Our Star Times teams for baseball, softball and boys soccer ran earlier this week. It's always a difficult process and some of the area's best talent didn't make some of the teams.

As a disclaimer, these teams were selected in the second week of May -- before most postseason competition. Also, only players in King and Snohomish county are eligible (sorry Puyallup soccer stud Justin Veltung, 22 goals, 10 assists).

So for example, Snohomish's Derek Jones didn't make the team for a good-not-great regular season (to his high standards), but after the team had been chosen he caught fire and led his team to the state title.

Other notable absences: Blake Gibbs, Newport baseball; R.J. Sorensen (30 goals!), Cedarcrest soccer; Haylee Baker, Bainbridge softball.

Surely there are others. Take a look at the teams and let us have it!

BASEBALL
P Jake Theis, Mountlake Terrace, Sr.
P Matt Boyd, Eastside Catholic, Jr.
C Doug Joyce, Stanwood, Sr.
1B David Olson, Auburn, Sr.
2B Andy Bethel, Seattle Prep, Sr.
3B Cal Towey, Eastside Catholic, Sr.
SS Garrett Totten, Mountlake Terrace, Sr.
OF Danny Oh, Jackson, Sr.
OF Kyle Conwell, Tahoma, Jr.
OF Spencer Rogers, Issaquah, So.
DH/Util Ian McKay, Bothell, Sr.
Coach Jason Evans, Kentlake

SOFTBALL
P Jordan Birch, Monroe, Sr.
P Cory Mattson, Everett, Sr.
C Lindsy Dugan, Kennedy, Jr.
1B Karli Merlich, Kennedy, Sr.
2B Jill Parker, Enumclaw, Sr.
3B Felecia Harris, Kentlake, Sr.
SS Emily Nordhoff, Holy Names, Sr.
OF Kimi Pohlman, Eastlake, Sr.
OF Erin Fujita, Jefferson, Jr.
OF Chelsie Kakela, Bainbridge, Jr.
UTIL Amanda Fitzsimmons, Auburn Riverside, Jr.
Coach Jim Magnuson, Issaquah

BOYS SOCCER
F Tyler Bjork, Juanita, Sr.
F Daniel Nam, Beamer, Sr.
F Evan Fassler, Cedarcrest, Sr.
MF Radcliffe McDougald, Mercer Island, Sr.
MF Marshall Kosaka, Highline, Sr.
MF Evan Denmark, Tahoma, Sr.
MF Louis Schott, Lakeside, Fr.
D Tyler Klein, Eastlake, Sr.
D Jermaine Haller, Auburn Riverside, Sr.
D Kohl Schoening, Woodinville, Sr.
GK Andrew McDonald, Shorecrest, Sr.
Coach Robyn Saarenas, Auburn Riverside

It happens quickly, doesn't it? Before you knew it, the high-school season ended, with a frenzy of tournaments on Memorial Day weekend. And now it's over.

And before we begin looking forward to next year -- and with spring football in motion, we'll have that opportunity in the coming weeks -- I'd like to recall some of the best games, players and performances of the season:

Game of the year: Class 3A football championship (Skyline 42, O'Dea 35)

This one had it all. UW-bound running back Johri Fogerson runs for 297 yards for O'Dea, pushing the Irish out to a 28-7 lead in the third quarter. Then Skyline's offense got going, and we had a ballgame. And right when O'Dea looks ready to ice it, a miscommunication on field-goal call results in the kicker getting tackled, fumbling and Skyline picking it up and running it back to tie the whole thing at 35. Then Skyline leads a drive down the field that included a tremendous catch by freshman Kasen Williams -- as Fogerson delivers the biggest hit of the season -- and then Tyler Washburn runs in the winner score. Great game.

Some runners-up: Bellevue beats Skyline triple-overtime boys basketball thriller; Bothell stops Ferris on the 1-yard line in football; Issaquah softball holds off Bainbridge with bases loaded, no out.

Performance of the year: Kristi Kingma scores 43 in the girls state basketball tournament.

This was a close one, as Fogerson's 297 yards were incredible. But 43 points in 32 minutes? That's incredible. It wasn't enough for Jackson against Skyview of Vancouver, but it was a new state record. And that's a record that might not be touched for a long, long time.

Some runners-up: Fogerson's 297; Franklin's Peyton Siva scores 45 in an overtime win against Rainier Beach; Cascade's Sara Elliott bowls a perfect game.

Upset of the year: Garfield beats Redmond 5-3 in baseball

What a year it was for Redmond baseball, which won the KingCo 4A regular season title and lost only twice before the postseason. The Mustangs were one of the final eight teams left playing in 4A. But for one day in April, Garfield, which finished 4-16 on the season, was better. The Bulldogs were led that day by three RBI by Joseph Lucia and a solid start by David Stanton.

Some runners up: Eastlake beats Shadle Park in 4A softball championship; Federal Way beats Franklin in 3A boys basketball first round; Woodinville beats Roosevelt in boys basketball.

Athlete of the year: Fogerson.

Here's the thing: Fogerson could have been mentioned in all three categories. His state title in the 3A high jump was an upset, too, as he set a new personal best by four inches -- which is like miles in the high jump. My first game as a reporter for The Seattle Times was O'Dea's season debut, and Fogerson scored five touchdowns against Enumclaw. The next day's blog post -- only my second -- was titled "The first breakout candidate." He didn't disappoint.

Some runners up: Kingma (soccer, basketball), Snohomish's Derek Jones (football/baseball), Mt. Rainier's Sarah Martinez (soccer, basketball, softball), Bellevue's David DeCastro (football, track) and Bear Creek/Eastlake's Kimi Pohlman (soccer, basketball, softball).

There aren't many summer basketball tournaments with more quality teams than the Quaker Summer Slam, which will be this weekend at Franklin and West Seattle High School. You can see the entire (updated) schedule here.

Some notable teams and players:

Rainier Beach, defending 3A champion. Features Aaron Dotson, one of the state's top recruits.
Franklin, took fifth in 4A, moving to 3A. Features Louisville-bound guard Peyton Siva.
Bellarmine Prep, third-place in 4A. Features Avery Bradley and Arizona bound-Abdul Gaddy, two of the top 25 recruits in the country.
Kentwood. Features Josh Smith, a highly ranked sophomore.
Garfield. 4A state tournament qualifier. Features Tony Wroten, ranked in several spots as the country's top freshman.
Lincoln. Took fourth in 4A.

Well, it's over. What a wild, whacky weekend to cap the spring prep sports and 2007-08 year.

First of all, I'd like to congratulate all of the state champions crowned last Friday (some individual track titles were decided then) and Saturday. I'll bet you're still beaming this morning, as well you should.

Unless you are a die-hard Shadle Park fan, you had to love Eastlake's victory in the championship game of the Class 4A state fastpitch tournament. As they say, it's why they play the game, rather than just mail in the score. And it's why very little truly surprises me in high-school sports. There are no sure things.

Shadle, ranked as high as No. 6 nationally, was the overwhelming favorite to repeat with ace Sam Skillingstad in the circle. She had been "Nails" -- her nickname -- through the first three tournament games. But the Wolves believed in themselves, played their game and pulled off what I believe was the biggest upset of the weekend. A special congratulations to coach George Crowder and his Eastlake players!

Kennedy managed to repeat in 3A fastpitch with a pair of come-from-behind victories Saturday. Sore arm and all, Karli Merlich would not let the Lancers lose. The Lancers spoiled Timberline's bid for a perfect season, but the Blazers still deserve a tip of the cap for their otherwise outstanding year, and they were pure class after that disappointing loss in the final.

