Vashon Island has lost one of her best.

I remember Robert as an outstanding athlete, a state champion wrestler and record-setting football player, as well as one of the best young people I have ever met.

Among my memories of Robert is a running joke we had about my never showing his face in photos in The Beachcomber. Since he wrestled and played football, most of the action pictures I had of him showed a face-plant on a muddy football field or his face buried in an opposing wrestler’s back.

Robert was also a Fire District Explorer, and from what I heard, one of the best there also.

I remember when Robert was credited with saving a pumper truck from serious damage. While preparing to hook the hose to a hydrant at a restaurant fire, He found gravel someone had apparently put in the hydrant. Had he not checked before hooking up the hose, the gravel would have destroyed the pump.

At a Pirate football game at North Mason I was taking pictures and trying to take notes on the game at the same time. Around the end of the first half I checked back through my notes to see if I was getting a cross section of the Pirate players and I realized that almost of the pictures were of Robert. That was the night he ran for more than 400 yards, still one of the top five games for all classifications in the state.

Robert was made an honorary member of the Othello High School wrestling team at the State Tournament one year.

Halfway through the championship round Othello and Mt. Baker were the only teams with a chance to win the State Championship. All the Othello wrestlers were done and a win by Mt. Baker’s last competitor would give the Mountaineers the title. But the Mt. Baker wrestler had to defeat Vashon’s Robert Bennedsen.

Every Vashon, Othello and Mt. Baker fan was watching the mat. When Robert won, the Vashon and Othello fans exploded. At the awards ceremony the Othello team dragged Robert into their state championship team picture.

I read that the family has suggested that memorials go toward improving the high school football field. That would be a fitting memorial and lasting legacy for this outstanding Islander.

I will take the bike or run leg. A swimmer and another bicyclist/runner are needed.

Our objective would be to finish in a vertical posture, being faster than a few young teams would be a bonus.

Octogenarians or even a mature sexagenarian are welcome.

If you are interested see www.hotstriathlon.org for information on the race and e-mail me at rik4sch@mac.com.

June 26 is the first Vashon Ultra 50K and 10-mile run. Limited to 120 entries, it was full a month before the race. See www.vashonultra.com for information. The race starts and finishes at Paradise Ridge Park.

The Heart of the Sound triathlon returns to Jensen Point July 25. See www.hotstriathlon.org for information.

Will the hydroplanes be out on July 4? I hope so. It’s hard to know ahead of time as most of the drivers pull their boats out of the blackberries about a week before. I know some people think we should ban the hydros and be quiet and genteel. After all, who ever heard of making noise on the Fourth? Ask my dog, Bogey. He is a bundle of nerves for two or three days as islanders set off all the fireworks that they can’t bring to the Island or use in King County.

For quieter water sports there is the rowing race, quieter but the competitors are more serious than the hydro folks.

Have fun this summer, and don’t just watch.

Just looking at the results from day one at the State 1A Track Meet.

Vashon’s Tyler Stoffer high jumped 5 feet, 10 inches for seventh place to earn his first state medal today.

Correction: Applying the tie-breaker for the high jump, Stoffer placed ninth in the event, based on the number of missed jumps before clearing the final height.

Stoffer also guaranteed himself another a medal by qualifying for tomorrow’s final in the 110-meter hurdles. Stoffer’s time in his preliminary heat was 16.40 seconds, making him the 8th fastest qualifier. All eight finalists will get medals.

Vashon’s other State entrants, Kate Straube in the 100 hurdles and James Spencer in the 400, didn’t qualify for the finals.

Three serious Pirates are ready for State. From left, James Spencer, 400-meter dash; Kate Straube, 100 hurdles and Tyler Stoffer, high jump and 110 hurdles.

They ran, they jumped, and two of them did both to earn a trip to the State Track Meet at Cheney next weekend.

Vashon senior Kate Straube and juniors James Spencer and Tyler Stoffer qualified for State at Saturday’s Tri-District final meet and freshman Landon Summers is an alternate.

Stoffer was the first Vashon qualifier of the day with a fifth-place finish in the 110-meter hurdles. The top five boys in each event qualified for State. After the hurdles, Stoffer returned to the high jump pit to register a vertical leap of 5 feet, 8 inches for a three-way tie for second in the event.

Straube followed up with a sixth-place in the 100-meter hurdles. The top six girls qualified for State.

Spencer concluded the Pirate run with a blazing 51.5-second PR in the 400-meter dash for third place.

Summers was the last high jumper to be eliminated when he missed his third attempt at 5-8. His successful 5-6 jump earned him sixth place and the alternate spot. If one of the top five should scratch before Thursday Summers will join his teammates for the trip to Cheney.

Landon Summers cleared 5 feet, 6 inches to earn an alternate State spot.

Congratulations to Scott Smith and Cole Devereau, who qualified for the State Golf tournament. The pair of Pirates tee off for the first round next Tuesday, May 25, at Columbia Point Golf Club in Richland. Golfers who make the cut play the championship round the next day on the same course.

James Spencer, right, competes in the Sub-District Meet at Orting last week.

Four track athletes compete tomorrow, Saturday, May 22, in the Tri-District Meet at Kings High School. Still alive in the quest for a State berth are James Spencer, 400-meter dash; Tyler Stoffer, 110 hurdles, 300 hurdles and high jump; Kate Straube, 100 hurdles and 300 hurdles; and Landon Summers, high jump.

The top five boys and top six girls in each event qualify for the State Meet next Friday and Saturday, May 28 and 29, at Eastern Washington University in Cheney.

Good luck to all the Pirates tomorrow and next week.

Will O'Neil shoots for Vashon's only goal.

The Pirate boys soccer season ended Wednesday when Meridian beat Vashon 2-1 in a Bi-District game at Whatcom Community College.

The Trojans struck first with a looping shot from about 20 yards that just cleared goalkeeper Robert McGinnis’ fingertips. Meridian carried the 1-0 lead into the break.

Pirate coach Paul Beytebiere’s half time talk got the Pirates fired up and they answered the second-half whistle running. In the third minute of the half Will O’Neil took a feed from Elias Weston and beat the Trojan keeper to even the score.

Neither team could gain an advantage until late in the half when a Meridian player won a foot race with a Vashon defender and put the ball low in the right side of the net.

The win qualified Meridian for State. They play Coupeville, winners over Orting, on Saturday to determine third and fourth state seed. Charles Wright, the only surviving Nisqually League team, plays Kings for first and second seed.

