
Reporter Paul Valencia and sports administrators Tony Liberatore and Cale Piland discuss high school sports first, and we also talk pro sports — Mariners fans are stressed
Paul Valencia
ClarkCountyToday.com
A little bit of this and a little bit of that on this recording of The Study of Sports.
This latest episode was recorded on Thursday, Oct, 9, and the weather forecast for Oct. 10 was rain throughout the day. That would make for a couple of fun football games because there are still two football fields with natural grass in the 2A GSHL and Trico League.
So we ask our sports administrators what they love about natural grass in sports, but also give us some insight on why most schools around here will never go back to natural grass.
We also talk about the costs of attending high school sports and this trend to no longer accept cash at high school sporting events. Why? Well, the administrators have some good reasons.
Plus we talk about our favorite coaching when we were young.
And we gauge the stress level of our Mariner fans.
It’s the Study of Sports, with your hosts Paul Valencia, a reporter for Clark County Today, and sports administrators Tony Liberatore and Cale Piland.
Our podcast format is simple: A longtime sports reporter (Paul Valencia) discusses high school sports, and more, with longtime sports administrators and former coaches. Cale Piland is the former head football coach at Evergreen and Union and is now the athletic director for Evergreen Public Schools. Tony Liberatore is a former assistant coach and athletic director at Columbia River and is now an associate principal at Fort Vancouver.
We’re always interested in subject ideas for a future podcast. Email us a subject idea.
Send us your thoughts at: paul.v@clarkcountytoday.com.
Also read:
- The Study of Sports Podcast Dec. 30, 2025: A look ahead to 2026 with WIAA amendments, a year in review in high school sports, plus remembering the Mariners’ magical runThe latest Study of Sports Podcast looks ahead to proposed WIAA amendments, reviews high school sports in 2025, and reflects on the Seattle Mariners’ memorable run.
- Virginia Rodeman defies limits and wins No-Gi World Championship in Brazilian Jiu-JitsuBattle Ground athlete Virginia Rodeman won two divisions at the No-Gi World Championship in Las Vegas, continuing an eight-year rise in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu competition.
- High school sports: Pac Coast Wrestling to showcase some of the best in the Northwest and beyond Clark County will host major high school sports events next week, highlighted by the Pac Coast Wrestling Championships in Ridgefield and holiday basketball tournaments featuring local teams.
- Columbia River salmon and steelhead endorsement goes into effect Jan. 1Beginning Jan. 1, anglers 15 and older must purchase a Columbia River salmon and steelhead endorsement to fish for those species in the Columbia River and many Washington tributaries.
- High school girls basketball: Union Titans give Brooklynn Haywood a homecoming in AlaskaUnion traveled to Anchorage for two games that allowed Brooklynn Haywood to play in front of her hometown crowd while the Titans bonded through travel, cold weather, and on-court adversity.