Snohomish finally got that baseball title after last year's championship loss to Richland. Aaron West was all but untouchable against Kentlake and how good is Derek Jones? He goes 3-for-4 with a 2-run homer in his final high-school game. The kid can flat-out hit.

How about you? What surprised or impressed you most? How about that crazy, 24-12 score in the 3A baseball title game? And 5-0 in the 3A soccer final? You don't expect to see numbers like that on championship Saturday.

But when it comes to high-school sports, you just never know.

Two-hit pitching from Aaron West and home runs by Ethan Hargrave and Derek Jones led the way.

UPDATE: We're going to a shootout!

Bellarmine Prep wins 4-3 in the shootout. Just a brutal way to decide it championship, but the same is said at all levels of the game.

Here are a couple extra quotes from Puyallup coach Matt White about his team.

"The one thing I do want to say is I’m incredibly thankful, for this group of boys."

"Win, lose. How do you not be thankful for the effort they put in?"

"We give up a goal late. Other teams would just crumble and that would be it. Instead we go into overtime and thumped them in overtime, and still almost won. It just shows again what kind of amazing team this is."

UPDATE: After regulation, it's tied 1-1. We're going to overtime!

Justin Veltung put Puyallup ahead in the 72nd minute with a great goal and even greater celebration (he jumped up into the stands and the waiting arms of excited classmates, only to get a yellow card when he came down).

Bellarmine Prep equalized in the 78th minute on a header by Elliot Morton off a corner kick. The Lions nearly scored the game-winner with 10 seconds left but John McDonald's header was saved by Kyle Bilharz.

UPDATE: After one half in the Class 4A championship, Bellarmine Prep and Puyallup are scoreless.

* * *

Camas just won the Class 3A state championship 5-0 over Kennedy. The score depicts exactly how the game went. The Papermakers were simply superior in every aspect of the game.

Quinton Beasley had two goals and two assists as Camas won its second title in three years. They were runners-up last year to Hazen.

Kennedy coach Brian Mullen, though disappointed by the loss, had nothing but great things to say about his team's season.

"It was a tremdendous run on our part. It's something thse guys will remember for a long time. I know I will."

Camas senior Brent Richards, the Gatorade State Player of the Year and a Washington recruit had one goal and said, "There's no feeling like it. It doesn't get old either."

Richards missed prep soccer last year. Faced with an injury he decided to dedicate the year to club soccer.

When asked to compare this year's state run to the last two, Beasley said, "This one's gotta be the sweetest. 5-0 against your opponent, I mean that feels great."

* * *

Both third-fourth games are over.

In the 3A, Mercer Island handled Lakeside 4-0. With goals from Chris Morris, Taylor Ward, Derek Johnson and Nick Ward.

In 4A, Eastlake survived a late-charging Beamer to win 2-1. Jordan Softli and Gordon Savage scored for the Wolves. Troy Peterson scored the Titans goal on a penalty kick.

Tonight we have the title games between Camas and Kennedy in the 3A, then Bellarmine Prep vs. Puyallup in 4A.

It's true -- Eastlake pulled off perhaps the upset of the weekend, in any sport, by knocking off Shadle Park of Spokane in the 4A fatpitch championship game, 4-1. The Highlanders, last year's champions, were ranked as high as No. 6 in the country and had a 35-game win streak stretching back to last season.

Kennedy defended its 3A title by knocking off another previously unbeaten team, Timberline of Lacey, 5-1. Karli Merlich went 3-for-4 with a two-run double and struck out 12 to improve to 20-1 on the season.

Other trophies will go to Redmond and Wilson in 4A and Everett and Bonney Lake in 3A. Those teams are playing in the third- and fourth-place games right now.

Sorry it's been so long with updates, but I've just gotten back from Pasco and a greet meet. You can find all of the winners here for the 4A and 3A meets. Check out the boys 4A javelin -- two guys surpassed the old state record!

All other results are available at wiaa.com.

BOYS

4A 110 hurdles -- Stephone Jordan, Garfield
4A 100 -- Ty Lang, Heritage
4A 1,600 -- Miles Unterreiner, Gig Harbor
4A 400 relay -- Beamer
4A javelin -- Jacob Wilson, Heritage (set a new meet record at 207-10)
3A 100 hurdles -- David Butler, North Central
3A 100 -- Kinsley Ojukwu, Union
3A 1,600 -- Ryan Prentice, Mount Rainier
3A 400 relay -- West Seattle
3A shot put -- David DeCastro, Bellevue
3A high jump -- Johri Fogerson, O'Dea

GIRLS

4A 100 -- Bianca Greene, Garfield
4A 100 hurdles -- Bree LeRoy, Gig Harbor
3A 100 hurdles -- Lori Borgous, East Valley
3A 100 -- Clem Morgan, Eastmont
3A triple jump -- Olivia Ward, Cleveland
3A discus -- Kjirsten Jensen, Arlington

The pairings are set for the 4A and 3A fastpitch champships here at the SERA softball complex in Tacoma.

In 4A, Redmond's ride came to an end against Shadle Park, the defending champion. Oregon-bound Sam Skillingstad tossed a no-hitter in the 6-0 victory, striking out 16 to give her 49 Ks in three games here and 1,349 for her career. Redmond still has a chance to come back and play for the third- and fourth-place trophy.

Eastlake's title hopes are still alive after a 4-0 victory over Rogers of Puyallup. Eastlake plays Shadle in the title game at 2:30 p.m.

In 3A, Everett had defending-champ Kennedy on the ropes, leading 1-0 in the top of the seventh. But Karli Merlich stroked a lead-off double and Lindsy Dugan followed with a two-run homer over the centerfield fence. The Lancers added three more runs for a 5-1 lead. Everett rallied for a run in the bottom of the inning, but Merlich slammed the door with her 15th strikeout of the game. Both Everett runs were unearned. Everett pitcher Cory Mattson struck out 10. The Seagulls need one more win to earn a trophy.

Kennedy will play unbeaten Timberline in the 3A final at 2:30. Timberline topped Bonney Lake in the other semifinal, 6-2.

UPDATE: From Craig Smith:

Snohomish beat Olympia 3-2 tonight in a pitcher's duel and is back in the 4A state-title game.

There was a bench-clearing incident in the game.

Olympia lefty Adam Conley retired 15 Panthers in a row after the first inning until Brian Wolfe singled to lead off the seventh inning. Pinch runner Ryan Lyski advanced to third on a wild pitch and passed ball and tried to score on a pitch in the dirt. He was thrown out and then Conley threw him to the ground. Both benches emptied but order was quickly restored. Conley was ejected.

Snohomish scored three runs in the first inning. Braden Allen and Derek Jones scored on a throwing error by the second baseman and courtesy runner Cameron Woolsey scored while Travis Cuykendall prolonged a rundown between first and second in a steal attempt.

Kramer Champlin homered over the left-field fence in the sixth inning for Olympia’s first run. Damon Porter followed with a double and Jones was lifted as the pitcher and replaced by Ethan Hargrove. Porter went to third on a wild pitch and scored on a passed ball.

Richland beat Snohomish 7-3 in last year's title game.

UPDATE: Kentlake 5, Richland 4

Here's how our Craig Smith summed it up:

"Talk about drama!

Kentlake rallied in the bottom of the seventh to scored two runs and beat defending 4A champion Richland 5-4. With one out, the Falcons got four hits and an intentional walk and then Lewis Larson's single to right scored Bobby Tannehill with the winning run.

Brett Jacobs hit a 2-run homer in the first inning for Richland."

UPDATE: Kelso 5 , Meadowdale 1

Kelso pitcher Trevor May pitched a three-hitter and struck out 12 to move his team into the 3A championship game tomorrow against Kennewick. May is senior right-hander who has committed to the University of Washington but could face a tough decision if taken high in the draft.