While Vashon’s season is over the Pirates won’t hang up their cleats until after the June 5 Alumni Game. The game is 1 p.m. at Vashon High School Stadium. The season wraps up with the annual awards banquet and potluck at 6 p.m. Sunday June 6.

Elias Weston beats a Meridian player near the touchline.

Vashon 4, Port Townsend 1. Two goals each by Will O’Neil and Elias Weston. Goalkeeper Robert McGinnis got an assist on one of Weston’s goals.

More details and a picture later.

The Pirates advance to Bi-Districts playoffs. The next game is 4:40 p.m. Wednesday at Whatcom CC, Bellingham against Meridian.

Port Townsend may have one of the last politically incorrect mascots, but they can still play soccer.

Next game for Vashon is 1 p.m. tomorrow, Saturday, at Orting Stadium. Vashon plays Port Townsend for the #3 seed to the Bi-District Tournament. Winner goes on to play the #2 seed from the Northwest District (north of Seattle) at a NWD site on Wednesday, May 12. Both games are loser out. Winner of Wednesday’s game earns a trip to State.

GO PIRATES!

Nisqually League 1A final league standings

May 4 — End of regular season

W   L  T   Pt

Charles Wright      10  0  0   30

Orting                         6  2  2    20

Vashon                       5  3  2    17

Cascade Christian    2  4  4    10

Life Christian            2  8  0     6

Chimacum                  0  9  1      1

Sub-district playoffs West Central District (WCD):

Thursday May 6:

Cascade Christian @ Port Townsend 5:30 p.m. (loser out)

Saturday May 8 @ Orting Stadium:

Vashon v CC/PT winner, 1 p.m. (winner #3 seed to Bi-District, loser out)

Charles Wright v Orting, 3 p.m. (#1 & #2 seed to Bi-District)

Bi-District — Northwest District (NWD) & (WCD):

Wednesday May 12 @ higher seed:

Game 1: WCD #2 v NWD #3 (loser out)

Game 2: WCD #3 v NWD #2 (loser out)

Saturday May 15 @ Orting:

Winner #1 v Winner #2, 1 p.m. #3 & #4 seed to State

WCD #1 v NWD #2, 3 p.m. #1 & #2 seed to State

Baseball:

May 4 (Pigtail game):

Vashon 3, Charles Wright 0

Friday May 7 @ Charles Wright:

Vashon v Seattle Christian, 3:30 p.m. Sub-district

The Pirates lost 4-3 in overtime to the Orting Cardinals. The Cardinals claimed second place and play league champs Charles Wright at 3 p.m. Saturday for first and second seed to the Bi-District Tournament. Vashon plays the winner of Thursday’s Port Townsend v Cascade Christian game for the third seed. The game is at 1 p.m. at Orting.

O’Neil led the Pirates to come back from a 2-0 halftime deficit to tie 3-3 in regular time. The game remained tied until Utley scored with just seconds more than a minute left in overtime.

The Vashon JV ended their season with a 3-0 win over the Orting JV.

Congratulations ladies!

It’s off to Life Christian today to try to make it two in a row, then back home for a non-league game with Steilacoom JV on Friday. Wouldn’t it be great to give these girls a big crowd for their last game?

Other sports:

Baseball plays Charles Wright today in a pigtail game for fourth place and a playoff spot. The game is 4 p.m. at UPS.

Boys soccer plays at Orting today for second and third in the Nisqually League. They tied in their first meeting and are tied in the standings. Varsity game is 6 p.m., JV at 4 p.m. It’s the final game for the JV.

Regardless of the result of today’s game both Orting and Vashon play again Saturday, winner v Charles Wright, loser v Port Townsend/Cascade Christian winner. Games are 1 and 3 p.m. at Orting.

Vashon sophomore Sam Crosby battles a Cougar for the ball during the JV game.

Will O’Neil’s second hat trick in as many games gave the Pirate soccer team a 3-1 win over Cascade Christian and kept them tied with Orting for second place in the Nisqually League.

On Senior Night, the last home game for Vashon’s seniors and exchange student Alessandro Rossi, the Pirates took charge early over the Cougar team they had tied earlier. In the fourth minute, O’Neil took a feed from Nick Fox-Edele near the end line on the left side and sent the ball across and into the far corner of the net.

The second goal came in the 12th minute with Geran Webb providing the assist to O’Neil.

The Cougar’s Brus Layson snuck in a goal for the visitors in the 46th minute.

O’Neil sealed the game for Vashon in the 68th minute with Fox-Edele getting his second assist of the evening.

The Pirate JV sort of made up for two earlier losses at Cascade Christian with a 3-2 win over the Cougar JV. Cougar Yeongi Nam scored in the 13th minute for a 1-0 Cascade halftime lead. Sam Crosby evened it up in the 43rd minute with an assist from Ezra Koenig. Brian Nam answered immediately for the visitors with the assist going to Cheol Han.

Koenig evened it up again in the 54th minute on an assist from Andy Hennesey then got the game winner with a sliding shot in the final minute.

Pirate senior Josh Bacchus says he is talking to Mom during warmups.

Pirate junior Jackson McFall clears the ball upfield in the first half at Life Christian.

After a frustrating first half on Tuesday and a scare from lowly Life Christian early in the second half the VHS boys soccer team came back for a convincing 3-0 win at the Eagles’ home turf and assure themselves of a playoff spot.

Will O’Neil ignored the drenching rain and the wind to explode for a hat trick after being moved from defense to forward.

The Pirates dominated the first half but couldn’t get a shot that didn’t go directly to the Eagles’ sure-handed keeper. Life Christian opened the second half with a furious attack that saw several shots, including one that skipped across the top bar and, fortunately for the Pirates, bounced up and out of play.

O’Neil received a yellow card for a late tackle near the end of the first half and sat out the final few minutes of the half and the early part of the second half. When he returned to the game, coach Paul Beytebiere moved him to striker where O’Neil immediately took control.

In the 64th minute O’Neil waited just behind the last Eagle defender until Elias Weston released a pass then beat the keeper for his first goal.

Less than a minute later O’Neil stole the ball and threaded his way through the Eagle defense for goal number two.

The referee added several minutes of stoppage time for injuries on both teams and some discussions with Life Christian’s players and it was in the 87th minute by sideline watches that O’Neil took a short cross from Nick Fox for the final goal.

