12/11/2025
The fall sports season for the 2025-26 WIAA year wrapped up last weekend with the 6 Championship Football games. Eli Sports covered the State Girls Swim meets, State soccer final 4’s, all 6 State Volleyball tournaments and the 6 final football games.
Our crew picked out their top moments that stuck out to them for one reason or another and we have put them altogether in this post.
Record Setting Football Performance
In the 4A State Football game Lance McGee set multiple records with his performance leading the Sumner Spartans to their 2nd straight 4A State Championship with a 41-35 OT win over Lake Stevens. Although unofficial at this time, McGee ran the ball 44 times which is a State Championship record, gained 356 yards another record and scored 6 TD’s which is a 3rd 4A title game record and ties the all-classification 11-man football record with Lance Allred from Royal who scored 6 TD’s last year when the Knights won it in 2024.
Link to the ESN 4A Football Hub of coverage
Lance McGee scores his 4th TD of the Game
Royal makes it 6 Football Championships in a row
The Royal Knights are on a roll to say the least and won their 6th straight State Championship with a thrilling 21-20 victory over Cashmere and it came down to a defensive stand.
Last year when they won it was all offense with Lance Allred setting a new 11-man Championship game record for all classifications scoring 6 touchdowns. This year the Knights were challenged and it came down to a 2 point conversion. The Bulldogs of Cashmere had already lost to the Knights this season in OT so with 18 seconds to play decided to go for the win at Husky Stadium.
The Knights got pressure on the QB who got the pass off but it was wide and incomplete. Royal recovered the onsides kick and kneeled on the final play of the game to clinch their 14th State Championship. This is truly a remarkable run for the Royal Knights.
Link to the ESN 1A Football Hub of coverage
The Knights hold off Cashmere for the win
Adaptive Swim showcases what High School sports is all about!
The WIAA teamed up with the Special Olympics and other organizations with the membership schools to creative adaptive sports. This is for students with special needs from autism to physical challenges to compete in the State events while representing their schools.
As the parent of an autistic daughter who wanted to wear her school colors more than anything declined to play when she was in school because the programs available were only through the Special Olympics when she was in school. She famously told me that she didn’t want to compete in the Special Olympics because she didn’t go to “Special Olympics high school”. She went to Centralia high school and wanted to wear the orange and black and be part of her school.
This was recognized by the WIAA, Special Olympics and other advocates and they have come together to offer these adaptive sports for each school. The adaptive participation is growing fast and now there is talk of further including the adaptive athetes into the WIAA events.
This is tremendous news and a big hats off to the WIAA for not being satisfied with simply offereing a few of these programs to say they are and are working to increase opportunities and inclusion for these incredible kids.
This is the “Best Thing” I ever see at State Tournaments and cuts straight to the heart of what High School sports is truly about. It’s about learning how to work as a team while coupled with individual goals and achievements. Overcoming challenges, trying your best, learning how to win and lose and sportsmanship.
Seems like these days of D1 talk, scholarships and now NIL money and agents, the heart of high school sports is beginning to get forgotten and how and why high school sports and other activities such as band, debate, drama and clubs are just as important as the classroom.
Best of what I saw in 2025 Adaptive 50 free 3a girls swim
State 4A Volleyball Lake Stevens
ESN’s Tyler Hergert’s addition to the Best We Saw was this piece on the Lake Stevens Volleyball team led by Laura Eichert. Here is the link to Tyler’s story.
Girls Soccer 12-seed Mt Si 4A State Champs!
Mount Si had an impressive run to the title. After finishing 3rd in the 4A portion of the Kingco Crown-Crest league they ended up as the #12 seed. The first matchup was against #5 Camas and a first half goal sent the Wildcats to the next round with a 1-0 win. The opponent in the next round #13 Skyline upset #4 Lewis and Clark for a battle of Cinderella teams. A 2-0 Mount Si win guaranteed the program their first girls soccer trophy ever.
In the semi-finals they ran in to a familiar foe in #1 Issaquah. Issaquah also plays in the Kingco Crown-Crest and won the 2 matches they played against Mount Si 2-1 on their way to a league title. An equalizer goal in the second half by Mount Si forced overtime in this round 3 match up. Bella Seidenstucker blasted in a goal in the first overtime period to send the Wildcats to the Championship match.
If you are going to win a first trophy in a sport in school history might as well make it the biggest one possible. The Wildcats wasted little time against #2 Tahoma netting 2 goals in the first half and holding on for a 2-0 win. The Wildcats went thru a gauntlet of great teams as a #12 seed and came out Champions it was an incredible feat to witness.
Bella Seidenstucker with the biggest goal of her HS career
Kingco Crown-Crest Best Girls Soccer League in the State
The 3A/4A Kingco Crown Crest took home 4 trophies in 2025. It isn’t hard to argue that this league is very good at girls soccer. Issaquah finishing 3rd after falling to Mount Si in the 4A semis. The Wildcats left Sparks Stadium in Puyallup with a 4A State Title.
In the 3A final 4 Bellevue and Liberty (Renton) won their semifinals against Roosevelt and Eastside Catholic (both play in the Metro Mountain League). Those wins ensured the Kingco Crown-Crest league the top 2 spots in 3A with Bellevue hoisting the big gold ball trophy.
So with 2 State Championships, a 2nd and 3rd place trophies in the largest classifications in the state it is easy to say the Kingco Crown-Crest League reigns supreme over girls soccer in Washington.
Bellevue with the Game winner
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