Lacrosse-Washtucna In Reclassification Purgatory
8-man football
Like most small towns, LaCrosse and Washtucna have been accused of being in the middle of nowhere.
When it comes to football, the LaCrosse-Washtucna Tigercats literally are in the middle of nowhere.
With all the restructuring of classifications among Washington high schools, 8-man football took a hit. L-W took a sucker punch.
Eight-man football is for schools with an enrollment (counted last fall) of 100 or less in the four high school grades. LaCrosse and Washtunca combined for 102 - counting two foreign exchange students who were not eligible because of the transfer rules and are now long gone away.
However, after the communities debated the situation, the decision was made to continue to play 8-man. The executive board of the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association listened and said the Tigercats could stay 8-man, but they couldn’t participate in the playoffs.
“They’re taking something away from the kids,” football coach Jeff Nelson said. “We don’t know if we’re considered in the league or an independent team. We don’t know if we’re up for the league championship, if we can receive all-conference awards.”
It was hard for coaches and parents to chart a course that didn’t include playoffs, but they believe they did it for the right reasons.
“We don’t have the numbers to play 11-man football, as far as football players,” Nelson said. “We have 22 turning out this year and every year there’s going to be a few kids injured. We only have one senior. It was in the best interests of the kids… . . Everyone backed the safety issue.”
To make up for the postseason blues, L-W scheduled league favorite Colton twice. Rosalia should also be a tough test.
“We feel Colton is one of the better teams in the state,” Nelson said. “If we can beat them or play them close, we know we could have had a shot… . Every game is their (players’) playoff game.”
At first, some of the players didn’t want to play because they had nothing to play for, but now they’ve taken an, “Us against the world,” attitude, Nelson said.
“Now they’re playing because football is fun.”
Planning ahead
When the 8-man ranks were thinned through reclassification, Duane Gatlin didn’t waste any time lining up games.
“That is one of the things we were concerned with,” the Inchelium coach said. “When I started filling the schedule, I jumped on whatever teams were open on those days.”
The Hornets got just what they needed - besides a full slate of games. They hit the road, giving themselves a chance to spend a little time together, and get tested.
They’re headed to Jubilee Academy, a new 8-man school east of Pasco, then head south again to face Rosalia. They finally get a home game the third week, against LaCrosse-Washtucna.
The Hornets need that kind of challenge because they’re young. Ten seniors - a huge class by 8-man standards - graduated from last year’s playoff team. This year, eighth graders help provide depth.
“I think (the league) is going to be a lot tougher,” Gatlin said. “When you graduate 10 players and you only carried about 16 players on the squad… . We’re going to be young. It’s going to be pretty tough, we’re all going to be biting and scratching to get one of those two (playoff) spots.”
Most everyone else in the league returns more experience, but few have had the success of the Hornets. However, anyone could grab the second spot, or steal the first.
But Gatlin has expectations, which show on the schedule. The games against the SEB-8 teams don’t count, until the playoffs.
“I’m anticipating, because we’re young and the other teams have experience, it’s going to be tough,” he said. “How we compare with the Southeast, I don’t know. That’s why I scheduled them.”
, DataTimes