All five Kelso runs were unearned and Meadowdale committed an uncharacteristic four errors.

Kelso's Nate Nyman had the game's only extra-base hit, a double in the seventh inning.

Kelso plays Kennewick at 4 o'clock Saturday at Safeco Field.

Kennewick 4, Issaquah 1 .

Junior right-hander Tony Bryant struck out seven and scattered seven hits for Kennewick in the complete-game win over the defending 3A state champions.

The Lions (18-7) move into the 3A title game Saturday against the Meadowdale-Kelso winner.

Andy Salermi homered for Issaquah in the second inning.

Bonney Lake, just a third-year school, is back in the 3A state softball semifinals for the second straight year. The Panthers took a 2-0 lead over Newport into the seventh inning, then held on for a 2-1 victory as the Knights left runners at second and third.

They play unbeaten TImberline tomorrow at 9 a.m. Kennedy and Everett play in the other 3A semi, also at 9 a.m., as earlier noted.

Check back around noon tomorrow to find out who plays for the title. I'll have the 4A pairing as well.

I'll be naming winners as soon as I can:

BOYS

4A long jump -- Zach Smith, Kentlake (23-3)
4A pole vault -- Ian Quinn, Inglemoor (15-3)
4A discus -- Oliver Henry, Bethel (169-3)
3A discus -- Conner Larned, Enumclaw (177-6)
3A long jump -- Christian Crain, West Seattle (23-7 3/4)
3A pole vault -- Bryce Borer, Mercer Island (15-3)
3A 3,200 -- Ryan Prentice, Mt. Rainier (9:16.42)
4A 3,200 -- Miles Unterreiner, Gig Harbor (9:13.51)

GIRLS

4A javelin -- Kelsey Brennan, Monroe (135-9)
4A high jump -- Kelly McNamee, Ferris (5-8)
4A shot put -- Sofia Malamura, Jefferson (41-2 1/4)
4A long jump -- Andrea Geubelle, Curtis (19-1 1/4)
3A high jump -- Taymussa Miller, Hanford (5-5)
3A javelin -- Mikela Grager, Enumclaw (134-9)
3A shotput -- Kirsten Smith, Everett (39-0 1/4)
3A long jump -- Emily Warman, Sedro-Wooley (17-2 1/2)
3A 3,200 -- Bronwyn Crossman, Squalicum (10:59.37)
4A 3,200 -- Andrea Nelson, Shadle Park (10:40.04)
--Note: Nichole Cochran of Bellarmine Prep won the 3,200 but was disqualified for running on the inside lane line while making a move on lap 7. Nelson, after the ceremony, reportedly gave Cochran her medal, and then the rest of the girls passed their medals down accordingly.

Here are your 4A semifinal matchups, both at 9 a.m. tomorrow:

Redmond vs. Shadle Park
Eastlake vs. Rogers (Puyallup)

In 3A, Kennedy plays Everett in one semi, also at 9 a.m. The other two quarterfinals are being played now (Newport vs. Bonney Lake and Mount Vernon vs. Timberline).

Camas 1, Lakeside 0

The Papermakers finally broke through in the 72nd minute when a low cross by senior Steven Bunker was deflected into the net by a Lakeside defender.

Camas (18-1-1) boasted most of the scoring chances throughout the game, especially UW recruit and Gatorade State Player of the Year Brent Richards.

Lakeside (12-3-4) stayed in the game thanks to an excellent effort by All-Metro first team goalkeeper Johnny Krueger.

Kennedy 3, Mercer Island 2 (OT, Kennedy wins shootout 4-1)

Over at Harry Lang Stadium in Lakewood we just finished a wild one.

Kennedy (16-4-0) came back from a 2-0 second-half deficit to tie the game, then beat Mercer Island (13-4-2) 4-1 in a shootout to advance to the Class 3A state championship.

All the goals came in the second half.

More to come later.

Some interesting games already down here at SERA in Tacoma.

Kennedy, the defending 3A champ, handed Issaquah its first loss of the season, 5-2, in nine innings. Karli Merlich, who had been questionable with a sore left (pitching) arm, went the distance and struck out 10. Kennedy now plays North Central of Spokane in the quarterfinals at 5 p.m. North Central blanked Auburn Riverside, 2-0, despite a gutsy performance by Amanda Fitzsimmons, who had surgery late yesterday to have a cyst near her tailbone lanced. She didn't have trouble throwing, but could barely walk.

Liberty and Everett meet in the other 3A 5 p.m. quarterfinal. Liberty rolled past Enumclaw, 15-5, while Everett edged Southridge, 2-0.

The other four first-round games in 3A are still in progress and those quarterfinals will be at 7 p.m.

In 4A, Shadle Park's Sam Skillingstad struck out 19 and allowed just one hit in a 5-1 victory over Kentlake. Shadle is the defending champion. The Highlanders face Monroe in the quarterfinals at 3 p.m. Jordan Birch pitched a one-hit gem to key the Bearcats' 2-0 win over Central Kitsap in the opening round, fanning 14.

KingCo 4A teams went 2-for-3, and it was top-seeded Woodinville going down, 8-4 to Wilson of Tacoma. Redmond ripped Jackson 10-0 and now plays Wilson at 3 p.m. Eastlake topped Mountain View of Vancouver, 4-0, to advance to the 3 p.m. quarterfinals against Richland, a 2-1 winner over Puyallup. Stadium and Rogers of Puyallup play in the other quarterfinal, also at 3 p.m. Rogers edged Marysville-Pilchuck, 2-1, while Stadium stopped Central Valley of Spokane, 5-1.

More later.

This summer ESPN will launch its newest project: ESPN Rise. Its primary goal is to increase coverage of high school sports on the air, in the magazine and, of course, online.

You can expect more prep highlights on SportsCenter and more games covered on all of ESPN's various channels. Shows like College Football Live and College Gameday will surely dabble into the prep world more often.

So the question is: will the increased prep coverage by ESPN Rise be good or bad?

I was reading a column about this in the NY Daily News. There was a part that really struck me:

If you're a 14-year-old who can throw up a 50-yard spiral or throw down a 360-degree dunk, ESPN could vault you from local star to national star.

As if you didn't already have enough recruiters at your door, enough people wanting to do favors and become your "friend," enough people telling you you're the center of the universe.

While it would be cool to see Tony Wroten highlights or another Jake Heaps-to-Gino Simone touchdown on ESPN, I'm not sure how I feel about this.

Who knows where this might lead. Middle school sports?

What do you think? Are you excited for the chance to see more coverage of the best prep talent in the country or is this going a little too far?

Sports Illustrated has handed out the title for the top high school sports program in each state, and the honor is moving back across the Cascades to Spokane. Lewis & Clark, the state champion in football and girls basketball this year, has taken top billing.

Here's a look at some notable Class 4A finishes for LC this season:

Football: 1st
Volleyball: 2nd
Girls basketball: 1st (3-time defending champion)

The Tigers also had one state wrestling champion, Anthony Varnell at 140 pounds.

Otherwise, my search through the WIAA Web site has not shown any other team state tournament appearances this year, although the boys track team could have a shot at state this weekend in Pasco.

This could not have been an easy choice this year, and some other possible schools also popped out for me. Issaquah, the state champs in girls soccer and last year's SI winner, is coming on strong again with two of the top teams in the 3A baseball and softball tournaments (not to mention Brittany Tallman, who could repeat today as state golf champ). Mead won the volleyball and boys cross-country titles. Ferris was a football semifinalist and won boys basketball.

So what would your pick be? And back it up.

By, the way SI's overall winner for the U.S. was Hawaii's Punahou High, which has an alumnus running for president these days, Barack Obama. He was on the 1979 Punahou state championship basketball team.

