EDMONDS – It was billed as an offensive showdown, the kind of back-and-forth confrontation that strains necks and unnerves scorekeepers.
Edmonds-Woodway, which came in averaging 34.6 points per game, held up its end of the deal. The Warriors defense, however, made sure Kamiak (averaging 38.3 points for its previous six games) didn’t come close.
E-W turned a clash between the top two offenses in the Western Conference South Division into a shockingly one-sided football game Friday night at Edmonds Stadium. John Dawson passed for 231 yards and three touchdowns, both season highs, Travis Smith rushed for 180 yards and two TDs, and the Warriors defense silenced Kamiak’s vaunted attack as E-W pulled off a jaw-dropping 34-7 upset against the previously unbeaten Knights.
“I thought this was one of our better game plans,” understated Edmonds-Woodway coach John Gradwohl, whose team improved to 6-2 in the Wesco South and overall.
“(Dawson) gets better every week, our defense gets better every week, and that’s really what your goal is as a team. You gotta peak at the right time and hopefully, if we can keep getting better, we’ll peak at the right time.”
The way the Warriors played Friday, Kamiak (7-1, 7-1) never had a chance. E-W took a 7-0 lead less than three minutes into the game when Dawson, a 6-foot-4 senior, connected with receiver Mike Darrington on a 55-yard TD strike down the middle of the field. Darrington, who also caught a 43-yard TD pass from Dawson early in the fourth quarter that made it 34-0, caught four passes for 147 yards.
“I’m not surprised at all,” Dawson said of the upset. “We worked hard all week. We prepared for everything.”
As good as E-W’s offense played, its defense was most impressive.
The Warriors sacked Kamiak QB Mark Iddins five times, led by two each from end Stewart Schaefer and linebacker Brandon Huppert. Iddins, the top passer in the conference, came in with gaudy statistics (1,349 yards, 13 TDs) but he never looked comfortable against Edmonds-Woodway’s aggressive defense.
“We just weren’t clicking and … (E-W) played better on defense than any other team we’ve played this year,” Iddins said. “I was getting hit on everything, pass plays and run plays.”
Iddins completed 10 of 22 passes for 145 yards and an interception. It was just the second game this year he failed to throw a TD.
Schaefer, a 6-foot-4, 240-pound senior, nailed Iddins (nine rushes for minus-40 yards) twice on blindside sacks during what he called the best game of his career.
“We came out real, real fired up,” Schaefer said.
Edmonds-Woodway built a 14-0 lead with 1:46 to go in the first half when Smith plowed for a 1-yard TD. Dawson completed two huge passes during the six-play, 69-yard drive: one in the left flat to running back Josh Heard that went for 22 yards and a 36-yard cross over the middle to Darrington that put E-W at the Kamiak 1.
Dawson completed seven of 10 passes for 148 yards in the first half. Darrington caught three of those for 104 yards.
Iddins was 7-for-12 for 98 yards in the first half, but after starting fast (6-for-7) he misfired on four of five attempts. Meanwhile, the Knights ground game was dismal; they rushed for just 14 yards in the half. Kamiak didn’t score until the 6:47 mark of the fourth quarter when back Tony Virata rolled in from 10 yards.
E-W, which has lost twice by a combined six points this season, finishes its regular season next Friday against Mariner (3-5, 3-5) at Goddard Stadium. The Warriors, along with Kamiak, are in a five-team Wesco South cluster fighting for three Class 4A playoff berths.
Gradwohl made it clear he is proud of the Warriors but he reminded them their work is far from done.
“I want you to really enjoy this. (But) this game is just another stepping stone. Next week’s game is what matters.”
Conversely, Kamiak, which concludes its regular season next Friday against Mountlake Terrace back at Edmonds Stadium, took its first step back. And a cloud of uncertainty hangs over the Knights as they await a player ineligibility ruling from the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association. The WIAA’s decision could force Kamiak to forfeit victories over Mariner and Lynnwood, potentially eliminating it from the playoff race.
At Edmonds
Kamiak0007-7
Edmonds-Woodway77137-34
E-W-Darrington 55 pass from Dawson (Harmon kick)
E-W-Smith 1 run (Harmon kick)
E-W-Heard 40 pass from Dawson (Harmon kick)
E-W-Smith 57 run (Harmon kick failed)
E-W-Darrington 43 pass from Dawson (Harmon kick)
Kamiak-Virata 10 run (Hawkinson kick)
Records-Kamiak 7-1 in league and overall. Edmonds-Woodway 6-2, 6-2.
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