The Camas Papermakers are 10-0 and earned the No. 1 seed in the Class 4A state playoffs on Sunday.
And while some fans may spent Sunday studying the 4A bracket and the Papermakers’ potential path to the state final — a potential quarterfinal matchup against Arlington or Graham-Kapowsin or a semifinal matchup against possibly Kennedy Catholic or Gonzaga Prep — the Camas players are not going to look past Curtis.
Camas faces the Vikings from University Place at 7 p.m. Friday at Doc Harris Stadium in a 4A first-round game.
Senior quarterback Jake Davidson said Camas’ first-round exit last year against Mount Si still resonates with the Papermakers. That loss came after the Papermakers stumbled in a Week 10 playoff in 2022.
The memory of what Camas lost in the past two postseasons drives the Papermakers as they enter state.
“We’ve got to keep loving this,” Davidson said. “We got to keep loving the temperature, the weather. We’ve got to keep loving the sport. We’ve got to stay dedicated and focuses on what we want.”
Coach Adam Mathieson said the idea of focusing on the next game, next play may sound like coach-speak, but it’s something his core group of seniors really buy into.
“They come to work, and they buy into the mental side of things,” Mathieson said. “Like they ask good questions. ‘Coach, how do I not play with fear? How do I not let a turnover have a negative impact on me?’ They are hungry to do really good things, and that’s fun to be around.”
— Tim Martinez
For Skyview, retiring No. 70 ‘gives us motivation’
The No. 70 worn by starting right tackle William ‘Liam’ Sloan will forever be remembered and honored by Skyview.
The Storm have retired Sloan’s number and jersey. The junior right tackle died unexpectedly in his sleep last month.
No. 70 is the second football number to be retired by Skyview. The program retired No. 85 worn by safety Trey Foote, who died in 2006 after a two-year cancer battle. Foote’s jersey hangs inside Skyview’s weight room. Soon, Sloan’s jersey will hang in the weight room, too, a comforting feeling for Storm players.
“He left his legacy — that’s the best part,” senior defensive end and running back Levi Webb said of Sloan after Skyview’s 33-0 shutout of Juanita on Saturday to advance to the 4A state playoffs. … “We’ll be looking at that as we go down this road and continue to grow.”
“For the offensive linemen, it gives us motivation,” center Max Christiansen said. “That was our brother. We’re all brothers.”
Christiansen played right guard for the Storm in 2023 before moving to center this season. He shared how Sloan often executed plays at the line of scrimmage to perfection.
“He was a dawg and we miss him,” Christiansen said.
— Meg Wochnick
La Center relishes bye week
Two-and-a-half months into the season, getting an extra week to prepare for the state playoffs is a luxury a select few teams earned.
La Center and Seton Catholic are two of those teams, as both were awarded top-four seeds and a first-round bye in the Class 1A state playoffs.
The No. 3 seed Wildcats will play the winner of No. 11 Omak and No. 6 Montesano the weekend of Nov. 22-23 in the state quarterfinals. No. 2 Seton Catholic draws the winner of No. 10 King’s and No. 7 Life Christian.
After Friday’s Week 10 state preliminary round win against Elma, the Wildcats said they plan to spend the extra week working on fine-tuning themselves and preparing for both possible opponents. They’ll also take advantage of some extra rest to heal a few nagging injuries.
“We hit special teams a lot, we work on fundamental stuff and we’ll prepare for two teams. We still want them to be mentally sharp and locked into what we’re doing,” La Center coach John Lambert said.
“In some ways, you want to keep rolling and you want to play. But, this time of year, guys (are) banged up a little bit, so the extra week of a little extra health doesn’t hurt us at all.”
— Will Denner
Evergreen’s prep for Stanwood involves no footballs
No Class 4A or 3A teams in Southwest Washington run a Wing-T offense, so Evergreen’s preparation for Stanwood, a Wing-T-based opponent in its Week 10 state preliminary round game, meant more than extra film sessions.
“The first 2-3 days (of practice),” senior edge Makhi Miller said. “We played with no football.”
Senior tackle Mo Maiava explained it further.
“Coach grabbed that football,” he said, “kicked it to the other side and said we’re never going to use a football again.”
The Wing-T is an offense that relies on misdirection and a diverse run game meant to make it difficult for defenses. Class 2A Columbia River switched to the Wing-T this season under second-year coach Dewayne Patterson.
Another focal point of practice? Communication.
“Practices were very quiet — just working on that communication,” Miller said.
In Friday’s game at McKenzie Stadium, possessions and points were at a premium. Evergreen and Stanwood were tied 3-3 at halftime, and Stanwood led 6-3 before the game’s first touchdown inside 1 minute left in the third quarter when the Spartans extended their lead to 13-3.
Evergreen lost 20-17 to end its season at 8-2 overall. It included the program’s first league title since 2007 when it played in Class 4A. The eight-win season also is the most victories since 2007.
— Meg Wochnick
