EVERETT – In their march to the top of the division, the Edmonds-Woodway Warriors have left broken hearts aplenty bobbing in their green wake.
Jennifer Buchanan / The Herald
The latest victims were the Everett Seagulls, who could not answer two fourth-quarter touchdown runs by E-W’s Josh Heard and fell 28-27 in a Western Conference South football game Friday night at Everett Memorial Stadium.
“I’m 40, but I feel like I’m 60,” Warriors coach John Gradwohl said as he caught his breath in the aftermath of the nail-biting victory. “Every week it’s a battle.”
After thrice trailing by two touchdowns, the Warriors tied the game 27-27 on Heard’s 35-yard TD gallop with just over four minutes to play. Grady Harmon’s conversion kick gave E-W (4-0 in league, 4-0 overall) its only lead of the game.
Heard finished with 150 yards and three touchdowns on 27 carries.
Trailing 28-27, the Seagulls started from their own 27 after the ensuing kickoff. Everett (2-2, 2-2 overall) mixed the running of Justin Boyce (25 carries, 129 yards, two TDs) and David Peoples (10 carries, 179 yards, two TDs) to march 72 yards in 12 plays to reach the Warriors’ 1-yard line with 19 seconds to play.
On third-and-goal, E-W’s defense dropped Boyce for a 2-yard loss.
The Seagulls’ field-goal attempt with eight seconds remaining was wide left and the jubilant Warriors escaped with their perfect record intact.
Perfection has not come easily. Last week E-W edged Meadowdale 21-20 in eerily similar fashion when the Mavericks missed a field goal in the waning seconds.
Despite the disappointing finish, Everett coach Will Soren was proud of his team.
“Of course they’re very, very disappointed,” Soren said of his players. “But kids are resilient. We battled … that’s what we talked about all week and the kids bought into it.”
Peoples jump-started Everett in the first quarter when he sprinted 63 yards for a TD on the Seagulls’ first play from scrimmage.
Everett’s Andrew Stiger intercepted a pass on E-W’s ensuing possession and two plays later Boyce bolted 14 yards for a touchdown to make the score 14-0 with 8:13 remaining in the first quarter.
“43 (Boyce), what a tough runner,” Gradwohl said. “And 8 (Peoples), he’s got moves I’ve never seen before.”
Heard, who suffered a mild concussion last week, was held out of the game for most of the first quarter. Once he entered the fray, he made an impact on both sides of the ball.
In the opening moments of the second quarter, he dropped Peoples for a 6-yard loss to force the Seagulls to punt from deep in their own territory.
E-W took over at the Everett 24 and Heard immediately ran for a TD to cut the gap to 14-7 with 9:52 remaining in the first half.
Everett then marched 80 yards in 13 plays – keyed by runs of 13 and 10 yards by Andrew Skorney, and 12 and 10 yards by Boyce – before Boyce’s 1-yard plunge gave Everett a 21-7 lead.
With just over three minutes remaining in the half, E-W quarterback Randy Anderson (7-of-11, 127 yards, one TD) drove the Warriors methodically downfield.
Facing fourth-and-one at the Seagull 35, Anderson ran around right end for a 19-yard gain. Two plays later, he lofted a 12-yard TD pass to the leaping Eric Greenwood (four receptions, 102 yards) to bring E-W within 21-14 with 53 seconds to play in the half.
In the second half, Peoples streaked 80 yards for a touchdown to give Everett a 27-14 lead with 29 seconds remaining in the third quarter. Ominously, the PAT attempt was blocked.
On E-W’s next possession, Anderson connected with Greenwood on a 43-yard pass play to Everett’s 27. On third-and-seven at the 24, Everett’s Parker Burns chased down the rolling Anderson and sacked him at the 36.
Anderson head hit the turf hard and he was forced to leave the game.
Backup quarterback Ben Newton entered the game facing fourth-and-19. Newton dropped back and heaved a long pass to Heard who made a leaping catch inside the 5 and fought his way to the 1. Three plays later, Heard scored to bring E-W within 27-21 with 8:32 remaining.
Peoples – who had 102 return yards – returned the Warriors kickoff 41 yards to the Everett 47. Boyce rambled 24 yards to the E-W 29, but on the next play the Seagulls fumbled the ball and Zach Houvener recovered at the Warriors’ 20.
With 7:50 remaining, Newton swept right 13 yards. After managing just two yards on its next three plays, E-W got a break on fourth down when Everett was called for pass interference and the ball was placed at midfield.
Four plays later Heard found an opening and galloped 35 yards for a touchdown.
“Those were two great teams who made a lot of big plays,” Soren said. “They just happened to make one more.”
At Everett
Edmonds-Woodway014014-28
Everett14760-27
Everett-Peoples 63 run (Schaller kick)
Everett-Boyce 14 run (Schaller kick)
Edmonds-Woodway-Heard 24 run (Harmon kick)
Everett-Boyce 1 run (Schaller kick)
Edmonds-Woodway-Greenwood 12 pass from Anderson (Harmon kick)
Everett-Peoples 80 run (Kick blocked)
Edmonds-Woodway-Heard 4 run (Harmon kick)
Edmonds-Woodway-Heard 35 run (Harmon kick)
Records-Edmonds-Woodway 4-0 in league, 4-0 overall. Everett 2-2, 2-2.
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