The state tournament will officially get underway on Friday night and the seeding committee clearly wanted one more installment of a classic Thurston County rivalry.
With three area teams in 12-team fields getting byes into the quarterfinals, it provides a chance for a couple to fine-tune things and potentially spring an upset next week.
Here is a capsule glance at the five games taking place on Friday and Saturday to open the state playoffs.
Class 2A Round of 16: No. 16 Black Hills (6-4) at No. 1 Tumwater (10-0), 6 p.m.
For the second time in four weeks, the two programs that share Tumwater District Stadium will tangle in the most high-stakes Pioneer Bowl to date. The Wolves used a game-winning fourth quarter drive to upset Selah in the Round of 32 last week. EDGE rusher Caden Murphy sits at 11 tackles for loss and five sacks while Jesse Keith and James Ross IV each are two rushing scores away from double figures. Tumwater destroyed Chief Sealth 49-0 last week and were awarded the number one overall seed. Quarterback Jake Reid is two TDs away from tying Matt Reaser for third most passing scores in a single season. The T-Birds won the regular season meeting versus Black Hills 67-6 in a short week to boot.
Class 2A Round of 16: No. 11 Burlington-Edison (8-2) vs. No. 6 W.F. West (9-1) at Tiger Stadium, 7 p.m.
The Bearcats responded after suffering their first loss of the season in an emphatic way by putting up 75 points to blow by Bremerton in the Round of 32. Holden Kunz, Wyatt Hoffman, Jalen Amoroso and Reece Marquez all had multiple touchdowns in the victory; Marquez brought back a pair of interceptions to the house. W.F. West is trying to avoid a second straight loss in the Round of 16. Burlington-Edison out of the Northwest Conference finished third, including picking up a forfeit win over Archbishop Murphy. The Tigers have played with fire a handful of times, winning three times by a score, which included an overtime win over Sultan. They have just 10 seniors on the varsity roster.
Class 2B State Round of 12: No. 10 Liberty (7-3) vs. No. 7 Napavine (7-3) at Tiger Stadium, Saturday, 1 p.m.
Perhaps no team needed a complete game like the Tigers did in a crossover contest last week, putting up double digits points in the opening quarter and posting their second shutout of the season. Napavine’s Beckett Landram was responsible for all four touchdowns last Friday and the defensive line posted one of their best games with constant pressure. Napavine hasn’t gone one-and-done in the state tournament since 2012. Liberty upended Newport 28-13 in a crossover to clinch its berth into the 12-team field. The Lancers have a freshman quarterback in Bret Smith that sits at 2,299 yards and 17 touchdowns and his two options Drew Piersol plus Parker Myers each are over 600 receiving yards. These two sides met in the 2016 state championship, won by Napavine.
Class 1B State Round of 16: No. 13 Morton (7-2) at No. 4 DeSales (7-2), Saturday, 1 p.m.
The Huskies first state tournament game in 8-man football will have them trek east to Walla Walla and take on the Fighting Irish in a weekend matinee. Morton has put up 65-plus in each of the last two weeks, powered by the duo of Logan Mays and Liam Pelletier. Mays has 29 rushing touchdowns on the year and Pelletier is six yards away from 1,400 on the season. Four different players have recorded double digit tackles for loss and they’ve recovered 24 fumbles this season. DeSales’ two losses are to the top-two seeds in the bracket, Almira Coulee Hartline and Liberty Christian, but it has not lost at home so far. Fighting Irish quarterback Cohen Wood has 26 total touchdowns to just one interception. Hudson Hall leads DeSales with 58 total tackles and 10 tackles for loss.
Class 1A Round of 12: No. 12 Tenino (8-2) vs. No. 5 Mt. Baker (7-3) at Nooksack Valley HS, Saturday, 4 p.m.
For the second straight year, the Beavers are the final seed in the 12-team field and will attempt to spring an upset versus the Mountaineers. Tenino has triumphed four weeks in a row, the latest a 19-0 victory over Riverside for its first shutout of the season. Parker Minerich scored twice, but the defense was the calling card with three stops inside the Beavers own 10-yard line. The winner of this game gets No. 4 Rochester in the quarters. Two of Mt. Baker’s three losses are to Onalaska and Lynden Christian, both top-three seeds in their respective classifications. It has not eclipsed 14 points in its losses, but the wins have featured 30-plus points in six of the seven contests.
