Polello joins elite kicking company
In case you missed it, Friday night East Valley football place kicker Josh Polello joined select company.
Polello became the 11th player in Greater Spokane League history to convert a field goal from a distance of 50 yards or longer. His 50-yarder to end the first half during a 24-0 victory over Lewis and Clark tied for ninth all-time.
Amazingly, the All-GSL soccer defender has struggled from beyond extra- point range this year. He had made just four of his 12 field goal attempts previously from shorter distances. Earlier in the game he had come far short on a 44-yard attempt.
Polello couldn’t explain why, other than to say, “I don’t usually miss” and adding part of him missing was about getting used to Albi Stadium’s new turf. Three games ago, however, he began kicking directly off the ground without a tee.
“It’s a lot easier,” Polello said. He had never kicked one longer than 37 yards before and revealed that he doesn’t practice kicking beyond 35 yards.
Last year, his first, Polello made 4 of 6 field goal tries and tied the GSL season record of 40 extra points (in 42 attempts). He has now converted 68 of 72 with one league game remaining. The GSL career record is 86 by Shadle Park’s Andy Largent (2002-04).
State of GSL football
EV’s victory following Ferris’ 35-14 win over University in a game between once-beaten teams the previous night, has mostly cleared up things in league.
Unbeaten Gonzaga Prep, with a victory Thursday against winless Rogers, will clinch at least a tie for the league title and, perhaps more importantly, the league’s top seed and shot at the state playoffs.
The Saxons finish up with Central Valley and Rogers needing one win to secure the second berth. Both teams would play at home against teams from the Columbia Basin League in state play-in games.
It appears that the Saxons will host Moses Lake (5-2 overall, 4-1 in the CBL). The Chiefs’ 41-12 win at Richland was their first road victory in the series.
Prep will play any of three teams. It will be Eisenhower if the Cadets beat visiting Walla Walla Thursday.
Four games over the next two weeks will determine which of three teams plays at likely CBL champion Pasco in the third game for a state berth the first weekend in November.
Tuesday night smackdown
The GSL volleyball match everyone has anticipated since the beginning of the year takes place on Tuesday when league unbeatens meet for the league championship.
Lewis and Clark, whose last title was in 2002, travels to Mead to try and unseat the defending champion Panthers, winners of four of the last six.
LC beat Mead in five stirring games at home in a non-league match on Sept. 7.
Big two weeks for GNL
The next two weeks will either sort out the contenders from the pretenders in Great Northern League football or create a quagmire.
Clarkston is at Colville Friday in a game between the league’s unbeatens and Cheney is at Pullman in a game between once-beaten teams.
The teams swap foes the following Friday. Pullman goes to Clarkston and Cheney hosts Colville.
Either the league’s two state playoff teams will be determined or a three-way title tie could result.
NEA goes to wire
Freeman’s 17-14 victory at Kettle Falls tied the Scotties with the Bulldogs for first place. But there’s still much to be determined the next two weeks before the league goes against Caribou Trail League teams in the same format as the GSL/CBL end-of-season series.
Each league’s No. 1 finisher plays the other’s No. 4 and the No. 2 finishers playing No. 3 for four state berths.
Current third-place Colfax hosts Kettle this week and is at Freeman next with a chance to also create a three-way league tie.
One last challenge
Liberty hosts Reardan on Friday, providing the last Northeast 2B League challenge to prevent the defending state champion Indians from a league title. The following week the Lancers host second-place Davenport as league teams sort themselves out for post-season.