Community Newspaper for Blaine, Birch Bay and Semiahmoo, Washington

Borderites move to bi-district

Soccer: beauty and the beast

McGee, Riddle shine at invite

Tennis results

SPORTS

by Neil MacDonald

Lady B’s will face NCC’s best
Kelcie Moore pitched and hit her and Lakewood’s way to a 9-2 victory over Blaine’s Lady B’s at the Pipe April 24.
The Lady B’s Kristina combination got together to end both Moore’s bid for a no-hitter and for a shutout. Kristina Francis took care of the no no-hitter bit with a single to open Blaine’s half of the fourth. Four batters later, Kristina Beljean singled to right field to send Francis home with the Double B’s first run. Francis got Blaine’s only other hit, a line drive single to left in the fifth.
With the NCC playoffs 12 days away, dugout conversation has centered around the Lady B’s chances to appearing in the cross-conference clash with the Nisqually League’s candidates for district. The format is the same as basketball’s; the top two teams in the NCC and Nisqually League proceed directly to Sedro Woolley and district while the teams finishing third to sixth square off in cross-over elimination matches.
As of April 24, the Lady B’s were in sixth place with Granite Falls only a game behind in seventh. The problem involved four of Blaine’s final five foes – Nooksack Valley, who lead the NCC, Mt. Baker, who hold third place, Lynden Christian and South Whidbey, who are tied for fourth spot.
Blaine’s record against the four does not encourage optimism – losses of 17-5 to NV, 10-0 to MB and 15-1 to SW. The Lady B’s did edge LC 4-3 at Lynden Christian, but Blaine got only one hit in that game, walks contributing heavily to the win.
Blaine was slated to play Lynden Christian at the Pipe May 2 while The Northern Light was at press. The Lady B’s April 30 game with Sultan was washed out. It goes May 3 in Sultan. Blaine meets Mt. Baker May 4 at MB, Nooksack May 8 at the Pipe and closes out the regular NCC season May 10 at South Whidbey.
NCC playoffs go May 15. Hopefully, the Lady B’s will be there.

Borderites move to bi-district
Blaine boys won 7-6 on a two-out, bottom of the seventh error by Nooksack Valley on April 23 in North Cascades Conference baseball.
The Borderites went into the bottom of the seventh at Pipeline Athletic Field down 6-5. Craig Anderson, who had singled, scored the tying run on a wild pitch. Ryan Sorter, running for Nick Miller who had singled, scored the winning run when Nooksack Valley’s shortstop booted a grounder from Ryan Pike. Ironically, Pike had made a throwing error that allowed NV to take the lead in the seventh inning.
Later in the week, Meridian took two from Blaine, winning 5-0 at the Pipe behind a one-hitter by Jimmy McClellan on April 25 and 6-5 on a seventh-inning hit by Eli Slesk on April 26 at Meridian.
In the April 26 game, Blaine took a 5-0 lead behind the clutch two-out hitting of Mitchell Sherman and Anderson, who both had two runs batted in. All of Blaine’s runs came with two outs. “We’ve had some kids come through for us with two outs,” Clausen said.
Next up for Blaine, bi-district playoffs on Saturday morning in Mount Vernon. The Borderites’ opponent has yet to be determined.

Soccer: beauty and the beast
After blanking Nooksack Valley 2-0 on April 23 in a North Cascades Conference soccer game, described by many as a 10 on the beauty scale, Blaine was beaten 5-1 by Sultan on April 25 in an inelegant encounter that was, perhaps, a 1 or 2.
Pat Corcorran scored the winning goal at 20 minutes of the first half against NV and relayed a pass to Joe Button for an assist on an insurance counter in the second half at the 65-minute mark. Keeper Doug Cross got the shutout. Onlookers had nothing but lavish praise for the Borderite-Pioneers performance at the Pipe.
The Turks got the first goal in the Blaine-Sultan imbroglio, which was also at the Pipe, as David Gideon scored at 18 minutes on a ball that bounded, both untouchable and unpredictable, high over keeper Cross’s elevated and extended reach.
Sultan’s second goal came on a long, lofty well-hit shot that Travis Fortier buried in the upper left-hand corder of the Blaine net at 20 minutes.
Joe Button got Blaine’s lone goal one minute into the second half, zipping a shot along the pitch into the left corner from 20 yards out.
The Turks’ third goal came when Gideon took an oblique amble across the box at maximum speed, picked up a pass from Fortier along the way and scored. Mike Andriessen got Sultan’s final two goals – one on a penalty shot.
By then, however, yellow and red cards were appearing like confetti. The first – a yellow on a Turk player – had appeared at 19 minutes of the first half. The second and third – yellows on a Borderite and a Turk – came at 32 minutes. The fourth and fifth, again shared by a player on each side, came late in the first half.
Four more cards came calling in the second half – Yellow on two Blaine and one Sultan player and a red on a Borderite. Nine cards in 80 minutes may or may not be a record, but either way, an aura of ugliness pervaded the Pipe. Fortunately such is rarely the case. The Borderites dropped a 3-0 road decision on April 17 to front-running Lynden Christian, but bounced back to crush Granite Falls 7-0 in Tigerville on April 19.
Corcorran got two goals for Blaine, while Mike Braun, Alden Walcon, Keith Williams, Joe Button and Jason Vanderyacht scored solo efforts.
The regular NCC season ends on May 3 for the Borderites with an away game at Lakewood. The NCC playoffs go May 8 and 10.

McGee, Riddle shine at invite
Blaine boys totaled 71 points to finish third and the Borderite girls tallied 29 points to end in a tie with Eatonville for ninth place in the Tisdale Invitational track meet at Nooksack Valley on April 28.
Borderites Nick McGee and Becky Riddle won the boys and girls shot put events respectively. McGee’s winning toss went 47-0; Riddle’s traveled 34-2.
Earlier in the week, Borderite Andrew Martin won the javelin with a 149-7 toss and the high jump with a self-levitation of 5-10 as both Blaine boys and girls placed second to Cashmere in a quad track meet at Sultan on April 24.
The boys’ point parade at Sultan’s Quad went Cashmere 95, Blaine 76, Evergreen Lutheran 51 and Sultan 44, while the girls’ totals were Cashmere 112, Blaine 63.5, Sultan 49.5 and Evergreen Lutheran 46.
McGee (shot, 55-2), Dan Marchio (1600m, 4:51.3) and Steve Burden (400m, 53.15) joined Martin in the winner’s circle for the boys. Riddle (shot, 38-6), Krista Jones (800m, 2:41.25) and Grace Coulter (3200m, 12:04.0) collected first place finishes for the girls. The Borderites close out the regular NCC season hosting Lynden Christian, South Whidbey and Meridian in a quad encounter at Blaine high school stadium on May 3, starting at 4 p.m. NCC prelims are slated for May 8 at Lynden Christian.

Tennis results
Blaine girls’ tennis team, who play 3A opponents for most of the regular season, dropped a 7-0 decision to 3A Bellingham Red Raiders on April 25 to Blaine. The Lady B’s meet with 2A Lakewood at Blaine on April 27 was canceled due to rain. Coach Pat Green’s group plays 3A Lynden in the Lions den on May 3 and faces 1A Friday Harbor on May 4 at Friday Harbor. Sub-District playoffs follow with dates and places yet to be decided. Lakewood is expected to be Blaine’s first 2A playoff opponent.