Morning stars (golf edition)

1. Rui Li, Kentwood, girls 4A. Li shot a 70 yesterday, and defending champ Seo Hee Moon is seven shots back.

2. Reid Martin, Kamiak, boys 4A. With a 70, Martin held onto a one-shot lead for today's final round. Kevin Penner, last year's champ, is three strokes back.

3. Brittany Tallman, Issaquah, girls 3A. Tallman, who won in 2005 and 2007, finds herself in a familiar spot: leading. She was tied with Holy Names' Kristin Tan with a 74 after the first round.

Red Sox hurler Jon Lester, who at Bellarmine Prep in Tacoma was a three-time MVP, three-time All-Area selection and was named Gatorade State Player of the Year for Washington in 2000, threw Major League Baseball's first no-no of the season Tuesday.

In case you missed this the other day, interesting story out of Beaverton, Ore. where 6-foot-1 12-year-old Jaime Nared is being held off the boys team because, well, she's too good!

She's so good, Michael Abraham said, she makes the boys look like scrubs. So she has been told she can no longer play on boys teams at The Hoop, a private Beaverton basketball facility that runs a league in which Abraham's teams compete.

Rough.

Her older sister is a Maryland recruit and her father played there as well. The Terps are a perennial NCAA Championship contender. As one of the best sixth-graders in the country (that's a weird sentence. Sixth-grader!), she's thought to already be a college recruit.

Keep Nared on your radar. She'll be one of the better players to come out of the Northwest...in like six years!

This is one of those amazing stories you can't believe at first glance.

No recreation can do this justice, but I'll try.

Photographer Ryan McGeeney of the Standard Examiner was shooting the state track and field meet at Provo, Utah. Nothing out of the ordinary, right?

While capturing some of the top hurlers throw the discus, he wandered off into an out-of-bounds area and was, well, speared in the leg by a flying javelin.

So what does he do? What he does best: take a picture. (Click the link to take a look for yourself)

"If I didn't, it would probably be my editor's first question when I got back," McGeeney said later.

The javelin hit the 33-year old ex-Marine just below the knee and fortunately didn't hit any blood vessels, nerves, ligaments, tendons, or anything serious. Most of javelin was cut off at the track and it took 13 stitches to close the wound.

"It wasn't real painful," he said.

The throw came courtesy of Anthony Miles of local 4A school Provo H.S. -- who, in a crazy day, went on to win the state title.

It's your last chance. One final weekend of prep sports for the 2007-08 school year.

So, where are you going to be Friday and Saturday?

Are you a follow-my-team-only kind of fan? In other words, if your favorite baseball team didn't make the Final Four, you're not going to be at Safeco Field. Or are you a pure prep fan that will be somewhere just because you enjoy high-school sports?

Me? I'll be in Tacoma for the 4A and 3A fastpitch tournaments, although it has yet to be determined whether I will cover 4A, as in the past, or switch to 3A (either way, we'll have someone else there to handle the other tournament). And speaking of those two tournaments, what about those first-round matchups between Kentlake and Shadle Park of Spokane in 4A and Kennedy and Issaquah in 3A? Wow, those easily could have been championship games.

Shadle Park, last year's 4A champion, features possibly the stat's best pitcher in Oregon-bound Sam Skillingstad. Kentlake, which took fourth last year, counters with possibly the state's best hitter in UW-bound Felecia Harris. Harris hasn't been as dominating on the mound since her labrum surgery last fall, but could still lead the Falcons to the title, especially if they play solid defense behind her.

Kennedy is the defending 3A champion and Issaquah is unbeaten. Kennedy fans have to hope ace pitcher/hitter Karli Merlich is able to throw, or the Lancers could be in trouble like they were last Saturday, when they lost both of their games without her at the West Central 3A District tourney. Merlich hurt her pitching arm while batting last week and while she pitched two games at district to assure JFK of a state berth, she said it was too sore to play the following day.

There should be some great softball this weekend (and great weather). The baseball and soccer semifinals look intriguing, too. Are any of you heading to Pasco for track? I'm anxious to see who wins there, especially in the 4A sprints and distance events (OK, 3A, too).

So, where will you be this final weekend of prep sports?

There's a whole lot of softball going on this weekend at SERA Fields in Tacoma. Here's the schedule:

Class 4A

Redmond vs. Jackson, 9 a.m. (Blue Field)
Wilson vs. Woodinville, 9 a.m. (Red)
Monroe vs. Central Kitsap, 9 a.m. (Green)
Kentlake vs. Shadle Park, 9 a.m. (Gold)
Puyallup vs. Richland, 9 a.m. (Purple)
Eastlake vs. Mountain View, 9 a.m. (Orange)
Central Valley vs. Stadium 11 a.m. (Blue)
Rogers vs. Marysville-Pilchuck, 11 a.m. (Red)

Class 3A

Liberty vs. Enumclaw, 11 a.m. (Green)
Southridge vs. Everett, 11 a.m. (Gold)
North Central vs. Auburn Riverside, 11 a.m. (Purple)
Kennedy vs. Issaquah, 11 a.m. (Orange)
Capital vs. Newport, 1 p.m. (Blue)
Bonney Lake vs. Kamiakin, 1 p.m. (Red)
Kelso vs. Mount Vernon, 1 p.m. (Green)
Bainbridge vs. Timberline, 1 p.m. (Gold)

This is the schedule at Harry Lang Stadium on Friday:

Class 3A

Mercer Island vs. Kennedy, 1 p.m.
Lakeside vs. Camas, 3 p.m.

Class 4A

Bellarmine Prep vs. Eastlake, 5 p.m.
Puyallup vs. Beamer, 7 p.m.

Also, King's plays Columbia of White Salmon at 2 p.m. at Sunset Chev Stadium in the Class 1A tournament, and Cedarcrest has an 8 p.m. game against Sehome in the 2A quarterfinals.

Here's the lineup for Friday at Safeco Field:

Class 3A

Issaquah vs. Kennewick, 10 a.m.
Meadowdale vs. Kelso, 1 p.m.

Class 4A

Kentlake vs. Richland, 4 p.m.
Shohomish vs. Olympia, 7 p.m.

I'll publish 'em as I hear about 'em.

QUARTERFINALS

Class 4A

Kentlake 23, Bothell 2
Snohomish 9, Central Kitsap 2
Olympia 7, Heritage 2
Richland 11, Redmond 5

Class 3A

Meadowdale 11, Seattle Prep 0
Issaquah 7, Franklin Pierce 0
Kennewick 10, Kamiakin 5
Kelso 10, Auburn 8

FIRST ROUND

Class 4A

Richland 4, Central Valley 3 (8 innings)
Redmond 15, University 0
Snohomish 8, Puyallup 3
Central Kitsap 11, Mountlake Terrace 5
Kentlake 3, Battle Ground 1
Bothell 23, South Kitsap 2
Heritage 4, Tahoma 3
Olympia 10, Marysville-Pilchuck 2

Class 3A

Seattle Prep 2, Mt. Rainier 0
Meadowdale 7, West Seattle 3
Franklin Pierce 3, Capital 0
Issaquah 20, Hazen 2
Kelso 5, Olympic 0
Kamiakin 8, Hanford 1
Kennewick 7, Ferndale 4
Auburn 12, Bishop Blanchet 4

You'll find an awful lot of stories and results from yesterday's tournaments and meets in today's paper. You'll see that Kennedy and Kentlake clinched state berths in softball tournaments down south, and that Jackson and Marysville-Pilchuck are to meet in the final of the Northwest 4A tournament up north. Issaquah and Newport survived thrillers in their winner-to-state semifinals before having another close game in the final (Issaquah won).

