PORT ANGELES — Port Angeles hosts Olympic in a critical Olympic League 2A Division football contest tonight at Civic Field.
The Roughriders (1-0, 1-3) have lost six straight games to the Trojans by an average margin of 44-8.
Port Angeles hasn’t beaten Olympic since a 20-7 win on Sept. 30, 2011, the team’s second longest Olympic League losing streak behind North Kitsap (seven games).
And this season’s Riders will face a Trojans team (1-1, 1-3) looking to stay in the thick of the league’s playoff chase after picking up their first win in a blowout over Kingston last week.
Olympic is better than its record indicates, having played 3A Bainbridge and 2A North Mason tough in close losses.
To have a shot at stopping the losing skid and picking up a homecoming victory, Port Angeles has to play a cleaner brand of football than what the team has displayed so far.
They can’t fumble away offensive opportunities and gift scoring chances to Olympic.
The Riders can’t be flagged for back-breaking penalties.
And they’ll have to fly to the football defensively and make the initial contact count against a speedy group of Trojans.
• Prediction: Olympic 27, Port Angeles 13
Sequim at Kingston
KINGSTON — Wolves coach Erik Wiker (99-51) should pick up his 100th win in 15 seasons at Sequim with a win over the Buccaneers tonight.
Wiker was nonchalant when asked about breaking the 100-victory mark.
“I never pay attention to those [coaching milestones],” Wiker said. “I think somebody [at a coaching clinic] was like, ‘Yeah, we are coaches, we know our records and I was like, ‘I only know it because I saw it in the paper.’”
He’ll probably see his record again Sunday. Sequim (2-0, 4-0) should roll past Kingston and stay
• Prediction: Sequim 42, Kingston 8
Vashon at Port Townsend
PORT TOWNSEND — The Redhawks (1-0, 1-3) will go for their second straight Nisqually/Olympic League win against a Pirates team that has trouble scoring points.
Vashon (0-1, 0-4) has been shutout in two of its four games and has only posted 18 points on the season.
Port Townsend head coach Patrick Gaffney said his team’s week three 45-0 loss to Forks built confidence amongst his young team.
“The Forks game was a blessing in disguise, really,” Gaffney said. After playing against such a big team our offensive line felt better, felt more confident against playing against guys their own size.”
• Prediction: Port Townsend 27, Vashon 18
Forks at Montesano
MONTESANO — Evergreen League play begins after a stellar nonleague slate for four of the league’s five teams.
No. 2 Montesano blitzed Port Angeles and three other opponents on its way to a 4-0 start. No. 10 Hoquiam also is 4-0, Elma (4-0) has displayed a potent offensive attack in putting up 41-plus points in all of its wins, including two over Class 2A foes, and the Spartans are 3-1, a rough second half against Sequim away from also being unbeaten.
And then’s there’s the Tenino Beavers (0-4) bringing up the rear.
• Prediction: Montesano 40, Forks 16
Neah Bay at Darrington
DARRINGTON — Fresh off a win over Lummi, the Red Devils face a Loggers team playing its first season of 8-man football after declining turnout cut short the team’s last two seasons.
There was push back from alumni proud of the school’s 11-man heritage and those who were upset the team wouldn’t be playing longtime area rivals such as Concrete and La Conner in favor of long trips to Neah Bay. A recent Everett Herald feature on the team showed that the community loves their Loggers and despite the occasional grumble, the town is adapting to 1B football.
• Prediction: Neah Bay 40, Darrington 32
Saturday’s Games Wishkah Valley at Crescent
JOYCE — The Loggers will win this game. They have to considering both teams are known as the Loggers. Crescent (1-0, 2-2) has a bigger roster than their Wishkah Valley counterparts, so they get the nod.
• Prediction: Crescent 36, Wishkah Valley 30
Quilcene at Tacoma Baptist
UNIVERSITY PLACE — The 4-0 Rangers travel south for a huge matchup with the Crusaders.
Quilcene beat Tacoma Baptist by 40 points in the regular season last year on its way to a SeaTac League title. But the Crusaders turned the tables on the Rangers in the district playoffs by a final margin of 54-38.
Tacoma Baptist (1-3) doesn’t boast an impressive record but the Crusaders have played and lost to No. 1 Almira/Coulee-Hartline (76-16), No. 5 Naselle (56-20) and Lummi (58-50).
• Prediction: Quilcene 42, Tacoma Baptist 36
Chimacum at Charles Wright
TACOMA — The Cowboys (0-1, 1-3) will spend Saturday night under the lights at Charles Wright’s (0-1, 1-3) gem of a field.
• Prediction: Charles Wright 20, Chimacum 18
• Last Week: 7-1.
• Season to date: 18-9.
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Sports reporter Michael Carman can be contacted at 360-417-3525 or mcarman@peninsuladailynews.com.