The Pirates can finish no lower than fourth in the 1A Nisqually League and wins tonight over Cascade Christian and next Tuesday at Orting could put them in second place. Charles Wright, undefeated in league, has first place locked up.

Tylor Heit controls as a Tarrier challenges.

SOCCER:

After Monday’s non-league win the Vashon soccer boys scored three second-half goals to beat Chimacum on the Cowboys’ home field Tuesday. Nick Gass scored on a free kick. Nick Fox got number two on Ezra Koenig’s assist and Jesse Turner finished with an unassisted goal. The Pirates’ rivals for a playoff spot, Cascade Christian and Orting played to a scoreless tie. Vashon hosts Cascade Christian Thursday and finishes the regular season at Orting Tuesday, May 4.

League-leading Charles Wright beat the Pirates 3-0 at Vashon on Thursday.

This Tuesday Vashon plays at Life Christian.

Will O'Neil goes airborne to clear a Charles Wright attacking ball.

FAST PITCH:

Pirate fast pitch softball scored two runs in their first game last week then led after four innings in their second game. But the wheels came off in the fifth and sixth innings and the Pirates ended on the short end of an 18-8 score. The Pirate girls are improving weekly despite barely being able to field a full team.

TRACK:

Samantha Clements jumped beyond 14 feet to win the long jump for the second time this season in Thursday’s meet at Charles Wright. Looks like all the extra practice is paying off for the Pirate freshman.

The Pirates tied at Cascade Christian and at home with Orting last week. Vashon dominated in both games but couldn’t finish and had to settle for ties after 10 minutes of scoreless overtime in both games.

Vashon keeper Robert McGinnis made a spectacular stop of a penalty kick in the second minute at Cascade Christian, but the only player not frozen by the amazing play was Cougar Kyle Sadler who put the rebound in the back of the net before McGinnis could recover or any Pirates reacted. Nick Fox got the equalizer in the 29th minute on a cross from Lucian Pizzano.

Robert McGinnis stops a Cascade Christian penalty kick

Orting scored first in Thursday’s home game and kept the lead into half time. The Pirates came out of the locker fired up and in the 46th minute Fox scored with the assist going to Elias Weston.

Yesterday the Pirates hosted Mt. Tahoma in a non-league game. Vashon established control early when Nick Gass scored in the ninth minute on a pass from Fox. David Salonen added another goal in the 39th minute, getting the assist from Pizzano.

Julian Jones put the visitors back in the game with an unassisted goal in the 58th minute, then evened the score in the 72nd minute when he stole a pass from a Pirate defender.

Just when it looked like the Pirates might have to settle for another tie Will O’Neil collided heads with a Tahoma defender right in front of the net and got the ball to Jackson McFall who touched it on to Fox who put it in the net for the game-winner.

Jesse Hazzard goes one-v-one with a Mt. Tahoma player.

Mt. Tahoma found themselves unable to field a JV team at the last minute so the Pirate JV played a full intra-squad Green v White scrimmage. Between them the JV players scored 11 goals in the scrimmage.

Boys varsity soccer played their best game of the season so far but lost 1-0 to Seattle Prep, a 2009 State 3A quarterfinalist.

The JV had two games and stayed almost even with their opponents until the final few minutes. Seattle Prep JV 4, Vashon JV 0. It was 1-0 at the half and stayed that way until the last few minutes. The Panthers scored their last two goals in stoppage time.

Cascade Christian JV 3, Vashon JV 1. Vashon’s goal came when Sjors Steneker beat the CC goalkeeper from the right side. A Cougar defender deflected the ball of the line but Walker Merchant came in from the left to put the ball in the net.

Girls tennis beat Steilacoom 4-1.

Track teams were both third in their four-way meets. Both boys and girls won the 4×100-meter relays. For the Pirate girls, Savannah Krug won the 1600, Kate Straube won the 100 hurdles and Samantha Clements won the long jump.

Baseball got rained out at Cascade Christian Wednesday and hosted Chief Sealth on Thursday. I haven’t seen a final score so don’t know if they were able to get a complete game in between the raindrops.

Andy Hennesey, 25, beats a Seattle Prep player in Tuesday's JV soccer game.

Elias Weston beats a Seattle Prep player in the varsity soccer game.

Josh Bacchus, green uniform, challenges a Cascade Christian player in Wednesday's JV soccer game.

On Tuesday Vashon lost to Charles Wright 5-1 in almost perfect playing weather on the Tarriers  beautifully groomed grass field.

Nick Gass came out of a crowd of CWA defenders for Vashon’s only goal in the second half, but the game was already out of reach.

Pirate goalkeeper Robert McGinnis makes a save against Charles Wright.

Yesterday Vashon beat Life Christian 2-0 in a downpour on the Pirates muddy pitch.

Will O’Neil put the Pirates ahead in the 13th minute with a free kick from just outside the penalty box. Tylor Heit sealed the win in the 73rd minute when he took a perfect cross from Nick Gass and beat the Eagle goalkeeper one-on-one.

The game saw a Life Christian player yellow-carded early in the game for pushing a Pirate defender from behind after getting beaten to the ball.

The same Eagle player received a second yellow in the second half and was ejected when he jumped up after being fouled and again pushed a Vashon defender while the ball was out of play.

Pirate goalkeeper Robert McGinnis and the Vashon defense overcame the slippery ball and muddy footing for the shutout, McGinnis’ second of the season.

I hope the weather at Steilacoom was better for yesterday’s track meet. Both Pirate boys and girls teams finished fourth in the four-way meet despite firsts from boys James Spencer and Landon Summers and girl Pirate Peri Roberts.

Roberts won the 3200-meter run in 14 minutes, 34 seconds.

For the second straight week Spencer won the 400, this week’s time was :53.1; and Summers won the 100 hurdles in :17.7. Last week Summers won the 300 hurdles.

The Pirates took the game to the Cruisers from the opening whistle. The aggressiveness paid off when Jackson McFall was tripped in the penalty box and calmly converted the penalty kick into a 1-0 lead 13 minutes in.

Eatonville tied things up when the uneven grass surface contributed to a Pirate defender missing a tackle, leaving the Cruiser striker free to chip the ball over the keeper to tie the game.

Pirate keeper Robert McGinnis punches away a Cruiser shot on goal.

Elias Weston put the Pirates ahead for good in the 35th minute. Taking a long feed from Will O’Neil, Weston, from the left side, curved the ball around the Cruiser keeper into the net.

