High school football roundup: Emerald Ridge routs Curtis in third consecutive 4A SPSL win
Back in Week 1, Emerald Ridge High School football built an early three-possession lead against crosstown rival Puyallup, only to have the Vikings rally back in the second half and eventually win a one-point thriller at Sparks Stadium.
How have the Jaguars responded in the three weeks since?
By posting impressive consecutive wins against Olympia, Sumner and Curtis.
The latest victory — a convincing 42-13 rout of Curtis on Thursday night in Puyallup — keeps Emerald Ridge (3-1) in the hunt for the top spot in the Class 4A South Puget Sound League as the regular season nears its midway point.
“I think we’ve made incredible strides so far,” Jaguars senior tight end and defensive end Jacob Lane said. “Coming off a tough loss Week 1, and then bouncing back with three wins in a row, I really like where our team’s at right now.
“And I think we haven’t even put everything together yet, so I think that’s a really good sign, and we’re moving in the right direction.”
Emerald Ridge made impact plays in all three phases — including piling up 433 yards and five touchdowns on offense, while the defense limited the Vikings to 222 yards and one offensive score — to eventually roll to their fourth straight win over Curtis (2-2) in 4A SPSL play.
“It was a great win,” Emerald Ridge quarterback Jake Schakel said. “It was a team win.”
The two programs traded punts early, and Emerald Ridge forced a pair of Curtis three-and-outs before finding the end zone first midway through the first quarter.
After the Jaguars’ first drive stalled near midfield, punter Brady Peterson pinned the Vikings at their own 1. Curtis didn’t advance past the 6, and Emerald Ridge set up with short field at the Vikings 38 on the ensuing punt.
Emerald Ridge immediately drove into the red zone on a 26-yard pass from Schakel to Lane, and scored seconds later when Schakel connected with Gio Kafentzis for the first of two touchdowns in the half on a 7-yard score.
The Jaguars recovered the ensuing kickoff, and seemed in position to add on, but a holding penalty negated another quick touchdown pass, and Curtis sophomore Xavier Ahrens ended the drive in a hurry when he secured his first interception of the half two plays in.
Ahrens picked off another pass on Emerald Ridge’s second drive. The Jaguars again reached the red zone before a Schakel pass intended for Kafentzis was broken up by the Curtis defensive back. Ahrens leapt into the air, tipped the pass with his right hand, hauled it in and sprinted 86 yards for a touchdown to tie the game at 7-7 with 8:15 to play in the half.
Emerald Ridge took nearly eight minutes off the clock in response, engineering a 12-play drive that ended with a 19-yard touchdown from Schakel to Kafentzis to make it 14-7 at the break.
Curtis never got closer. Looking to even the score, the Vikings attempted a fake punt on their opening drive of the third quarter, but Lane, a Washington commit, snagged the pass attempt from Curtis quarterback Rocco Koch and took it back 41 yards for a score.
“I was telling my guys, ‘Watch the fake, get ready,’ and when he pulled it up and started looking for it, I kind of just sat and waited for him to make a move,” Lane said. “And then I saw the running back jump out to the flat, so I kind of went with him, and then I just jumped it from there and took it to the house.”
Emerald Ridge continued to build the lead from there. The Jaguars recovered a fumble on the ensuing kickoff, and five plays later Schakel connected with Kajon Babcock in motion for a 3-yard touchdown, giving Emerald Ridge its second score in less than two minutes midway through the third.
The Jaguars pushed the lead to 35-7 moments into the fourth on the third touchdown connection of the game between Schakel and Kafentzis, this time for 33 yards.
Curtis responded with a quick drive capped by a 39-yard pass from Koch to Ahrens with 10:35 left to play. The Vikings then recovered a fumble on the kickoff, but the Jaguars quickly silenced any momentum when Logan Lisherness hauled in an interception on the first play of Curtis’ possession.
