PORT ANGELES — It was a case of good news, bad news with an unexpected seeding for the Port Angeles girls soccer team in the state 2A playoffs.
At first blush, it appears the Roughriders got a poor seed considering their win-loss record and Ratings Percentage Index rating.
The Riders finished third in the West-Central District 3 tournament with a record of 16-4. What makes that record look even better is three of those losses are to one team — Bainbridge, which is 18-1 and is ranked No. 4 in the state. Port Angeles lost 4-0, 2-0 and 1-0 to the Spartans. The other loss was to No. 10-ranked North Kitsap and Port Angeles beat the Vikings two games out of three, including a postseason 1-0 win.
The Riders are ranked No. 8 in RPI and were hoping for a home state playoff game at Wally Sigmar Field. Instead, the Riders were seeded No. 11 in the state tournament.
The bad news. Port Angeles now has to make a four-hour trip to Battle Ground on Wednesday to play Hockinson, the No. 6 seed, at 5 p.m.
The good news, Hockinson (14-5) is ranked considerably lower than Port Angeles in RPI at No. 15. Hockinson does have a postseason win over No. 11-ranked Tumwater and lost twice to No. 2-ranked Columbia River, 1-0 and 3-0, but otherwise does not have many games against elite teams, while Port Angeles played six games against Bainbridge and North Kitsap, while also beating Klahowya, the No. 12-ranked 1A team in the state.
If Port Angeles wins, the Riders will play the winner of No. 14 Ellensburg and No. 3 Sehome. That game on Friday or Saturday could be played at Wally Sigmar if its Ellensburg.
