Peninsula Girls Swim Team Wins District Title, Breaks School Record: Fall Sports Update

Peninsula High School won the 3A West Central District 3 girls swimming and diving title Oct. 31 at Mount Tahoma High School, capturing six events, including all three relays. The district victory came a week after Peninsula won the Puget Sound League championship.

The Seahawks finished with 291 points, 44 ahead of second-place Gig Harbor (247). Silas was third with 203.5 points. Peninsula qualified eight swimmers in individual events and all three relay teams for the 3A state swimming and diving championships Nov. 13-14 at the King County Aquatic Center in Federal Way.

The highlight came in the 200-yard freestyle relay, where sophomore Boe Ballard, freshman Leila Roddy, junior Reese Miller and senior Lee Gjertson broke the school record with a time of 1 minute, 40.44 seconds, nearly 1.5 seconds faster than the mark set last year, according to Coach Hunter Hobbs. The foursome finished nearly three seconds ahead of Central Kitsap (1:43.40).

Peninsula opened the finals with a victory in the 200 medley relay as Gjertson, senior Jewel Gullum, sophomore Sophia Evers and Ballard finished in 1:55.13.

The Seahawks closed the meet with another relay victory. Miller, freshman Steffi Delacruz, sophomore Bianca Henderson and Roddy won the 400 freestyle relay in 3:49.24, nearly four seconds ahead of Gig Harbor (3:53.10).

Gjertson finished her district career with 10 championships after winning four events Saturday. She captured the 200 freestyle in 1:58.11 and the 100 freestyle in 53.95, repeating her victories at the Puget Sound League championships Oct. 24.

Ballard won the 100 backstroke in 1:01.35 and placed second in the 50 freestyle (25.00).

Roddy added second-place finishes in the 200 freestyle (1:59.54) and 500 freestyle (5:25.62). Miller placed fifth in the 500 freestyle (5:41.91) and sixth in the 200 freestyle (2:04.33).

Henderson finished second in the 100 butterfly (1:01.98) and fourth in the 100 breaststroke (1:16.12). Delacruz was fifth in the 200 individual medley (2:25.81), while junior Sydney Gardner placed sixth in the 100 free (59.46) and Gullum was sixth in the 100 breaststroke (1:18.92).

In diving, freshman Alston Gjertson placed ninth and senior Annie Stafki was 10th. Gig Harbor sophomore Jane Jackman won the event.

Seahawks Cross-Country Teams Qualify for State

The PHS boys cross-country team finished second by a single point at the 3A West Central District 3 championships Oct. 31, while the girls placed fourth. Both teams qualified for the Nov. 7 state championships in Pasco.

The Seahawks boys scored 103 points, edging out third-place Bellarmine Prep (104) at Chambers Creek Properties in University Place. Gig Harbor won the district championship with 41 points.

Sophomore Nolan Winderl led Peninsula with an 11th-place finish, completing the 5,000-meter course in 16 minutes, 9.7 seconds. Junior Wilson Shipp followed in 14th (16:20.5), while senior Wyatt Harding placed 17th (16:27.8).

Senior Ethan Ericson finished 27th (16:47.7), and junior Baxter Balogh rounded out Peninsula’s five scoring runners in 35th (16:54.2). Junior Palmer Schumacher was 36th (16:55.6), followed by senior Zachary Saxon in 60th (17:45.0).

Peninsula returns to state after finishing 16th last year. Harding and Schumacher will make their third state appearances, while Ericson, Winderl, Shipp and Saxon return for their second time. Harding placed 75th and Winderl 95th at last year’s championships.

Central Kitsap senior Mana Voss won the boys individual championship in 15:23.5, ahead of Gig Harbor senior Joshua Minner (15:37.3).

The Peninsula girls finished fourth with 135 points, just two ahead of fifth-place Lakes (137). Gig Harbor won the district championship with 51 points, followed by White River (80) and Bellarmine Prep (111). The fourth-place finish sends the entire Peninsula girls team to state after the Seahawks missed a team berth last season.

Junior Ascher Lascheck led the Seahawks with a 12th-place finish in 19:55.4. Freshman Gisela Macsalka followed in 16th (20:14.5), while senior Isabella Easley placed 27th (20:56.9) and junior Megan Dyer was 33rd (21:15.4).

Junior Sofie Babbitt rounded out Peninsula’s five scoring runners in 51st (22:12.4). Sophomore Evelyn Easley placed 53rd (22:16.6), followed by freshman Lucy Schiro in 55th (22:21.5).

White River senior Paeton Poelman won the girls individual championship in 18:00.6, ahead of Gig Harbor junior Ella Savage (18:49.6).

Lascheck, Dyer, and Isabella Easley qualified individually for state last year. Isabella Easley will make her third state appearance, while Babbitt returns after qualifying as a freshman but missing last year’s championships.

Sophomore Aurelia Hawkins will run in the 2.1 mile ambulatory race after qualifying with a time of 20:53.

Peninsula Football To Host Lincoln in State Qualifying Game

The Seahawks (5-3) will host the Lincoln Abes (6-2) in a “Week 10” playoff game Nov. 7 at 2 p.m. at Roy Anderson Field to compete for a berth in the 16-team 3A state tournament. The game is part of a statewide, single-elimination qualifying round of 32.

The teams have faced several common opponents this season. Both defeated Timberline, and while the Seahawks beat Gig Harbor in September, the Abes lost to the Tides in early October.

Seahawks Girls Soccer Season Ends in District Playoffs

The Peninsula girls soccer season ended Oct. 31 with a 1-0 loss to Enumclaw in the district playoffs, snapping a five-year streak of state tournament appearances.

The Seahawks (6-7-1) failed to reach the state tournament for the first time since 2019. Before this season, the Seahawks played in back-to-back league and district championship games.

Editor’s note: Cross-country runner Gisela Macsalka is reporter Eddie Macsalka’s daughter.