Emerald Ridge completed a six-play drive not long after with a 20-yard touchdown pass from Schakel to Lane — the Jaguars’ fifth offensive touchdown of the evening — to make it 42-13 with 7:36 left.
“Our offense is special,” Lane said. “Really dominant.”
Schakel finished 22-of-28 for 298 yards and the five touchdowns to two interceptions. He connected with seven receivers, led by Kafentzis, who caught nine passes for 156 yards and the three scores, and Lane, who finished with three catches for 65 yards and the touchdown.
The Jaguars’ defense limited the Vikings to 37 yards and no first downs in the first half before Koch found some room to run in the final two quarters. He finished with a game-high 101 rushing yards on 15 carries, and was 5-of-13 passing for 69 yards, the touchdown to Ahrens and the two interceptions.
Emerald Ridge entered the week as one of five 4A SPSL programs with a 2-1 record. Thursday night’s win keeps the Jaguars in the mix near the top of the league standings. Puyallup (3-0) is the league’s only remaining undefeated team, and hosts Sumner on Friday night at Sparks Stadium.
“We’re really just doing what we can control,” Lane said, as Emerald Ridge looks ahead to the second half of league play. “We’re not really looking at everybody else, but we’re focusing on what we can do, and we’re just focused on winning out from here.”
More tough tests await in the weeks ahead. Emerald Ridge plays on the road at South Kitsap next week, and has Bethel, Bellarmine Prep, three-time defending league champion and last year’s 4A state champion Graham-Kapowsin, and crosstown rival Rogers still on the schedule.
“We have a lot of respect for everybody in our league, and it’s a challenge each week,” Emerald Ridge coach Adam Schakel said.
SPANAWAY LAKE 31, BONNEY LAKE 23
An early run game established by its sophomore tailback tandem pushed Spanaway Lake over Bonney Lake on Thursday night at Art Crate Field in Spanaway, improving the Sentinels to a 3-1 record four weeks in.
Entering the game with a plan to remain on the ground, running backs Laron Paige and D’Aryhian Clemons delivered for Spanaway Lake, each with first-half touchdowns.
Clemons added a first-quarter interception in the Sentinels secondary en route to the 31-23 final.
“He carried the ball well. He had to have had close to 100 yards,” coach Cameron Robak said of Clemons.
Spanaway Lake led 18-8 at halftime.
Robak’s defense expected a rushing counterattack from the opposing Panthers — exactly what Spanaway Lake saw in the first half.
But when Oklahoma commit Jasiah Wagoner exploded for a 60-yard receiving score on a slant route in the third, Bonney Lake’s offense upped its urgency, opting to pass.
They chipped away at the Sentinels lead, but failed to cut the deficit to a single score until the closing seconds of the contest on a 1-yard rushing touchdown. Robak already had pulled a portion of his starters.
“We stuck to our game plan of running the ball,” Robak added, “and it worked.”
Even with an undefeated 2-0 record early in 3A Pierce County League play, Robak was straightforward — he wants and expects cleaner football from his squad down the stretch.
“We, unfortunately have played some very sloppy football,” he said nonchalantly. “Lots of penalties, lots of mistakes. We had a handful of fumbles today, a snap over the head of our punter.
“We have the athletes. We have the guys. We’ve just got to play smart base football and do our thing.”
They’ll get that chance next week during a trip to Stadium Bowl in Tacoma, where they are set to face Stadium.
FRIDAY (SEPT. 23)
TUMWATER 56, CENTRALIA 7
Tumwater’s latest victory, a more-than-convincing blowout over Centralia on Friday night, was deemed by head coach Bill Beattie as a complete team win.
There was a three-headed rushing attack featuring Logan Cole, Carlos Matheney, and Jaylin Nixon — combining for 286 yards and three touchdowns, in total, compared to Centralia’s 27.
There was Luke Reid’s dazzling special teams highlight, which culminated in a 63-yard punt return touchdown in the second quarter.
