As his team lost game after game, Snohomish head coach Mark Perry knew it was better than the results he was seeing.
His belief in his team has paid off.
Coming off two straight wins, the Panthers are in control of their own destiny and can clinch a playoff berth with a win tonight against Wesco North power Arlington.
“We played five very good teams to start the season and we just didn’t make plays when it counted,” said Perry. “But the team continued to believe in themselves and stay positive throughout.”
After weeks of making critical mistakes at the most inopportune times, Snohomish recovered a Marysville Pilchuck fumble on the goal line with a minute remaining in the game and ran off the clock to win the game 22-19 for its first win. Last week, Snohomish ran away from Stanwood to win 42-14 for its second win and move into a tie with Monroe for third place.
“The kids are very excited,” Perry said. “They still have the ability to reach every goal they wrote for themselves before the season, and that includes the playoffs.”
There are plenty of playoff implications going into tonight’s games in the North. If Snohomish and Monroe both win it creates a logjam in second place, which will be separated by a Kansas City-style tiebreaker on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Monroe High School. If Snohomish and Marysville Pilchuck win then the Panthers will be second place by virtue of their win over the Eagles.
If the Panthers lose they still have the ability to make the playoffs. A Snohomish loss and MP win would create a three-way tie for third place between Snohomish, Monroe and MP, which would be decided on Saturday. Snohomish is out if they lose and Monroe wins.
Snohomish, which is celebrating homecoming tonight, will lean on Peter St. Marie, who has rushed for a combined 327 yards and five touchdowns in the Panthers’ past two wins.
“We’re going to have to control the game and keep the ball out of (Blake) McPherson’s hands,” said Perry of Arlington’s quarterback. “We need to make them play defense.”
Arlington, which is coming off of convincing wins over Stanwood and Monroe, had to come from behind and score three touchdowns in the fourth quarter to beat the Panthers a year ago.
My pick: Arlington 31, Snohomish 23
Mariner vs. Jackson
5 p.m., Everett Memorial Stadium
Many believed this game would decide the Wesco South champ. But just because it’s deciding who will be the Wesco South No. 2 seed don’t think for a minute this isn’t an important game.
In fact it might hold more importance. The winner of tonight’s Wesco South game will be the league’s No. 2 seed in the upcoming crossover games and will be guaranteed a spot in quad-district playoffs. The loser will be forced to play the Wesco North No. 3 seed to play its way into the quad-district playoffs.
Mariner is coming off of a solid win over rival Kamiak last week in which star running back KeiVarae Russell scored the go-ahead touchdown with 2:27 to play.
Jackson, meanwhile, hung with state power Skyline for three quarters before succumbing 49-24.
My pick: Jackson 41, Mariner 30
Arch. Murphy at King’s
7 p.m., Woolsey Stadium
What are the chances Archbishop Murphy loses its second Cascade Conference game? The Wildcats face another strong team on the road in King’s tonight. Archbishop Murphy will have quarterback Conner Kruse back in the mix after missing him during last week’s win over Coupeville. Kruse will split time at QB with Hans VanderWel.
The Wildcats must stop King’s QB Billy Green, who has passed for 1,655 yards this season, and wide receiver Caleb Taylor, who has caught 13 TDs.
My pick: Murphy 33, King’s 30
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