Dave Nichols: All-league teams, photos provide perfect opportunity to reflect on Fall Sports season
The publication of the all-league teams and photos marks the official conclusion of the fall sports season. It’s a labor of love putting these lists together, but it’s a rite of passage that symbolizes the change in seasons each year.
Many thanks to the athletic directors and sport coordinators in the leagues throughout the area who conduct voting and organize everything, then forward on to us to retype into our system and format. One of these years we’ll have to figure out a way to make it a little less labor intensive (and time consuming).
Anyway, as we recover from clearing the snow off our car for the 30th time this week, it seems to be a good time to reflect on some of the highlights of the fall season in the Greater Spokane League and across the region.
Football
We didn’t have any state champions in football this year, but that doesn’t mean the season was without excitement or intrigue.
First, props to the region teams which advanced the furthest: Freeman (1A), Chewelah (2B) and Odessa (1B) all reached state semifinals, one game away from a title game.
The Freeman Scotties entered the tournament as the 12th seed and faced the Royal Knights, who went on to capture its sixth title in the past seven seasons.
Chewelah was the fourth seed and fell to top-seeded and eventual champion Napavine.
Odessa, which was ranked No. 1 all season, was upset by fifth-seeded Liberty Bell – which went on to claim its first state title.
Fine seasons for all.
The GSL saw some pretty cool things this season. Mt. Spokane knocked off Gonzaga Prep and Mead in successive weeks to earn the outright GSL championship and its first undefeated league season in program history.
The Wildcats did all that despite not returning a single starter off its state quarterfinal team from the season before.
It took a three-way tiebreaker for the second season in a row to settle the 2A division. On a cold, rainy night at University HS, West Valley outlasted Clarkston and Shadle Park to earn the title and bye into state.
There were a few players we particularly enjoyed speaking with this season.
From the heat of August to elimination in November, Mead senior quarterback Colby Danielson was always willing to answer every question, win or lose, with the same eager, honest free spirit.
After a long (and proud and sometimes emotional) phone call with his mom, we finally learned how to spell Gonzaga Prep running back Lilomaiava Mikaele’s name correctly and got to know not only him, but mom and several other members of his engaging family.
And forgive me if it’s getting dusty in here, but we were honored to be able to share time with Central Valley linebacker Brandon Thomas during his senior year. Gregarious, emotionally honest and one of the most inspirational people we’ve met.
Volleyball
It was another terrific year for volleyball in the region, led by juggernaut state champion Oakesdale, which swept its way to its ninth State 1B title in the past 11 seasons. Coach McKinzie Turner’s squad didn’t lose a set at state, completing a dominant undefeated season.
Mead got back to the 3A title match for the second year in a row but fell there, unable to duplicate its title from a season before.
Mt. Spokane, which won the previous two championships, settled for fourth place.
There were also trophies in 2A and 2B, as Pullman took fourth and Colfax second to complete a successful season on the courts this fall.
Cross country
The area had three individual state champs and two team titles, led by East Valley junior Logan Hofstee, who earned the girls 2A title.
“I was crying when I came over the finish line,” she said at the time. “I always wanted to bring a state championship to East Valley. It’s been a long time in the making.”
Also standing atop the podium in Pasco were Medical Lake senior Reid Headrick, the first boys cross country runner to win an individual state title in school history, and St. George’s sophomore Josie McLaughlin, adding to her triumphs from the spring track meet.
Team titles came to the Lakeside girls, their first State 1A title since 2018, and the Chewelah boys team, its first since 1996.
As for the upper division of the GSL, both the Lewis and Clark girls (third) and boys (fourth) placed.
In 3A boys, Mt. Spokane (third), Mead (sixth) and Cheney (eighth) all placed. The Mead girls finished seventh and the West Valley girls were sixth in 2A.
Girls soccer
The only area team to reach the final four this season was fourth-seeded St. George’s, which fell to third-seeded Okanogan 2-0 in the title game.
Gonzaga Prep, Lewis and Clark, Mead, Ridgeline and West Valley all qualified for the tournament to represent the GSL.
The upstart Ridgeline team raised some eyebrows this season, earning a state ranking, and with few seniors it seemed poised for success in the coming seasons.
Slowpitch softball
The state slowpitch tournament grows each year with more schools across the state adopting the fall sport to allow more athletes the opportunity to compete in a team environment.
But teams still have to go through Spokane to get a trophy.
University knocked off Mead in the 3A/2A title game, and Central Valley fell to Chiawana in the 4A championship.
Mt. Spokane, which lost to U-Hi in a semifinal, routed Walla Walla in the 3A/2A third-place game.
“I feel like not a lot of schools from the same place get worked up to be here, and the fact that so many schools from the GSL here is pretty nice,” league MVP Maliyah Mann said after U-Hi’s win.