5 takeaways from the sixth week of football in the South Sound

There were a lot of defensive highlights this week. The 4A NPSL scored a mind-blowing amount of points. And the number of undefeated locals stayed at four.

Here are five takeaways from the sixth week of high school football in the South Sound.

1. Clark’s four picks highlight big defensive week

Here’s how Sumner’s Donovan Clark took over Thursday night at Sunset Chev Stadium — he recorded four interceptions.

And not against an easy opponent. The junior cornerback hauled in his four picks against 4A GSHL power Camas, lifting the Spartans (4-2) to a much-needed 14-7 win.

“Camas has been torching people through the air, and we did a great job,” Sumner coach Keith Ross said.

Clark, who is 6-foot-2, 185 pounds, and is attracting attention from several FCS schools, now leads the 4A SPSL with six interceptions this season.

Camas (3-3) used two quarterbacks against the Spartans — senior Andrew Boyle and sophomore Jake Blair — and Clark wreaked havoc against both.

His first pick came against Boyle, when he outjumped a Papermakers receiver on a fade route in the back of the end zone.

The next three picks came against Blair. When Blair missed a receiver down the sideline, Clark corralled the pass. And, on what Ross considered the most impressive interception of the game on a deep post cut, Clark tipped the ball and tracked it down for his third pick. The fourth, Blair overthrew his receiver and Clark dove and grabbed the ball just before it hit the turf.

Camas threw Clark’s way five times during the contest, resulting in the four interceptions and one knockdown.

“He’s a sprinter who is learning to be a football player,” Ross said. “He has incredible physical gifts, and a great work ethic to get better at his craft. He’s coming along just fine.”

Clark wasn’t the only player in the South Sound to have a big week on defense.

Lakes combined for five interceptions Thursday night in Spanaway in a 41-14 win over Bethel. Philip Riley and Daeshawn Wayne each hauled in two, and Rafi Mbuja ran back his pick early in the first quarter for a 14-yard touchdown.

“It was just gap sound,” Riley said. “Everybody was doing their job. It gave us a chance to get those plays. It was a team effort.”

Friday night, in the latest edition of Tacoma’s oldest football rivalry, Lincoln’s Julien Simon displayed again why he’s a top-50 recruit nationally in the 2021 class with two defensive touchdowns.

“I just want to get into the end zone,” Simon said. “I’m a nag. I’m a nag for it. I just want that ball. It doesn’t matter if I’m on offense or defense. I’m looking to score.”

Simon picked off a pass and returned it 54 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter, and added his second score before the half expired, ripping the ball away from a Stadium running back, and jaunting 32 yards untouched into the end zone. The fourth-ranked Abes went on to rout the Tigers, 61-6, at a rain-soaked Stadium Bowl.

Further south, Capital’s Chris Penner recorded two interceptions and two receiving touchdowns as the Cougars topped Gig Harbor, 34-7, at Ingersoll Stadium in Olympia.

2. 4A NPSL teams combine for 445 points ... and two shutouts

This week was one of big scores — and a pair of small scores — for the 16 teams in the 4A NPSL.

Two of the South Sounds top passers — Kentridge’s Natano Woods and Kent Meridian’s Isaac Cordova — kicked off the week with a shootout Thursday night at French Field.

The Chargers and Royals combined for a mind-blowing 122 points, with Kentridge notching the 71-51 win.

Saturday afternoon in Burien, Todd Beamer and Kennedy Catholic combined for 94 points, with the Lancers scoring the decisive touchdown with 27 seconds remaining to secure a 49-45 win.

Kennedy Catholic sophomore quarterback Sam Huard, who leads the state in passing, is nearing the 3,000-yard mark after completing 38 of 59 passes for 504 yards and four touchdowns Saturday. He is now 167 of 244 for 2,882 yards and 28 touchdowns this season.

Two teams — Federal Way and Tahoma — recorded shutouts. Federal Way blanked Decatur, 37-0, on Friday night, while Tahoma edged Auburn Riverside, 3-0, on Thursday in the league’s lowest scoring game of the season.

3. Buckle up for an exciting 4A SPSL finish

Sumner’s win over Camas wasn’t a league matchup, but it helped the Spartans rally from a pair of early league losses to No. 4 Puyallup and Rogers.

“We weren’t Sumner football. We got that straightened out this short week,” Ross said. “We had to remind everybody — coaches and players — what Sumner football means.”

And the loss to Rogers two weeks ago — the loss that shook up the 4A SPSL standings and sets several teams up for an intriguing finish — got the Spartans back on track, Ross said.

Let the battle for the league’s four playoff berths begin.

Puyallup remains alone at the top with five wins in league play, while Curtis, Graham-Kapowsin and Rogers all won this week to remain in a three-way tie for second with one 4A SPSL loss apiece.

Sumner is on the outside looking in right now, with the two league losses, but plenty of the top teams have yet to play each other with three weeks remaining.

4. Kentwood on the verge of first losing season in program history

Kentwood has never had a losing season in the 37 years its program has existed, but that could change this year.

The Conquerors won the 4A NPSL Cascade title a season ago, and were the league’s only team to advance past the Week 10 district playoffs, but graduated most of the players that led that squad.

With a 35-14 loss to No. 10 Enumclaw this week, the Conquerors dropped to 1-5 for the season, and are on the cusp of making history — and not in the way they want to.

Kentwood will try to salvage its season with Tahoma and Kennedy Catholic remaining on the schedule the next two weeks.

The Conquerors are also guaranteed a meaningful Week 9 crossover game as part of the 4A NPSL Mountain division — the league’s top tier.

5. The number of undefeated local teams is still four

Same number as last week. Four South Sound schools improved to 6-0.

No. 4 Steilacoom is still the only undefeated team in Pierce County after blanking Evergreen of Seattle, 49-0.

Enumclaw worked to a two-possesion win over Kentwood to remain the only undefeated team in South King County.

And crosstown rivals No. 2 Tumwater and No. 9 Black Hills cruised to wins as the only undefeated teams left in Thurston County. The T-Birds routed Aberdeen, 61-3, while Black Hills ran over Centralia, 43-7.

This story was originally published October 6, 2018 at 10:20 PM.