Community Sports
Sports Beat: Peninsula squeeks past Gig Harbor on volleyball court
The Peninsula Seahawk volleyball team (7-1, 6-1 South Sound Conference) got all they could handle from a Gig Harbor team (7-3, 5-2) that held late leads in the fourth and fifth sets. But the experienced Seahawks held on and closed out the Tides with an intense, 3-2 victory on Thursday, Oct. 5, at Gig Harbor High School.
The Seahawks jumped out to an early lead thanks to 6-foot-2 inch junior Ziah Sneva, who spiked the ball during the opening rally for a winner and roofed a Tides outside hitter a couple plays later.
Gig Harbor seemed to feel Sneva’s presence, as the Tides hit several spikes high or long. Peninsula’s Mackenna Moloznik was diving to floor to extend rallies and by the time the Tides’ nerves had settled, the Seahawks were well on their way to a 25-14 opening-set victory.
The Peninsula High volleyball team after a 3-2 win over Gig Harbor High. Photo courtesy Peninsula volleyball
Tides win second and third sets
Gig Harbor coach Slade Klein calmed and encouraged his team at the break and the effects showed. They also set balls away from Sneva, with senior Natalie Piasecki hammering a kill down the line and sophomore Hannah Artman serving several low liners for five straight points. Another Tide sophomore stepped into the spotlight when Maggie Maharry got three successive kills for an 23-12 lead.
Seahawk senior Evalyn Sutherland had Peninsula’s play of the night when she did her best Wonder Woman impression by returning two straight bullets with one waving wrist to win the point. But the Tides finished the second set on top 25-14.
The third set was back-and-forth. Peninsula’s 6-foot sophomore, Emma Young, asserted herself in the middle and sophomore Kate Cardinal was running down everything.
Gig Harbor setter Lydia Ward was placing balls perfectly and had the Tides’ play of the night when she ran backward to get to a ball and instead of setting it she slapped a no look liner down the line for a winner. Meanwhile, Maharry was on fire. She continued to crank cross-court winners and ended the third set with a blast to win it, 25-20.
Gig Harbor junior setter Lydia Ward surrounded by her Gig Harbor teammates. Photo by Bryce Carithers
Peninsula rallies in fourth
Peninsula jumped out to an early lead in the fourth set with precision passing and tough digs. But the Tides stormed back with inspired play from Payton Heim, who had several impressive serves. Ward made a couple more circus shots and the Tides were a few points away from winning the match at 23-20 when Peninsula coach Katrina Cardinal called timeout.
“Coach emphasized that whoever has the most heart will win that set,” Sutherland said, “and we came out with a never-give-up attitude.”
Some sports don’t require a finish. If you have a big lead, you can just run the clock out.
But volleyball, much like tennis, doesn’t have a time constraint. In order to win you have to get the final points in crunch time, and that’s where Peninsula’s experience showed. They chased everything down and benefitted from some errant Tide serves. The Seahawks went back to Sneva, whose spike gave Peninsula a 25-23 fourth-set victory.
A dramatic final set
The fifth set is played to 15 points and Gig Harbor got halfway there, leading 8-4. Then Moloznik set some beauties from tough angles and the Seahawks climbed back to 8-8. The Seahawks took the lead on junior Julia Epstein’s blast down the middle.
The Tides weren’t done, either. Piasecki, Artman and Maharry each got kills to retake the lead. By this time the fans were on the edge of their seats and their fingernails were gone. Each time it looked like the Tides had a point, Sutherland and the Seahawks’ back line kept the ball in play, leading to a Seahawks score.
Sneva and senior Avary Young got a few decisive points down the stretch. Sneva’s final kill down the middle won it 15-13 for Peninsula in thrilling fashion.
Fans from both teams stood to applaud all the participants as they were all treated to a fantastic game that many won’t soon forget. The respect from both teams was evident afterwards as both teams congratulated each other with sincerity and class.
“I am so proud and fired up for our team” Sutherland said “I love Peninsula volleyball and feel lucky to be a part of this program. That was a huge win for us.”
The rematch between the two teams promises to be an intense one. It will be played Nov. 1 at Peninsula.