Before the hosts could get settled in the second half Nick Gass put the ball into open space and in a perfectly timed run Nick Fox-Edele sprinted past the last defender to put the ball into the net and give Vashon a 3-1 lead less than a minute in to the half.

Pirate goalkeeper Robert McGinnis got a rare assist in the 73rd minute when he boomed a goal kick to Fox-Edele, who again beat all the Cruiser defenders for the final goal.

Vashon had only nine regular varsity players available for the non-league contest and all the JV and swing players on the trip got substantial playing time and impressed head coach Paul Beytebiere.

Tuesday the Pirates face a big test when they travel to Charles Wright for the first of two games with the arch-rival Tarriers.

Coach Beytebiere gets serious at half time.

The sun was out but the north wind felt just like winter, which the calendar said it still was for another day.

Elias Weston challenges a Chimacum defender.

But for the Cowboys’ goalkeeper Vashon could have won by five goals. The Chimacum keeper was fearless as he went one-on-one with everything the Pirates could muster.

Vashon’s scoring was almost perfectly balanced, a penalty shot by Nick Gass in the seventh minute and a beautiful shot by Michael Butz with just under seven minutes to play in the second half.

Gass was tripped from behind in the penalty box as he was about to shoot. He put the PK in the back of the net for what eventually proved to be the winning goal.

Seventy-three minutes is a long time to hold off a team that had won their first game a few days earlier, but the Pirate defense was up to the task.

In the dangerous final few minutes when a fluke goal could tie up a game Butz gave Vashon the insurance goal it needed. Coming out of a swarm of Cowboys just outside the 18-yard box, Butz unleashed a low hard shot from almost dead center a yard out from the penalty spot.

The win was the Pirates’ first and, more important, their first Nisqually League game. Today the varsity team goes to Eatonville for a non-league game.

Neither Chimacum nor Eatonville has enough players eligible for a JV game this week.

If it was cold at Vashon, the Pirate track teams must have experienced near-arctic weather at Eatonville yesterday. Both boys and girls finished third to Orting and host Eatonville, with Life Christian fourth.

Kate Straube won the 100-meter hurdles for the girls, the only Pirate first place.

On the boys side James Spencer won the 400, Aidan Cyra the 800, Colin Andrus the 1600 and Jack Summers the 300 hurdles.

Then on Monday the boys soccer teams hosted the Fife Trojans and both baseball teams traveled to Mt. Tahoma where the Pirate varsity won 17-3 and the JV won 10-2.

Tylor Heit moves the ball up the field early in the varsity game.

The soccer teams didn’t fare as well as the baseball teams. The JV gave up two goals in the first half. In the second half the defense shut down the two Fife players who had scored and Jacob Turner put the Pirates on the board with an assist from Ezra Koenig. Final score: Fife JV 2, Vashon JV 1. Freshman goal keeper Brooks Benner impressed everyone, keeping the Trojans from several goals.

The Trojan varsity put away the Pirates 5-1. Fife got the only first-half goal.

Three goals were scored in a one-minute stretch in the second half. Fife scored first then on the kickoff stole the ball and quickly scored again. On the next kickoff Vashon struck just as quickly with Jackson McFall finishing to make the score 3-1 Fife.

The very talented Trojans scored twice more to put the game out of reach of the Pirates.

Michael Butz challenges a Fife player for the ball.

As is customary the Pirates sent the visitors home filled with hamburgers from the after-game barbeque.

The Mustang wrestlers have one home meet left this Thursday, March 11, Then the season-ending tournament at Klahowya on Saturday. If the snow goes away, it’s a nice Saturday drive to Silverdale and the mall is nearby for shopping fans. And even if it does snow, wrestling is an indoor sport. Check the McM Web-site for time of the tournament.

Next Thursday the Mustang girls play their last home basketball game, a good time to get a look at some future Pirates and see some exciting hoops.

Although only the first eight places receives trophies and are official, someone has calculated that our girls finished ninth, probably based on who beat who and who lost to who in the consolation bracket. That would make it the best finish ever for the Pirate girls.

Sophie Nespor fights a Seattle Christian player for a rebound.

Our boys went to Yakima as the defending state champions and lost only to the new champions. The Pirates probably were in the toughest bracket, opening against top-ranked Chelan. Every game the Pirates played could have been the championship game had the draw gone a different way and every team the Pirates faced took home a trophy.

Vashon came out of the toughest Tri-District in the state. The six teams from the Tri took home six of the eight trophies, first, second, third, fourth, sixth and eighth.

Both teams will be losing most of their starters to graduation, so next year will be a chance for some new players to step up. It should be an interesting season.

At least one of the basketball players turned out for spring sports yesterday, and several others are on spring rosters.

Matt Amick runs into a little opposition from Kings.

Vashon’s boys crushed Kings 65-46 this afternoon to take third place in the State 1A Basketball Tournament.

Cascade Christian, the team that stopped the Pirates from winning back-to-back championships, won its first state championship and first-ever state trophy with a 45-35 win over Meridian.

The Pirates quickly sorted things out and took a 13-10 lead in the first quarter, then added to that lead every period. The Knights didn’t help their own cause, getting into foul trouble in both halves, and putting Vashon into double bonus for much of the second and fourth quarters.

Matt Kerns looks past a Kings defender for the basket.

Vashon led 39-22 with two minutes left in the third quarter and less than a minute into the final period had extended the lead to 48-29. With 2:28 remaining in the game and a 22-point lead, 63-41, coach Andy Sears sent in all the reserves to get some State playing time.

Elias Weston puts up a shot.

Dan Lofland, 30, with an all-reserves lineup behind him, drives up the court as the clock winds down.

Vashon took the early lead and led after the first quarter, but Cascade came back to creep ahead by halftime. The Pirates chipped away at the lead and came within one point with about two minutes to go.

Missed field goals down the stretch proved to be the Pirates undoing.

Meridian beat Kings in the other semi-final. That game went down to the final seconds.

Quinn Holert drives up the court.

John Gage pulls down a rebound late in the final minute of the game.

The Pirates matched the Warriors for the first half, leading 10-6 after one quarter and trailing by just one point at the half. The Warriors star, Lexi Petersen, got hot in the third quarter and the Pirates’ top scorer, Kelly Costello, twisted her ankle and had to leave the game for a few minutes. The Pirates couldn’t come back.

The loss eliminated the Pirates.

Pirates reserves Marya Munsey, 15, and Jasmine Acosta, 20, along with Kelsey Abella and Kathryn Misel all got some State playing time.

