ILWACO – Because 15 of a possible 22 starters for Ilwaco are injured and would not be able to play, the Fishermen forfeited their Oct. 19 football game to Kalama Friday morning. The game was scheduled for Pederson Field and will go down as a 1-0 victory for the Chinooks, giving them at least a piece of the Trico League title with a 6-0 league mark and a record of 8-0 overall.

Coach Kevin McNulty, superintendent Rainier Houser, athletic director Nate Plummer, and principal Marc Simmons conferred for “a couple of hours” before making the decision to forfeit. McNulty said, “This (forfeit) is the toughest thing I have ever had to do in 21 years as a coach, but I firmly believe it was in the best interest for the safety of our kids. I can look in the mirror and say without a doubt that the forfeit is from a psychological, emotional and physical standpoint in the best interest of our players.”

Two other players who would have played against Kalama Friday are nursing injuries, but would have “played hurt” for the team’s sake McNulty explained. “If they would have gone down, we would have had to put freshmen in who have had very little football experience. More injuries might have jeopardized the opportunity to play future games, as well.”

Kalama is currently ranked fourth in the 1A state polls and has scored 47 points or more on six occasions this season. Ilwaco, who is now 0-6 in league play and 1-7 for the year, has given up 75, 46, 60 and 56 points in their last four contests, all to teams Kalama has defeated.

“It’s not about the score, although that can be demoralizing, but it’s about the concern for our players and their well-being,” McNulty reiterated. The Oct. 26 Trico League game at Stevenson is still on the schedule in the hopes that many of the Fishermen will again be healthy enough to play.

Comets even league record with win over Willapa ValleySOUTH BEND – Playing their Pacific League volleyball match against Willapa Valley on South Bend’s home court proved to be a good choice for the Naselle Comets Tuesday, Oct 16. The Comets evened their league record at 2-2 with a 3-1 win over the Vikings. The game scores were: 25-20, 25-17, 21-25, and 25-14. The Comets overall record climbed to 5-6.

Powerful serving by Nicole Laney, who was a perfect 15-for-15 and just as powerful hitting, where Sylvia Herrold (12) and Emily Green (10) combined for 22 kills, helped produce the Comets’ victory. Herrold did her usual damage at the net and also reeled off a string of jump serves to help settle the fourth game.

“We had great teamwork all the way around,” said Naselle coach Kim Eaton. “Overall, our net play was strong and our passing was a lot better.”

That teamwork was especially evident in the first two games where the Comets earned wins by five and eight points. The Vikings rallied with a four-point win game three behind the play of Lindsey Crose, Haleigh Raymond and Krystal Eastham who had five blocks for Valley in the match.

That third game loss saw the Comets enter game four with a 2-1 advantage. The serving and hitting of Herrold led the Comets to an 11-point win which settled the match without having to go to a deciding fifth game.

The Vikings took the JV match, 25-23, 25-15. The C squads split two games.

Weather forces postponement of Naselle’s last home vball matchNASELLE – The wind and rainstorm that blew through the area last Thursday forced the postponement of Naselle’s last home volleyball match of the season, with the North Beach Hyaks. A make-up date has not yet been determined.

Comet finish sixth at Adna volleyball tournamentADNA – The Naselle Comets volleyball team was able to come back from an “0-fer” in pool play in the eight team Adna Invitational Volleyball Tournament Saturday, Oct. 20. Coach Kim Eaton said, “We finished sixth in the tournament. We lost all of the morning pool play games and then came out to start bracket play and played an awesome match against Mossyrock in which we won both games. We played Pe Ell for fifth and sixth and we beat them the first game and lost to them the second and third games.”

Naselle’s pool play scores were: Warrenton 25 – Naselle 17; Mossyrock 25 – Naselle 17; Raymond 25 – Naselle 15; South Bend 25 – Naselle 23; Napavine 25 – Naselle 20; Adna 25 – Naselle 15; Pe Ell 25 – Naselle 23.

In bracket play, the Comets won in two games over Mossyrock by scores of: 25-11 and 25-13. The Comets then lost to PeEll 1-2 to finish in sixth place: Naselle 25 – PeEll 17; PeEll 25 – Naselle 17; PeEll 15 – Naselle 7.

Eaton summarized the day by saying, “Sylvia (Herrold) had 39 kills for the day. Brandi (Keightley) was the second highest with 13. Shelby (Leeland) had 39 assists for the day. We did much better on serve receive than last weekend but our serving wasn’t as good. The girls played sporadic moments of excellence but just struggled to stay consistent.”

In the championship match, Warrenton edged the South Bend Indians, 25-22, 21-25, 15-13. The Warrenton Warriors are the only team to have beaten South Bend, who lead the Pacific League, in a regular-season match this year.