Mariner makes believers of Shorewood

SHORELINE – Skeptics might have pointed at the Mariner High School football team’s perfect record through five games and whispered: “Sure, but who have they played?.”

Although the Marauders had scored an average of 38 points per game and allowed a measly 5.4 on their way to a perfect 5-0 Western Conference South Division record, a road game at Shorewood would surely be a better gauge of Mariner’s talent.

Detractors, please sit down.

After overcoming a slow offensive start, the Mariner Marauders emphatically answered any doubts about their postseason potential, forcing seven turnovers while dampening Shorewood’s homecoming with a 21-0 shutout on a windy Friday night at Shoreline Stadium.

Mariner improved to 6-0 in the Wesco South, 7-0 overall. The Marauders remain tied for first place with Jackson. Shorewood, which entered the game having suffered two league defeats by a combined nine points, fell to 3-3, 4-3.

Mariner senior running back Sinna Srei, who ran for 110 yards and one touchdown on 20 carries, paced the Marauders ground game, which gained 268 total yards, most in the second half.

Opponents would be wise to take notice that Mariner is for real, Srei said. “This team is going to be good … We prove ourselves every day. The game comes, and we just show it.”

Mariner coach John Ondriezek praised the Marauders defense, which, led by senior linebacker Trenton Tuiasosopo, senior lineman Tony O’Dell and a slew of athletic defensive backs, recorded the team’s third shutout.

“We played with intensity,” he said.

The Marauders picked off four of quarterback Sean Tracey’s passes. Without a doubt, senior Jerod Grant’s interception was the biggest. With Mariner ahead 14-0 and nine minutes, 18 seconds remaining in the game and the ball at its own 22-yard line, Shorewood’s offense needed to make a move.

Grant made sure it wasn’t a good one. He bolted into the passing lane as Tracey attempted to hit a receiver on a slant route. Grant nabbed the toss and raced to the end zone for Mariner’s final score, which squashed any thoughts of a Thunderbirds’ comeback.

“That was a result of good pressure on the line,” Ondriezek said. “Jerod made a nice interception.”

Matt Ondriezek, Tyrone Davis and Ken Mishima also had interceptions for the Mariner defense, which held Shorewood to 77 rushing yards and 58 passing.

“It was all physical,” O’Dell said of Mariner’s success. “We knew we had to be more physical.”

Not to be overlooked, Shorewood’s defense proved stout in the early going.

“They came out hard, fighting,” Srei said. “They were shooting the blitz, they were blitzing everything.”

In the second half, Mariner changed its running approach and found success.

“Once we went outside, they (Shorewood defenders) lost their pursuit.”

The Marauders anticipated a challenge from Shorewood, and they got it. “Give Shorewood credit,” Ondriezek added. “We knew it was going to be a good football game. We needed it to be a good football game to get better.”

Mariner could have won by much more had it capitalized on a few more of the turnovers its defense forced. That’s what practice is for, Ondreizek said. “We made some mistakes, but they’re all correctable. We have to continue to get better each and every day.”

Mariner wasted no time putting points on the board. The Marauders drove 80 yards in nine plays for a TD on their opening drive. Srei carried four times for 22 yards during the march, including a 1-yard score.

Mariner running back Aaron Cartwright rushed for 72 yards on nine carries, including a 33 yard jaunt on the opening drive.

Mariner quarterback Moa Palepale capped a four-play, 27-yard drive less than two minutes into the third quarter with a 1-yard TD dive. The Marauders gained possession had great field position to begin the drive following a Shorewood player’s fumble of the second-half kickoff.

Shorewood running back Seth Setterberg ground out 60 tough yards on 16 carries.

At Shoreline Stadium