Camas, Skyview, Ridgefield, and Hockinson have reached the first round of their state playoffs
And then there were four.
The four Clark County high school football teams that have reached their state tournaments finalized their days and kickoff times for this weekend’s game.
Hockinson will play Enumclaw at 7 p.m. Friday at Battle Ground’s District Stadium in the opening round of the Class 2A state playoffs.
The other three teams will play Saturday:
Ridgefield will host Orting at 5 p.m. in the Class 2A playoffs.
Camas will host Puyallup at 5:30 p.m. at Doc Harris Stadium in the Class 4A playoffs.
Skyview, meanwhile, will hit the road, taking on Sumner at 7 p.m.
Camas advanced to state with a win on Friday in the Week 10 preliminary round. Skyview, Ridgefield, and Hockinson earned victories on Saturday.
On Sunday, they all learned their seeds and matchups for the first round, then coordinated to find times and locations.
Ridgefield, at 10-0, received the 5-seed in Class 2A. Hockinson, at 7-2, got an 8-seed.
The top-eight seeds get home games in the first round. After that, though, the team that is listed on the bottom of the official bracket is home. That means Ridgefield will only get this home game no matter its opponents should the Spudders win.
Hockinson, if it wins this week, will be on the road in the quarterfinals, as well.
Camas, at 6-4, received the 5-seed in Class 4A. The seeding committee took into account Camas’ six-game win streak, and its difficult non-league schedule. The program also won the 2019 state title, the last year there was a state playoff.
Like Ridgefield, though, the Papermakers will get the home game this week, but then be on the road — provided they keep winning — regardless of their opponents’ seedings.
Skyview, at 8-2, is a No. 10 seed and will travel for its opening round game against No. 7 Sumner.
The four local teams remaining have respect for one another, even if in they are rivals.
Ridgefield beat Hockinson earlier this season and won the 2A Greater St. Helens League. Camas beat Skyview en route to the 4A GSHL crown.
Now, though, unless they face each other again, many of the players are pulling for the region.
“I’ve got a lot of friends at different schools across the county,” Ridgefield’s Ty Snider said. “I’m always rooting for them. I’m rooting for us. I’m rooting for all the teams in Clark County. We’re going to get it done.”
Teammate Isaiah Cowley added: “I have a bunch of friends making plays everywhere.”
Snider and Cowley, by the way, had big moments Saturday, helping Ridgefield to a 28-0 win over Aberdeen. Snider caught two touchdown passes and also threw a 67-yard bomb on a trick play, setting up another score. Cowley made plays as a receiver, running back, and also had an interception while on defense.
Gabe Martin of Skyview said he has friends all over, as well. In fact, he and Snider played together in the first grade.
“I’m rooting for all those guys,” Martin said.
Martin was instrumental in Skyview’s 28-7 win over Kamiak. Martin rushed for 189 yards and a touchdown.
Some players noted how underrated Southwest Washington is, even though it shouldn’t be. After all, there is a lot of recent history that proves the region can play. Hockinson won back-to-back 2A titles in 2017 and 2018 and reached the final four in 2019. Camas won the 4A title in 2019 and Union won state in 2018.
As Skyview’s Gavin Packer said: “We’ve got some dudes.”
And some young dudes who have already arrived. Packer, a freshman, had a 103-yard interception return for a touchdown to seal Skyview’s victory on Saturday.
“It’s always a good feeling to be part of the GSHL and part of Southwest Washington,” said Hockinson’s Cody Wheeler, who was his usual dominant self in the Hawks’ 50-7 win over Rochester on Saturday.
“In my opinion, we’re the best area in the state. It’s hard to prove us wrong because we always produce,” Wheeler said. “We always have a lot of great teams.”
Hockinson teammate Andre Northrup is on board with that opinion.
“Southwest Washington, we’re a bunch of ballers. We’re just a bunch of dawgs,” Northrup said. “We’re all good friends. Southwest Washington football is where it’s at.”
County schools went 4-4 in the Week 10 playoff games. Seton Catholic (1A), playing in its first postseason game in program history, lost on Thursday. La Center (1A) Columbia River (2A) fell on Friday. And Mountain View (3A) lost on Saturday night.
