The following was published on Thursday afternoon in the Grant County Journal newspaper, Ephrata. It was written by their sports editor (hey, that's me!).
BY STEVEN SMITH
of the Journal
COULEE CITY – It’s been a few years since the Odessa High School football team has played for a league title.
It’s been a lot longer for Almira/Coulee-Hartline High School.
But the opportunity to take charge of the Northeast 1B League with three weeks left in the regular season will be on the line Friday night. ACH (5-1) will play host to Odessa (6-0) in the league contest, with kickoff set for 7 p.m.
Both teams enter the weekend ranked among the top five in the current state 1B poll from Washingtonpreps.com – Odessa sits at No. 1, while the Warriors are No. 3. The Tigers are the No. 2-ranked team in this week’s poll from The Associated Press, while ACH is No. 4.
The last time the Tigers won a league crown was in 2000, when they captured the Northeast B-8 title – they’re in the same circuit, but it’s now the Northeast 1B League. ACH hasn’t won a football title since winning the NE-B8 in 1990, the year the Warriors went on to win the state title.
The Warriors can brag about one thing heading into the contest – they are the only team that has kept Odessa from scoring more than 40 points in a game. The two teams squared off back in September, and were the Friday night show at center stage during the annual Deutschesfest celebration in Odessa – the Tigers walked off with a 34-12 victory that night.
It was a triumph for the Warrior defense despite the loss. The Tigers have averaged 60.8 points-per-game in their other five contests, scoring more than 50 points in each – they put 72 points on Entiat two weeks ago, 60-plus on both Curlew and Pateros.
“ACH is really the only challenge we’ve faced this season,” said Odessa coach Bruce Todd. “But we’ve gotten better each week since the first game with them, and we’ve played pretty close to flawless football.
“The only way they can beat us is if we beat ourselves,” Todd continued. “Our defense is as tough as our offense. We’re just a solid football team right now.”
ACH head coach Brandon Walsh (who played on the 1990 state title team) said he isn’t surprised by Todd’s confidence.
“He has reason to believe that. On paper, they are a little better football team than we are,” Walsh said. “Our job is to prove him wrong. If we can make some breaks for ourselves, we have a chance to beat them.”
The Tigers are led by senior quarterback Drake Costlow and the tough running back tandem of Jacob Schmidt and Trevor Smith. Costlow has proven to be more than capable throwing the football to his two best targets, split end Logan Luiten and tight end Travis Todd.
But there is a new wrinkle the Tigers didn’t see from the ACH offense in the first game – a passing attack. Warrior quarterback Greg Giese has been working to improve the air game, and the work is paying off – Giese has thrown for 320 yards and five scores in the last three games.
Even with the new-found abilities, the running game remains Almira/Coulee-Hartline’s bread and butter. Giese has rushed for 856 yards and 14 touchdowns this year, while tailback Jordan Hughes has 445 yards and six touchdowns on the ground, as well as three scores on kickoff and punt
returns.
WASHINGTONPREPS.COM
STATE 1B POLL
1. Odessa 6-0
2. St. John-Endicott 6-0
3. Almira-Coulee-Hartline 5-1
4. Pateros 4-2
5. Lummi 5-1
6. LaCrosse-Washtucna 4-2
7. Oakville 5-1
8. Neah Bay 3-2
9. Columbia-Hunters 3-3
10. Tri-Cities Prep 3-3
Teams to Watch
Colton-Pullman Christian (3-2), Prescott (3-2), Garfield-Palouse (3-2), Clallam Bay (4-1), Touchet (2-3), Lake Quinault (2-4), Jubilee Christian (2-3), Cusick (2-4), Curlew (1-3)
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
STATE 1B POLL
First-place points in parenthesis, then record and total votes
W-LPts
1. St. John-Endicott (1) 6-0...82
2. Odessa (7) 6-0...79
3. Lummi 5-1...66
4. Almira-Coulee-Hartline 5-1...60
5. Pateros 4-2...32
Others receiving votes: LaCrosse-Washtucna (4-2) 13; Oakville (5-1) 12; Cusick (2-4) 10
POTENTIAL STARTERS
WHEN ODESSA HAS THE BALL
Odessa offense -- ACH defense
QB: Drake Costlow -- DE: Taylor McDonald
TB: Jacob Schmidt -- NT: Reid Ashley
FB: Trevor Smith -- DE: Caden Grenier
SE: Logan Luiten -- OLB: Travis Bean
TE: Travis Todd -- ILB: Greg Giese
C: Bryce Haase -- ILB: Nate West
G: Anthony Smith -- OLB: Jordan Hughes
G: Andy Read -- S: Josh Goodwin
WHEN ACH HAS THE BALL
ACH offense -- Odessa defense
QB: Greg Giese -- DE: Andy Read
TB: Jordan Hughes -- NT: Anthony Smith
FB: Travis Bean -- DE: James Glenn
TE: Taylor McDonald -- OLB: Trevor Smith
TE: Josh Goodwin -- MLB: Travis Todd
C: Caden Grenier -- OLB: Logan Luiten
G: Marcus Dingman -- FS: Ryan King
G: Nate West -- SS: Jacob Schmidt
BY STEVEN SMITH
of the Journal
COULEE CITY – It’s been a few years since the Odessa High School football team has played for a league title.
