October 30, 2024
ISSUE 44
50¢
IT'S IN THE CLASSIFIEDS
Hunting for a job? In the market for a new home? Have something to sell? Turn to the Classifieds in The Dispatch and at dispatchnews.com
COURTESY RYLEA FOEHL
The Eatonville Jr. Cruisers MV team, coaches and support staff pose for a photo following their 22-14 victory over Yelm
Eatonville Jr Cruisers finish undefeated season By Skip Smith Contributing Writer
In an intense championship showdown, the Eatonville Jr. Cruisers capped off an undefeated season with a hard-fought 22-14 victory over the Yelm Tornados, securing their first Thurston County Football League Championship in only their second season in the league. Eatonville claimed the victory with a fourth quarter drive. After receiving the opening kick, TJ Kralik would return the kick to the Cruiser 44 yard line, but a block in the back penalty would push them back to their 34 yard line. A few plays later, Kale Noble would take the Maddox Chopic hand off around the left side and ramble 52 yards up the sideline down to the Yelm 15 yard line. Two plays later, Chopic would connect with Kralik from 12 yards out for the first score of the game. Noble would
put the extra point attempt through the uprights and the Cruisers took an early 8-0 lead with 5:42 left in the first quarter. (In junior football an extra point is worth two points as it is more difficult to kick the field and a conversion attempt is worth 1 point.) Starting their first drive at midfield at the Eatonville 47, the Tornados answered back when quarterback Isaiah Pua carried it in from 19 yards out. A penalty on the extra point attempt moved the ball closer to the goal line and Yelm decided to go for the 1-point conversion and were successful. With 1:33 left in the first quarter, the Cruisers led 8-7. On their next possession, the Cruisers struggled to move the ball and ended up punting the ball back to the Tornados, who would let the punt roll to a stop and start at their own 43 yard line.
Both teams would then turn the ball over on downs before the Tornados would get the ball back starting at the Eatonville 47 where they would march 47 yards down to the Cruiser 2 yard line before time expired and Eatonville would head into the half leading 8-7. Yelm would receive the kickoff to start the second half and the Cruiser defense came out fired up and would stall the Tornado drive at the Tornado 40 and force a punt. After the punt, the Cruisers would start from their own 18 yard line and weren’t able to get anything going offensively, and would punt as well. Yelm’s Isaiah Pua would field the punt and return it 33 yards for the score. Alter the conversion, Yelm took the lead 14-8 with 1:59 left in the third quarter. Following the ensuing kickoff, Eatonville’s Tommy Zurfluh would return the kick to the
Cruisers 23-yard line. After a 5-yard Colby Rath run up the middle, Zurfluh would take the Chopic handoff around the left side and sprint up the sideline 22 yards to midfield. After another Rath run up the middle to the Yelm 46, Zurfluh would be tackled for a 2 yard loss at the Yelm 48 to end the third quarter, with Yelm leading 14-8. As the 4th quarter stared, the Cruisers would face a third and 8. Chopic would drop back and floated a perfect pass to Zurfluh who hauled it in and outraced the Yelm defenders before being dragged down at the Tornado 5 yard line. Rath would then run it down to the 2 yard line, followed by another run for no gain. Facing a third and Goal from the 3 yard line, Zurfluh would take the Chopic hand off around the left side and run
FOOTBALL, 3
County auditor’s office gives election updates By Tacoma Weekly The Pierce County Auditor’s Office is ramping up for this year’s General Election, which will take place on Tuesday, Nov. 5. The Pierce County Elections Division conducted a pre-election audit on ballot counting and processing equipment and a pre-election audit of the County’s Accessible Voting Unit on Wednesday, Oct. 16. The audits, called a Logic and Accuracy Test, took place at the Pierce County Elections Center, 2501 S. 35th St., Suite C in
Tacoma, and were open to the public. The Logic and Accuracy Test verifies if votes are correctly tabulated and recorded through sample ballot-casting exercises. Elections staff enter a set of sample votes for each candidate and ballot measure and one or more overvoted ballots for each contest. The sample votes, called a test deck, are processed through the tabulation equipment. Then, the test deck is compared to the tabulation results to ensure the vote count is accurate. “We run our voting system through
rigorous testing before and after every election,” said Pierce County Auditor Linda Farmer. “It’s our job to make sure everything is working properly for the more than 564,000 registered voters here in Pierce County who can make their voices heard by casting a ballot.” Farmer will present information on the General Election to the Pierce County Council on Tuesday, Oct. 29, at 3 p.m. during the Council’s regular meeting. Register to vote, update your address, request a replacement ballot, or get other election-related assistance at (253) 798-VOTE (8683), email elections@piercecountywa. gov, or in person at the Pierce County Elections Center. The Pierce County Elections Office has mailed ballots to all 568,300 registered voters in Pierce County, and the 51 official ballot drop boxes located throughout the county are now open.
In this General Election, voters will decide on statewide and local ballot measures, as well as state, local and federal offices including President, Governor, County Executive, Congress and County Council. “You can vote as soon as you get your ballot,” Farmer said. “By getting your ballot in well ahead of the deadline, you can avoid any last-minute issues and confirm that your choices count.” Any voter who has not received a ballot by Oct. 22 should contact the Pierce County Elections Office at (253) 798-8683 to confirm their registration and ensure that Elections staff have the correct mailing address on file. Want a quick overview? Check out Pierce County’s “Election-at-a-Glance” guide (go to tinyurl.com/39n3fpjn), including what’s on the ballot, public meeting schedules, results
ELECTION, 3