Community Sports

Sports Beat | Tides score early and often vs. Seahawks

The Gig Harbor Tides (11-3 overall and South Sound conference) boys soccer team earned second place in the South Sound Conference with a 6-1 win over Peninsula (5-9-1, 5-8-1) on April 30 at Roy Anderson Field.

The Tides look like a team on the rise as they used pinpoint passing and aggressive runs to score five goals in the first half. Jack Learned and Lucas Maharry each scored two in the first half.

Learned stole the ball at the 30-yard line in the 26th minute and advanced to Maharry, who took a quick touch and fired into the far side of the net for the opening goal.

Learned struck again on a breakaway, covering 20 yards with five dribbles ahead of two pursuing Peninsula defenders. A split second before the defense arrived, Learned fired a shot past the Seahawk goalie.

Lucas Muens scored Gig Harbor’s fifth goal when he sidestepped a defender and blasted the ball home from 15 yards out. Henry Blake got the sixth on a header off a corner kick.

Jack Learned of Gig Harbor celebrates after scoring a goal. Photo by Bryce Carithers

Seahawks avert shutout

The Tides got superb play from goalie Trey Crosby, but Peninsula was determined to avoid the shutout. They did when Logan Reum fired a shot that squirted out of goalie Malachi Wilson’s hands; Ruem scored on the rebound to get the Seahawks on the board.

Gig Harbor and Peninsula both made the playoffs. The Seahawks claimed the final spot from the SSC with their fifth-place finish and will be seeded 16th in the district playoffs. The open district play at 1 p.m. Saturday, May 4, at Heritage High School in Vancouver.

Tides in good form

The Tides start the postseason at Mountain View of Vancouver at 2 p.m. Saturday, May 4.

The Tides, seeded fifth at districts, seem to be peaking at just the right time. Coach Joe Ross likes the resiliency from his team entering the playoffs.

“With so many new varsity players this year and losing a few games earlier in the season, it taught us how to face adversity and move forward as a team,” Ross said.

Unified team puts on a show

The halftime of the boys soccer game was entertaining and inspiring as well. The Peninsula Unified soccer team, part of the Special Olympics Unified Champion School program, took turns exchanging goals in an exciting matchup as the crowd and the varsity players rooted them on.

PC Charles, playing for the Peninsula Unified soccer Stripes team, scored two goals. Photo courtesy Jenny Buys

PC Charles scored the opening goal for the “Stripes” team on a nifty breakaway run before firing a shot that just got past the “White” team goalie for a 1-0 lead.

White evened the score when Jaybe Jones took off for a five dribble breakaway before finding the net with a precise shot. Naomi Crowley, Jones and Charles scored later as Stripes won 3-2.

Peninsula offers unified basketball, cheer, soccer, track and esports. Gig Harbor just started Unified participation with basketball and is looking to add new offerings next season.

“Participating in Unified sports is one of the ways our high schools promote social inclusion by bringing together individuals with and without intellectual disabilities on the same sports team. It aims to break down barriers, fostering friendships and creating a more inclusive environment through shared athletic experiences. Participants of all abilities have the opportunity to compete together and promote a sense of unity and understanding” as stated on the Peninsula Unified roster.

The Peninsula Unified and Gig Harbor High soccer teams get together for a photo at halftime. Photo courtesy Jenny Buys

GH water polo defeats Bainbridge

The Gig Harbor (10-3) girls water polo team upset the second-ranked Bainbridge Spartans, 11-9, on April 29 to serve notice that the Tides are state title contenders.

The Tides got out to an early 3-0 lead and were ahead 4-1 after a quarter and 6-3 at halftime.

Bainbridge drew within 9-7 by the end of the third quarter, but Gig Harbor and goalie Kiah Sawyer kept the Spartans at arms’ length.

The Gig Harbor High School water polo team.

“We just played our best team ball of the season … our stout defense and better than usual accuracy with our shooting helped propel us to victory,” Gig Harbor coach Mike Kelly said. “Plus our conditioning was a factor as most of our starters played the entire game.”

Frances Benson scored seven goals on eight attempts for Gig Harbor despite being the focus of the Spartan defense. Elsie Huston had two goals and Alexis Tujo added two goals and three assists. The Tides scored 11 goals on 21 shot attempts and had 19 steals.