Today (9/25): EvCo leading Cougars face Bearcats
Girl’s soccer
Timberline vs. Gig Harbor – South Sound Stadium – 5:00 PM
North Thurston vs. Shelton – South Sound Stadium – 7:00 PM
Capital vs. WF West – Ingersoll Stadium – 7:00 PM
Black Hills @ River Ridge – The RAC – 5:00 PM
High school volleyball
River Ridge @ Black Hills – Black Hills HS – 7:00 PM
Northwest Christian vs. Willapa Valley – Northwest Christian HS – 7:00 PM
Monday scoreboard: Bears, Blazers, Rams wins set up big Wednesday matches
High school volleyball
Olympia 3, Yelm 0 (25-8, 25-13, 25-21)
Timberline 3, Mount Tahoma 0 (25-15, 25-13, 25-17)
North Thurston 3, Lincoln 0 (25-15, 25-15, 25-5)
Hannah Adams and Rachel Kelson had nine and seven kills respectively and Kayla Challer racked up 26 assists to lead Olympia to a straight sets win over winless Yelm. With the win, the Bears move to 4-1 in the 4A Narrows League, one game behind Bellarmine. The Bears host Bellarmine on Wednesday at 7:00 PM.
Timberline continued to roll through 3A Narrows League competition getting 18 kills from Riley Podowicz and 40 assists from Hunter Manke in a 3-0 win over Mount Tahoma. Meanwhile, North Thurston easily took care of Lincoln behind eight Brittany Rutherford kills. The Blazers and Rams both move to 5-0 in the 3A Narrows League setting up a match for first place on Wednesday when the Rams travel to Timberline at 7:00 PM.
Oly Sports high school football power rankings: Shakeup!
The Rams dominated Lincoln and jump to the #1 spot
Big shakeup in the Oly Sports power rankings as previous #1 Capital lost to Tumwater in double overtime, North Thurston dominated Lincoln in Tacoma and the battle of the unbeatens went convincingly to Shelton. So where does everybody end up? Let’s check out my highly unscientific look at where the 12 Olympia area football programs stand, in my (not so expert) opinion…
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1. North Thurston Rams (4-0)
Last week: #3 (+2)
Previous game: North Thurston 36, Lincoln 7
Next game: vs. Wilson (2-2) – South Sound Stadium – Saturday, 7:00 PM
Notes: The Rams jump to the top spot after a dominating performance over the previously unbeaten Lincoln Abes at Lincoln Bowl in Tacoma. The Abes had scored 138 points in three games but the Rams’ stout defense held them scoreless until the very end of the game. The Rams have now given up just 42 points through four games, lowest in both the 3A and 4A Narrows League, and host a struggling Wilson Rams team on Saturday night.
2. Tenino Beavers (4-0)
Last week: #2 (No change)
Previous game: Tenino 28, Elma 12
Next game: @ Rainier (0-4) – Rainier HS – Friday, 7:00 PM
Notes: The high powered Beavers ran into a tough Forks defense that limited them to just two offensive touchdowns, so it was Tenino’s defense that stepped up and took two Spartans passes to the house. Devante Harris did the damage on offense again going for 233 yards and two touchdowns from Mac Shaw. Expect more from the Beavers this week when they try to spoil 0-4 Rainier’s homecoming.
3. Shelton Highclimbers (4-0)
Last week: #4 (+1)
Previous game: Shelton 38, Yelm 14
Next game: vs. Foss (1-2) – Highclimber Stadium – Friday, 7:00 PM
Notes: Ralph Kinne was ridiculous rushing for another 274 yards and five touchdowns (four rushing and one kickoff return) but the Shelton defense deserves just as much credit for containing the Yelm Tornadoes rushing attack in the Highclimbers’ 38-14 win in Yelm. They surrendered a 65 yard run by Kyle Brownell on the first play of the game but bottled up Yelm’s all-time leading rusher, Jacob Swilley. Swilley did finish with 92 yards and a touchdown late in the game, but Yelm stayed home on the fakes and misdirections and limited the big plays.
4. Tumwater T-Birds (3-1)
Last week: #6 (+2)
Previous game: Tumwater 35, Capital 28 – 2OT
Next game: vs. WF West (3-1) – Tumwater Stadium – Friday, 7:00 PM
Notes: Wow. If you have not seen how Tumwater tied their game against Capital on Satruday night, go to this video and scroll to the 5:40 mark and watch Jayden Croft just throw a jump ball with his back turned to Jamie Bryant for the two-point conversion. It is both the smartest and stupidest play I think I have ever seen. Ridiculous. And Tumwater took that tie and scored twice in overtime to knock off the #1 team in the state and take an early lead in the 2A EvCo. Winners of three straight, the T-Birds schedule is very favorable if they can get a homecoming win over WF West on Friday.
