Seahawks Close Winter With Postseason Success

Peninsula athletes qualified for state competition across multiple sports this winter, highlighted by a district championship girls wrestling team and one of the program’s largest Mat Classic contingents in years.

Girls Wrestling: Seahawks Reload for Another State Push

The Peninsula girls wrestling team once again positioned itself as a state contender, winning its second straight Puget Sound League/District 3 championship and qualifying 13 wrestlers for the Mat Classic at the Tacoma Dome Feb. 19-21 (after press time: find results at keypennews.org).

The Seahawks scored 281 points, nearly 70 ahead of second-place Lakes, with seven individual champions leading the charge. Repeat district champions Justus Johnson (120 lbs.), Bailey Parker (155 lbs.), and Lindsey Shipp (170 lbs.) headline a roster headed to the state tournament.

Shipp, who holds a 34-4 record, enters state looking to defend her title, while Parker, 37-1, is chasing a third straight individual state championship — a milestone unmatched in the program’s history, girls or boys. Overall, Parker has a 120-12 high school record, with 113 of those wins by pinfall, and has only lost four matches in the last three years.

District titles also came from Georgina Johnson (100 lbs.), Kaila Johnson (115 lbs.), Paige Powers (135 lbs.), and Lyla Klinger (140 lbs.), while Mya Robles, Allison Otto, Levity Howlett, and Aliyah Hagara added podium finishes to strengthen Peninsula’s state lineup.

After winning the 3A state title in 2024 and finishing runner-up last season, the Seahawks again enter the Mat Classic as a Top 5 contender. The Peninsula assistant coaching staff earned conference Assistant Coaching Staff of the Year honors for their work with the girls team, and head coach Gary Griffin was named PSL’s Girls Wrestling Coach of the Year.

Boys Wrestling: Grandorff Wins District Championship

The Peninsula boys wrestling team had one of its strongest district finishes in years, taking fourth and qualifying nine wrestlers for the Mat Classic.

Senior Nehemiah “Nemo” Grandorff (150 lbs.) captured his first PSL/District 3 championship, advancing through the bracket with a series of decisive wins before claiming the title with a 4-2 decision. He enters state at 32-5 and will make his final push for a Top 5 finish after previous Mat Classic placements of seventh and sixth.

The Seahawks added depth across multiple weight classes, with Bryce Tillman (3rd, 132), David Howard (3rd, 165), Tyler Sievers (4th, 144), Peyton Beckett (4th, 175), Johann Powers (5th, 113), Ben Griffin (6th, 106), Cash Cano (6th, 157), and Aaron Nickels (7th, 144) all advancing.

Boys Swimming: Ruckle is District Diving Champ

Peninsula placed fourth at the District 3 3A Boys Swim & Dive Championships with 116 points and will send five swimmers to the state meet.

Senior Zachary Ruckle won the district one-meter diving title with a score of 321.60, returning to state after missing out on qualifying last season. Ruckle previously finished fourth at state as a sophomore.

Junior Travis Buell and sophomore Cullen Stitt provided key distance points, finishing fourth and sixth in the 200 freestyle and third and fifth in the 500 freestyle. Brandon Plitkins added a fourth-place finish in the 100-yard freestyle and qualified for state in the 100-yard backstroke.

The 400 freestyle relay team of Buell, Stitt, Plitkins, and Zachary Saxon placed fourth. All qualified for the state meet at King County Aquatic Center in February, but championship results were unavailable at press time.

Boys Basketball: Seahawks Return to Postseason

For the first time since the 2019-20 season, Peninsula boys basketball returned to postseason play.

The Seahawks (5-15 overall, 3-13 PSL during the regular season) secured the final District 3 berth with a 71-65 loser-out win over Silas, avenging an earlier loss and earning a first-round matchup at Gig Harbor Feb. 14. (Gig Harbor won 65-56.)

Senior AJ Alexeev anchored the offense with 15.1 points and 6.8 rebounds per game — identical averages to his previous season. Alexeev earned All-Puget Sound League Second Team honors, while Isaac Smith, Aiden Muilenburg, and Tariq Taylor received honorable mention recognition.

Girls Basketball Season: Dover Signs with Occidental

The Peninsula girls finished 9-12 overall and 7-9 in league play, falling to Lincoln in a district elimination game.

Senior Beverly Dover, who recently signed to play basketball at Occidental College, was named first team All-PSL and led the Seahawks with 11.3 points and 5.2 rebounds per game. Freshman Emi HansonSmith quickly emerged as one of the program’s building blocks, averaging 9.6 points and 12 rebounds while leading the team in assists, steals, and blocks. She received All-PSL Second Team recognition.

Girls Bowling: Seven Seahawks Compete at State

Seven Peninsula bowlers reached the state championships, where the Seahawks placed 11th with a team score of 5,503 at the Bowlero in Lakewood.

Senior Janelle Ramones led Peninsula with an 815 total over six frames to finish 46th overall. It was a 12-pin improvement to her 51st-place finish last year. Elisha Calauan placed 51st (803), Angelina Brambila finished 61st (726), and Allison Angeles, Nikki O’Keefe, and Jillian Angeles all recorded Top 100 finishes.