Ready for more

Published 11:50 pm Tuesday, August 28, 2007

EVERETT – To understand how far the Mariner High School football team might go this fall, consider what the Marauders nearly accomplished last season.

On Nov. 11, 2006 Mariner was one play from beating the Oak Harbor Wildcats and advancing to the quarterfinal round of the Class 4A state playoffs. Leading 42-41 in the second overtime of an incredible battle, Mariner had to stop Oak Harbor from scoring a two-point conversion from 11 yards out.

Get a stop and extend the season; allow a conversion and it’s all over.

Mariner quarterback Tyler Tuiasosopo, now a senior, vividly recalls watching the play from the sideline. He remembers crossing his fingers, hoping things would turn out well for Mariner. Instead, he watched Oak Harbor wide receiver Rodrick Rumble make a diving, game-winning catch of a pass by quarterback Marshall Lobbestael.

Game over. And for Mariner, season over.

Oak Harbor went on to win its next three games and hoist the state championship trophy in the Tacoma Dome.

“Basically, they just made an athletic play. For us, we use that for motivation in the sense that we hung on with the eventual state champions,” Tuiasosopo said. “We bring a lot of those (players) back, and so we feel like we can actually make a run (this season).”

Mariner returns a bunch of starters — seven on offense and six on defense — from its 2006 squad that went 8-3. Two of its losses, against Oak Harbor and Edmonds-Woodway, a state semifinalist, were by one point.

“We were young last season, so we definitely want to come back and show (opponents) that we’re 10 times better than last year,” said senior Matt Jones, who started for Mariner at running back and linebacker.

Tuiasosopo, a third-year starter, and Jones were both All-Wesco South Second Team Offense honorees; Jones was also a First Team defensive pick. They’re joined by several other speedy backs and receivers, as well as four senior offensive linemen who started as sophomores: Sean Braaten, Trevor Irby, Matt Soriano and Michael Knowlton.

Among its many strengths, excellent team speed might be Mariner’s most devastating asset. The Marauders are fast at virtually every position. Get this: during an August practice, Irby, the senior lineman, beat one of the squad’s top receivers in a sprinting drill.

“That’s a good thing for the line but a bad thing for our receiving corps,” joked longtime Mariner head coach John Ondriezek.

It could be a remarkable season for Mariner, which last season reached the state playoffs for the first time since 1998, when it lost to Capital of Olympia in the title game. Despite its obvious talent, the team isn’t overlooking any challenges.

“We take it one practice at a time ‘cause we want to stay focused and in perspective,” said Tuiasosopo, who passed for 1,145 yards and 17 touchdowns a year ago.

“Our first game is (7 p.m. Friday) at Shorewood … so all of our focus right now is on Shorewood,” the QB added. “We want to stay away from all the hype that everyone’s talking about. It’s good to hear about that, but we need to stay focused on what we want to do.”

Based on how Mariner players performed at the team’s initial practices in mid-August, they certainly are ready.

“We’re extremely pleased with these first three days of practice,” Ondriezek said back on Aug. 17. “We got a lot accomplished. The kids came back prepared and in shape. They worked hard over the offseason.”

Along with Edmonds-Woodway and Kamiak, Mariner is considered one of the elite teams in the Western Conference South Division. After its season opener against Shorewood, which won one game in 2006, Mariner plays host to E-W on Sept. 7 in a massive early-season clash that will indicate how good the Marauders are and how far they might eventually go.

“The keys,” Ondriezek said, “are just to continue to work hard and play mistake-free football. Our kids are committed, so we’re not worried about that. We just gotta go out and execute.”