Semi-finals tomorrow:

6 p.m. Kings v Meridian

8 p.m. Vashon v Cascade Christian

Tonight’s game was not settled until the final seconds. Through most of the second half it looked like “last basket wins.” Pirates and Knights exchanged baskets with neither getting more than 2 points ahead until Corey hit a three and a two to give the Pirates a 5-point lead with about three minutes left. Vashon pulled away with free throws but Bellevue Christian was in the game until the last two seconds.

Concentrating on free throws in the final minutes

Elias Weston

Quinn Holert

Vashon took the lead early and never gave it up, extending it to as much as 14 points at one point in the third quarter.

Kelly Costello led Vashon with 15 points, Kiki Means had 9 and Charlotte added 8.

Vashon plays Seattle Christian at 11 a.m. tomorrow.

Vashon 66, Chelan 52

Thursday: Vashon v Bellevue Christian 9 a.m. Winner plays winner of Cascade Christian/Onalaska 8 p.m. Friday; losers play at 4 p.m. Friday.

Granger 45, Vashon 32

Tomorrow, Thursday March 4: Vashon v Toledo 10:30 a.m. Loser out, winner plays 11 a.m. March 5 v Cedar Park Christian/Seattle Christian winner.

The malady, known sometimes as the Green Flu or Pirate Fever, often causes high rates of absenteeism for up to four days at a time. Symptoms may include difficulty paying attention to assigned tasks and frequent visits to www.wiaa.com and other Web-sites associated with local high school sports.

Victims have been known to coat their faces and other exposed skin with salves and paints in garish green and gold colors, apparently in an attempt to relieve the discomfort of the fever. Wearing green and yellow clothing also seems to help.

Similar illnesses have been reported in smaller communities and school districts around the state, where other color combinations of salves and paints are believed to bring relief.

The only known cure seems to be to spend time in the SunDome in Yakima. The atmosphere inside the structure is said to contain properties that relieve the symptoms or change them to a desire to yell non-stop for up to 32 minutes at a time, but treatment may take up to four full days for the worst cases.

While there is no practical way to prevent the illness, authorities say that symptoms inevitably subside no later than Saturday night or Sunday morning and victims of the condition almost always return to work or school Monday morning.

All games are in the Yakima SunDome

March 3:

Vashon boys v Chelan 9 p.m.

Vashon girls v Granger 12:30 p.m.

All teams play Mar. 3 & 4 in the double-elimination tournament.

The celebration begins. Kiki Means, Elisa Wendt with ball she stole to seal the win, Charlotte Kehoe and Kelly Costello react at the final buzzer.

The Pirate girls are going to State. Vashon’s girls beat Cascade Christian today for the sixth and last seed to the 1A State Basketball Tournament.

The Pirates took the lead for good on Kiki Means’ two free throws to break a 40-40 tie with 11 seconds left. Vashon got the ball with 42 seconds left. As the 30-second shot clock wound down, Means tried to move into position for a clear shot. As the shot clock ticked down to one second Means tried to get the shot off and was fouled.

She stepped to the free throw line and calmly sank her first shot. The Cougars called a time out but Means was not rattled. When the teams returned, she sank the second shot just as calmly as the first.

Cascade got the ball back and moved down the court but Elisa Wendt stole the ball with two seconds left and the Pirates had their ticket to the SunDome in Yakima.

It was anybody’s game until the Means’ free throws and Wendt’s steal. Vashon led at the end of each quarter, but the lead changed several times in the fourth quarter.

This was the fourth meeting of Pirates and Cougars. Each team won on its home court in the regular season. Vashon won the tie-breaker for seeding to playoffs on a neutral court.

State Tournament brackets should be posted on www.wiaa.com Sunday night or Monday. The tournament starts Wednesday, March 3.

Head coach Henry Porter, left, and assistant coaches Gary Means and Holly Zapel celebrate the win.

We did it! Coach Andy Sears at the final buzzer.

Vashon’s boys, at least, are going to State.

The Pirate boys basketball team beat Kings 54-46 in a game at Mountlake Terrace that finished just under three hours ago. Kings took the early lead but the Pirates came back to lead by seven at half time. Vashon stretched the lead to 10 at one point and Kings came within three late in the game.

I’ll try to get some photos and a little more info posted tomorrow before I leave for the girls last chance game. The girls play Cascade Christian at 3 p.m. tomorrow at Mountlake Terrace. Winner goes to State, loser turns in the uniforms and waits until next year.

Elias Weston makes it hard for Kings' Ryan Hoff to find a shot.

Saturday morning: I couldn’t find the game stats yet; see Wednesday’s Beachcomber for details.

Kings did a good job of shutting down John Gage in the first half. Gage got only limited playing time in the first half while the rest of the team showed Kings that one player is not the whole Pirate team. Vashon never trailed after taking the lead in the second quarter.

While Kings held Gage from the field, he was almost perfect, if not perfect, from the free throw line, and free throws by Gage and several others were critical in final two minutes.

Brackets for the 1A State Tournaments should be posted on www.wiaa.com by Monday.

Who's got the ball?

Lynden Christian was clearly the better team yesterday, no reflection on the way our girls played.

The Pirates have beaten Cascade Christian, tomorrow’s opponent, two out of three this season. Let’s hope the Pirate team that showed up at home and on a neutral court shows up tomorrow and not the one that played at Cascade Christian.

The game is at 3 p.m.

A big cheering section will be a big help. Our Pirate girls have not always had the support the boys have had. We need to be there to counter the Cougar fans who will follow their team.

Kelly Costello opened the second quarter with a steal and a layup for two points.

Vashon boys play Kings today, winner goes to State, loser has to play again tomorrow at 1 p.m. for the final State berth. Kings will be out avenge their two-point loss to the Pirates earlier this season.

I’ve seen the Kings trophy case. I don’t think they display anything less than second place at State in any sport.

Neither team today wants to be the lowest seed to State.

The Pirate boys will probably have a large and vocal Green Tide cheering section for today’s game. If you’re going, remember that northbound traffic on I-5 can get bad, so allow plenty of time. Today is Friday and rush hour starts earlier. The 2:20 p.m. ferry may get you there on time for the 4:30 game, but I recommend the 1:50. While I realize Islanders have an aversion to arriving anywhere early, it’s better than missing the first quarter sitting in traffic by Northgate.

