Boys golf
Blaine boys golf started off the season hosting a home meet at Semiahmoo Golf and Country Club on March 14, facing off against a swath of Northwest Conference (NWC) rivals.
Cameron Saunders shot an 88, Ellis Griffin shot a 90, and Uno Navarez shot a 92 to lead the Borderites scorecards, placing third among eight teams.
The next week, the Borderites traveled to North Bellingham Golf Course on March 19 for its second match of the season.
Freshman Peyton Bouma, playing in his first varsity golf match, was a standout performer according to head coach Rick Shockey. Shockey said Bouma had one of the best first matches he’s ever seen from a Borderite golfer.
Griffin led the Borderites on the day, shooting an 83 and shaving seven strokes off his previous match at Semiahmoo.
“The kids are improving as we go along,” Shockey said. “We got two really good matches next week and the kids will improve week by week. I’m really excited to see how next week goes.”
The Borderites next meet will be held at Swinomish Golf Links in Anacortes on Tuesday, March 26, with first tee at 3 p.m.
Girls golf
Girls golf had a great day at the Skagit Golf and Country Club on March 18, placing second as a team among eight league teams.
The Borderites shot a 308 as a team, just six strokes shy of tying meet winners Burlington-Edison.
Blaine was led by standout individual performances from Ellie Tanjuaqio and Kijah VanRijswijck, taking first and second overall, respectively. Tanjuaqio shot a 51 and VanRijswijck shot a 52.
Along with the first and second-place finishers, Thora Engen shot a 65, Hannah Phelps-McDonald shot a 67, and Megan Rosenberger shot a 73.
The Borderites next league match will be its only home meet of the season, at Semiahmoo Golf and Country Club on Monday, March 25 at 3 p.m.
Girls tennis
With a new team with lots of young talent, Blaine girls tennis started their season at home against Squalicum on March 19. Although the Borderites weren’t able to pick up a win against a strong Storm team, ending with a 0-8 team score, head coach Amanda Dahl was encouraged by the team’s tenacity and effort.
“One of our strongest matches was Sara Olinger-Stirrat,” Dahl said. “She played a two hour match with the game score going back and forth throughout both sets. Her two sets ended with a score of 4-6 and 2-6, but the competition within those sets was solid.”
The tennis season is just getting started, with only three meets down, and the Borderites will host another home meet against Sehome on Thursday, March 21 at 4 p.m.
Boys soccer
Boys soccer had an up and down week, blowing out Granite Falls 8-1 on March 16, then tying Cedar Park Christian 1-1 on March 18. Overall, it was a very successful start to the season for the Borderites, who started off the year with three consecutive home games.
In Blaine’s game against Granite Falls, goals were scored by five different Borderite players en route to the 8-1 blowout. Senior midfielder Xavier Blanco led the team with a hattrick, junior forward Blake Koreski scored twice, repeating his statline from the first game of the season, and sophomore Dima Yuryev, junior Isaiah Zuch and senior Armand Gill all scored a goal each.
In the 1-1 draw to Cedar Park Christian, the Boderites gave up an early goal to a high-pressing attacking strategy, but Blaine’s young backline was able to adjust and not allow another goal. A wonderful individual run from Yuryev scored Blaine’s only goal, earning the draw.
Blaine currently sits at 2-0-1, and now face back-to-back road games, first against Sedro-Woolley on Thursday, March 21, then against South Whidbey on Saturday, March 23.
The conference schedule, or “the real season” as coach Gio Quesada likes to say, will begin when Blaine hosts Meridian at Borderite Stadium on Tuesday, March 26 at 7 p.m.
Baseball
Blaine baseball started off the first five games of the season with a perfect 5-0 record, riding stellar pitching from starters Diego Gutierrez and Kieran Markunsen.
The Borderites haven’t allowed a single run from its opponents in the last three games, shutting out Mount Vernon Christian, Granite Falls, and Ferndale.
Blaine defeated NWC rival Ferndale 5-0 on March 19, and will travel to Bellingham to face Sehome on Thursday, March 21 at 5:15 p.m. before hosting Overlake on Saturday, March 23 at noon.
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