Seahawks News

The Seahawks are soaring after picking up a much-needed win yesterday.

They beat the Arizona Cardinals 17-3 in a key divisional game.

Drew Lock threw for 175 yards and a touchdown with no turnovers while filling in for the injured Sam Darnold and AJ Barner caught a touchdown and ran in another.

Seattle’s shorthanded defense held Arizona under 200 total yards in a dominant showing against former Coug Gardner Minshew.

The Seahawks improved to 5-4 with the win, but are still outside the playoff picture in a competitive NFC.

Next up, they’re traveling to face former offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak and the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday.

Coach Mike Macdonald says he expects Lock to remain starting quarterback while Darnold continues to recover from quad and rib injuries.

Huskies News

The Huskies’ late-game rally fell just short on Saturday.

UW fell to Penn State 28-25 to miss out on their third straight Big Ten win.

The Huskies trailed 28-6 at halftime and pulled to within three midway through the 4th quarter, but the Nittany Lions’ offense used a long drive to run out the clock. Demond Williams Jr. threw for 172 yards and two touchdowns with one interception as Washington fell to 5-4 on the season.

Next up, they’re on the road against Michigan State on Saturday, while the Cougs come off a bye to host Colorado State.

Meanwhile, the college football world turned upside down earlier today when it was announced that the College Football Playoff will officially expand to 24 teams starting next season.

Under the new format, the regular season will run from the week before Labor Day through Thanksgiving weekend. The new schedule also marks the end of conference championship games.

Prep Football News

The opening round of the state football tournament is set, with five Whatcom County teams still alive.

In Class 1A, Lynden Christian stumped Annie Wright 42-0. The Lyncs earned the No. 3 seed and will have a first-round bye as they await the winner of Zillah and King’s.

Mount Baker blew past Kalama 45-0, as the Mountaineers earned the No. 5 seed and will host No. 12 Tenino at Nooksack Valley High School on Saturday.

Meridian beat Granite Falls 35-21, as the Trojans earned the No. 9 seed and will travel to Camas to face No. 8 Seton Catholic on Saturday. 

In 2A, Lynden pounded Renton 46-6, as the Lions earned the No. 2 seed and will host No. 15 Fife at Ferndale High School on Saturday.

And in 3A, Ferndale dominated Liberty 49-6, as the Golden Eagles earned the No. 13 seed and will travel to face No. 4 Eastside Catholic on Saturday.

Meanwhile, Squalicum fell to Eatonville 44-16 on Friday as the Storm’s season came to an end.

Prep Cross Country News

It was a huge weekend for local cross country teams at the state championship in Pasco.

Sehome’s girls team owned the top four finishers at the 2A meet on Saturday to win their sixth state title in a row.

They were led by Kjirsten Ludeman, who finished first overall. Samantha Knipp, Sloane Clines and Lil Desler came at numbers 2-4 and Squalicum’s Sandra Voigt placed fifth.

Bellingham took home second place as a team.

Meanwhile, Meridian’s Layne Dickson took home fourth place in the 1A meet to help the Trojans repeat as state champs, while Larkyn McConnell finished sixth. Meridian also fared well on the boys side, with Reuben Tevelde placing second and his brother, Judah, placing fifth to lead the Trojans to a second-place team finish.

In boys 2A, Lynden’s Luke Schouten placed third and Sehome’s Judson Berreth took eighth. Bellingham finished third as a team, while Sehome finished fourth.

Prep Girls Soccer/Volleyball News

In other prep sports news, Lynden Christian’s girls soccer team blanked Meridian 2-0 on Saturday to win the district championship and book their ticket to the 1A state tournament.

Ferndale beat Edmonds-Woodway 2-0 to secure their spot in the 3A state tourney and Bellingham fell to Anacortes 1-0 to cut the Bayhawks’ stellar season short.

In volleyball, Sehome beat Archbishop Murphy to join Lynden in the 2A state tournament.

Meridian and Lynden Christian each swept their opponents in the 1A district crossover to book their tickets to state as well.

Sounders/Reign News

The Sounders are heading to the postseason.

Seattle edged LAFC 2-1 on Saturday to keep their season alive and book a spot in the MLS playoffs. Albert Rusnak scored in the first minute and later added an assist.

The Sounders finished in 8th place in the Western Conference and will host Real Salt Lake next Thursday in a win-or-go-home wild card match to determine who faces Vancouver in the opening round.

Meanwhile, the Reign were bounced from their playoffs in ugly fashion.

They lost to Gotham FC 1-0 yesterday on an own-goal four minutes in. It marked the final game of legendary midfielder Jess Fishlock’s 14-year career.

WWU Vikings News

Western’s women’s soccer team is moving on to the national tournament.

The Vikings blanked Seattle Pacific 1-0 on Saturday to win the GNAC postseason title for the first time in four years. Freshman Madeline Mays scored the game-winning goal in the 71st minute and senior defender Olivia Connell won tournament MVP.

The 7th nationally-ranked Viks now await their seeding in the West Region bracket, with the selection show set to air at 4:00 today.