Playoff Roundup: Bainbridge boys soccer, baseball still seeking state berths
TACOMA -- Typically in the high school sports of boys soccer and baseball, winning three consecutive playoff games is enough to send a team into state tournament play.
That hasn't been the case for Bainbridge High School this spring. The Spartans' boys soccer and baseball programs head into district tournament competition on Saturday still alive for state berths, but there's work to be done. The boys soccer team (17-3) plays a winner-to-state, loser-out West Central/Southwest Bi-District 3A game at 1 p.m. against Auburn Mountainview at Franklin Pierce High School, while the baseball team (19-2) plays Auburn Riverside on the road at 11 a.m. a winner-to-state game. Should the baseball team fall to Auburn Riverside, it has another chance to reach state in a 5 p.m. loser-out game against either Prairie or Kelso.
Got all of that?
Bainbridge's road to state usually wouldn't be so difficult, but the Spartans are paying the price for being the only 3A school in the Olympic League, which features seven other teams, all 2A. Since postseason tournaments are divided up by classification, the boys soccer and baseball teams were added to the West Central/Southwest Bi-District tournaments as extremely low seeds: boys soccer drew the 17th seed despite being an Olympic League co-champion, while baseball took the 15th seed despite winning the Olympic League.
So far, both teams have performed well despite having the odds stacked against them.
Head coach Drew Keller's boys soccer team blanked No. 15 Evergreen of Vancouver 3-0 in a play-in game held in Olympia on May 4, then follow up with shutout road wins against No. 10 Lincoln (4-0) on May 6 and No. 3 Thomas Jefferson (3-0) on May 9. The Spartans dropped a 1-0 game Thursday against Kent Meridian at Stadium Bowl in Tacoma, falling on a penalty kick in the 71st minute.
Keller chalked the result up to having an off-night while navigating a busy schedule, but said Saturday offers a chance at redemption.
"We've earned the right to get that second chance," said Keller, whose team is ranked seventh in the state's 3A Rating Performance Index (RPI) system. "And we've had the longest road to get here."
For baseball, the Spartans topped Mountain View 2-1 in a play-in game held in Tumwater on May 5, then scored road victories against No. 10 Bonney Lake (5-1) on May 9 and No. 2 Kentlake (5-1) on May 10. With two chances to clinch a state berth Saturday, the Spartans are confident of moving forward.
"We've been battle-tested all year," said Bainbridge head coach Geoff Brown, whose Spartans rank third in 3A baseball RPI.
North Kitsap boys soccer reaches district title game
North Kitsap's boys soccer team earned a chance to compete for the West Central/Sea-King Bi-District 2A title with a 2-1 semifinal victory over Sammamish on Thursday in Poulsbo. The No. 2 Vikings (15-1-1) face No. 1 Franklin Pierce at 2 p.m. on Saturday at Integrity Stadium at Olympic High School.
Against No. 3 Sammamish, North Kitsap fell behind 1-0 early in the second half before Aaron Lopez earned a penalty kick that fellow sophomore Hunter Sabari converted to tie the game. With three minutes left in regulation, Lopez sent a through ball to sophomore Lucas Anderson, who converted for the game-winner.
"Was a good game for our young guys," said North Kitsap head coach Greg St. Peter, whose Vikings rank fourth in 2A boys soccer RPI.
Crosspoint baseball secures state berth
Finishing second in the Class B state tournament in 2022, Crosspoint will be returning to state this spring after knocking off Rainier Christian 5-4 in a loser-out Tri-District tournament game Thursday at Lakewood High School. Senior Sam Dykstra plated senior AJ Stevens for the game-winning run for the Warriors (9-7).
In the West Central/Sea-King Bi-District 2A baseball tournament on Saturday, No. 2 North Kitsap takes on No. 6 Fife in a 10 a.m. semifinal game at Central Kitsap High School. Win or lose, the Vikings will play at 4 p.m. The championship game will be at Central Kitsap, while the third/fourth-place game will be at the Fairgrounds. North (14-7) Kitsap already clinched a state tournament berth with a first-round win over Steilacoom.
No. 8 Olympic (12-10) is still alive for a state berth, but must beat No. 5 Port Angeles in a loser-out game Saturday at Foss High School in Tacoma at 4 p.m.
In the West Central District 1A tournament, No. 1 Klahowya (17-2) was scheduled to face No. 2 Bellevue Christian in a winner-to-state game Friday at 5:45 p.m. at Foss High School. If the Eagles lose, they'll play either Cascade Christian or Vashon Island in a winner-to-state contest Saturday at 10 a.m. at Foss.
This article originally appeared on Kitsap Sun: Playoffs: Bainbridge boys soccer, baseball still seeking state berths