Peninsula football seeks third straight win
Peninsula (2-3, 2-1) battered two South Sound Conference foes in impressive fashion the past two weeks, a 48-10 road victory over North Thurston on Sept. 22 and a 45-0 pasting of River Ridge at home Sept. 29.
After losing a tough Fish Bowl, the Seahawks have rebounded nicely to remain in league contention. Games against formidable opponents Timberline (3-2, 2-1 before its Oct. 6 game) and Yelm (5-0, 3-0) remain on the schedule.
The Seahawks have a balanced attack but have done most of their damage on the ground. Senior running back Conner Burton, perhaps the best running back in the league, exploded for 144 yards and four touchdowns against North Thurston. Junior wideout Hayden Bundy led the receivers with 57 yards and a touchdown in the blowout win over the Rams.
Against River Ridge, Burton romped for 135 yards and five touchdowns on just 18 carries. Running back Landon Watson also had a fine effort with 62 yards and a touchdown on eight carries.
Peninsula linebacker Wyatt Abrigo against North Thurston.
Quarterback Mana Smythe was efficient against the Hawks, completing 12 of 18 passes for 185 yards while finding senior Henry Ganisin six times for 110 yards.
Defensively, the Seahawks allow an average of just 15 points per game in league play. Linebacker Wyatt Abrigo, a tackling machine, leads the Seahawks with 28 tackles and nine assists; he also has five sacks, nine tackles for loss and a fumble return for a touchdown.
The Seahawks look for their third straight win at 7 p.m. tonight, Oct. 6, against Central Kitsap (1-4, 0-3) at Roy Anderson Field.
Tides put up 59 in win at River Ridge
The Gig Harbor (5-1, 4-0) offense was in high gear on Thursday, Oct. 5, throttling the River Ridge Hawks 59-12 in Lacey.
Quarterback Benji Park threw for 318 yards and six touchdown passes. Aidan Fink caught five of those passes for 173 yards and two touchdowns while leading his team with five tackles. Senior wideout Drake Matthies added six catches for 92 yards and three touchdowns.
The Tides were coming off an impressive 17-14 win over a talented and physical Timberline team on Sept. 29. Against the Blazers, Park rallied his team with a 16-yard touchdown pass to Matthew Ehler with less than a minute remaining.
The Gig Harbor defense allowed only 77 yards in the Timberline win.
The wins over Timberline and River Ridge set up a possible regular season-ending showdown for a conference title against Yelm on Oct. 27. First the Tides must win home games against North Thurston (2-3, 0-3) on Oct. 13 and Central Kitsap (1-4, 0-3) on Oct. 20.
Gig Harbor senior wideout Aidan Fink, shown in a game earlier this year, had 173 yards and two touchdowns versus River Ridge. Photo by Christi Adams
Lineup shuffle helps GH win tennis contest
Gig Harbor tennis (9-1) climbed back into a share of the conference lead with a 3-2 victory over Central Kitsap on Sept. 28. Tides coach Lorrie Wood did what she needed to do after watching her two top singles players lose decisively to two undefeated Cougars players in a 4-1 CK victory on Sept. 11.
High school tennis contests consist of each team playing two singles matches and three doubles matches. Teams receive a point for each match won. Instead of placing her singles players in matches they may lose she made them her first doubles team and placed Colin Nelson and Chase Horracks in the singles spots. The 6-foot-6 Nelson won three games with his big serve but ultimately lost 1-6, 2-6 to Marcus Brotsky, the conference’s top player.
The crafty coach Wood was well within the rules and gave her team a chance to win, which they did when all three doubles teams were victorious.
Hugh Vicente and Rylan Coovert, a state-qualifing team from last season, won 6-1, 6-3. The second doubles team of Jonah Eilers and Luke Jolibois continued their conference unbeaten streak with a 6-3, 6-4 victory that coach Wood described as “a real battle.” And the third doubles team of Braden Smee and Parker Bare finished out the victory with a 6-1, 6-0 win to put the Tides in a share of first place with the Cougars and another chance at a SSC title for the Tides.
Tides junior Hugh Vicente prepares to kick serve for Gig Harbor. Photo by Dennis Browne