HS Football: Wahkiakum finishes off strong finish in SW 1B League with win over Sound Christian

11/2/2024

Wahkiakum 56, Sound Christian 20

(University Place, WA) The Wahkiakum Mules had been part of the Central 2B league for a long time but after re-clssification this past year they dropped into the 1B and decided not to try and stay in 11-man football at the 2B level. So they switched to the 8 man format and Head coach Ryan Lorenzo got the Mules excited about their new venture and with 26 players on the roster that is a deep roster in the 8 man format.

The Mules took a couple shots to the chin to begin the year losing big to perennial powerhouses Neah Bay and Naselle. The Mules lost a 3rd in a row to 2B Ilwaco 28-20 but since then had reeled off 6 straight wins heading into their league finale. They knew they had clinched 2nd place in the SW 1B league as Naselle was undefeated.

Soound Christian was hosting the Mules at Curtis high school and they were hoping to even their overall record to 4-4. It was also their senior day and the 5 senior’s were celebrated at halftime. The Lions were also celebrating assistant coach Marty Parkhurst who is retiring after this year. Parkhurst had dedicated his life to high school athletics as a teacher, coach and athletic director.

The seniors for the Lions included Mika Lester, Sam Hunt, Avan Greenwood, Logan Rhea and Cooper Reinmuth.

Offenses off to a Hot Start

Both offenses began the game with points on the board. Wahkiakum began on offense starting on their own 25 and went on an impressive 12 play drive with Mason Waldeck runningh it in from the 1. The 2 point PAT was no good to make it 6-0 with 5:59 to play in the 1st.

The Lions 1st possession began on their own 41 yard line and QB Sam Hunt led a 6 play drive that ended when he hit Avan Greenwood for a 44 yard TD catch and run. Hunt and Greenwood would trade positions all game from QB to TE. The 2 point PAT failed and it was tied 6-6 with 2:41 to play in the 1st.

Wahkiakum’s hot start continued with their 2nd possession that began on their own 33. 4 plays later QB Jayden Stoddard ran in the score from 9 yards out and the 2 point conversion was good to make it 14-6 Mules with 17-seconds left in the 1st.

Mules pull away with rapid fire scoring

Sound Christian’s 2nd possession began on their own 23 and facing a 4th down on their own 35 on the 6th play of the drive they were held and Wahkiakum took control.

The Mules would score 2 straight times on 1 play drives which were a 35-yard pass from Stoddard to Parker Leitz. After holding the Lions to 4 plays and turning the ball over on downs, 1 play and Stoddard hit Waldeck on a pretty 44 yard strike and the Mules led 28-6 with 4:13 to go in the half.

On the next Lions possession the Mules defense got into the act with a pick 6 as Parker Leitz read it perfectly and returned it to the house for a 34-6 lead. The Lions got the ball back but turned it over on downs on their own 38. Stoddard hit Leitz again for a 3rd 1 play drive, Stoddard then found Gage Robinson for 2 to make it 42-6 and that’s how it would go to the halftime break.

Wahkiakum triggers running clock; Lions refuse to give in

The Mules defense struck again in the 3rd quarter when Robinson picked off a pass and returned 45 yards for the score and the 2 point conversion to make it 50-6 with 7:44 to play in the 3rd. The score did trigger the running clock and Wahkiakum had one more score from the defense a fumble recovery pushing the total to 56-6.

Sound Christian was not interested in throwing in the towel and came back with 2 nice scoring

The Lions refused to give in though and battled back scoring 2 late touchdowns. Ryan Hunt ran in a 1 yard TD and S-C scored the 2 point conversion to make 56-14. Then with less than a minute to play the Lions had the ball on their own 35 and this time Greenwood dropped back and found Sam Hunt at about the 10 but Hunt refused to go down and pushed his way across the goal line for one last TD between the Senior classmates.

Records and What’s Next

The Sound Christian Lions ended their season and finished 3-5 for the season. They finished in a 3-way tie for 5th in the Southwest 1B league.

The Wahkiakum Mules ended up 2nd in league with a 7-1 league mark and 7-3 overall. The Mules will host Darrington in a week 10 game next Saturday at 2pm.

The Thorbeckes MVP

Our Thorbeckes Fitness Centers MVP of the game award went to Mason Waldeck who had rushing and receiving touchdown and was all over on defense. Waldeck also just 1 of 3 seniors on the Mules team.

Link to watch full replay on the NFHS Network (subscription required)

ESN Postgame Show