TACOMA
-- Because of the icy
conditions across the
mountain passes
Saturday, many Lewis &
Clark fans arrived late
to the 4A state
championship game
between their Tigers
from Spokane and
Bothell.
The
Lewis & Clark offense
did the same thing.
The
Tigers (11-2), making
their first visit to
state since 1994,
labored offensively for
three quarters before
scoring 14 points in the
fourth quarter for a
21-14 win at the Tacoma
Dome to capture their
first state football
title. Until this
season, the Tigers
hadn't won a game in the
state tournament since
1978.
"It
doesn't matter how many
losses we have," Lewis &
Clark running back Alex
Shaw said. "This has
been a perfect season."
Shaw was
the workhorse for the
Tigers, like he's been
all season. The
6-foot-2, 216-pounder
set a 4A state record
with 37 carries, topping
the old mark of 33,
while gaining 176 tough
yards and a touchdown.
Despite
his blue-collar job
running the ball, it was
Shaw's devastating block
of a Cougars linebacker
that set up the winning
touchdown late in the
fourth quarter.
With
barely a minute to play
and the ball at their
own 49, Tigers
quarterback Taylor Eglet
began to roll to his
left. Shaw then laid out
a blitzing Bothell
defender, freeing Eglet
to continue rolling.
The
junior quarterback
tucked the ball and
looked to run, but saw
the Cougars cornerback
come up to challenge
him. Behind the
cornerback, senior
Jordan Hanson was wide
open.
"I
didn't see it, but I
heard Shaw's block,"
Eglet said. "He's been
making those kind of
blocks all year. Once I
saw Jordan, I just hoped
the ball would get
there."
Hanson
had thoughts of his own
as the ball sailed his
way.
"Man,
time really does slow
down sometimes," Hanson
said. "I just zoned the
crowd out and knew it
was state if I made the
catch. That was
awesome."
Bothell
coach Tom Bainter
couldn't hide his
disappointment. He
wasn't unhappy with his
team's effort, but
wasn't pleased with the
mistakes.
"We
simply didn't execute on
several crucial plays,"
Bainter said. "It's
frustrating not playing
the game we wanted to.
We've done this before
and doesn't feel good."
Bainter
was referring to last
year's state final in
which the Cougars lost
by the same score to Oak
Harbor.
Lewis &
Clark held Bothell to 52
yards rushing. Johnny
Hekker was 14-for-24 for
196 yards, a touchdown
and two interceptions.
The
Cougars opened the game
with a nine-play scoring
drive that covered 71
yards with junior
Patrick Ottorbech
scoring from a yard out
for an early 7-0 lead.
The
drive was crisp, with
Hekker completing all
three pass attempts.
The
Bothell faithful were
delighted when the
Tigers' first drive went
nowhere, and almost came
away with a turnover
when Lewis & Clark
quarterback Taylor
Eglet's third-down pass
was nearly intercepted.
The
Cougars then took over
at their own 38 and
drove inside the Tigers
40 before Bothell
tailback Jonathan
Kirschner tried to cut
back on a sweep, but
ended up losing 12
yards.
From
that point on, the
Cougars offense went
dormant for the
remainder of the first
half, gaining only 24
yards during its next
four series. In that
same span, Bothell lost
20 yards by penalties.
The
Tigers offense continued
to pound at the Cougars
with Shaw the workhorse.
The burly back had 18
carries in the first
half for 89 yards, and
he set up Lewis &
Clark's first score.
The
Tigers put together
10-play drive with nine
minutes to play in the
second quarter with Shaw
carrying the ball on the
first six plays. With
Bothell thinking run, a
crafty fake handoff by
Eglet froze the Cougars
defense long enough for
Jordan Hanson to get
open for a 16-yard gain
to the Bothell 9-yard
line.
A quick
pass from Eglet to Alex
Gauper covered the final
seven yards and tied the
game at 7-7 with 4:28 to
play in the first half.
Both
teams labored on offense
throughout the third
quarter before Bothell
got things rolling. With
11:02 to play, Hekker
made a quick pass to
Ottorbech, and the
5-foot-9 junior did the
rest, breaking a pair of
tackles, then bouncing
off a third before
bursting free for a
53-yard touchdown and a
14-7 lead.
Lewis &
Clark answered with a
nine-play, 74-yard
drive, with Shaw scoring
on a 10-yard sweep to
tie the game.
Bothell
proceeded to drive into
Tigers territory with
three minutes left
before senior Steve
Johnson picked off an
errant Hekker pass over
the middle, setting up
Lewis & Clark's winning
drive.
"Both
teams played hard,"
Ottorbech said. "They're
the toughest team we've
faced all year. The
difference was they
played hard until the
very end."
Bothell,
the KingCo 4A champs,
finished the season
13-1.
|
Bothell |
7 |
0 |
0 |
7 |
-- |
14 |
|
Lewis & Clark |
0 |
7 |
0 |
14 |
-- |
21 |
B:
Patrick Otterbech1 run
(Johnny Hekker kick)
L:
Taylor Eglet 7 pass to
Alex Gauper (Gauper
kick)
B:
Ottorbech 53 pass from
Hekker (Hekker kick)
L: Alex
Shaw 10 run (Gauper
kick)
L: Eglet
51 pass to Jordan Hanson
(Gauper kick)
