PHS Pete Browand Is Division MVP; Girls Softball Wins District Title

Peninsula athletes closed out the spring season with district championships, school records, and another group of Seahawks carrying momentum into state competition.

Girls Softball Wins District Championship

The Peninsula softball team once again finds itself among state contenders after defeating Timberline 9-5 to win the District 3 3A Fastpitch championship May 16 at the Regional Athletic Complex in Olympia. The district title carried extra significance for the Seahawks (20-4, 14-2 Puget Sound League), avenging their only two league losses of the season against Timberline.

Peninsula entered district play as the No. 2 seed and wasted little time asserting itself. The Seahawks rolled past Kentlake, 28-4, defeated White River 12-6, and outscored opponents 50-15 over three tournament games. Peninsula earned the No. 3 seed at state and earned a first-round bye, but fell to No. 13 Kennewick, 13-7, in the second round. The Seahawks dropped their consolation bracket game later in the day to Kelso, 6-1, to end their season.

The title run continued the resurgence of a program that captured the 3A state championship in 2023 and returned to state a season ago. Gig Harbor also qualified for the state tournament.

Freshman pitcher Abby Hoyt won the Nisqually Division Pitcher of the Year award and was joined on the all-conference first team by Meghan Webster, McKenna Peterson, and Paige Jones. Vivian Sweet landed on the second team, and Asanti Perez and Ava Crabb were honorable mention. 

Browand Earns Nisqually League MVP

The Seahawks baseball team opened the season with 10 straight wins and remained among the area’s top teams throughout the spring. Peninsula (17-6, 14-2 PSL) reached the District 3 semifinals after defeating Enumclaw 8-4 before falling to Kentlake, 9-4. The Seahawks later earned the No. 12 seed at state and a first-round bye, but lost to No. 5 Snohomish in the second round. 

Junior catcher Pete Browand, a Fresno State recruit, was named Nisqually Division Most Valuable Player after leading Peninsula in several offensive categories. Peninsula’s coaching staff earned Coach of the Year honors, while the Seahawks also shared the Sportsmanship Award with Capital.

Senior Kaleb Copeland, junior Thomas Marzano, and sophomore Landon Schultz earned first-team recognition. Jett Ortega, Logan Johnson, and Andy Merry picked up second-team honors.

Sardinia Sets Two School Records; Girls Track Takes Fourth at PSL Championships

Senior Suri Sardinia spent much of the spring rewriting the record book. Sardinia won the District 3 shot put championship May 21 with a school record-shattering throw of 42 feet, 3.75 inches. She also won the Puget Sound League title in the same event earlier in the month, throwing 39 feet, 11.5 inches. This is after already breaking her own school record multiple times this season. She set the previous record (40 feet, 8.5 inches) at the Arnie Young Invite April 4. Sardinia also dominated discus competition, winning league by more than 29 feet after setting a school-record throw of 142 feet, 5 inches earlier this spring.

Emma Young added another league title in high jump at 5 feet and continued to position herself among the area’s top jumpers. Junior Elsie Leavengood tied for second in high jump, Leah Schmidt took fourth in shot put, sophomore Ascher Lascheck placed fifth in the 3200, and freshman Emi Hansonsmith finished fifth in the 100 hurdles. On the boys’ side, senior Yahshua Fonoti turned in a fourth-place finish in discus. He was the only Seahawk to place in the Top 5 for the boys.

Baurichter Back in Singles Action at State

Senior McKenna Baurichter also returned to state tennis competition. After qualifying in doubles a year ago and singles in 2024, Baurichter once again earned a trip to the 3A Girls State Championships, where she lost to Bellevue’s Gaya Krishnam in the first round, 2.0. Krishnam made it all the way to the state semifinals before losing. 

PHS Boys Soccer Making Improvements

The spring also brought progress for Peninsula boys soccer. The Seahawks finished 5-10 overall and improved significantly from last season’s 1-9-5 campaign, another sign the program may be headed in the right direction.

District and state competition continued after press time. Updates and postseason results can be found at www.keypennews.org.