Take Exit 181A/Lynnwood, turn right then get in the left lane. The entrance to Mountlake Terrace HS is on the left, less than a mile from the freeway exit and easy to miss the first time there.

Sam Chapman, in yellow, and J.P. Martinez of Warden battle for the 112-pound state title.

Senior Sam Chapman, 112 pounds, led the Pirate grapplers with his second state championship and third medal finish. Three more Pirates of the seven state qualifers earned medals this year. Though Vashon finished 12th as a team, the first time out of the top-10 in years, It was a good showing in what was a re-building year.

Both boys and girls basketball teams rebounded from playoff losses to be one win away from State.

The girls crushed Bush Tuesday evening at home and the boys beat Seattle Academy last night. Now both teams have two chances to win one game and pack for Yakima.

Alex Wegner, 20, guards Seattle Academy's Adrian Brandon, 23.

Vashon’s girls play Lynden Christian today at 4:30 p.m. at Mountlake Terrace High School. The boys take on Kings tomorrow at the same gym. I’ve seen two times listed for tomorrow’s boys’ game. Double check the start time so you don’t miss the tipoff.

Today’s and tomorrow’s winners go to state. Losers have to play again Saturday for the final State slots.

To get to Mountlake Terrace, go north on I-5. Take Exit 181A/Lynnwood. Go right then stay in the left lane. The school will be on the left less than a mile from the exit. Watch closely because it’s easy to miss the turn the first time you go there.

Matt Amick drives to the basket after stealing the ball.

Allow plenty of time for the drive to Mountlake Terrace. Traffic on I-5 in North Seattle and South Snohomish County can get bogged down any time of day and especially during rush hour, which is anytime after 2 p.m.

Also, parking at the school may be tight because of earlier playoff games.

John Gage rejects a shot by Seattle Academy's Adrian Brandon.

Because this a playoff game season passes and Nisqually League passes will not be accepted.

Pirate fans, at least, will probably be hard to find. Friday and Saturday is Mat Classic, the WIAA State Wrestling tournament, and Vashon’s large and knowlegable wrestling community will spend much of the two days at the Tacoma Dome cheering for the five Pirate boys and two girls representing Vashon High School. Several of the wrestlers have a legitimate chance to make it to the championship finals Saturday evening.

Basketball fans will most likely head to Orting Saturday afternoon to watch both boy and girl Pirates play for top seed to Tri-District. The girls play Seattle Christian and the boys take on Cascade Christian. Win or lose, both Vashon teams have assured themselves a trip to Tri-District, but both teams would like to grab the top seed.

So if the Island seems a little quieter Saturday, wait until the last ferry from Tacoma lands. It should be filled with cheering fans and tired but happy Pirates.

The boys started off with a 87-52 drubbing of the Eagles. It was senior night and a cameraman from KING5 was there taping a feature on Pirate senior John Gage. By the third quarter it was obvious that reserves would be playing most of the rest of the game, and by early in the fourth period the cameraman put his gear away.

Gage scored 19 points and put on a good show, with several huge blocked shots on the defensive end of the court.

Alex Wegner led the Pirates with 21 and Matt Kerns had 16 as Vashon put on a three-point clinic in the first half.

Christian Paige led the visitors with 21, the only Eagle to hit double figures.

Jesse Hazzard drives for the hoop as the Pirate reserves played most of the fourth quarter.

The Pirate girls’ game was almost a laugher. Once they found the range, the Vashon girls out-scored the visitors 20-2 in the first quarter and 20-1 in the second quarter. The final score was 56-8.

Three Pirates, Kelly Costello with 18 points, and Cat Amick and Elisa Wendt with 8 each, individually equalled or surpassed the entire Eagles team.

As with the boys, reserves played most of the second half. Coach Henry Porter put the four senior starters back in the fourth quarter for a short time so they could receive an ovation from the fans.

Marya Munsey carries the ball past Life Christian's Rachel Goodman.

Vashon’s girls continued the momentum last night, Feb. 17, with a tie-breaker win over Cascade Christian, 55-26, giving the Pirates second place in the Nisqually League.

Costello led the Pirates with 21 points.

The win takes the Pirates to a Saturday game with league champion Seattle Christian for first and second seeding to the Tri-District Tournament.

The Vashon boys play Cascade Christian on Saturday, also for first or second seed to Tri-District. The Pirates and Cougars tied for the league championship.

Saturday’s games are at Orting; boys at 5 p.m., girls at 7 p.m.

Madeline Wolczko took third place at 119 pounds and Iris Spring fourth at 125 at the girls all-division Regional Tournament at Emerald Ridge earlier today. The top six girls in each weight class qualified for state.

Word from the boys 1A Regional at Bellevue Christian is that Sam Chapman, Dom Stemer, Elliot Ellingsen, Geran Webb and Vince Jovanovich qualified for state. The top three boys advanced to state.

Both Spring and Wolczko earned byes in the first round by virtue of their first-place finishes at last week’s sub-regional.

Wolczko assured her place at state with a pin of Kentridge’s Taylor in her first match. Wolczko lost in overtime to Cassidy Meyers of Kentwood, dropping her into the consolation round. A 6-4 overtime decision over Federal Way’s Maria Manzueta put Wolczko into the final for third and fourth place, once again to meet Lee.

But Lee, having a first-round match and dropping to the consolation round earlier, had already wrestled her maximum allowed five bouts for the day and Wolczko was declared the third-place winner by default.

Madeline Wolczko, right, has Taylor Lee all tied up in their quarter-final match.

Spring Took a 14-2 major decision Marissa O’Neil of Rogers in her quarterfinal to qualify for state then lost 10-5 to Jennifer Anderson of host school Emerald Ridge in the semi-final.

Spring’s consolation semi-final was a rematch with the girl she beat for the sub-regional title last Saturday, Patricia Costello, North Mason. The result was the same, with Spring winning a 11-1 major decision.

The third-fourth-place final saw Spring and O’Neil matched up again. Spring was ahead 11-0 with less than a minute to go when O’Neil turned her on her back for a pin.

Iris Spring works over Jennifer Meyers in the semi-final match.

The wrestlers are scheduled to practice at the Tacoma Dome on Thursday, then begin State competition Friday, with finals Saturday afternoon.

Even before the Colts have had time to review the game films, we already know they are even going to make it to the Super Bowl next year? And the Saints are only 9-1 to repeat, behind a San Diego team that didn’t even get there this year?

