At the start of the football season, we kept receiving the same question: Who will be the surprise football team this season?
We got similar questions on our prep football live chat on Friday. Is there any team you see that can break up the top three of Camas, Union, Skyview in the Class 4A Greater St. Helens League?
And after a month into the season, the answer is “no.” Unfortunately.
We had hoped this would be the most competitive season for the 4A GSHL in years. But, to date, we just haven’t seen anything to indicate there still isn’t a gap in the league between the upper division and lower division.
The top three teams from the 4A GSHL will advance to the state preliminary round, with the top two teams hosting Week 10 playoff games. And the three biggest games of the 4A GSHL football season are Camas-Skyview, Camas-Union and Union-Skyview.
The first of those big games will be Friday when Camas hosts Skyview at Doc Harris Stadium. Camas faces Union on Oct. 17, and Union and Skyview meet on Oct. 31
There appears to be even fewer big games in the 3A GSHL. And that’s partly because in a four-team league, there are fewer league games, period.
All signs now point to Columbia River and Kelso taking the two berths to the 3A state preliminary round. Those two teams meet in Kelso on Oct. 31.
The 2A GSHL race appears to be a three-team battle for the league title between R.A. Long, Woodland and Hockinson. But we have to wait until the final three weeks of the season to see those teams match up with each other.
Woodland plays at R.A. Long on Oct. 16. The next week (Oct. 24), Hockinson plays at Woodland. And the league season ends Oct. 31 with Hockinson at R.A. Long. So expect an exciting finish in the 2A GSHL.
As far as the 1A Trico League is concerned, we’ll get our first glimpse of league play this week. The six-team league spent all of September in non-league play, and will spend all of October in league play.
White Salmon finished non-league play 3-1, and the Bruins are the only Trico team with a winning record. La Center looked much better last week in getting their first win after opening the season with a brutal non-league scheduled against three ranked 2A teams.
Other highlights
TUESDAY: Battle Ground plays at Camas in a battle of 4A GSHL volleyball unbeatens. La Center plays at Kalama in a battle of unbeaten Trico League volleyball teams. Seton Catholic plays at La Center, under their new lights, in a battle of unbeaten Trico League soccer teams.
THURSDAY: Union plays Camas at Doc Harris Stadium in a 4A GSHL soccer showdown. Seton Catholic will host King’s Way Christian at Luke Jensen Park in another key Trico League soccer match.
FRIDAY: Hockinson hosts Battle Ground, Skyview, Hockinson, Ridgefield, Mark Morris and R.A. Long among other teams at the Finn Hill 5,000 cross country meet at Alderbrook Park.
