Hounds at home

Great Northern League champ Pullman is relishing the opportunity to open the State 2A football playoffs at home. Because after Friday night, it will be one long road trip if the Greyhounds return to the state title game in Tacoma in December.

Friday night’s game against Connell at Martin Stadium, will be Pullman’s only home game in the playoffs.

“You spend your whole life in a bus when you’re in Pullman,” said second-year coach Bob Wollan, who, in his first year, guided the Greyhounds to the 2A finals.

GNL No. 2 playoff qualifier Colville will only have one home game as well, if it gets past unbeaten East Valley-Yakima (10-0) in Yakima on Friday.

“They are everything you’d expect a No. 1-ranked team to be,” Colville coach Randy Cornwell said of EV. “They’re not terribly big, but have good speed and boy, do they execute really well.”

Michael Corral rushed for 858 yards and 14 touchdowns, Ben Reifel passed for 1,000 yards and 20 more scores, and Matt Snell had 14 more touchdowns for EV.

Pullman (8-1) beat Colville (7-3) for the GNL title and top state seeding, but drew a potent foe in Connell (7-3).

The Eagles finished second in the rugged South Division of the CWAC, losing to division champion EV 27-21.

During four state-qualifying games against teams from the North Division, the South won three. Connell won 51-14, EV won 54-12 and Othello (5-4 and third in the South) beat North co-champion Cashmere 52-7.

Jeff Hawkins leads Connell in rushing with 1,296 yards on 206 carries and 14 touchdowns. In 6-foot-3 quarterback Dan Nance, 6-6 receiver Kris Knight and 6-3 Vard Wells, they have a pass-catch combo that poses problems for the Greyhounds’ secondary.

It doesn’t help that Pullman’s Kyle Hinrichs is out after having broken his arm last month in a game against Lakeside.

“That was a big hit,” said Wollan. “He’s probably the best 2A corner in state and our leading receiver.”

But returning state runner-up Pullman isn’t entering the playoffs empty-handed. In junior backs J.C. Sherritt, the GNL rushing leader with 761 yards and an 8.3 per carry average, and Mike Thomas, 547 yards and a 7.1 average, this year’s Greyhounds have developed a different identity.

“Since week six we’ve been pretty solid offensively, taking advantage of the kids we have,” Wollan said.

Compared with last year, the young Greyhounds, while still speedy, are more physical on both sides of the ball because of an experienced line. The anchors are 6-4, 225-pound Richard Hughes and 185-pound Mike McCain.

They put this year’s formula to the test in hopes of winning, moving on in the playoffs and maybe giving Hinrichs an opportunity to get back on the field.

“That’s a goal, but we would have to play a few more weeks,” said Wollan.

1A: Freeman has yet to qualify for the eight-team state playoffs despite winning the Northeast A League and going unbeaten at 9-0. But the Scotties already drew a tough team, Wahluke (9-2), in a state play-in game on Saturday.

They face Wahluke without standout Kevin Hatch, who broke his collarbone Oct. 22 against Newport.

“He’s our leading rusher, leading scorer, covers a lot of ground on defense and is a team leader,” Freeman coach Jeff Smith said of Hatch.

Wahluke is one of four SCAC teams still vying to reach the tournament and uses numerous players in its attack. Marcos Jimenez was seventh in the SCAC with 754 rushing yards and was fourth in the league in scoring.

“It’s a good team,” said Smith, “a lot quicker than last year and stronger all-around.”

Newport, a 70-7 winner in its preliminary game, is at 10-0 Royal, an offensive juggernaut whose quarterback, Ray Valley, passed for 1,234 yards and 21 touchdowns. Jeff Jack rushed for 1,034 yards, had a total of 30 touchdowns and led the league in scoring with 242 points.

B-11: There is no easy bracket side in this year’s State B playoffs, said Reardan coach Eric Nikkola.

The first-year coach has the defending State B-11 champions back in the 16-team postseason field.

“While it’s great to be on the opposite side from DeSales, we still have toughies on our side,” he said.

Among them: Northeast B unbeaten Lind-Ritzville (9-0), in coach Mike Lynch’s final season, unbeaten Wahkiakum and Orcas, which played a 1A schedule last year.

DeSales (9-1), last year’s runner-up, opens against Liberty (7-2), back in the B playoffs for the first time in a decade.

Others to watch on that side of the bracket, said Nikkola, are Tacoma Baptist, La Salle and Waterville (8-0), which plays Republic (5-4).

Reardan (8-1) opens against Pateros (5-4), and Lind-Ritzville goes against Mabton (7-3).

“Ritzville should get out of there relatively easily and if we play our best we should have an easy game as well,” Nikkola said. “You never know what’s going to happen in postseason.”