By Chuck Mingori
SPORTS CORRESPONDENT
A cold evening of football turned into a celebration afterwards as the Highline Pirates held off a tough Washougal opponent Friday night at Highline Memorial Stadium, 30-23, in State 2A playoff action.
“It really came down to battling, our guys are optimistic. I told them just now in the locker room we've been training since January for this moment right here,” said Highline head coach Deontae Cooper, whose team improved to 10-1 with its eighth consecutive win. “I am really proud of those guys. We played a really good Washougal team. You don't luck into the state playoffs. They've earned the right to be here. We're happy we came away with a W and got the victory.”
Washougal, from Vancouver, did everything it could to spoil Highline’s chances of advancing further in the state football championships. Highline defeated Ording 28-14 last week while Washougal won over Shelton 36-34 to set up Friday’s first round matchup.
The visitors scored on their first possession Friday night, capped off by a 39-yard run by Liam Atkin, only to see the PAT blocked by Highline. Highline answered with big plays of its own. La’Marques Williams’ 23-yard return put the Pirates in good field position at the 50. A 25-yard burst by Rico Jerez-Sosa and then a miraculous catch for 23 yards by Charles Brown from Ronan Rasmussen placed the ball at the 8-yard line. Perez Sosa found the end zone from there and the score was tied at 6-all with 7:55 remaining in the opening quarter.
The next Washougal drive ended with a Highline fumble recovery in the end zone for a touchback. But after an exchange of possessions Washougal scored again. Panthers quarterback Holden Bae engineered a long drive that resulted in his 2-yard keeper for the score followed by a two-point conversion to make it 14-6 midway through the second quarter. Highline settled for a 30-yard field goal from Josiah Maginniss that was set up by a pass play of 30 yards from Rasmussen to Marquawn McCraney.
The Pirates defense stiffened to stop Washougal and set up good field position. Highline grabbed its first lead when Jerez-Sosa scored from two yards out. The conversion pass failed as the Pirates held on to a 15-14 Highline lead at half time.
Disaster struck to open the third quarter when a Washougal defender snuck in front of the Highline receiver and went 35 yards for a pick six. Adam Estrada answered the call for Highline with his interception to stop a Washougal drive. He then hauled in a pass from Rasmussen, good for 43 yards and a score. McCraney added the two-point conversion, and the Pirates were up 23-20.
Another long drive from Washougal ended in paydirt. With a 2-yard passing play and the PAT, the visitors' lead stood at 27-23 with 1:40 to go in the third quarter. Once again Highline answered.
This time, on the opening play of the fourth quarter, Rasmussen found Williams open for a 43-yard score. Maginniss booted the PAT for a 30-27 lead.
Perhaps the play of the game came when Estrada intercepted a Washougal pass at the Highline 2-yard line with seven minutes to go and end the scoring threat. Stuck deep in its own territory, the Pirates went to a running offense with McCraney leading the Wildcat. One key play came on fourth down and four at the 37. Using a hard count, the Pirates forced Washougal to jump offsides. From there, the Pirates managed to run out the clock and preserve the victory.
The stage is set for next week's showdown with Lynden, the defending 2A state champions, in a Saturday kickoff in Bellingham. “That's going to be a game,” said coach Cooper. “We need to put this game to bed and get ready to go next week.”
