Dennis Browne

A tradition of state success

The third place finish is believed to be the 14th time Gig Harbor coach Patty Ley led a boys or girls cross country team to a top-five state finish.

“On paper early in the year we were solid, but it was going to take some significant improvement to be a trophy team,” Ley said. “And they went out and did it. We’re a young group after Taylor as our seniors are number one and number seven on our team but freshman are on the rise over the next couple years!”

Peninsula’s Higgins second at state

Peninsula senior Elektra Higgins finished second at state cross country, completing the course in 16.58.5, behind two-time champion Sophia Rodriquez of Mercer Island.

Higgins’ time was faster than any other girl in the state in any classification — except Rodriguez’s time of 16:48.1.

Higgins took the second-place finish in stride, according to Peninsula coach Tyler Nugent.

“Elektra would have been state champion in every other classification in every other year. I’m sure she was disappointed, but she didn’t need any consoling,” Nugent said. “Impressively, she expressed gratitude for having the opportunity to race (against) the other elite competitors in girls’ 3A, who helped her push to such a fantastic performance.”

“After the race, I was disappointed that I fell short of my goal, to win the state, but I was proud of my effort,” Higgins said. “I really felt like I did everything I could to give myself a shot to win.”

Elektra Higgins

Historical view

Is Higgins — who will run for Southern Methodist University next fall — the best distance runner in Peninsula High history? Doris Heritage, a two-time Olympic runner, didn’t compete for Peninsula.

Colleen Spadoni’s one-mile state championship in 1978 is still Peninsula’s only state title in track or cross country, male or female. Nugent cited Higgins’ school records in the 1,600, 3,200 and her course records on every cross country course the Seahawks compete on.

“Perhaps most impressively, Elektra placed in the top 10 all four years at state (seventh, ninth, third and second) and has been a consistent champion for us,” Nugent said.

Coincidentally, Ley feels the same way about Sletner, who just signed a letter of intent to run for Washington State University.

“Taylor has been on a mission this year. It’s been an absolutely great year for her, and she has sealed herself as Gig Harbor’s all time best in cross country,” Ley said.

What about the state cross country championship Reese Morkert of Gig Harbor won two years ago? Morkert ran an 18:24 to win the Class 3A title by a tenth of a second in 2022.

“Reese has the place, but Taylor (17:36.9) has the body of work,” Ley said. “She only had one time over 18 (minutes) for 5k this year so while Reese sits up there, Taylor’s depth of performance stands alone in a historic year.”

Both competitors are headed out to Boise, Idaho, on Saturday, Nov. 16, for the Nike Cross Regionals. They will have a chance to qualify for the Nike Cross National Championships in Portland, Oregon, on Dec. 7.