The Meadowdale Mavericks are really good at stopping teams from scoring. The Camas Papermakers are really good at scoring.
Who does it better is something we’ll find out tonight at 5 p.m. when the teams meet in a Class 3A state quarterfinal game at Doc Harris Stadium in Camas.
That the Mavericks play great defense is no surprise. Coach Mark Stewart was an All-American linebacker at Washington under Don James and Jim Lambright and any success his teams have had in his 11 seasons as coach have been led by a solid defensive unit.
But this year’s team is really special. Meadowdale (11-0) has allowed just 106 points in 11 games, or 9.6 a game. The Mavericks have given up 12 touchdowns, just four of them on the ground, and three times the defense hasn’t allowed a touchdown in a game. Meadowdale hasn’t given up more than 17 points in a game all season.
“We have experience everywhere on the defense,” Stewart said. “We have good leadership on that side of the ball and just skill-wise, we have really good players. Top to bottom, it’s probably the best we’ve had here.”
Camas, though, will prove to be a huge challenge for the Meadowdale defense. The Papermakers (10-1) have outscored foes 469-83 and have scored at least 48 points six games in a row. They’ve scored at least 31 in all but two games and have won their two playoff games 51-0 over Bainbridge and 48-14 over Kennedy Catholic.
Camas is most dangerous through the air. Quarterback Tony Gennaro has passed for 301 yards two weeks in a row, and last week connected on five scoring passes. He has a talented group of receivers, including Jonathan Warner, son of former Seahawk Curt Warner.
“They’re athletic,” Stewart said. “Their quarterback does a great job distributing the ball. They run a lot of screens and short passes but they can also go deep. It’s a good challenge for us.”
Taking on spread offenses that like to put the ball in the air isn’t something Meadowdale won’t be prepared for. Its past three opponents, Oak Harbor, Prairie and Mercer Island, all had similar schemes. And in each case, the Mavericks found a way to control diverse, dangerous offenses.
“We’ve seen more and more spread every year,” Stewart said. “We just want to stop what the other team does best. If they run the ball, we want to stop that. If they pass, we adjust. We get in the right position to make plays. But our focus, usually, is stop the run and the short pass. There’s not a lot of teams that can beat you consistently throwing downfield.”
Stewart said that that the influx of spread offenses means the defense he runs as a coach is totally different than the one he played under as a Husky. Linebackers now have to be more prepared to cover short passes. But he still tries to be aggressive, stacking the box with a group of talented seniors including Air Force-bound Kyler Larsen, Kyle Newsom, Corwin Perkins, Ethan Coffey, Michael Cummings, Jacob Hughes and Dillon Wright. That sometimes leaves corners Dustin Diemond and sophomore Josiah Evans alone out wide but they’ve been excellent at taking away the deep ball.
“Our guys have played together for a long time,” Stewart said. “They know where they have to be, what we’re trying to do and what adjustments to make. With a veteran team, we don’t have to tell them too much. They know what they have to do and they’ve done a great job of it.”
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