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closeHuddle up: PHS volleyball only true team headed to state tournament
Marques Hunter
of the Gateway
This was an incredibly busy weekend for Gig Harbor and Peninsula high school sports.
As much as I’d like to cover each team during the playoffs, it’s impossible for me to be at two places at one time.
While I was in Pasco covering the state cross country championships at Sun Willows Golf Course, a multitude of sporting events took place, including a highly intriguing Peninsula football game at Roy Anderson Field.
From what I heard, it went down as one of the most highly dramatic football games in Peninsula school history.
This column is devoted to some of the other local sports teams that I didn’t have a chance to cover this past weekend. They worked hard, and they deserve it.
PHS volleyball
Can you believe the Peninsula volleyball team advanced to the Class 3A state tournament?
I watched Gig Harbor sweep Peninsula team early in the season in three games. But I also saw the Seahawks mount an incredible comeback against Capital, the No. 2 seed to state.
Despite a shaky regular season, the Seahawks have found some consistency as they head to the Toyota Center in Kennewick to play Seattle Prep as the No. 5 seed in the double-elimination tournament.
Peninsula beat White River in four games during the opening round of the district tournament, 25-20, 26-24, 22-25, 25-16, followed by a sweep of Bonney Lake, 26-24, 25-19, 25-23, to ensure a spot in the state tournament.
The Seahawks later lost to district champ Camas, then to Prairie, to take the No. 5 seed.
It’s been six years since Peninsula advanced to the 16-team state bracket. They Seahawks have never won a state championship.
GH volleyball
The Gig Harbor volleyball team swept Rogers in the opening round of the West Central 4A District tournament but got swept by district champion Curtis last Friday.
The Narrows League champion Tides turned around to play 4A South Puget Sound League champion Graham-Kapowsin on Saturday, but Gig Harbor dropped a five-game nail-biter 33-31, 23-25, 23-25, 27-25, 15-11 in a loser-out match.
The Tides had a great run, though. They beat Olympia to win the Narrows League tournament, avenging their only loss of the regular season.
It’s never easy to make it out of the 4A WCD tournament. My guess is there will be at least one team from the district that will qualify for the state championship match.
PHS girls soccer
The Peninsula girls soccer team qualified to the West Central bi-district tournament with a 7-7 SPSL record but lost to league powerhouse Bonney Lake 2-0 in a loser-out, winner-to-state match on Saturday.
The Panthers have lost just one match all season.
Gig Harbor soccer
After they earned the No. 4 seed to the West Central District tournament, the Gig Harbor girls soccer team was eliminated by Kentwood for the second year in row, 3-0.
The Tides beat Central Kitsap in the Narrows League tournament to ensure a district playoff spot but lost to both South Kitsap at Stadium, making the path to state pretty treacherous.
Kentwood proved to be too much.
PHS swimming
The Peninsula girls swimming and diving team placed fifth at the 3A West Central District meet at Hazen High School last weekend and qualified four individuals, including all three relays, to the state championship meet Thursday through Saturday at the King County Aquatic Center in Federal Way.
Sophomore Casey Penrose earned state cuts in the 200-yard freestyle, 200 individual medley, 500 free and 100 butterfly.
Penrose is seeded fourth in the 200 IM with a season-best 2 minutes, 12.62 seconds and 13th in the 500 free (5:22.41).
Junior Kelly Blauvelt had state-qualifying times in the 100 breaststroke and is the fifth seed entering the weekend (1:09.70).
Freshman Chloe Skidmore was allocated to state with a time of 2:06.56 in the 200 free.
That about wraps up the fall season. Good luck to the Seahawks volleyball team and the local swimmers who will be competing in the state meet.