Three Beaverton School District football programs play Friday, Oct. 9, in league matchups, with Aloha carrying a four-game winning streak into Hillsboro and Sunset crossing town to Southridge.
Aloha (4-1, 1-0 in league) travels to Liberty (2-3, 0-1), while Sunset (2-3, 1-0 Metro League) visits Southridge (0-5, 0-1). Both games kick off at 7 p.m.
Aloha at Liberty
The Warriors rallied from a third-quarter deficit to beat Forest Grove 39-36 on Oct. 2. Senior running back Alexis Hernandez Diaz Leal rushed for 226 yards and three touchdowns on 27 carries in that win. Senior quarterback Jason Kwasnik threw for 183 yards and three more scores.
Aloha hasn't qualified for the playoffs in seven years. Three years ago, the Warriors were mired in a 27-game losing streak. OregonLive called the 4-1 start a "renaissance season."
Senior lineman Scottland Telesa, the reigning 6A shot put state champion at 6-foot, 255 pounds, anchors both sides of the line. OregonLive ranked him No. 72 on its preseason list of Oregon's top 300 players.
"Until that clock hits triple zero, we believe that we have an opportunity to win … You've got to have faith. You've got to believe," head coach James Mitcham said after the Oct. 2 comeback, according to the Beaverton Valley Times.
Liberty, in its first season back in 5A after a decade in 6A, lost its conference opener to Canby 35-14 on Oct. 2. The Falcons graduated 22 seniors from last year's squad. Junior quarterback Jaxson James, a returning all-league second-teamer, is in his second year as the starter. Senior linebacker Riley Brisson, a first-team all-league selection, leads the defensive front.
The OregonLive predictions panel of 12 writers favors Aloha 9-3.
Sunset at Southridge
Sunset opened Metro League play with a 42-35 win over Beaverton on Oct. 2 after a rocky nonconference stretch that included losses to Tigard (42-0) and Sherwood (45-0). The Apollos showed they can score in bunches, also winning 45-44 at Liberty on Sept. 18.
Southridge is winless and has been outscored 230-56 through five games. The Skyhawks opened league play with a 42-0 loss at Jesuit.
First-year head coach Josh Gray, 25, took over a program that went 1-8 in each of the last two seasons. When a preseason prediction pegged the Skyhawks to go winless, Gray said in August he embraced the challenge, telling the Beaverton Valley Times he hoped to surprise people.
Southridge returns senior quarterback Connor Harding and a receiving group that includes seniors Wyatt Bickler, Cody Harrington and Zach Turner. Senior center Tristan Lulay transferred in from Valley Catholic after that program could not field a team in 2026.
The OregonLive panel picks Sunset 11-1.
What's ahead
After Friday, Aloha heads to Wilsonville on Oct. 16. Sunset hosts Westview the same night. Southridge travels to Mountainside on Oct. 16, then visits Beaverton on Oct. 23.