And there was linebacker Cash Short’s 38-yard fumble recovery in the third, returned for Tumwater’s sixth touchdown of the night.
“We came out, and moved the ball pretty (well),” Beattie said after the win. “Defensively, we didn’t allow a first down in the first half. I know that.”
Of Centralia’s 69 total passing yards, 59 of them came on a single play — their only touchdown of the game in the third quarter.
Tumwater quarterback Alex Overbay added a 31-yard touchdown pass to David Malroy shortly before halftime.
Graham-Kapowsin 23, Bellarmine 0
Graham-Kapowsin first-year head coach Jeff Logan and his staff have been emphasizing cleaning things up on defense in practice. He feels the Eagles have made some strides in that department, evidenced by a 23-0 road win over Bellarmine on Friday night.
“We’ve emphasized just doing your job, assignment football, playing 11 guys as a team,” Logan said. “We had blown some coverage on defense (in previous games). We really tried to clean up our assignments, simplify things and play fast.”
Defensive end Jacob Bowen led the charge with four tackles, including two tackles for loss. On offense, junior running back Alele Faapito paced the Eagles with 130 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries.
“He’s slippery,” Logan said of Faapito. “He’s hard to get down, he’s very patient. He’s not super tall, but he’s solid, strong. … He’s got some deceptive speed.”
Quarterback Daveon Superales completed 19-of-30 passes for 176 yards and a touchdown pass to Noah Flores in the third quarter. Graham-Kapowsin (3-1) faces Sumner next on Friday, Sept. 30 at Art Crate Field.
Lakes 53, Stadium 7
There are fast starts and there are lightning fast starts. Ki’Maree Washington returned the game’s opening kickoff to the Stadium 18-yard line, setting up a Leo Pulalasi touchdown run that gave Lakes a 7-0 lead just 12 seconds into the game.
“That was awesome,” said Lakes coach Dave Miller. “The kids had a great week of practice, came out and executed well.”
The Lancers never looked back, scoring early and often and taking a 53-0 lead into the locker room at halftime. Freshman quarterback Legend Galeai completed 8-of-9 attempts for 247 yards and six touchdowns. His favorite target of the day was Oregon State commit David Wells, who caught four passes for 112 yards and three touchdowns. Leo Pulalasi caught two passes for 66 yards and a touchdown and rushed three times for 55 yards and another score. Ki’Maree Washington rushed four times for 65 yards and a touchdown in the win.
“They all contributed,” Miller said. “They all made plays. Tristan Baker had some nice plays, also. Legend spread it around pretty good. The defense was really dominating.”
Miller said he likes what he’s seeing from his freshman quarterback. On Thursday in practice, Galeai went 20-for-20 in a team segment.
“He’s just getting more comfortable with the system, reads, progressions and it shows,” Miller said. “We kind of knew each game he was going to get better. … The ball is coming out quicker. He’s not holding it. … You can just see the comfort in the system.”
Lakes faces Silas next on the road at Lincoln Bowl on Friday, Sept. 30.
W.F. WEST 35, BLACK HILLS 0
Undoubtedly a statement win, W.F. West knocked off undefeated Black Hills on Friday night, and in shutout fashion.
Bearcats signal-caller Gavin Fugate accounted for four touchdowns, and the defense silenced any response in what became a 35-0 rout.
Fugate’s first touchdown— a 19-yard toss to receiver Cameron Amoroso — quickly gave W.F. West an early 7-0 lead. He dove in from two yards out for a second-quarter rushing score, doubling the advantage.
Then Fugate found Gage Brumfield on an 18-yard passing touchdown, and by halftime, the Bearcats led by 28, steamrolling for 344 first-half yards, per The Chronicle’s Josh Kirschenbaum.
Fugate’s fourth and final touchdown was his third through the air, and another to Amoroso on the opening drive of the second half.