You'll see that Lakeside joined Mercer Island in the 3A soccer final four, and that a pair of athletes up north --Snohomish's Jessica Yates and Mariner's Marzell Jenkins -- had a great day at the track. You'll also see that Franklin guard Peyton Siva -- recently ranked 20th in the country by Rivals.com -- plans on being a Louisville Cardinal.

But I have one more story for you, one that isn't in today's section because I just received this e-mail this morning from someone at Woodinville. Yesterday, I mentioned that Eastlake and Woodinville met in the third game this season between two of the area's top teams. Woodinville won 4-3 with a pair of runs in the ninth. A reader gives us these details:

Halfway through the season we lost one of our starting senior pitchers to torn ankle ligaments during a Garfield game. Since then, Devan McComb, our other senior pitcher, has been stellar. We had 14 games in a row due to rain outs ... no days off. She was like a rock.

In last night's game in the 4th inning, she hit first base wrong and rolled her ankle. She was in a lot of pain. The whole crowd was silent and we knew we were done ... She hobbled in the dugout and you can imagine our surprise when the next inning started, out she came. We all watched her closely. It was not her landing foot, but her push off foot that was hurt. You could see her wince with each pitch, taking deep breaths many times during a pitch. There were tears in her eyes, but that kid just kept on going. It was because of her "never give up attitude" that we won that championship. We also had many younger class players step up and have some great at bats and great plays. A true team effort, but one that was based on Devan's "warrior" mentality. She set the tone for the last 2 innings of that game.

Where to be today

Baseball state playoffs. They're everywhere today, beginning at 10 a.m. You can find Bothell and Kentlake playing today in Kent; Snohomish, Puyallup and Mountlake Terrace in Everett; Tahoma and Marysville-Pilchuck in Tacoma; Hazen and Issaquah in Bellevue; and Mt. Rainier, Seattle Prep, West Seattle and Meadowdale in Mount Vernon.

Softball districts. The Northwest and West Central Districts both finish up today.

Soccer state quarters. Beamer and Shorewood play at Shoreline Stadium tonight at 7 in the only game being played locally. Eastlake's in Spokane to play Mead and Kennedy is at Sunnyside.

Their meetings this season have been fierce showdowns between two of the state's best. With two of the area's top 10 pitchers, several Division-I bound position players and a long-standing conference rivalry, Woodinville and Eastlake have faced off in three of the best games this season.

Today at 5 p.m. they play a fourth time, this time for the KingCo 4A tournament championship.

Eastlake won 9-0 last night against Lake Washington behind a four-hit shutout by Stephanie Fox, a 4-for-4, RBI day by UW-bound Kimi Pohlman and a 2-for-4 day by UNLV-bound Marissa Guches. Woodinville had a tighter game, but it ace Devan McComb on the mound, the Falcons shut down Redmond and won 1-0. Lindsay Sullivan had the winning RBI in the second, and McComb made it last.

There's a good possibility of seeing those two aces back against today in such an important game. But it's not the only softball tournament going on right now. Far from it. The Northwest 3A tournament is at Janicki Fields in Sedro-Wooley, the Northwest 4A tournament is at Sky River Park in Monroe, and the West Central 3A and 4A tournaments are getting started today at Sprinkler Rec Center in Tacoma.

Also, the Sea-King 3A tournament, featuring the Metro and KingCo 3A teams, is on at Marymoor Park today, starting at noon. KingCo 3A went 5-1 against Metro yesterday, and I'll be there today to see if the Eastsiders can keep it up.

Morning stars

1. Natalie Allen, Holy Names, girls tennis. Allen beat Bellevue's Nikole Novikova, the 2006 champ, in a three-set thriller, 5-7, 6-3, 7-6 (6), to win the Sea-King 3A District championship.

2. Lindsay Willman, Bainbridge, softball. Pitched a one-hit shutout against Skyline to advance in the Sea-King 3A District tournament.

3. Seo Hee Moon, Kamiak, girls golf. Shot a two-round 149 at Gallery Golf Course, 11 strokes better than the competition, to win the Northwest 4A District tournament and advance to state.

It's something every high school athlete waits for -- a scholarship to play his/her sport in college.

Hundreds of athletes in the Seattle area are being recruited right now. And some of those most highly sought after are the underclassmen (e.g. Garfield basketball player Tony Wroten or Skyline quarterback Jake Heaps).

The growing trend is to snag 'em young.

But this isn't exclusive to the United States. Certain Europeans soccer clubs are known to sign kids in grade school. Tennis, golf and many other sports start developing kids younger and younger these days.

Recently college programs like Kentucky basketball and USC football (basketball too, I guess) have developed a reputation for targeting the younger talents.

What are your thoughts on this fascination with getting commitments from 9th graders, 8th graders and below?

Fair game in a competitive business or too soon?

Morning stars

1. David DeCastro, Bellevue track -- The hulking Stanford football commit threw 58-feet-4-inches at the SeaKing 3A district meet. It's the best in the state this year, by far.

2. KingCo 4A hurlers -- Redmond's Erika Hendron and Stephanie Fox of Eastlake each threw complete-game shutouts in KingCo 4A tournament softball games in advance to the semis.

3. Darcie Richmond, Bothell golf -- Sank a seven-foot putt for par on the last hole to win the KingCo 4A girls championship by one shot. She shot a girls course-record with a 69 in the first round.

4. Alyson Peters, Overlake golf -- A round of root beers in the clubhouse was on Peters, who hit a hole-in-one on Jackson Park's No. 8 hole en route to a 19-stroke win in the Emerald City League tournament.

The boys soccer playoffs began last night, and as it's been previously mentioned a few dozen times, many of the area's best players aren't in it because they chose to play club soccer this spring. And we can debate what that means to this year's state playoffs as long as we want, especially whether some of last year's best teams -- for instance, Federal Way -- would be part of the picture with their best players.

But right now, many of those kids are missing out. Take Eastlake's game last night, in which the Wolves beat defending 4A champ Pasco 2-1 in a shootout. The team didn't get back to Sammamish until about 2 a.m. last night, but the players didn't seem to mind. They were celebrating the whole way back.

"That," Eastlake coach Adam Gervis told me this afternoon, "is an experience they will remember for the rest of their life."

That's the hardest part of this whole situation. Sure, maybe high school soccer isn't as competitive as club and it doesn't provide the same college opportunities. But in almost every other sport, kids are given those opportunities in club sports, and yet they still have the chance to play with their classmates. Right now, some of the area's best basketball players are playing on AAU teams, extremely talented teams usually playing in front of scouts. But come next March, they will chase after a state championship at the Tacoma Dome.

Unfortunately, it doesn't appear this soccer situation is on the brink of changing anytime soon.

Here's the schedule for this weekend's second-round games:

Class 4A

FRIDAY

Bellarmine vs. Olympia, 7 p.m. at Ingersoll Stadium (Olympia)
Mountain View vs. Puyallup, 7 p.m. at Sparks Stadium (Puyallup)

SATURDAY

Eastlake vs. Mead, 12 p.m. at Albi Stadium (Spokane)
Beamer vs. Shorewood, 7 p.m. at Shoreline Stadium

Class 3A

THURSDAY

Mercer Island vs. Shorecrest, 7 p.m. at Shoreline Stadium

FRIDAY

Capital vs. Lakeside, 5:30 p.m. at Interbay Stadium

SATURDAY

Kennedy at Sunnyside, time TBD
Camas at Mt. Vernon, 1 p.m.

Morning stars

1. Darcie Richmond, Bothell, girls golf. Shot a 69 at the KingCo 4A tournament at Snohomish GC, 5 strokes better than anyone else.

