As the new school year began, so did the 2018-2019 football season for the Falcons, Conquerors and Bears.
This season the North Puget Sound League 4A was split into three separate divisions versus the two division system last year.
Kentwood and Tahoma are together in the Mountain division while Kentlake sits in the Valley division.
Joining the Conks and Bears are Auburn Riverside, Enumclaw, Kennedy Catholic and Todd Beamer.
When division play begins the Falcons will face Auburn, Auburn Mountainview, Federal Way and Hazen.
The third division is Sound — it is made up of Decatur, Kent-Meridian, Kentridge, Mount Rainier and Thomas Jefferson.
This new system to reconfigure the NPSL 4A as reported in the Courier-Herald Aug. 29 is bunching teams together according to recent success the programs have seen.
Reconfiguring the league is a good thing that can have positive benefits, Enumclaw coach Mark Gunderson told the Courier-Herald. When a powerhouse squad is paired against a traditionally downtrodden team, Gunderson said, neither program benefits. An added benefit, he said, could be increased participation in struggling football programs. Giving a team a better chance to succeed can result in stronger numbers.
The change to a three-tier league structure was approved 12-4 by the school’s athletic directors.
The Courier-Herald also reported to attempt to keep teams competitive, some shuffling will be needed at the end of the regular season.
The last place Mountain division team will be moved to the Valley division; at the same time, the No. 1 team from the Valley will shift into the tougher Mountain division. The same dance will occur between the Valley and Sound divisions, with the top and bottom teams on the move.
The Falcons kicked off its new season with a convincing win over Kentridge.
Kentlake beat the Chargers 53-35 at French Field Aug. 31.
The Falcons will travel to Covington to face Tahoma tonight, Friday, Sept. 7. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
All home games for the Bears will be played at Maple View Middle School, former Tahoma High School.
Tahoma also won its first game of the season 19-17 over Auburn Aug. 30.
Auburn scored first with a touchdown in the first quarter.
Adding to its lead in the second quarter, the Trojans kicked a field goal and entered halftime leading Tahoma by three.
Scoring six in the third quarter, Tahoma managed to take the lead by three.
Both the Trojans and Bears scored in the final quarter of Thursday’s game — seven and six points, respectively.
Kentwood traveled to Sammamish Aug. 31 for a match up against Skyline.
The Conks lost its first game 21-14.
Skyline got off to an early start leading Kentwood 6-0 after the first quarter.
The Spartans increased its lead over Kentwood by eight in the second quarter — taking a 14 point lead into halftime.
In the third quarter, the Conks tied Skyline at 14 each.
Entering the final minutes of the game, Skyline scored one final touchdown in the fourth quarter, taking a seven point lead over Kentwood.
The Conks are set to host its next two games. The first is today, Friday, Sept. 7 at 7 p.m. against Mount Si at French Field.
Next week, the Falcons and Conks will face off against each at French Field at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 14.
Division play is scheduled to begin after the third week of games.