It’s been a lot longer for Almira/Coulee-Hartline High School.
But the opportunity to take charge of the Northeast 1B League with three weeks left in the regular season will be on the line Friday night. ACH (5-1) will play host to Odessa (6-0) in the league contest, with kickoff set for 7 p.m.
Both teams enter the weekend ranked among the top five in the current state 1B poll from Washingtonpreps.com – Odessa sits at No. 1, while the Warriors are No. 3. The Tigers are the No. 2-ranked team in this week’s poll from The Associated Press, while ACH is No. 4.
The last time the Tigers won a league crown was in 2000, when they captured the Northeast B-8 title – they’re in the same circuit, but it’s now the Northeast 1B League. ACH hasn’t won a football title since winning the NE-B8 in 1990, the year the Warriors went on to win the state title.
The Warriors can brag about one thing heading into the contest – they are the only team that has kept Odessa from scoring more than 40 points in a game. The two teams squared off back in September, and were the Friday night show at center stage during the annual Deutschesfest celebration in Odessa – the Tigers walked off with a 34-12 victory that night.
It was a triumph for the Warrior defense despite the loss. The Tigers have averaged 60.8 points-per-game in their other five contests, scoring more than 50 points in each – they put 72 points on Entiat two weeks ago, 60-plus on both Curlew and Pateros.
“ACH is really the only challenge we’ve faced this season,” said Odessa coach Bruce Todd. “But we’ve gotten better each week since the first game with them, and we’ve played pretty close to flawless football.
“The only way they can beat us is if we beat ourselves,” Todd continued. “Our defense is as tough as our offense. We’re just a solid football team right now.”
ACH head coach Brandon Walsh (who played on the 1990 state title team) said he isn’t surprised by Todd’s confidence.
“He has reason to believe that. On paper, they are a little better football team than we are,” Walsh said. “Our job is to prove him wrong. If we can make some breaks for ourselves, we have a chance to beat them.”
The Tigers are led by senior quarterback Drake Costlow and the tough running back tandem of Jacob Schmidt and Trevor Smith. Costlow has proven to be more than capable throwing the football to his two best targets, split end Logan Luiten and tight end Travis Todd.
But there is a new wrinkle the Tigers didn’t see from the ACH offense in the first game – a passing attack. Warrior quarterback Greg Giese has been working to improve the air game, and the work is paying off – Giese has thrown for 320 yards and five scores in the last three games.
Even with the new-found abilities, the running game remains Almira/Coulee-Hartline’s bread and butter. Giese has rushed for 856 yards and 14 touchdowns this year, while tailback Jordan Hughes has 445 yards and six touchdowns on the ground, as well as three scores on kickoff and punt
returns.
WASHINGTONPREPS.COM
STATE 1B POLL
1. Odessa 6-0
2. St. John-Endicott 6-0
3. Almira-Coulee-Hartline 5-1
4. Pateros 4-2
5. Lummi 5-1
6. LaCrosse-Washtucna 4-2
7. Oakville 5-1
8. Neah Bay 3-2
9. Columbia-Hunters 3-3
10. Tri-Cities Prep 3-3
Teams to Watch
Colton-Pullman Christian (3-2), Prescott (3-2), Garfield-Palouse (3-2), Clallam Bay (4-1), Touchet (2-3), Lake Quinault (2-4), Jubilee Christian (2-3), Cusick (2-4), Curlew (1-3)
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
STATE 1B POLL
First-place points in parenthesis, then record and total votes
W-LPts
1. St. John-Endicott (1) 6-0...82
2. Odessa (7) 6-0...79
3. Lummi 5-1...66
4. Almira-Coulee-Hartline 5-1...60
5. Pateros 4-2...32
Others receiving votes: LaCrosse-Washtucna (4-2) 13; Oakville (5-1) 12; Cusick (2-4) 10
POTENTIAL STARTERS
WHEN ODESSA HAS THE BALL
Odessa offense -- ACH defense
QB: Drake Costlow -- DE: Taylor McDonald
TB: Jacob Schmidt -- NT: Reid Ashley
FB: Trevor Smith -- DE: Caden Grenier
SE: Logan Luiten -- OLB: Travis Bean
TE: Travis Todd -- ILB: Greg Giese
C: Bryce Haase -- ILB: Nate West
G: Anthony Smith -- OLB: Jordan Hughes
G: Andy Read -- S: Josh Goodwin
WHEN ACH HAS THE BALL
ACH offense -- Odessa defense
QB: Greg Giese -- DE: Andy Read
TB: Jordan Hughes -- NT: Anthony Smith
FB: Travis Bean -- DE: James Glenn
TE: Taylor McDonald -- OLB: Trevor Smith
TE: Josh Goodwin -- MLB: Travis Todd
C: Caden Grenier -- OLB: Logan Luiten
G: Marcus Dingman -- FS: Ryan King
G: Nate West -- SS: Jacob Schmidt