2. Evan Fassler, Cedarcrest, boys soccer. Don't let the 2A school confuse you. This forward, who scored two goals and two assists against Centralia is top notch. So is his teammate R.J. Sorensen, who added a goal and two assists in a 5-2 win.

3. Louis Schott, Lakeside, boys soccer. Scored the only goal in a win against Mount Rainier, and if a certain club team convinces him to play club next spring instead of high school, this might be the last year we see this super-talented freshman.

Times reporters get quite territorial over their coverage zones. Blog Daddy Tom is always saying that KingCo 3A and 4A are the best leagues in the area. I push hard for WesCo. Sandy loves the SPSL and Seamount.

So rather than argue in circles, let's have you guys chime in.

What's the best league in the area? Feel free to break it down by sport or just give an overview.

The leagues:

KingCo
WesCo
Metro
SPSL
Seamount
Cascade
Nisqually
Emerald City
Sea-Tac
Northwest 2B/1A

Make your case in the comments!

Tonight's top games:

1. State soccer!

Question of the day: Should injured athletes be "passed through" league meets to district?

I ask because it happened a couple of times at the South Puget Sound League 4A sub-district meet last week. League coaches voted to allow Ezra John Griffey, one of the top sprinters in the state, to sit out the 100 and 200 to give a leg injury more time to heal. He will run in the West Central 4A District meet this Friday and Saturday. Griffey pulled up lame last month in the Shoreline Invitational, but vows to be ready this weekend and believes he can make a run at a couple of state titles in Pasco the following weekend.

Puyallup's Eric Morrison also got a pass in the 300 hurdles after getting hurt in the 110 high hurdles.

The SPSL has 10 district berths. But with the pass-throughs, only the top nine qualified in the 100, 200 and 300 hurdles based on their performances at the SPSL meet.

Is this a good policy? Or do you think injuried athletes should have to go through the normal qualifying process? Mind you, if Griffey or Morrison decide they aren't ready to run at district, the alternate in each race would be allowed to compete. And there are no pass-throughs from district to state.

As the WIAA makes them official on its Web site, I'll fill in the first-round matchups for the state baseball playoffs.

ALL GAMES SATURDAY

Class 4A

At Kent Memorial in Kent

South Kitsap vs. Bothell, 10 a.m.
Battle Ground vs. Kentlake, 1 p.m.

At Gonzaga Prep in Spokane

Central Valley vs. Richland, 10 a.m.
Redmond vs. University, 1 p.m.

At Everett Memorial in Everett

Snohomish vs. Puyallup, 10 a.m.
Central Kitsap vs. Mountlake Terrace, 1 p.m.

At Heidelberg Park in Tacoma

Tahoma vs. Heritage, 10 a.m.
Marysville-Pilchuck vs. Olympia, 1 p.m.

Class 3A

At Bannerwood Park in Bellevue

Franklin Pierce vs. Captial, 10 a.m.
Hazen vs. Issaquah, 1 p.m.

At Parker Field in Yakima

Hanford vs. Kamiakin, 10 a.m.
Ferndale vs. Kennewick, 1 p.m.

At Sherman Anderson Field in Mount Vernon

Mount Rainier vs. Seattle Prep, 10 a.m.
West Seattle/Liberty winner vs. Meadowdale, 1 p.m.

At Wheeler Field in Centralia

Kelso vs. Olympic, 10 a.m.
Bishop Blanchet vs. Auburn, 1 p.m.

All first-round games Tuesday

Class 4A

Snohomish vs. Bellarmine, 7 p.m. at Mt. Tahoma
Olympia at Juanita, 7 p.m.
Eastlake vs. Pasco, 7 p.m. at Edgar Brown Stadium (Pasco)
Mead at Central Valley, 6:30 p.m.
Kentwood vs. Battle Ground, 7 p.m. at Battle Ground Stadium (Vancouver)
Marysville vs. Puyallup, 7 p.m. at Sparks Stadium (Puyallup)
Bothell vs. Todd Beamer, 5:30 p.m. at Sunset Chev Stadium (Sumner)
Jefferson vs. Shorewood, 7 p.m. at Shoreline Stadium

Class 3A

Hudson's Bay at Mercer Island, 7 p.m.
Shorecrest at Auburn Riverside, 7:30 p.m. at Sunset Chev Stadium (Sumner)
Kennedy at Eastmont, 7 p.m. at Apple Bowl (Wenatchee)
Kamiakin at Sunnyside, 7 p.m.
Bainbridge vs. Capital, 7 p.m. at Ingersoll Stadium
Mt. Rainier vs. Lakeside, 5:30 p.m. at Interbay Field
Nathan Halle at Camas, 7 p.m.
Yelm at Mount Vernon, 7 p.m.

That's right.

Bonnie Richardson was the only athlete from Rochelle High School to compete in the 1A state tournament Saturday in Austin, Texas, and in five events she accumulated more points by herself than any other team.

Richardson, a junior, won the high jump (5-feet-5) and the 200 meters (25.03), finished runner-up in the long jump (18-feet-7) and the 100 meters (12.19) and was third in the discus (121-0) in events held over two days, Friday and Saturday.

It was a good thing the 1A events were split over two days because Richardson said the heat -- temperatures were in the high 90s both days -- might have knocked her down. She laughed off a suggestion that she could have won more if UIL rules didn't limit individual participation to five events.

"I don't think I could handle any more," she said. "It was hot and I was tired."

Officials believe it's the first time a girl has ever won a team title on her own. Former Pittsburg Steeler Frank Pollard is believed to have done it on the boys side for Meridian High School in the 70s.

Not a bad weekend, I'd say.

Two games. It happens just like that. For two months, Eastside Catholic was one of the top baseball teams in the state, and the Crusaders took over the top spot in Class 3A just last week.

But like that, they're gone.

The high-school playoffs are unforgiving, with no room for hiccups. The Crusaders won 18 consecutive games before the postseason, but two consecutive losses did them in. Give credit to West Seattle, which surely knew it was the underdog last night but didn't give in when it was down early. The Wildcats scored eight runs in the fifth inning to boost itself to an 8-6 win and kept their season alive.

That's not the only Metro upset last night. Lakeside ended Holy Names' five-year streak of Metro girls track championships last night, with a large supporting cast surrounding its two individual champs: Rachael Severtson (pole vault) and Madeline Rathbun (800 meters). As coach Doug Porter told our Craig Smith after Lakeside's first championship since 1992, "There is not a more surprised person in this stadium than myself."

Morning stars

1. MiKenzie Voves, Issaquah, softball. Threw a two-hitter and struck out seven in a shutout that allowed Issaquah to claim the KingCo 3A tournament championship with a 1-0 victory. The Eagles remain undefeated.

2. Ivana Krommelova, Arlington, girls tennis. She didn't lose even game in a two-set victory to win the WesCo 3A tennis tournament.

3. Bothell boys track. It was a big track night, and you can read about all of the individual stars in our stories about the KingCo, Metro and SPSL 4A meets. But Bothell gets a mention this morning for winning its first league championship in school history, edging out Inglemoor 122-114.

In one night, the playoffs in Class 3A's best conference this decade flipped upside down. The top two seeds -- Newport and Skyline -- have been relegated to fight it out for the right to play in a pigtail game, while the division's third and fifth seeds -- Issaquah and Liberty -- will play in the final.

Issaquah beat Newport with the Knights down a couple star players, but starter Jacob Kemmerer allowed just three hits in the 6-1 Eagles win. Four first-innings runs were all Issaquah needed.

Liberty also got off to a fast start with two first-inning runs against Skyline's dominating sophomore, Adrian Sampson. But Skyline eventually fought back, tying it in the sixth. But Liberty, which beat Bellevue in an eight-inning game to stay alive Tuesday, won behind a Chandler Tracy RBI double in the seventh.

