Gonzaga Prep, ACH, Northwest Christian in playoff semfinals Saturday

Perhaps it’s a given when football teams reach the state semifinal round.

It’s certainly true for Gonzaga Prep, Northwest Christian and Almira/Coulee-Hartline. They face the best teams they’ve played this season on Saturday.

For the area teams to move on to state championship games, they’ll have to play better than they’ve played this season. Anything less and their deep playoff runs conclude.

All three teams travel with Gonzaga Prep (12-0) taking on Richland (11-1) and ACH (11-1) facing Liberty Christian (12-0) as part of a doubleheader at Edgar Brown Stadium in Pasco and NWC (10-2) meeting Okanogan (11-1) in Moses Lake.

G-Prep and ACH face rematches of season openers.

Richland and G-Prep bring defenses that were top-ranked in their conferences.

“We have to hit them hard and hit them a lot,” G-Prep’s defensive most valuable player Evan Weaver said. “We want to do it for a full game. We haven’t done it for a full game but we’re capable.”

G-Prep didn’t allow Richland an offensive touchdown in the opener. But then, the Bombers didn’t feature 6-foot-3, 245-pound Lakota Wills in the backfield. Wills, who is headed to the Air Force Academy, was named the Mid-Columbia Conference’s MVP.

Wills has become what Evan Weaver has evolved into in terms of an offensive weapon. In the Bombers’ 28-23 win over Moses Lake last week, Wills rushed for 121 yards on 22 carries including a 72-yard TD.

Richland coach Mike Neidhold called Moses Lake the best team the Bombers had played in the playoffs to this point.

The teams’ offenses weren’t as dominant in early September but they’ve proven more than adequate.

G-Prep offensive coordinator Bob Cassano knows the Bullpups offense faces its most difficult test of the season.

“They’re big, physical and they are very sound,” Cassano said of the Bombers defense. “They don’t do a lot of stunting or blitzing. They just rely on sound technique. We’re going to have our hands full up front to make some holes for our runners.”

ACH is looking forward to seeing how much it has improved since a 66-42 loss to No. 1-ranked Liberty Christian.

“We’re hoping we’ve close the gap,” ACH coach Brandon Walsh said. “And they have to be better. They’ve been playing three months just like us. I just hope they haven’t improved as much as we have.”

Walsh knows what to expect. The Warriors will get a full serving of quarterback John Lesser.

“We’re playing a known entity,” Walsh said. “A lot of times you don’t get a second chance like this in a season.”

For NWC, there’s much satisfaction to be in the semifinals in just its third year playing football. But the Crusaders aren’t content.

NWC is known as a basketball school. And four of the Crusaders’ five returning starters in basketball are starting on the football team.

But they don’t want to start playing basketball just yet.