Friday Night (High)Lights: Greater Spokane League 4A/3A division playoff teams set, 2As poised for Week 9 shenanigans

It all comes down to this. The high school football regular season that started in the sweltering heat of August will soon come to its completion in another soggy, windy late October.

It will give way, of course, to a November playoff chase for a select few from the Greater Spokane League.

We know most of the players, if not all of the seedings, for the Week 10 Round of 32 in each of the three classifications that make up the GSL.

Gonzaga Prep (8-0), by virtue of its 31-23 win over Mead on Friday, clinched not only its third straight GSL title but the No. 1 seed from the league to the 4A playoffs and the presumed home game that comes with it.

Of course, the Bullpups – ranked No. 2 in the state media poll and No. 3 by the coaches association – will be subject to the whimsy of the seeding committee as to how long they’ll get to play at home in the postseason.

Mead (5-3), after its impressive performance behind a first-time starter at quarterback, will get the league’s second postseason berth. Lewis and Clark (4-4) will finish third in the 4A ranks, and as such will be relegated to a Tuesday play-in game against either Kamiakin or Richland from the Mid-Columbia Conference for a chance at a Week 10 playoff spot.

In 3A, we know Mt. Spokane (7-1) and Cheney (7-1) will advance to the playoffs, but their game Thursday at Union Stadium (6 p.m. start time) will decide the top 3A seed and potential home game in Week 10.

University (4-4) is locked in as the third-place team in the GSL 3A division and will take on the MCC’s Walla Walla in the Tuesday play-in game.

The 2As still have some sorting to do.

West Valley (7-1, 5-0) and East Valley (5-3, 4-1) have qualified for Week 10, and their game Thursday night at East Valley will determine the league champion and top two seeds to the postseason from the division. If West Valley wins, they are champions outright; if East Valley wins, the two teams are co-champions.

After that? Well … there are four teams still in the running for two spots with one game to play – and a strong possibility of a three-way tie when Week 9 play concludes.

Pullman (3-5, 3-3) earned its third league win on Friday and is finished with league play, so the Greyhounds are assured of at least a spot in a tiebreaker scenario.

North Central (4-4, 2-3) faces winless Clarkston at home on Friday, while Rogers (4-4, 2-3) hosts Deer Park (3-5, 2-3) in the late game at ONE Spokane Stadium in what amounts to an elimination game.

If NC wins, three teams will have three wins for two spots, and we’ll need a tiebreaker to sort it out.

Got all of that? There will be a quiz later on.

Took a punch

Gonzaga Prep hadn’t been tested much this season, but that all changed Friday in its win over Mead.

The Bullpups didn’t help themselves either, committing nine penalties with four personal fouls – including one behind the play that negated a 97-yard punt return for a touchdown by Jack Pierce – and quarterback Sam Kincaid tossed an interception in the end zone to kill a potential scoring drive. They went 5 for 12 on third down and 0 for 4 on fourth down and Mead won the time of possession 26-18.

All that said, they still rushed for 238 yards, the defense came up with three interceptions – including Andrew Yarno’s clincher with less than 2 minutes left in the game – and Isaiah Docken outjumped and outmuscled defenders for two touchdown receptions.

“(Mead) punched us in the mouth, but our kids aren’t afraid to punch right back either,” coach Nate Graham said.

Still rolling

Cheney continued its breakthrough season in the GSL with a 41-0 win at home over University, which had been on a bit of roll as well. Connor Collins was the star in this one, going 17 of 23 for 318 yards with five touchdown passes. Collins’ vertical game has improved with each passing week.

The Blackhawks defense was impressive again too, pitching its second shutout of the campaign. No one in the league – other than Gonzaga Prep – has put up more than 14 points against Cheney this season.

Big day for Knights

East Valley came through big time Friday with its 30-21 win at home over Rogers, clinching a playoff spot and keeping the dream of a GSL title alive into the last week of the season. The Knights finished 1-5 in league last season.

Quarterback Tarin Fields had two TD passes and scored a rushing touchdown and added the 2-point conversion late in the fourth quarter to seal the pivotal win.