Eastmont and Wenatchee Football Set to Square Off Thursday Night

In what is now termed the Bridge of Sportsmanship game, Wenatchee and Eastmont's football squads are squaring off Thursday for what may be the most important game in the two teams' long, storied rivalry.

"Eastmont and Wenatchee have been playing against each other for almost 50 years" said the voice of the Wenatchee Panthers Steve Sandman on Wednesday's Don West Show, "This is the first time that I can remember that a conference championship, and the right to go to state, is on the line in the Bridge of Sportsmanship."

The Eastmont Wildcats (5-0 Big 9), who currently lead the Big 9 with just their matchup against Wenatchee (4-1 Big 9) left on the schedule, can clinch a Big 9 championship with a win. Should Wenatchee defeat Eastmont, and Moses Lake take down Sunnyside (4-1 Big 9), Wenatchee would be league champion.

However, should the Panthers upend the Wildcats and Sunnyside defeat Moses Lake, then the real fun begins. Kevin Rounce sat in with on the Don West show to explain.

By way of a number draw before the season, Eastmont would have the #1 seed and therefore the first-round bye in the playoff. It might be important to note that another local team, the Cashmere Bulldogs, ended up in a similar tiebreaker in the Caribou Trail League last week as the #1 seed. They failed to score on their first possession and Okanogan won the tiebreaker.

Eastmont head coach Michael Don's tenure began four years ago after interviewing with school officials for the job. During the interview, he laid out a five-year plan to get the team on track and back in contention. By all measurable accounts it appears he has done just that, and coach Don credits his team's willingness to buy into his philosophy for the turnaround.

"We've got a bunch of kids that have put in a lot of time. They bought in not just into the hard work of the weight room but into the leadership thing, being good people, and doing things well. They no longer hope to win; they expect to win."

On the other side of the Columbia, Wenatchee head coach Scott Devereaux has been calling the shots for 25 years now, and the Panthers coach explained that his team's philosophy boils down to a simple equation.

"We have E+R=O over here. E is event, the R is reaction and the O is the outcome. So we [tell our kids] you can't control the events sometimes, just how you react. And how you react determines your outcome, so that's our focus."

The Bridge of Sportsmanship, formerly the Battle of the Bridges, will kick off Thursday night at 7:00 pm in the Apple Bowl in Wenatchee.