ZILLAH — Shane Stonemetz remembers that December 1992 afternoon in the Kingdome as if it were yesterday.
His hometown football team, the Zillah Leopards, held a 23-0 halftime lead over Eatonville. Stonemetz could barely watch as his team surrendered 26 second-half points and fell short of winning the school’s first state title in football.
Eleven years later, with the implosion of the Kingdome and the 1992 Zillah football team fresh on his mind, Stonemetz is an all-league running back for the Leopards. He hopes to avoid a similar fate when Zillah plays top-ranked Archbishop Murphy for the Class A state championship, 1 p.m. Saturday at the Tacoma Dome.
"We’ll just go out and play the way we play," Stonemetz said. "We’ll fly around and hopefully come out on top."
Visitors to Zillah, a town of 2,200 less than 20 miles southeast of Yakima, are greeted by a wooden "Welcome to Zillah" sign listing the high school’s six state championships in various sports. Though the Leopards have come close the last few years, there is not yet a board nailed to the sign displaying a championship from the town’s hottest ticket. Nearly half of the city’s population is estimated to show up for home games, and a large contingent is expected to make the 175-mile trip to Tacoma to what fans hope will prove to be a friendlier dome.
The Leopards, of course, are familiar with long drives. Several players, including Stonemetz, traveled to Archbishop Murphy on Oct. 18 to watch the No. 1 Wildcats play No. 6 Orcas Island.
"We just wanted to go watch a game," said Stonemetz, who has 92 career touchdowns. "They play on Saturday and we all play on Friday nights. Orcas was ranked and we thought maybe it would be a pretty good game. Our coaches told us, ‘Hey, as long as you’re going, you might as well take a video camera.’
As it turned out, the video camera did not record anything. The visit, however, was firmly implanted in the Wildcats’ minds.
Because Archbishop Murphy and Zillah could not possibly have met before the state championship game, some viewed the visit as assuming too much. Stirring the pot even further, a Leopard told a reporter that when the two teams play "it won’t be close."
The Wildcats, true to coach Terry Ennis form, raised their eyebrows at the comment, but kept their mouths closed to avoid reciprocating motivation.
When asked if Zillah players might be exceptionally smart given their abilities to predict state championship contestants, Ennis said, "They are clearly smarter than us. We didn’t make any trips over there during the (regular) season."
Wildcats quarterback Kyle Wilkins also admired Zillah’s clairvoyance.
"I found it surprising that someone would look that far ahead down the road," Wilkins said. "That was great for them, but we weren’t going to go out of our way to watch them play. We were playing every step of the way to get to them. Now they have a chance to play us instead of just watching us play."
Zillah coach Terry Duncan downplayed the midseason visit.
"Archbishop Murphy is the No. 1-ranked team in the state and is very deserving of that," said Duncan, who watched Archbishop Murphy play Cascade Christian on Sept. 27. "I think there was just some curiosity in terms of where we stand. … They’ve got some players, and they’re fun to watch. Heck, if you like football, go watch Archbishop Murphy."
Duncan, who lived in Mill Creek from 1990-91, knows his Leopards will have their hands full on Saturday. He also knows championships can elude teams with high expectations. Duncan, and perhaps anyone else with even a slight interest in Zillah football, believed the Leopards would come through in 2001. Led by four senior Division I college-type recruits and a strong class of sophomores, Zillah ripped through the season before being stunned by Colfax in the semifinals.
While Archbishop Murphy won the 2002 title in its second year of varsity football, the Leopards were also a surprise. Despite having a roster dominated by juniors and sophomores, the Leopards advanced to the semifinals again, giving Royal all it could handle in a 20-14 Zillah loss.
This year, the expectations are back and are one victory away from being met.
Senior quarterback Louis Santana has thrown for 2,235 yards and 35 TDs. He’s completed 122 of 169 attempts (71 percent) and been intercepted only once. Stonemetz has rushed for 1,400 yards and 31 TDs. Nick Collins leads a talented receiving corps with 44 catches for 902 yards and 16 TDs.
The two teams have never met and have no common opponents this season, adding an aura of mystery to Saturday’s game. All-league center and linebacker Eric Inions is anxious to face the ultimate test.
"We want to do our best and see what happens," said Inions, a four-year starter. "Our goal at the beginning of the year was to get there. Now we’ve upped our goal. While we’re there, let’s give it a shot."
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