Ilwaco vs. Warrenton, 7 pm, Thursday, Nov. 3, Peterson Field, Ilwaco, Wa.
Despite playing one heck of a game last week, the Ilwaco Fishermen (3-6) were shutout 14-0 and in turn, shut out of the district playoffs. The Ilwaco defense was outstanding and kept it to a one score game till the fourth quarter. The Fishermen offense just couldn't get any traction and was held scoreless for the third time this season — interestingly enough, two of the Fishermen's wins have been been shutouts as well.
Despite all that, and whether or not they come through on Thursday night, the Fishermen still have to take pride in what has been their most successful season since 2007. But before they move on to wrestling, hoops, or whatever, they get to lace'em up one more time for the home fans.
The Fishermen will end their season with what is essentially an exhibition game against Warrenton (4-5) who also missed the playoffs this year. The Warriors come in having lost their last two games — 62-0 to league champ Rainier, and a 12-0 loss last week to lowly Corbett Charter. The Fishermen and Warriors have nearly identical numbers — Ilwaco has scored 131 points, Warrenton 135, while IHS has given up 230 to the Warriors 255.
Nothing on the line but pride, this should be a fun one, even if it is in the rain (which it looks like it will be...)
Don't forget to check back for photo galleries from both games this week
Naselle vs. Wahkiakum, 7 pm, Saturday, Nov. 5, Pentilla Field, Naselle, Wa. — District crossover playoff game
This one's a big one. Winner goes to the 2B state playoffs, loser goes home. And if Naselle (9-0) is the winner they get the top seed on the western side of the bracket. Pretty good stakes, huh? Oh, did I mention the team coming into Pentilla Field is the hated Wahkiakum Mules?
So, what do we know about Wahkiakum (4-4)?
Well, when last seen on the field — two weeks ago — they destroyed Raymond, 40-7. It was their first win against a team with a winning record this season — the Mules went 0-4 against Adna, Morton/White Pass, Napavine and Toutle Lake, all of which finished ahead of them in the standings. However, despite losing 23-12 to Napavine in their second to last game, the Mules played a very tough game against a very good Tigers team. They had a similar result when losing 26-21 to Toutle Lake. In both cases key turnovers were the Mules downfall. Wyatt Parker is the Mules main offensive threat, he runs for a ton of yards and has scored more than his fair share of TDs this year. He's joined in the back field by Cole Bergseng and QB Lars Blix, who has put up some pretty respectable passing stats this year. Their defense is hard-hitting and gave up an average of only 15.8 ppg.
Fact is, the Mules are a pretty good team that happens to be in a league with four teams ranked in the top 10 in the state this year, and should not be overlooked.
Not that the Comets will. In fact, I bet they've been hankering for a chance to play a good team for weeks (like nine?).
The AP voters finally got a clue this week and voted Naselle #2 in the final poll of the regular season. The jury is still out though on them voting the 5-3 Toutle Lake into the #10 spot — Reardon, Warden, White Swan, Oroville, Brewster, Valley and Raymond all have better numbers and records and are not in the top 10.
You gotta figure that unlike pretty much every game they've played this year, this game will likely not be over by halftime. Coach Jeff Eaton admitted after last weeks win — where he had some starters on the bench midway through the second quarter — that their biggest question mark is whether his team can play a full game, as in all four quarters. I don't think a single starting varsity player has put in a single minute in a fourth quarter so far.
But the fact is they haven't had to. They have been so very good on both sides of the ball that their players are well rested and recuperated. In fact, I don't know of a single player coming in with an injury. Even Ryley Queener should be 100% for this one.
And what's more, we haven't even seen the full arsenal. The Comets have not run a full playbook probably all year. One week they beat you one way, next week they beat you another way. Imagine when they throw it all at you?
The first round of the playoffs have been the bug-a-boo for the Comets the last two seasons, losing to Adna 21-0 in last year's district crossover playoff, and 42-8 to Tacoma Baptist the year before. But despite all of their accomplishments this year — perfect record, league title, top scoring team in the state at 2B — they don't seem to have let it go to their heads. This seems like a pretty down to earth team, very business-like in a way. Let's see if they can take care of business Saturday night.
Pigsskin Pick'em
Well, looks like my luck is running out, 1-1 again last week, 14-3 this year
W- Naselle vs. Wahkiakum
Comets get that first round monkey off their backs, but it probably won't be easy
W- Ilwaco vs. Warrenton
Just like the Fishermen, I'm going down swinging, picking them for the third week in a row. This is the one!
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