Well, people who get paid a lot more than I do know these things. I hope they get paid enough that they can afford to lose bets backing up their knowledge.

Personally, I would rather see the games played and find out who wins when the final whistle sounds. That is the way I grew up watching sports.

Even when I used to forecast the season’s results for Pirate teams, I would always include a disclaimer, that the predictions were for fun only and any use of them for other than entertainment was at the user’s risk. Even so, one coach told his players not to talk to me after I predicted that the team would win two games. After the season, I had to apologize for my inaccuracy. The team won only one game.

Maybe I’ll put my money on the Seahawks to win Super Bowl XLV. I haven’t found an “expert” to back me, but the odds should be long enough that if a miracle should happen I could afford to laugh all the way to the bank.

Last night the Mustangs won five of six matches on the mat by pin, but had to forfeit the majority of weights to a Mountain View (Bremerton) squad that brought about 60 grapplers to the Island.

Zhenya Bergman, McM, got the actual wrestling started with a pin of Michael Brown in the 117-pound match.

McMurray's Zhenya Bergman concentrates near the end of his match with Michael Brown of Mountain View.

Ian Mattingly followed with a pin of Jeremy Gonzales in the 137-pound match and Preston Morris did the same for Paul Castille at 164.

Ian Mattingly turns Jeremy Gonzales in the 137-pound match.

Shane Armstrong made quick work of Keith Fife, putting the Mountain View wrestler on his back in 15 seconds.

The heavyweight match looked almost like a comic mismatch. Mustang Joey DeFabio was nearly a foot shorter than his Mountain View opponent, Ralph Lawrence. But DeFabio didn’t seemed fazed.

The wrestlers shook hands, the referee blew the whistle, and Lawrence was looking at the rafters in the McMurray gym. Only 12 seconds had elapsed by the time the referee signalled that DeFabio had won by a pin.

Afterward one of the Mustang coaches said that Defabio had done “exactly what he was told.”

Preston Morris, back, works Paul Castille into position for a pin in the 164-pound match.

Has any high school wrestling program in recent memory been as dominant as Orting this year? The Cardinals walked away with yesterday’s 1A sub-regional boys tournament at Vashon, scoring 419.5 points almost 2 1/2 times second-place Vashon’s 168.

Orting had 17 wrestlers in the finals and won 10 individual championships. Five of the finals featured two Cardinals and only two of the 14 weight classes did not include at least one Orting wrestler.

Each competing school could enter two wrestlers in each weight class.

It’s hard to compete against that kind of power and talent, but the Pirates sent four to the finals, two in the weights where Orting didn’t reach the finals, and captured two firsts and two seconds.

Sam Chapman, 112 pounds, decisioned Dillon Stiles, Orting, 8-0. Geran Webb, 215, pinned Gregory Seylor, Cascade Christian, in 27 seconds.

At 140 Brady Maris, Orting, scored a 13-1 major decision over Pirate Dominik Stemer; and at 160 Port Townsend’s Brett Johnson pinned Vashon’s Elliot Ellingsen.

Vashon’s two girl grapplers couldn’t have done better at the 3A/2A/1A sub-regional at Eatonville.

Madeline Wolczko, 119, entered as the number-two seed and defeated Electra Duclos, Steilacoom, for the championship with a 13-2 major decision.

Iris Spring, top seed at 125, took her championship with a 8-2 decision over North Mason’s Patricia Costello.

The two-girl Pirate team took fourth place in the three-division tournament.

Next Saturday the wrestlers try to qualify for State. The boys compete in the Regional Tournament at Bellevue Christian and the girls at Emerald Ridge.

While the high-schoolers approach the climax of their season, the middle-schoolers are just starting. After practicing since Jan. 19, the McMurray Mustangs host Mountain View tomorrow, Monday, Feb. 8. The meet starts at 3:45 p.m.

The Mustangs have four home meets this season. After March 11 wrestling aficionados will have to wait until late fall for more wrestling on the Island.

JV: Auburn Adventist 37, Vashon 23

Auburn Adventist Academy is a 1A-size private school that plays an independent schedule. The Falcons do not belong to a league or participate in post-season play but are competitive with most 1A girls’ teams.

Last night our Pirate girls took control of the game quickly, opening up a 23-6 first quarter lead. That 17-point margin proved to be the winning difference. After the Pirates opened up a 53-28 gap at the end of the third period, coach Henry Porter sent in the reserves to finish the game.

One of the biggest cheers of the night came when 5-2 sophomore Marya Munsey, who usually gets very limited varsity playing time, sank a basket late in the fourth quarter. The Vashon bench came to their feet and the sparse crowd erupted.

Elisa Wendt led the Pirates with 15 points. Chrissy Swope had 12 and Charlotte Kehoe had 10.

Elizabeth Downs led the visitors with 27.

Auburn Adventist   6   7  15  14   42

Vashon                   23  12 18   6    59

Pressure from Kiki Means causes this shot by Auburn Adventist's Kat Eun to go awry.

Vashon’s JV held their own against the Falcons for the early going but fell behind and couldn’t catch up after the swing players left at the end of the third quarter to prepare for the varsity game.

Jazmine Acosta, right, steals a Falcon pass after teammate Avalon Koenig causes Sarah Pierce, 54, to rush her throw.

The Pirates have two more regular-season games: Tuesday, Feb. 9 at Charles Wright, and Tuesday, Feb. 16 at home with Life Christian.

Pirate senior players and cheer leaders and their parents will be honored between games on Feb. 16.

The Pirate girls still can’t get past Seattle Christian’s strong team. Tomorrow (Thursday) the girls host Auburn Adventist in a non-league game. This one was changed from early in the season and is the last non-counting game this season.

JV plays at 5:30 p.m. and the varsity at 7 p.m. This is the last chance to see the JV girls play in the same gym as the varsity.

In case you’re still looking at an old schedule, note that the Life Christian games are changed to Feb. 16 at Life Christian. The change was made to accomodate Life Christian’s playoff schedule. They are a 2B team and their playoffs start a week earlier than our 1A playoffs.

Reserve Saturday for the boys wrestling sub-regional tournament in the Pirate gym. Check the school Web site or the sports hotline for starting time. Our two Pirate girl wrestlers will be at Eatonville for their sub-regional.

And wrestling fans should find time to get to McMurray on Monday for the first Mustang meet starting at 3:45 p.m. The Mustangs also host on Feb. 26, March 2 and March 11.

