Community Sports
Peninsula fastpitch and Gig Harbor baseball and soccer win district titles
The Peninsula Seahawks (21-4) played lights-out on both sides of the ball and defeated Timberline (18-6), 9-5, to win the Class 3A District III fastpitch championship on May 16 at the Regional Athletic Complex in Lacey.
The Seahawks earned the No. 3 seed at the state tournament, where they will open against either No. 14 Kennewick or No. 19 Shelton at 9 a.m. Friday, May 22, back at the Regional Athletic Complex.
Avenging earlier losses
They say three times is a charm, and in this case it was for the Seahawks. Peninsula lost twice to Timberline during the regular season before beating the Blazers to walk off with a district trophy.
The Seahawks won the championship game behind freshman pitching phenom Abbie Hoyt, who threw a complete game.
Peninsula after winning the District III fastpitch championship. Photo courtesy of Mike Paul
Center fielder Mckenna Peterson introduced herself on the big stage by going 3-4 with five RBIs to extinguish the Blazers’ fire.
“Mckenna is a potential future star,” Seahawks coach Mike Paul said. “Way above-average speed, way above-average arm strength, and a very good hitter, that’s just coming of age as a sophomore.”
Seven Seahawks had hits against Timberline. Junior Vivian Sweet stroked two clutch doubles while senior Ashanti Perez had a double, two RBIs and saved a run in the third inning with an amazing defensive play.
Shortstop Paige Jones made a fine diving catch in the hole while making difficult plays look routine. The whole team played excellent defense, committing just one error all game.
Tournament scoring binge
Paul is hunting for his second state title in three years. He said earlier this year the 2026 Seahawks are the deepest team he’s ever had, exceeding even his title-winning ’23 squad.
Paul’s analysis looks spot on in hindsight. The Seahawks come at teams in waves, without a letdown at any spot. They scored 50 runs in three district tournament games.
That includes a 28-4 win over Kentlake on May 15, when Hoyt belted two home runs and Izzy Michaels contributed a homer and two doubles. The Seahawks beat White River, 13-6, in the semifinals behind a gem from freshman pitcher Newbie Wagner.
Tides seeded 15th
Gig Harbor (16-5) also qualified for the fastpitch state tournament by winning three of four games at districts.
The Tides opened by beating Thomas Jefferson, 19-18, before White River put them in the consolation bracket with an 11-7 win. The Tides defeated North Thurston 8-5 before drubbing Kentlake 12-2 to earn a ticket to state in coach Nick Devaney’s first year.
The 15th-seeded Tides open state play against No. 18 Southridge at 3 p.m. Friday, May 21, at the RAC in Lacey.
Sleeter’s perfecto boosts Tides
The Gig Harbor Tides (19-8) baseball team got a perfect game from sophomore pitcher Daniel Sleeter in the district championship game, a 12-0 drubbing of No. 4 Kentlake on May 16 in Auburn.
Sleeter relied on a cut fastball and a nasty sinker to blank a Kentlake team that beat Peninsula 9-4 earlier that day to advance to the final.
Gig Harbor sophomore Ben Sleeter threw a perfect game in the Tides’ district championship game win. Photo by Vincent Starr
The Tides have somehow been overlooked all season. They are just 13th in the WIAA RPI rankings despite finishing third at state last year.
Gig Harbor may have earned more respect by defeating No. 2 Decatur in the district semifinal and Kentlake for the title. That after winning the Puget Sound League championship with a win over No. 8 Peninsula.
“I feel we have one of the best pitching staffs in the state,” coach Ben Sleeter said. “But the rankings don’t matter much at this point. Every team can hit and every team has dominant pitchers that can shut teams down. We’ll have to be ready.”
Two starts, no hits
Sleeter watching his son throw a perfect game was an emotional moment.
“Like any parent, it was pretty cool to watch,” Sleeter said. “He was on. He threw well, he threw hard, had good command, and was throwing all four of his pitches for strikes. It was certainly fun to watch.”
The younger Sleeter compiled a 1.10 earned run average in 14 innings of work this year. That includes a no-hitter against Mount Tahoma.
One could tell the younger Sleeter has been well-schooled in coach’s son deflection. He repeatedly turned attention away from himself and onto the team.
Sleeter hardly commented on his perfect game performance other than to say it was “great” and that he felt really strong, with velocity in the 88 to 89 mph range. He preferred to focus to the defense behind him and the offense that was led by catcher Zach Smith’s four RBIs.
Maybe Sleeter should ask dad for a few more innings after throwing a no-hitter and a perfect game in his only two starts?
“Jake Cuda, Quentin Bockhorn, Logan Pederson and Max Bergford all have great ERAs and held teams down all season long,” the younger Sleeter said. “Our team really hasn’t needed me yet, but I’m ready when they do.”
Pitching depth
Sleeter now has two district title-winning pitching performances on his resumé. As a Seahawk last year, he defeated Gig Harbor with a 4-2 gem before transferring to play for his father this season.
Pederson, a hard-throwing senior, confused the second-ranked Decatur Gators in the Tides’ 4-1 district semifinal win. The Gators swung for the fences, but the ball kept popping into catcher Smith’s mitt instead.
Logan Pederson pitches in Gig Harbor’s district tournament semifinal win. Photo by Vincent Starr
Pederson has also flown under the radar this season but got the ball versus Decatur in a sign of confidence from his coach. He responded by dominating a Gator team that averaged 10.1 runs on the season.
State tournament draws
The Tides earned the No. 3 seed in the state tournament for the second year in a row.
But they cannot play a home game, as a third seed typically would, because they don’t have a home baseball field that’s up to snuff for a state tournament game.
So the Tides will play at a neutral site, Lincoln High School, against either No. 14 Liberty (17-7) or No. 19 White River (13-9) at 10 a.m. May 23.
Peninsula (19-6) fell to Kentlake, 9-4, in a district semifinal game on May 16. They received a No. 12 seed to state after spending most of the season ranked in the top 10.
They face No. 5 Snohomish (18-5) in a loser-out game at 10 a.m. Saturday, May 23, at Auburn High School.
Gig Harbor gets revenge on the pitch
The third time was also the charm for the district-champion Gig Harbor soccer team (14-2-1).
The Tides lost to No. 1 Silas twice earlier this season, but took their revenge with a 2-1 win in the District III championship game on May 22 at Mount Tahoma.
The Tides trailed 1–0 at halftime, but rallied behind second-half goals from Eli Hanson and Jackson Powell.
Gig Harbor moves on to the state tournament as the No. 4 seed. They will play either No. 13 Walla Walla or No. 20 North Thurston on Friday, May 21, at a to-be-announced place and time.
The Gig Harbor soccer team celebrates after winning a district championship. Photo courtesy of Joe Ross
In the district championship game, Silas took the lead with a goal in the 43rd minute after an evenly played first half.
But the Tides came out aggressively in the second half. Hanson tied the game in the 54th minute off Asher Cronin’s assist.
In the 77th minute, Powell intercepted a Silas pass and beat the Rams goalie with an unassisted goal to give the Tides the lead.
The Tides defense remained on balance until the final whistle.
Teammates congratulate Jackson Powell after he scored the winning goal against Silas. Photo by Vincent Starr
Momentum into tournament
“Anytime you win over the No. 1 team in the state, as well as a fellow league competitor, that you lost to twice before, it’s very exciting,” Tides coach Joe Ross said. “The win reminds the seniors why all the hard work is worth it.”
The Tides enter the state tournament brimming with confidence and knowing they can play with anyone.
“This victory does reinforce the team’s ability to win in big games,” Ross said. “All season we have bent, but we don’t break.”