You might be asking: Why is this important? What the Metro League is to 3A state basketball, KingCo 3A is to 3A state baseball. It has produced six of the last eight state champions, including Issaquah last year, when it started as the KingCo 3A's fifth seed and went all the way to the state championship.

But with only 1 1/2 berths to state -- the team that wins the second seed plays Metro's third seed for a berth -- this might be one of the most intense tournaments around the state. Saturday's playoffs should be fun to watch.

But it can't be the only fun conference to watch this weekend. Feel free to chime in on what you think will be the best playoffs, in any sport, as we get closer and closer to state tournaments.

Morning stars

1. Natalie Allen, Holy Names, and Davis Mangham, Lakeside; tennis. Meet your new Metro League champions. Mangham won 6-2, 6-3 in the championship against Seattle Prep's Shuhei Matsuya, and Allen beat teammate Rachel Storz 6-3, 6-0.

2. Natsumi Ueda, Newport, softball. Hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the sixth to put Newport ahead in a 5-3 win against Skyline.

3. Chris Hashimoto, Lake Washington, baseball. Went 3-for-3 with a big two-run home run in an 11-2 win that kept the Kangs' season alive.

Today's top games

KingCo 3A softball championship: Newport vs. Issaquah, 5:30 p.m. at Issaquah. Issaquah has yet to lose a game this season, and can clinch the KingCo 3A's top seed with a win.

Metro League track, at Southwest Athletic Complex and KingCo 3A/4A track at Liberty. Conference finals all around today, with state only two weeks away.

I took a call last night with one of the most impressive individual performances I've ever seen.

Emerald Ridge goalkeeper Kevin Weeks did it all.

Through 80 minutes of regulation and 10 minutes of overtime, Weeks stopped 20 shots by Kentlake for his seventh shutout. But that's not all. In the subsequent penalty-shootout, he stopped four of the Falcons' five attempts.

But again, there's more.

Weeks, a senior, also converted a penalty shot of his own. Which turned out to be the game-winner as the Jaguars advanced in the SPSL 4A playoffs.

Wow.

But there have been other amazing feats this spring: Kentridge senior Spencer Graham recently had a 3-homer, 7-RBI day. Ryan Prentice ran an amazing sub-9 minute 3200 at the Shoreline Invitational. Brittany Allen from Archbishop Murphy threw an 11-inning no-hitter and had 25 strikeouts!

What have been some of the most performances you can remember from this season?

Morning stars (the non-Weeks edition)

1. Seattle Prep baseball -- The Panthers stunned top-ranked Eastside Catholic with four runs in the top of the seventh in a 10-6 win to qualify for the state tournament. Prep was led by John Humphrie, who hit a two-run home run and got the win on the mound, Paul Twining (4-for-5, triple) and Mike Buckley, who doubled and drove in three runs.

2. Other Metro state qualifiers -- Adam McNaghten booked Bishop Blanchet's ticket to state with a 2-out RBI double in the bottom of the seventh after the Braves blew a 1-0 lead in the top half of the inning. Nathan Hale and Lakeside's boys soccer teams qualified for state with 2-0 wins.

3. Hallie Martin, Roosevelt girls tennis -- Despite losing her first set, Martin battled back to defeat Inglemoor's Coco Bater in the KingCo 4A girls singles championship, 3-6, 6-1, 6-2.

Good story out of Northern California. A girl beat out 15 boys and made her high school's JV baseball team.

See the video and full report here. (Wait for the advertisement to play out).

Pretty cool, huh? Be great to see more stories like it!

Last night was an important night for high-school sports in Seattle. Take a look at today's roundups, and you'll see some teams clinching state berths. Others had to watch their seasons end.

I sat in the stands at Bannerwood Park in Bellevue last night and watched a classic between Bellevue and Liberty, an eight-inning loser out game that crazily went back and forth, and rarely have so many squeeze plays affected a single game's outcome.

Let's go to the sixth inning, with Bellevue leading 2-0 and its ace, Colton Bielaski, on the mound and the bases loaded. No outs. Liberty runs one squeeze play, the only play is to first and the throw is off the mound. Safe. So it's 2-1 Bellevue, still no outs.

Then, Liberty runs another squeeze play, and this time the throw to home bounces out of the catcher's glove. Safe again. And it's tied at 2. Bases still loaded, still no outs.

So Bellevue, sensing a pattern here, pitches out on the next play, and Wolverines not only get the runner going from third to home on the squeeze; they also get the runner going from second to third. That's right: a double play on a pitch out. Bielaski gets the final out, and the game stays tied until the eighth.

In the eighth, Liberty's Nick Hart squared up to bunt with a runner on third and one out. But this time, Hart pulled the bat back, and slapped a hit right at the charging first baseman, and the ball deflected off the first baseman's glove for the RBI single that won the game, 3-2.

A side note on Bellevue's Taylor Anderson. In the third inning, Anderson walked up to the plate wearing a yellow armband with "CA" engraved in black. The initials stood for Chase Anderson, his big brother, who died April 25 in a bus accident. The team canceled its game that weekend. Early the following week, Anderson told Bellevue coach Mark Tyler, "I'm ready." And was he ever.

Anderson had a hit in each game since then, helping Bellevue recover from a 2-5 start in KingCo 3A to finish 10-6 and claim the fourth seed in the tournament. Last week, as previously noted in the blog, Anderson was the MVP of a win against Liberty, bringing home the winning run and closing out the seventh.

So back to the third inning. With a man on and one out, Anderson hit a home run into the woods beyond the left field fence, bringing a standing ovation out of the Bellevue crowd. The place went nuts.

One Bellevue dad seemed to sum up the moment best: "That. Is. Cool."

Other dispatches from a big baseball night: Our own blog contributor Zach Landres-Schnur witnessed Marysville-Pilchuck's five-run seventh inning to shock Snohomish in a winner-to-state game.

-Redmond and Bothell will play Thursday night for the KingCo 4A championship after Redmond beat Lake Washington and Bothell outlasted Inglemoor. LW and Inglemoor will play for the right to go down to Vancouver for a winner-to-state game against the Greater St. Helens League's second-place team.

-Everett and Meadowdale will meet in the Northwest 3A District championship game, a winner-to-state game.

-Congrats to Auburn and Hazen, which clinched state playoff spots on Tuesday with wins. Life just got more difficult for Mount Rainier and Bonney Lake, which must carefully navigate the loser's brackets to clinch a spot.

How about soccer? Let's start with the craziest game: Jackson 3, Cascade 2. In a loser-out game, Jackson won in a shootout by a score of 9-8. I can't imagine how tense that was for both sides.

(On a side note, I'm not sure how I feel about shootouts in playoff games. Seems like that's the time, with seasons on the line, to let the teams decide it with a goal on the field, no matter how long it takes.)

Marysville-Pulchuck will play Jackson for the Northwest District's third state berth on Thursday.

-Juanita claimed the KingCo 4A crown with a 4-1 win against Eastlake, with league player of the year Tyler Bjork scoring a hat trick.

-Two tense finishes in KingCo 3A, where Skyline beat Newport 1-0 on a David Brett's goal in the 62nd minute, and then Sammamish beat Bellevue with two goals in the final seven minutes. (Yeah, it was a crazy night). They'll play for the right to play the Metro's third-place team in a winner-to-state game.

-Cedarcrest's undefeated season continues. R.J. Sorenson scored with 10 minutes left to beat Sehome and claim the school's second straight state-playoff trip.

-Finally, Shorecrest will play Mount Vernon in Thursday night's championship game after both teams won with shutouts last night.

