Community Sports

Sports Beat | Tides play for district soccer title

Sixth-ranked Gig Harbor (13-2-1) secured a spot in the Class 3A boys soccer state tournament for the 11th straight year with 4-1 win over Timberline on May 12 and a 3-2 win over Auburn Mountainview on May 14.

Both games were in the District III tournament.

Henry Blake did the heavy lifting against Timberline with two goals. Eli Hanson and Jackson Powell each struck the Blazers’ nets as well to get the quarterfinal win.

Against Mountainview, the offense was a two-man show featuring Hanson and Powell. The former had two goals and an assist while the latter had one goal and two assists.

The Tides earned a spot in the district championship game against Silas. The No. 1-ranked Rams (16-1-1) own the only two wins over Gig Harbor this season. The third matchup between the two powers kicks off at 3 p.m. Saturday, May 16, at Mount Tahoma High School.

Jackson Powell scored in both of Gig Harbor’s district tournament games. Photo by Vincent Starr

Team leaders

The Tides have won 10 of their last 11 games and feature lightning-quick forwards and powerful defenders.

The stout defense includes senior centerbacks Ryan Ferguson and Cayden Desjardins and freshmen Mason Dixon and Julian Burby. Malachi Wilson, a quick-twitch senior, mans the goal.

Hanson, a senior, leads the Tides in total points with 16 goals and 13 assists. Blake, an Oregon State University commit, has 12 goals and seven assists.

Rugged senior Jack Learned has been coming on in the latter part of the season with six goals and four assists and talented junior forward Powell has blazing speed and is a nightmare to defend against.

So what do the Tides need to do to beat the best team in the state this Saturday?

“Communication and player positioning is key,” coach Joe Ross said. “We do not want to get caught chasing the ball and pulled out of position. That’s when we make mistakes and give up easy goals.”

Eli Hanson had two goals and an assist in Gig Harbor’s semifinal win. Photo by Vincent Star

Baseball teams advance to semis

Both local baseball teams got the job done at Sehmel Homestead Park on May 13 to advance in the District III tournament.

Peninsula (19-5) broke a 4-4 tie in the sixth inning against Enumclaw. Sophomore third baseman Andy Merry got the key RBI, lining a shot to left-center field for a double that scored Jeff Ortega from second base. The Seahawks cruised from there to win 8-4.

Two-time defending district champion Peninsula faces Kentlake (17-4) at 10 a.m. Saturday, May 16, at Auburn High School with a chance to advance to the district finals again.

Gig Harbor, which beat Peninsula for the Puget Sound League championship last week, was down 3-1 in the second inning to Bellarmine. But the Tides (17-8) never flinched as senior pitcher Jake Cuda settled into a dominating performance.

Gig Harbor scored 10 straight runs in their 11-3 blowout to send the Lions jogging back to the bus.

The Tides will face Decatur (19-2) at 1 p.m. Saturday at Auburn. Decatur was ranked No. 1 in Class 3A for most of the year.

If both local teams win their semifinals, they would face off in the title game at 4 p.m. Saturday at Auburn.

Gig Harbor sweeps golf titles

The Tides drowned the competition at the District III golf championships.

The girls scorched the Allenmore Golf Course in Tacoma, winning by 62 strokes on May 11 and 12. They advance to the state championship May 19-20 at Deer Park Golf Club, north of Spokane. The Tides contingent will include qualifier Laila Douglas, who had a two day total of 167 to finish second individually.

The boys fell a bit shy of that 62-strokes margin, but still won a district title by an impressive 14 shots at McCormick Woods in Port Orchard. They advance to state finals at Indian Canyon Golf Course in Spokane on May 19 and 20.

If you have a young child who is an aspiring golfer, you might want to go to Canterwood Golf and Country Club and hide in the bushes until Jane and Ty Snyder walk up one of the fairways with their kids and try to convince them to coach your son or daughter too.

Senior Theo Snyder was the boys’ medalist with a two-day total of 139 strokes. Olivia Snyder, a freshman, was the girls’ medalists with a two-day total of 146.

Local boys individual state qualifiers included Peninsula’s Christian Callan, who opened with a impressive 74 and followed with a 86 to complete a two day total of 160. Gig Harbor’s James Burleigh shot an 83 but rebounded with a 79 to get into the Tide van to state.

Gig Harbor freshman Olivia Snyder won the district golf championship. Photo courtesy of Jeff Milbourn