Mustang girls basketball is home on Feb. 11 and 22 and March 4, 8 and 18.

Ferry reminder: WSF says the Hiyu will be on the south end run for the rest of this week, so if you’re going to Charles Wright for the basketball games on Friday, plan accordingly.

Matt Amick gets off a shot early in the game.

The Pirates we know and love are back. After the slow starts at Cascade Christian, our Vashon teams both came out running in last night’s home games against Orting. The boys won 56-35 and the girls followed with a 63-28 rout of the Cardinals.

The Pirate boys took their time and established their game, pulling ahead to a 13-11 lead in the first quarter and leading 26-21 at the half. John Gage tallied the first eight points for Vashon with three field goals and two free throws resulting from fouls on two of those shots.

Quinn Holert puts up a last-second shot as the first half ends.

The Pirates opened the third quarter with a 14-point run before the Cardinals could find the hoop.

John Gage shoots for two and is fouled in the process.

Gage tallied 31 points before Coach Andy Sears sat the starters and finished the game with reserves.

Orting    11  10   5   9    35

Vashon 13  13  17  13   56

The Pirate girls wait to take the floor for warmups.

Vashon’s girls took care of business quickly. The Pirates put up 10 points before the Cardinals scored and led 14-5 after the first eight minutes.

A 15-2 second quarter put Vashon up 29-7 at the half, giving the Pirates one more point than they allowed the visitors for the whole game.

Chrissy Swope guards an Orting player in the third quarter.

The home team led 52-16 after three quarters. The fourth quarter was a chance for the reserves to show their stuff.

Orting      5    2    9   12    28

Vashon  14  15  23  11     63

Cat Amick pressures an Orting player late in the game.

As expected, the  number-one-ranked wrestling team in the state defeated Vashon last night. But with five returning state champions, four from the visitors and one from the Pirates, fans were treated to some outstanding wrestling between 13 JV and 13 varsity matches.

The varsity matches took very little time, 10 of them ended in first round pins, nine in less than a minute. Pirate Elliot Elllingsen, 160, needed almost two full rounds to pin Arthur Fretter.

Elliot Ellingsen, in green, works toward a pin of Arthur Fretter.

Cardinal Dylan Styles went the distance to defeat Madeline Wolczko 10-1.

The most exciting match featured 171-pounders Tucker Lazare of Vashon and Orting’s Keegan Norris. Trailing 10-8 as the clock ticked down, Lazare put Norris on his back. The referee signaled a pin as the buzzer sounded, but the timekeeper ruled the clock had expired before the pin. Tucker was awarded a near fall for three points and an 11-10 victory.

Geran Webb’s 20-second pin of Cardinal Josh Teu Teu was only the second fastest pin of the night. Drew Templeman pinned Pirate John Michael Monroe in 11 seconds in the varsity opener at 125 pounds.

Graeme Britz is on the way to a 52-second pin of Jake Owen in the 130-pound match.

Other Pirate winners were Graeme Britz at 130 pounds and Sam Chapman at 112.

Sam Chapman, 112, gives Orting's Austin Dodson a close-up look at the Vashon wrestling mat.

Although team scores are not kept for JV matches, Pirate wrestlers dominated the 13 JV matches.

Varsity: Orting 46, Vashon 27

113: double ff; 112: Chapman (V) p Dodson; 119: Styles (O) d Wolczko 10-1; 125: Templeman (O) p Monroe; 130: Britz (V) p Owen; 135: Mann (O) p Stemer; 140: Maris (O) p Thomas; 145: Shattuck (O) p Steneker; 152: Veltri (O) p Mandl; 160: Elllingsen (V) p Fretter; 171: Lazare (V) d Norris 11-10; 189: Meeks (O) p Easton; 215: Webb (V) p Teu Teu; 275: Barnes (O) p Jovanovich.

The games were similar in that Cascade Christian jumped to an early lead and built a big enough margin that Vashon fell just short of catching up. Neither Vashon boys nor girls ever had a lead.

Kelly Costello runs into traffic.

The Cougar girls led 13-3 after one quarter and made that lead hold up the rest of the game. Vashon out-scored the Cougars in the second third quarters and cut the margin to three points for most of the fourth period.

Then some very strange foul calls had five Pirates fouled out, four in the final minute and a half, and a sixth player ejected, leaving Vashon with only four players on the floor for the final whistle. The resulting free throws allowed the Cougars to increase the final margin from three to nine, 45-36.

Kiki Means tries to keep control of the ball while tangled up with a Cougar player

The Pirate boys spotted the Cougars a 33-15 half time margin before playing the hosts even in the third period. Early in the fourth period the margin reached 20 points before Vashon closed it to four with less than two minutes remaining.

The Cougars were almost perfect with free throws as the Pirates fouled to try to get the ball back, resulting in a final score of Cascade Christian 60, Vashon 45.

Quinn Holert guards a Cascade Christian player.

Friday the Pirates host Orting. Boys play at 5:30 p.m., girls at 7 p.m.

Senior Graeme Britz, 130 pounds, pinned Cougar David Thompson in the third round. Tucker Lazare, 189, pinned Nick Willhoite in the first round and Geran Webb, 215, made short work of Nick Willhoite, putting him on his back in only 39 seconds.

Tucker Lazare, in green, works over Nick Willhoite on the way to a pin.

Going in to the final match at 119 pounds, Vashon led 33-27. If Cascade’s Daniel Suggs could pin Sam Chapman the team score would be tied and the Cougars would on the tie-breaker. All Chapman had to do was avoid being pinned for the Pirates to win.

But “Slam” was not content to do the minimum. The only point he allowed Suggs was an escape when Chapman opted for both wrestlers standing on a re-start. Meanwhile the Pirate senior ran off 17 points for a technical fall and five team points.

The wrestlers have one more home match, next Thursday, Jan. 28, against top-ranked Orting.

Pirate Anthony Sawyer pins his Cougar opponent in an exciting JV match.

The Pirate girls ran off 19 unanswered points from near the end of the first quarter to near the end of the second quarter and led 29-12 at halftime.

Sophie Nespor knocks the ball away from a Charles Wright player in a display of Vashon's tight defense.

The boys led 47-13 at the half. With a 30-point lead in the second period, coach Andy Sears began playing the reserves. The fourth quarter was almost all Pirate reserves.

The Pirates play Chimacum at home Friday, starting the second half of the season. The boys play first at 5:30 p.m. followed by the girls at 7 p.m.