
Reporter Paul Valencia and sports administrators Tony Liberatore and Cale Piland discuss high school sports first, and we also talk pro sports with a tribute to the Seattle Mariners and their fans
Paul Valencia
ClarkCountyToday.com
We usually take a couple of weeks in between episodes of The Study of Sports.
Then again, history is being made around us.
We’ve never seen Heritage football at 6-0, and we’ve never seen the Seattle Mariners up 2-0 in the ALCS.
We had to rally everyone together for an emergency edition of The Study of Sports.
Wait, did I just write that the Mariners are up 2-0 against the Blue Jays? Poor Tony Liberatore. You know he thinks we are jinxing the M’s.
No such thing as a podcast jinx. We have no control over the outcome.
But even to this non-Mariner fan, this state sure is fun when the Mariners are on a special journey.
This latest episode was recorded on Tuesday, Oct. 14.
We ask our sports administrators and Mariners fans about their stress levels from last week’s Game 5 against the Tigers? And we talk about their feelings after two games of the ALCS.
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 Jan. 31, 2026: We discuss how the 2A GSHL football is about to change in a major way, plus some Seahawks talk, tooThe Jan. 31 episode of the Study of Sports Podcast covers major upcoming changes to 2A GSHL football, local high school sports updates, and discussion of the Seattle Seahawks.
- Fort Vancouver athletics improving under partnership with Trico LeagueFort Vancouver High School athletics are showing measurable gains in competition and participation during the second year of a partnership competing in the Class 1A Trico League.
- The Study of Sports Podcast Jan. 15, 2026: We discuss some hot topics in high school sports across the state, plus we talk college and pro footballReporter Paul Valencia is joined by Tony Liberatore and Cale Piland to discuss current issues in high school sports, along with college and professional football topics.
- Opinion: Kindness is always welcome, even in places where one does not always find itPaul Valencia reflects on how a brief moment of kindness between a journalist and a football coach underscores the importance of respect in journalism and public life.
- 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.






