Mariner routs Everett

EVERETT — This was the game to prove how good Mariner really is after five victories against opponents who had won just five games combined.

This was one — undefeated Mariner vs. once-beaten Everett — that left coach John Ondriezek more anxious than usual.

"I was nervous," Ondriezek said. "Everett has a great tradition and it’s a rivalry that’s gone on for 30 years. One or two turnovers early can give a team momentum."

The Marauders got those early turnovers, rolled up 43 points, 354 yards of total offense and 87 return yards. And that was just their first-half production on the way to a 43-14 Western Conference South Division victory at Goddard Stadium.

Mariner is 5-0 in the Wesco South, 6-0 overall and, entering next Friday’s game at Shorewood, will continue to try and answer a huge question: How good is this team?

"I’m not sure," said Mariner quarterback Moa Palepale, who rushed for 114 yards and scored on an 85-yard run. "That’s for the other teams to tell us."

Everett coach Paul Lawrence, whose team is 3-2 and 4-2, believes he knows.

"I don’t think anybody in our league is going to stop them," Lawrence said, knowing that Mariner must play Kamiak (with one league loss) and Jackson (unbeaten in the league) in the final two games of the regular season. "They’re one of the better teams I’ve seen in many years."

Mariner gained 450 yards rushing and 502 yards total offense, and finished with two players who gained more than 100 yards — Palepale and Sinna Srei, who had 127 on 13 carries.

Defense and special teams, however, set an early tone. The Marauders intercepted two passes and ran a punt for a touchdown in the first half.

Aaron Cartwright intercepted an Everett pass on the first play of the game and Mariner scored three plays later when Srei broke a tackle on a 13-yard touchdown run. Ken Mishima kicked the first of five extra points for a 7-0 lead before the game was 1 1/2 minutes old.

Mariner drove 77 yards on its second possession, including a 49-yard pass from Palepale to Mishima, and scored when Cartwright was stripped of the ball near the end zone and Srei fell on it for the Marauders’ second touchdown.

Cartwright ran a punt 60 yards for a touchdown and, after Everett started its next possession on its 1-yard-line, Trenton Tuiasosopo and Mike DeSimone smothered the Seagulls’ George Grant in the end zone for a safety to make it 22-0.

DeSimone ran 15 yards for a touchdown on the second play of the second quarter and Mariner scored again five minutes later when Matt Ondriezek ran 5 yards for a touchdown, making it 35-0. Palepale scored Mariner’s final touchdown on his 85-yard run with 2:27 left in the half.

Everett wasn’t helped by injuries to three key players. Running back/linebacker T.J. Gaffney and running back/defensive back Justin Hudson will miss the rest of the season because of knee injuries, and Hudson’s backup, Mike Erickson, also is out with a knee injury.

Everett running back Lee Smith gained 117 yards on 20 carries. He scored on a 7-yard run in the third quarter and a 5-yard run in the fourth, and he caught a 2-point conversion pass from quarterback Jake Stevens after the second touchdown.

"I told him after the game, ‘This is the best game that you’ve played,’" Lawrence said of Smith. "He made plays offensively and defensively, and he got some tough yards."

At Goddard Stadium