Panthers stalking another playoff run

Bonney Lake High’s football team might have some big holes to fill, but there are plenty of athletes – both returnees and varsity newcomers – just looking for an opportunity to shine.

Bonney Lake High’s football team might have some big holes to fill, but there are plenty of athletes – both returnees and varsity newcomers – just looking for an opportunity to shine.

Coach Jason Silbaugh and his assistants, who were voted the Pierce County League’s Staff of the Year a season ago, will turn their troops loose for the first time this Friday. With a 7 p.m. kickoff, the Panthers will square off against district rival Sumner High at the familiar confines of Sunset Chev Stadium.

The Panthers will be without the graduated Caleb Davis, who dominated both sides of the line while racking up league MVP honors, and also lost a handful of other standouts.

Suiting up, however, are an impressive list of returning players who garnered postseason honors following the 2016 campaign. Guiding the offense will be senior quarterback Kaeden Hammond, who received honorable mention last year as both a QB and defensive lineman. When the ball is put in the air, he’ll likely be looking for senior wideout Braydon Tressler (honorable mention all-league).

The offense also figures to lean on versatile Adam Fahsel, who was a second team all-league pick at wide receiver but also scored a pair of touchdowns during the Panthers’ quarterfinal victory during last year’s state playoffs.

Both Fahsel and Tressler earned postseason honors as defensive backs as well. Also on that side of the line, the Panthers feature returning lineman Aron Oliva, a second-team pick last year as a freshman, and Peyton Brock, a second-team linebacker during his junior year. Also back is junior defensive back Roman Casey, an honorable mention honoree a season ago.

Last year’s Bonney Lake shared the best record in the Pierce County League, advanced to the Class 3A’s Elite Eight and finished with an overall mark of 9-3.