5. Timberline Blazers (3-1)
Last week: #7 (+2)
Previous game: Timberline 48, Wilson 20
Next game: vs. Lincoln (3-1) – South Sound Stadium – Friday, 7:00 PM
Notes: Spencer Crump scored four times and the Blazers took a 48-7 lead over Wilson before surrendering a couple garbage time touchdowns. And with Tumwater’s shocker over Capital, Timberline’s loss to the T-Birds two weeks ago doesn’t look nearly as bad as it did. But they will get an angry Lincoln Abes team on Friday night in a game that could be a bit of a trap for the T-Birds. I expect a barn burner.
6. Capital Cougars (3-1)
Last week: #1 (-5)
Previous game: Tumwater 35, Capital 28 – 2OT
Next game: @ Centralia (0-4) – Tiger Stadium, Centralia – Friday, 7:00 PM
Notes: It’s hard to drop the Cougars this far in the rankings considering how they lost and I expect we’ll see them rise quickly again, but the loss to Tumwater was shocking considering how they played against three straight 4A schools to open the season. They should get right this weekend against 0-4 Centralia.
7. River Ridge Hawks (3-1)
Last week: #8 (+1)
Previous game: River Ridge 28, Hockinson 14
Next game: vs. Black Hills (3-1) – South Sound Stadium – Thursday, 7:00 PM
Notes: Brad Wallace scored twice and Wesley Coats caught a touchdown from Colby Shultz and River Ridge won their third straight knocking off previously unbeaten Hockinson in a battle of Hawks in Brush Prairie. Since they were shutout by Timberline in their opener, the Wolves have put 123 points on the board. Next up: a homecoming 2A EvCo opener against 3-1 Black Hills on Thursday night.
8. Black Hills Wolves (3-1)
Last week: #9 (+1)
Previous game: Black Hills 27, Aberdeen 6
Next game: @ River Ridge (3-1) – South Sound Stadium – Thursday, 7:00 PM
Notes: Aberdeen got on the board first after a scoreless first quarter, but the Wolves scored 27 unanswered thanks to touchdowns by four different rushers including an 81 yard scamper by Shayne Robinson and a 77 yard run by Jesse Perkinson. Like River Ridge, Black Hills has played well against everybody that isn’t in the 3A Narrows League. They were shutout by North Thurston for their only loss of the season.
9. Yelm Tornadoes (3-1)
Last week: #5 (-4)
Previous game: Shelton 38, Yelm 14
Next game: @ Central Kitsap (3-1) – Silverdale Stadium – Friday, 7:00 PM
Notes: Yelm couldn’t stop Shelton’s Ralph Kinne nor could they move the ball against Shelton’s defense. Yes Yelm is 3-1 and sit at 1-0 in the 4A Narrows, but those three wins came over 0-4 Highline, 1-3 Olympic and 1-3 Stadium and they wilted against a bigger, stronger, faster Highclimbers team. I worry about Yelm the rest of the way but they could answer my concerns with a win over 3-1 Central Kitsap on Friday night.
10. Olympia Bears (1-3)
Last week: #11 (+1)
Previous game: Olympia 54, Stadium 7
Next game: @ South Kitsap (3-1) – SK Stadium, Port Orchard – Friday, 7:00 PM
Notes: Olympia broke out and broke out in a big way. But the win came against a struggling Stadium squad so it’s really hard to tell what the win means in the big picture. The Bears next get a 3-1 South Kitsap team whose only loss came to Bellarmine last week.
11. Rochester Warriors (1-3)
Last week: #10 (-1)
Previous game: Hoquiam 54, Rochester 7
Next game: vs. Elma (1-3) – Rochester HS – Friday, 7:00 PM
Notes: Hoquiam is really good. What else can you say about the Warriors’ loss? Next they get 1-3 Elma who waxed Rainier on Friday night to pick up their first win.
12. Rainier Mountaineers (0-4)
Last week: #12 (No change)
Previous game: Elma 47, Rainier 15
Next game: vs. Tenino (4-0) – Rainier HS – Friday, 7:00 PM
Notes: Oh boy, poor Rainier. With the big loss to Elma, the Mountaineers have now been outscored 180-33 in four games. And it doesn’t get any easier with Tenino coming to town for homecoming on Friday night.
Tonight (9/24): Blazers volleyball hosts Mount Tahoma
Girl’s volleyball
Timberline vs. Mount Tahoma – Timberline HS – 7:00 PM
Get your homecoming on
Twitter follower @TimBallard asked tonight…
And I had to say no, not yet. But after a quick look around, I now have that homecoming football game list…
River Ridge – September 27th – vs. Black Hills
Rainier – September 28th – vs. Tenino
Shelton – September 28th – vs. Foss
Olympia – October 5th – vs. Central Kitsap
Black Hills – October 5th – vs. WF West
Tumwater – October 12th – vs. Centralia
North Thurston – October 19th – vs. Timberline
Capital – October 26th – vs. River Ridge
Timberline – October 26th – vs. Shelton
Rochester – October 26th – vs. Tenino
And he is right, homecoming games are always great events to attend. We called the game at Yelm and were blown away with everything that they did, including fireworks at halftime. And in Tenino, the marching band went Gangnam Style.
