Southridge begins tough path to state playoffs against Shadle Park

After missing out on its chance to steal the Mid-Columbia Conference’s No. 1 Class 3A seed from Kamiakin on Friday, the Southridge High School football team can begin an uphill climb to the state playoffs Tuesday when it hosts Shadle Park.

Kickoff for the loser-out game is scheduled for 6 p.m. at Lampson Stadium.

In order to make it into the state playoffs, which begin Nov. 11, the Suns (5-4) must win on Tuesday, then beat Juanita — the KingCo 3A’s top seed — on the road this weekend (date and time TBA).

The winner of the Southridge/Shadle Park game would have had to play perennial powerhouse Bellevue — which went undefeated in KingCo play — in the state play-in game, but a four-year playoff ban keeps the Wolverines out of the mix.

Southridge struggled to get much of anything going in its regular season finale against Kamiakin, falling to the Braves 50-10, but the usual stars were still front and center for the Suns. Tight end Brycen Kelly caught two of Mason Martin’s passes for 87 yards and the team’s lone touchdown — his fourth in the last three games — and running back Zayid Al-Ghani carried it 22 times for 73 yards.

Shadle Park (5-4) emerged as the No. 2 seed from a tight Greater Spokane League 3A race. The Highlanders lost to eventual division champ Mt. Spokane 7-0 two weeks ago, but won a battle for the No. 2 seed over North Central 21-14 on Friday.

Junior Xavier Wicks has led Shadle Park’s run-first offense, totaling 749 yards on 148 carries. Sophomore quarterback Carson Doyle threw for 178 yards and two touchdowns against North Central.

This story was originally published October 31, 2016 at 9:06 PM with the headline "Southridge begins tough path to state playoffs against Shadle Park."