Yelm 65, River Ridge 7
Another week, another dominant Yelm win. The Tornados were clicking in all three phases in a 3A South Sound Conference win over the River Ridge Hawks on Friday night, taking a 44-0 lead into halftime. Brayden Platt rushed for 69 yards and two touchdowns, Kyler Ronquillo caught four passes for 41 yards and a pair of touchdowns and Nathan Ford rushed for a 50-yard touchdown. Quarterback Damian Aalona completed 9-of-19 passed for 148 yards and three touchdowns. William Carreto scored on a 76-yard kickoff return for a touchdown, one of several big plays on special teams for Yelm on Friday night.
“Our special teams was awesome tonight,” said Yelm coach Jason Ronquillo. “All those hidden yards they talk about in special teams, we got those tonight.”
Linebacker Ray Wright led the defense with 10 tackles, including two tackles for loss.
“His instincts to the ball are second-to-none,” Ronquillo said. “When he sees a window, he closes it so fast. He’ll get to a gap in the window before a running back will. Ray is so talented at finding those windows, finding the ball.”
Silas 35, Juanita 28
Make that two straight wins for the Silas Rams, who came from behind to beat Juanita after beating Stadium the week before. Trailing 28-21 going into the fourth quarter, Silas outscored Juanita 14-0 in the fourth quarter to win the game, 35-28.
Facing 3rd and long, Silas’ offensive coordinator decided to go for it. The result? A game-winning 29-yard touchdown from quarterback Tre Walker to receiver Bo Hiemstra down the middle.
“My (offensive coordinator) decided to go for the house call,” said Silas first-year head coach Cameron Rogers.
Silas’ defense went into bend-not-break mode and senior defensive back pulled in an interception in the Silas end zone on an untimed down to end the game. Silas quarterback Tre Walker rushed for 180 yards and two touchdowns on 24 carries, while completing 11-of-22 passes for 200 yards and a pair of touchdowns in the win. Receiver Bo Hiemstra hauled in seven catches for 146 yards and two touchdowns. Running back Lawrence Hawkins rushed for 99 yards and a touchdown. Those are good numbers for Walker, also a basketball player at Silas.
“He’s definitely shown a great ability of just taking care of the football,” Rogers said. “He recognized the (Juanita) defense was just dropping eight. That opened up a lot of lanes inside. With him and Hawkins running the football, they really took advantage of three guys being in the box.”
Silas moves to 2-2. The Rams lost 46-21 to 4A Mount Si in Week 1 and 62-14 to still undefeated Enumclaw — the 2A SPSL title favorite — in Week 2. The Rams have bounced back nicely, posting a win over Stadium last week before Friday’s win over Juanita.
“The big thing is just trying to be competitive in every game, not be counted out,” Rogers said. “Even down 62-14 against Enumclaw, the big thing was just to have some pride in our performance, sell out on every play. We’ll find ourselves in ball games and anything can happen. Having that confidence, being competitive, that’ll help us set a tone.”
GIG HARBOR 44, CAPITAL 21
Blaze Herbert’s monster game meant more than his trio of touchdowns piled onto Gig Harbor’s stat sheet.
His first score — a 65-yard wheel route-turned-high-speed-chase down the sideline at Capital High School — shifted the momentum after the host Cougars had pounced for a 14-0 lead in the opening quarter.
“It was the shot in the arm that we needed,” head coach Darrin Reeves said, now 3-1 in his first season at the helm. “We came out a little flat.
“A little hangover from the big week last week that we had, all of the excitement, and falling short to Peninsula.
But the Tides wouldn’t let a loss in last week’s Fish Bowl affect Friday night’s play, at least once Herbert blew past Capital defenders for Gig Harbor’s first touchdown of the game.
The senior tailback added another pair of scores on the ground, and quarterback Will Landram tallied four passing touchdowns, in total.
Gig Harbor’s defense only allowed a single touchdown after the first quarter.
This story was originally published September 22, 2022 at 11:46 PM.
