EVERETT – For both Drew Dunning and the Tri-Cities Fever, the third time was indeed a charm.
Kevin Nortz / The Herald
After missing two attempts earlier in the game, Dunning calmly drilled a 42-yard field goal as time expired to give Tri-Cities a 54-52 victory over the heart-broken Everett Hawks Friday night in a National Indoor Football League Pacific Conference semifinal game at the Everett Events Center.
The loss – Everett’s first of the season – brought a stunning end to the Hawks’ first season despite its lofty 15-1 record.
Tri-Cities (11-5), which lost twice to Everett during the regular season, moves on to the conference championship game against the winner of today’s Corpus Christi at Odessa game. It was the Fever’s ninth win in its past 10 games.
“We made a lot of mistakes,” Everett coach Dan Maciejczak said. “Nobody beat us but ourselves. But I don’t want to take anything away from them. They’re a very good football team.”
After digging itself into a 21-0 hole in the first quarter, Everett battled back, swapped the lead twice and finally pulled ahead even with nine seconds remaining in the game at 52-51. Quarterback Albert Higgs (17-for-30, 165 yards, five TDs, three interceptions) threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to Cory Grow. and then Craig Hawley’s conversion kick set off a wild celebration by most of the 3,796 on hand – less a sizable contingent of Fever fans.
On the ensuing kickoff Tri-Cities took over at its own 18 and lined up to try a field goal with 5.6 seconds remaining. An Everett penalty for having too many men on the field brought the ball to the 23.
Then, Dunning – who as a senior at Washington State in 2003 knocked USC from the unbeaten ranks with a 36-yard field goal in overtime to help the Cougars eventually move on to the Rose Bowl – delivered big time.
“I was confident,” Dunning said. “I knew if the snap was there and the hold was there I would make it.”
“Honestly, I was confident in my kicker,” Tri-Cities coach Dan Whitsett said. “Nail it or miss it, either way we’re gonna deal with it.”
“These are the two best teams in the NIFL,” Whitsett said, motioning towards the dejected Everett players and coaches at the other end of the field.
“We battled back,” Maciejczak said. “I’m always proud of my guys. We’ve been through a lot this year.”
Trailing by 13 points and with time slipping away, the Hawks went 25 yards in five plays. The short scoring drive was capped by Anthony Simmons’ 1-yard run that got Everett within 51-45 with 5:12 remaining in the game.
Still, it looked bleak as Everett had generally been unable to stop the Fever. That is, it looked bleak until Milton Myers leaped high to intercept a wobbling pass thrown by Tri-Cities backup quarterback Tali Ena.
Trying to capitalize, the Hawks faced fourth-and-one at midfield. Anthony Simmons took a hand-off from Higgs, juked right and squirted left for his biggest 4-yard gain of the season. Then, facing fourth-and-ten at the Fever 19, Albert Higgs ran 12 yards for a first down at the 7 with less than a minute to play.
After trailing 21-0 in the first quarter Everett clawed its way back and managed to trail just 30-28 at the end of the first half.
They took their first lead, 35-30, barely a minute into the second half when Higgs threw a 25-yard TD pass to Jason Quinn.
That lead was short-lived. The Fever marched down the field – converting on third-and-long twice – and grabbed a 37-35 lead on Jarvis Dunn’s 2-yard touchdown run.
On fourth and long at its own 16, Everett opted to trot out Hawley for what proved to be a go-ahead field goal, which put the Hawks ahead 38-37 with 6:14 remaining in the third quarter.
Brandon Myers sacked Fever quarterback Doug Coleman. On the next play, a long completion to the Everett 8, Coleman was sent to the turf by Myers injured and forced to leave the game. Myers was called for unnecessary roughness and the ball was spotted at the 4.
On fourth down Travis Salter stopped back-up quarterback Ena inside the 1. The defensive stand was squandered when Jeremy Bohannon intercepted a Higgs pass and two plays later Dunn’s 3-yard TD run put Tri-Cities ahead 44-38 with 1:04 to play in the third.
Everett failed to take advantage of Hassan Brockman’s ensuing 47-yard kickoff return to the Fever 3. The Hawks netted minus-6 yards in four plays.
Then, Ena turned up the heat on the Hawks, driving the Fever 41 yards in a nine-play drive, capped when Paris Moore swept right for a 2-yard TD. Dunning’s conversion kick made the score 51-38 with 8:17 remaining in the fourth quarter.
Trailing 28-13 and facing fourth-and-forever the Everett Hawks season appeared to be very much hanging in the balance even in the first half.
On third-and-28 Higgs calmly threw consecutive pass completions to AJ Street of 20 and 12 yards to give Everett a first down at the Fever 4. On the next play he found Street again with a 4-yard TD pass to bring the Hawks back within 28-20.
Myers’ diving interception at the Hawks 2 stymied Tri-Cities on its next possession. A 19-yard completion to Brockman and a pass interference penalty got Everett in scoring position again and Street didn’t disappoint, grabbing a 7 yard Higgs pass for a TD. He also took in the 2-point conversion pass to knot the score at 28 with 1:50 remaining in the half.
Everett spent the majority of the opening half trying to pull itself out of a deep and dark 21-0 first quarter hole.
Tri-Cities took a 7-0 lead in the opening minutes. Coleman connected with Dunn on a 32-yard pass play and scored three plays later on a 1-yard run.
With the Hawks threatening after a 26-yard pass completion to Anthony Simmons, Levi Madarieta intercepted a Higgs pass at the Fever 4. Six plays later Coleman scored from a yard out to put Tri-Cities ahead 14-0 with 5:09 remaining in the first quarter.
On Everett’s next possession Sullivan Beard picked off another Higgs pass at the Tri-Cities 20. It took just four plays for Coleman to fire a 19-yard scoring strike to the wide open Kevin
Heard and put the Fever in command 21-0 with 2:08 to play in the first quarter.
After that disastrous start the speedy Brockman quickly got the Hawks within 21-7 with a 43-yard kickoff return for a touchdown.
After Everett forced a missed Fever field goal, two pass interference penalties set-up Higgs’ 4-yard TD pass to Quinn to get the Hawks within 21-13 four minutes into the second quarter. Hawley’s streak of 14 consecutive PAT conversions ended when his kick glanced off the right upright.
Dunn’s 2-yard TD run on the Fever’s ensuing possession made the score 28-13 with just over nine minutes to play in the first half.
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