ABERDEEN — The Knights created four first-half turnovers and converted each one into seven points en route to a thumping of the Grizzlies in a 1A state tournament quarterfinal on Saturday.
Koa Wilkins threw for 161 yards and four touchdowns passes, and Andrew Cline added 158 yards on 19 carries and a pair of scores for the Knights, who will face Montesano next weekend in the Tacoma Dome in a semifinal matchup.
King’s coach Jim Shapiro said that the four turnovers — two interceptions and two fumbles — set the Knights up inside the Hoquiam 40-yard-line each time.
“It’s one thing to get the turnover, but it’s another thing to convert them into points,” Shapiro said. “Our offense did a good job of being balanced.”
Benjamin Hermes picked off the first pass of the game for King’s, which led to a 4-yard scoring pass from Wilkins to Cole Mitchell and set the tone for the afternoon.
“Hoquiam did a good job of loading the box, but we did a good job of blocking the guys in the box,” Shapiro said. “We were able to run the ball, and when you load the box you leave passing lanes open. It was the best of both worlds for us.”
At Stewart Field
King’s211407—42
Hoquiam00714—21
K—Cole Mitchell 4 pass from Koa Wilkins (Jack Van Dyke kick)
K—Jake Welsh 12 pass from Wilkins (Van Dyke kick)
K—Andrew Cline 37 run (Van Dyke kick)
K—Jackson Whitaker 2 run (Van Dyke kick)
K—Edmund Sundquist 11 pass from Wilkins (Van Dyke kick)
H—Jordan Dayton 4 run (Nazareno Mazariegos kick)
K—Cline 21 pass from Wilkins (Van Dyke kick)
H—Artimus Johnson 6 run (pass failed)
H—Anthony Nash 50 pass from Gregory Dick (Tahj Malone pass from Dick)
Records—King’s 10-1 overall. Hoquiam 10-1 overall.
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