Morning stars (Non-soccer or baseball edition)

1. Reid Martin, Kamiak, boys golf. Shot a four-under 68 at Harbour Pointe to lead the first round of the WesCo South tournament. Meanwhile, Kamiak girls golfer Seo Hee Moon won the WesCo South girls tournament at Walter Hall, and in KingCo 3A, defending 3A champ Brittany Tallman won the KingCo 3A tournament.

2. Stephanie Fox, Eastlake, softball. In a huge KingCo 4A game, Fox threw a shutout against Woodinville, and Eastlake held on to a 1-0 win thanks to Marissa Guches' solo home run.

3. Kori Seidlitz, Mountlake Terrace, softball. Threw a two-hit shutout with 16 strikeouts in a 7-0 win against Mariner.

Lem Elway's final baseball poll is out, with Richland staying on top in Class 4A, and Eastside Catholic jumping up a spot to No. 1 in Class 3A after a pair of wins last week against former No. 1 Bishop Blanchet.

(Records provided by Elway)

4A

1. Richland (19-1)
2. Redmond (18-2)
3. University (18-2)
4. Olympia (19-2)
5. Kentlake (16-4)
6. Snohomish (17-4)
7. Battle Ground (15-4)
8. Puyallup (17-4)
9. Tahoma (15-5)
10. Mountlake Terrace (15-6)

3A

1. Eastside Catholic (20-1)
2. Kelso (20-1)
3. Ferndale (16-2)
4. Skyline (15-5)
5. Blanchet (18-2)
6. Bonney Lake (15-5)
7. Timberline (15-4)
8. Capital (15-3)
9. Mt. Rainier (18-3)
10. Southridge (11-5)

2A

1. Sehome(17-2)
2. Selah (16-2)
3. WF West (16-1)
4. Fife (16-2)
5. Mark Morris (16-4)
6. River Ridge (15-3)
7. West Valley, Spokane (15-4)
8. East Valley, Yakima (15-4)
9. Lakewood (16-3)
10. Cedarcrest (15-5)

1A

1. Friday Harbor (17-0)
2. Kio-Benton (17-1)
3. Freeman (16-1)
4. Teninio (13-2)
5. Kalama (15-2)
6. Naches (15-3)
7. Orting (15-4)
8. Rochester (16-3)
9. Brewster (14-6)
10. Lakeside (13-6)

Who's the best high school athlete in state history? Such a simple question that ideally will spark not-so-simple debate. What does the best high school athlete mean to you? Most team success? Most post-HS success (like Brandon Roy or Tim Lincecum)? Records held?

All sorts of names come rushing in, some current, some recent, some from years before.

Make your case for the best in the comments. This should be fun!

Morning stars:

1. Eric Holpainen, O'Dea, baseball. The senior went 3-5 with three homeruns (one in each of the first three innings), seven RBI and three runs scored in O'Dea's 17-4 win over Nathan Hale.

2. Garrett Totten, Mountlake Terrace, baseball. The senior shortstop went 3-4 with a second-inning grand slam to give the Hawks a 9-2 win over Stanwood in the first round of the NW 4A district tournament.

Three weekends left.

Can you believe it?

Just three weekends left in the 2007-08 prep sports year.

Playoffs in some spring sports started last weekend. The rest pick up this week.

It will be over before we know it. So, here's your chance to predict some state champions. As usual, the focus will be on the 4A and 3A classifications, but feel free to pick champs at any level. I say we focus on the team races right now. Who do you see as the favorites in baseball, softball and soccer? Do you think there are any true Cinderella stories out there?

Let the debate begin, and be sure to include the reasoning behind your forecasts.

1. Lindsay Kelley, Nathan Hale, softball. Ptiched a five-inning no-hitter with 10 strikeouts and added two home runs and 4 RBI.

2. Ethan Yeo, Inglemoor, baseball. Hit a two-run double in the bottom of the seventh for a 6-5 win against Eastlake.

3. Timo Biesschenk, Nathan Hale, boys soccer. Scored a hat trick in a 4-1 win against Ingraham.

Last week, I gave four playoff races to watch during the spring stretch run. Now it's time for an update:

Metro Mountain baseball. Eastside Catholic and Bishop Blanchet had been tied going into this week, but it was all Eastside Catholic this week. The Crusaders won 3-0 on Monday on a three-hit shutout, and then beat Blanchet -- which had been undefeated going into the week -- 11-1 on Wednesday to take the division for itself. Meanwhile, in the Sound division, Ingraham and Nathan Hale have a huge game this afternoon to decide the division.

WeCo North soccer. Snohomish clinched the division last night with a 3-1 victory against Monroe, and so Snohomish will go on to face WesCo South champ Shorewood for the district title.

KingCo 4A softball. Woodinville leads at 15-1, but Eastlake's right behind at 14-2. The two teams play on Tuesday in what could be a deciding game.

KingCo 3A baseball. This close division went to Skyline, which beat Newport by a game and Bellevue and Issaquah by two games. Six teams in this nine-game league finished .500 or better.

Other notable races:

WesCo North baseball. Monroe and Snohomish are tied at 13-3 in the league with a pair of games -- including one against each other -- remaining.

KingCo 3A softball. Issaquah finished with a 16-0 record last night, believed to be only the second time a KingCo 3A team has gone unbeaten. Issaquah, which had 12 shutouts, is moving to 4A next season.

SPSL 3A softball. Enumclaw made a bit of a charge, but Auburn Riverside held on for the league title at 13-1. Enumclaw finished 12-2.

I'm sure there's more good races out there this spring, with so many sports going on this time of year. So feel free to drop a note about the best league battles you've seen this spring.

Morning stars (late heroics edition)

1. Taylor Anderson, Bellevue, baseball. Taylor doubled and scored the go-ahead run in the seventh, and then came back and closed out the Liberty side of the seventh in order on the mound in a 5-4 win.

2. Megan Stone, Mount Si, softball. Hit the winning home run in the bottom of the eighth inning in a 3-2 victory against Interlake.

3. Safaa Al-Jelaihawai, Shorewood, boys soccer. Scored the go-ahead goal in the 78th minute of a 1-0 win against Meadowdale.

With the end of the spring season nearing, it's almost time to select our Star Times teams for baseball, softball and boys soccer.

Every year we pick an all-star team in each sport within our coverage area. Among the hundreds of athletes, we try to narrow down the field to the best 11 players and the top coach.

College recruits, leading goal-scorers, league MVPs and first-team selections are the type of players we're looking for. It's a pretty select group and a high honor as you can imagine.

Only softball has any returning players from the '07 team: Jordan Birch (Monroe softball), Amanda Fitzsimmons (Auburn Riverside softball), Felecia Harris and Breanne Bilbrey (Kentlake softball), Karli Merlich (Kennedy softball) and Emily Nordhoff (Holy Names softball).

While we try to be as informed as possible, it's impossible to watch everyone out there. That's where you come in. Many of you have seen dozens of games and athletes.

So help us out. From the players and coaches you know and have seen, who do you think is deserving to be on our 2008 Star Times baseball, softball and boys soccer teams?

Morning stars

1. Jordan Birch, Monroe softball, and Cory Mattson, Everett softball -- The usual suspects were at it again. The two combined for 13 shutout innings, with one hit against (Birch) and 28 strikeouts.

2. Woodinville softball -- Scored six runs in the bottom of the seventh for a 9-8 win over Lake Washington. Cat Williams had a three-run home run in the decisive inning.

3. Eastside Catholic baseball -- Finished a season sweep of Bishop Blanchet with a 11-1 win. T.J. Parthemer allowed just two hits in 5+ innings and the Crusaders out hit the Braves 15-2.

4. Seattle Prep coed tennis -- Closed out a perfect 16-0 season with a win over Lakeside. Especially cool since it's the last for 15-year coach Mark Frisby, who will coach at Seattle University next season.