Community Sports

Sports Beat | Gig Harbor opens girls soccer state tournament after winning district title

Gig Harbor (14-2) won the Class 3A District 3 girls soccer tournament with three straight shutout victories, including a 1-0 win over White River in the championship game on Nov. 6 at Mount Tahoma.

The district champion Gig Harbor girls soccer team. Photo courtesy of GHHS soccer

In earlier rounds, the Tides defeated Enumclaw and Auburn Mountainview to run their winning streak to 14 games. Gig Harbor outscored district tournament opponents 12-0 as goalie Kayanna Hafferkamp recorded three straight clean sheets.

Gig Harbor earned the No. 4 seed into the Class 3A state tournament. The Tides face No. 13 Snohomish (13-6-1) at 5 p.m. Friday, Nov. 13, at Roy Anderson Field. The winner of that game will advance to face either No. 5 Liberty (16-1-1) or No. 12 Bishop Blanchet (10-5-2) at 6 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 14, at Roy Anderson Field.

The Class 3A girls soccer state tournament bracket.

The district final against White River was scoreless until freshman Eden Pound stole the ball from a Hornets midfielder and sent a clever pass to sophomore Violet Lester.

Lester survived a hip check from a White River defender before sending a cross-field beauty into the far corner of the net for the game’s only goal.

It was the third consecutive district title for the Tides and coach Robyn Saathoff.

Violet Lester scores the game-winner for Gig Harbor against White River. Photo by Bryce Carithers

Peninsula wins district swimming title

The Peninsula Seahawks backed up their Puget Sound League swimming championship with their first-ever district title at the Mount Tahoma pool on Oct. 31.

Peninsula head coach Hunter Hobbs was walking on water after his Seahawks scored 291 points to defeat second-place Gig Harbor, who had 247 points.

The Peninsula High swimming and diving team. Photo courtesy of Hunter Hobbs

The Seahawks set the tone with a win in the first race, the 200-yard medley relay, and didn’t surrender the lead the rest of the way.

Seahawk star Lee Gjertson won the 200-yard and 100-yard freestyle individual titles and joined Boe Ballard, Leila Roddy and Reese Miller to win the 200 freestyle relay.

Ballard put the Mazzarati in reverse to win the 100-yard backstroke by just .60 of a second. Roddy, Miller, Steffi Delacruz and Bianca Henderson capped the event with a win in the 400-yard freestyle relay.

Gig Harbor sophomore Jane Jackman, the reigning Class 3A one-meter diving champion, compiled 423 points to earn her second district title.

Both teams advanced to the girls Class 3A state championships, Nov. 13 and 14 at the King County Aquatic Center in Federal Way.

GH water polo in state semis

Second-seeded Gig Harbor (9-3) advanced to the semifinals of the Division One boys water polo state tournament with an 11-3 win over Shorewood at Curtis High School on Thursday, Nov. 12.

“Goalie Sam Petrie and forward Joel Carpmail played out of their minds. It was so fun to watch,” Tides coach Alana Ponce said.

The Gig Harbor water polo team. Photo courtesy of Alana Ponce

The Tides face Bainbridge Island at 6:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 13, at Curtis High School for a spot in the state championship game. The title game is at 7 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 14.

Peninsula won the Division Two water polo league championship with a 14-0 record. The Seahawks beat Auburn Riverside, 22-10, at state before falling to Newport and Puyallup in subsequent matches.

The Peninsula High School boys water polo team. Photo courtesy of Ben Douglas

Peninsula’s Ghazaryan wins district singles title

Gig Harbor finished 11-1 in Puget Sound League boys tennis action and nearly defeated league unbeaten Bellarmine before falling, 3-2, back in September. Tides players — two singles players and three doubles teams — went a combined 44-11 in league matches.

The top doubles team of twin sophomores Avery and Holling Svabenik won the PSL championship and finished fourth at the District 3 tournament. The Svabeniks qualified for the Class 3A state tournament in the spring.

David Ghazaryan of Peninsula takes the court during a match earlier this season. Photo courtesy of PHS tennis

David Ghazaryan of Peninsula won league and district titles this fall, including not dropping a set in the PSL tournament.

Ghazaryan, who plays with plenty of passion and has a big looping forehand, won the PSL championship with a 6-4, 6-2 win over No. 1 seed Joshua Hulbert of Bellarmine. He finally dropped a set in the district final against William Stuenkel of Enumclaw, but prevailed 6-1, 1-6, 6-2.

GH volleyball at districts

Gig Harbor (12-6) finished fifth and Peninsula (5-11) eighth in the PSL volleyball standings. The stacked league features four teams in the top 15 of the Class 3A RPI rankings.

The Tides began their postseason by splitting their first two district tournament games: A 3-1 win over Decatur (25-20, 23-25, 25-18, 25-20) and a 3-1 loss to sixth-ranked Central Kitsap.

Gig Harbor faces Lincoln in a loser-out game at noon Saturday, Nov. 14, at Mount Tahoma. The Tides need to win that game and one more to advance to the Class 3A state tournament on Nov. 20 and 21 at the Yakima Valley SunDome.

Piper Costa-Hodskins of Gig Harbor with a spike during a game earlier this season. Photo by Bryce Carithers