Knights upend Timberwolves

EVERETT — The Jackson football team had more than its fair share of opportunities to score in last week’s game with Kamiak.

But the Timberwolves faltered when they advanced deep into Knight territory, while the Kamiak air attack took flight in the second half.

The combination enabled Kamiak to claim a 28-9 victory over Jackson in a Western Conference 4A South Division game Sept. 10 at Everett Stadium.

In the first half, the Wolfpack (1-1) advanced to the Kamiak 1-, 8- and 19-yard line but managed to come away with only a pair of field goals. A fumble at the Knights 1 ended what was a 16-play drive that started at the Jackson 8.

“We could never seem to completely break the Kamiak momentum,” said Jackson coach Joel Vincent. “I felt that if we could have punched it in … one of those times maybe things would swing our way. But Kamiak played great defense down in the red zone and they made us earn everything we could get down there.”

Jackson quarterback Chris Bowen was somewhat perplexed as to the Timberwolves’ difficulties once they ventured deep into Kamiak territory.

“It seems like we’d get the ball, we’d go 70 yards … completing every pass and we’d get inside the 30 and things just started going wrong,” Bowen said. “Penalties, missed blocks, dropped ball, everything. It just seemed like we needed to go the full distance. We’ve got to keep it going.”

Knights quarterback Mark Iddins was held largely in check in the first half, but then threw for three touchdowns in the second half as Kamiak (2-0) outscored Jackson 21-3. The Knights only had a 7-6 lead at halftime.

The loss of senior wide receiver/defensive back Richie Tri to an elbow injury midway through the second quarter hurt Jackson both on offense and defense. But the biggest impact was in the secondary and was part of the reason why Iddins had so much success in the second half.

Tri is many ways the quarterback of the defense, Vincent said.

“He’s the most speedy guy back there, seeing the big picture,” he added. “Losing him on that side of the ball really affected us tonight. If you watch where they were throwing, they’re throwing where Richie would have been. Credit to their staff. They knew one of our guys is gone.”

The game was the first regular season loss for the Wolfpack since 2002. Last year, the Timberwolves went 9-0 in league play.

Jackson will try to regroup against Mountlake Terrace in a 5 p.m. game tonight (Friday, Sept. 17) at Edmonds Stadium.

“We’re going to have to put it behind us,” Bowen said. “Kamiak is a good ball club. We have to get our morale back up … and see if we can (finish) the season 8-1.”

The Timberwolves took a 3-0 lead on a 25-yard field goal by Nathin Bruns midway through the second half.

Kamiak then responded with 10-play, 82-yard drive, culminating with a 3-yard touchdown run by running back Nate Hadley at the 2:53 mark of the second quarter.

The Jackson offense had no trouble moving the ball on the ensuing drive but again got bogged down deep in Kamiak territory. The Wolfpack had to settle for a 36-yard field goal by Bruns with about a minute to go in the second quarter.

The Knights took a 14-6 lead on a 5-yard touchdown pass from Iddins at the 2:59 mark of the third quarter, the 15th play of a drive that started at the Kamiak 26 and took almost six minutes to complete.

The Timberwolves responded with another solid drive but one that ended at the Kamiak 8. Bruns connected on his third field goal, this one from 26 yards as Jackson cut the deficit to 14-9 at the 11:56 mark of the fourth quarter.

Kamiak then put the game away in the final period as Iddins threw a pair of touchdowns — an 11-yarder to Rebel Hall and a 40-yard strike to Sean Hermes.

Iddins completed 17 of 26 passes for 264 yards and three touchdowns.

“Our secondary kind of broke down with the leader (Tri) of our secondary down,” Bowen said. “They started throwing the ball a little deeper on us … they found our weaknesses and they started going there.”

Jackson running back Sean Klaus rushed for 78 yards on seven carries. Tight end Rory Williams caught four passes for 76 yards.

Vincent appreciated the effort of Bowen, especially in what was a tough second half. The senior quarterback completed 17 of 33 passes for 209 yards.

“He was a fine example of leadership for us,” Vincent said. “He kept our kids in the game through his play but also just through his leadership on the field.”