District, regional competitions start next week

The second season begins next week for local high school athletes with the beginning of district and regional competition.

Soccer playoffs start Monday, volleyball on Thursday and state qualifying cross country meets are Friday and Saturday and nearly every Valley team will be involved.

Cross Country

Central Valley’s boys and girls teams are in the running for state berths a year after compiling 5-8 and 4-9 records respectively in the Greater Spokane League.

The boys (9-4 this year) succeeded with inordinate depth to have their first winning record in more than a decade.

They placed fifth overall in the GSL and fourth among 4A teams and in the GSL.

Three teams qualify for state. The third berth, behind state favorites Mead and Ferris, will be between the Bears and Mt. Spokane or maybe Walla Walla from the Big Nine.

CV’s girls (11-2) were part of a three-way tie for second place in league thanks to the return of Anna Layman from injury and addition of several freshman standouts.

Race for four state team berths is up in the air, but the Bears are as good a bet as any.

On Wednesday CV completed its GSL season with a sweep of rival University and Gonzaga Prep. Five Bears boys placed top eight. Winner Sean Coyle beat Titan freshman Anthony Brown and in succession third-place Matt Simpson, fifth place Bryce Aguilar, and seventh place Jayson Taylor alternately placed ahead of their Titan counterparts at the finish. Tyler Sturman took eighth.

CV’s girls had three of the top four finishers to beat U-Hi.

Nick Atwood, who lost only one GSL meet this year, and Tyler Thatcher went one-two for East Valley (4-9), but West Valley (6-7) nipped the Knights 27-30.

WV’s highest finisher, Richard Keroack, was fourth overall in the race at Shadle Park, but the Eagles prevailed with better fourth and fifth runners.

EV’s girls (8-5) finished their best season since the state title years with wins over the Eagles (2-11) and Shadle. Jo E. Mayer took second and WV’s Larsen Agee third individually.

WV’s boys and EV’s boys and girls all have state qualifying potential. Three teams qualify for both boys and girls. North Central boys and girls will be favored, West Valley-Yakima boys and girls and Ellensburg boys are hopefuls from the Mid-Valley Leagues.

Regional races for Freeman and Valley Christian are next Friday with 4A and 3A races on Saturday at Deer Park Golf Course.

Soccer

Circumstances on Wednesday handed University the Greater Spokane League championship and put Central Valley on the cusp of a Monday District 8 4A playoff berth.

The Bears (8-4, 23 points) stunned second-place Gonzaga Prep 1-0 on senior forward Molly Nordstrom‘s goal with 10 minutes to play in the first half.

Loss dropped the Bullpups four points behind University (12-0, 35) with one match remaining. A win is worth three points.

Bears sophomore goalkeeper Mallory Flesher made eight saves in the upset win that tied them for fifth place heading into their season finale Friday at Cheney. Six teams qualify for district.

Meanwhile, Ferris (10-2, 29 points) was beaten 2-1 by Mead, eliminating the Saxons from title contention before Friday’s match with the Titans.

University beat East Valley 2-1 on goals by Rachel Lopez and Tonya Schnibbe. U-Hi plays for the District 8 4A title Wednesday at Spokane Falls Community College.

The Knights (7-5) remain top seed among 3A schools and will play for the district title on Tuesday at SFCC.

Volleyball

University is in, Central Valley is out when district volleyball begins next Thursday.

The Titans (8-5) tied for fifth despite Thursday’s season-ending loss to second-place Lewis and Clark, and will begin District 8 4A play on the road at Shadle Park next week.

The Bears (7-6) were within a point of creating a four-way tie for fourth place when they surrendered eighth straight points and four more in game five of their heartbreaking loss at Mt. Spokane. They finished tied for seventh.

Despite graduating two or three key players each, the future is bright for both teams.

CV graduates standout setter Samantha Kern and Kayla Reilly, who had six kills and nine blocks against Mt. Spokane.

But junior Kristen Telin led the Bears in kills in the match and sophomore Allison Giusti also had a big game. They will head a group of six returnees.

Kara Crisp, making her fourth straight district appearance for U-Hi, is one of five Titans seniors. Five players will return, four of them currently sophomores including major contributors Kasey Jurich and Eileen Chatfield.

East Valley (4-9) finished second among 3A schools and with its victory over West Valley (3-10) on Thursday will play at No. 1 North Central for top seeding to regionals next Saturday.

The Eagles will play Clarkston for a third regional berth.