Notes: Tenino and Yelm have already played their homecoming games. Also, how about poor Rainier and Rochester scheduling Tenino for their homecoming games? And does it get any better than a rivalry homecoming game between two really good teams? North Thurston and Timberline is going to be a great one.
Sunday scoreboard: Oly Rollers win west; Strayer goal lifts Saints
Roller derby
Photo credit: @OlyRollers
Oly Rollers 168, Denver 161
Despite suffering nearly crippling penalties with just minutes left to play in the bout and a hostile crowd at the Craneway Pavilion in Richmond, California, the #4 seed Oly Rollers held off the #2 seed Denver Derby Dolls 168-161 to win the WFTDA west region championship for the third time in four years. Denver’s Sandrine Rangeon narrowed Oly’s lead to 164-159 with just 1:59 left to play but Oly’s On Da Sligh and Denver’s Heather Juska went scoreless in the next jam before Atomatix won the lead jammer and ran out the clock in the bout’s final jam.
Denver led 34-15 ten minutes into the bout and a 19-0 jam for Hearher Juska increased the Denver lead to 53-24. But Atomatrix and On Da Sligh answered with 14-0 and 20-0 jams and Oly scored 51 unanswered points to take a 75-53 lead and eventually took an 88-77 point lead into halftime.
After falling behind 104-89 early in the second half, Denver tied the bout 108-108 with about twenty minutes left to play and led by nine with twelve minutes left to play. But a 25-0 Atomatrix jam gave turned the half around for Oly and gave them a 152-136 lead that they wouldn’t relinquish.
Both teams move on to the WFTDA Championships in Atlanta beginning on November 2nd. By winning the west region, the Oly Rollers earn a first round bye.
Women’s soccer
Clarissa Strayer talks about her game winning goal
(Saint Martin’s YouTube channel)
Saint Martin’s 2, Western Oregon 1 – Recap from SMUSaints.com
A Clarissa Strayer header found the back of the net with just 50 seconds left to play to give Saint Martin’s a 2-1 GNAC win over Western Oregon at the SMU Soccer Field. The Saints fell behind early when Kymberly Witmer scored in the 12th minute for the Wolves. But the Saints cut the lead when Wolves goalkeeper Kelsey Lindsey mishandled a Sasha Dini cross for an own goal in the 34th minute. Ashley Engel made six saves in goal for Saint Martin’s.
Today (9/23): Saints women host Western Oregon
Women’s soccer
Saint Martin’s vs. Western Oregon – SMU Soccer Field – 1:30 PM
Saturday scoreboard: T-Birds upset Cougars; Oly Rollers advance; Geoducks win fourth straight; All else fall
High school football
Tumwater 35, Capital 28 – 2OT
Roller derby
Oly Rollers 188, Rose City 121 – Recap from Derby News Network
Men’s soccer
Evergreen 2, Warner Pacific 1 – Recap from Evergreen athletics
Northwest Nazarene 3, Saint Martin’s 0 – Recap from SMUSaints.com
Edmonds 3, SPSCC 0 – Box score
Women’s soccer
Westminster 3, Evergreen 2 – Recap from Evergreen athletics
College volleyball
Southern Oregon 3, Evergreen 0 (25-21, 25-11, 25-19) – Recap
Alaska Anchorage 3, Saint Martin’s 0 (25-10, 25-22, 25-15) – Recap
SUNDAY UPDATE
Men’s rugby
Budd Bay Buffaloes 52, Battleground Bulls 0 – Recap from Budd Bay
Today (9/22): Make a day of Oly Sports
Women’s soccer
Evergreen vs. Westminster – Evergreen Pitch – 11:00 AM
Men’s soccer
SPSCC vs. Edmonds CC – The RAC – 2:00 PM
Auto racing
Legends, Street Stocks, Hobby Stocks and Baby Grands – South Sound Speedway – 6:30 PM
College volleyball
Saint Martin’s vs. Alaska Anchorage – Marcus Pavilion – 7:00 PM
Evergreen vs. Southern Oregon – CRC Gymnasium – 7:00 PM
High school football
Tumwater @ Capital – Ingersoll Stadium – 7:00 PM
Bonus 4 year-old daughter pick:
Her pick: Capital Cougars
“Cougars eat birds.”
Friday scoreboard: Oly gets first win, Shelton holds down Yelm, Rams dominate Abes; OIT downs Geoducks; Oly Rollers win playoff opener
High school football
Olympia 54, Stadium 7
Black Hills 27, Aberdeen 6
Timberline 48, Wilson 20
Shelton 38, Yelm 14
North Thurston 36, Lincoln 7
River Ridge 28, Hockinson 14
Tenino 28, Forks 12
Elma 47, Rainier 15
Hoquiam 54, Rochester 7
College volleyball
Oregon Tech 3, Evergreen 1 – Recap from Evergreen athletics
Roller Derby
Oly Rollers 157, Rocky Mountain 92 – Recap from Derby News Network
Oly Sports 