Thunderbirds upend Hawks

EDMONDS — The Shorewood defense spoiled the return of Mountlake Terrace’s Brian Ellersick.

The Thunderbirds welcomed back the senior quarterback by unleashing a relentless rush that often left the all-leaguer on his backside.

Making his first start in three weeks due to a nagging leg injury, Ellersick completed 22 of his 37 passes for 267 yards and a touchdown in the Oct. 10 Western Conference 4A South Division contest.

But Terrace’s pass protection struggled to contain the T-birds, who rode their inspired defensive effort to a 21-7 victory.

The Hawks’ defense was missing five starters due to disciplinary issues. All four defensive backs were first-time starters, according to Mountlake Terrace coach Alex Barashkoff.

The inexperienced secondary had some problems early but then settled down the rest of the game.

“The defense played well,” Barashkoff said. “They gave up two (big plays) early. Then they settled down and never gave up another.”

The big problem for the Hawks was a familiar one — too many penalties and turnovers. Mountlake Terrace was flagged for more than 150 yards of infractions and turned the ball over three times.

“Every drive we got going, we got penalties … and turnovers,” Barashkoff said. “That hurt us a lot.”

And when the Hawks made it into the red zone, they weren’t able to take advantage of their scoring opportunities.

Not only did Mountlake Terrace commit too many penalties but they couldn’t have come at a worse time. A pair of plays that went for 40 and 35 yards were called back.

Though Ellersick’s status was questionable at the start of the week, Shorewood was prepared to face him.

“We figured Ellersick would be back in the game. The kid’s too much of a competitor and a great player to be sitting on the sidelines,” Shorewood coach Jeff Weible said.

“We wanted to keep the ball offensively and keep it out of his hands. And when they did have it, put pressure on him and try to hit him as much as we can.”

Shorewood edged the Hawks 27-25 last season despite Ellersick’s 273 passing yards and three touchdowns. This time, the T-birds were better prepared for the pass.

“We practiced real hard all week on pass rush,” Shorewood defensive end David Hancock said. “If you know they’re going to pass, it’s a whole lot easier. You just put your ears back and run and get him.

“Last year they threw on us the whole time and almost beat us. We planned all week that they’d come out and throw the ball.”

While Ellersick completed just two of his first six attempts, Shorewood’s passing game was sharp early on.

Junior quarterback Sean Tracey surprised the Hawks on fourth-and-6 by lofting a 17-yard pass to Wade Gurnett, setting up Eric Christophersen’s 1-yard TD run at the 6:47 mark of the first quarter.

Hancock recovered a Terrace fumble on the first play of the second quarter and Tracey found Gurnett for a 28-yard touchdown strike that boosted Shorewood’s lead to 14-0 with 9:19 left before halftime.

The Hawks (1-4, 1-5) cut their deficit in half with a 70-yard, 55-second scoring drive at the end of the half. Ellersick threaded a 13-yard TD pass to Chris Neal with 1:40 to go after connecting with Ryan Marker and Adrian Blake for three first-down gains.

Shorewood ate up nearly 13 minutes of the second half on two possessions, starting with a 12-play scoring drive capped by Nick Shalygin’s 3-yard TD burst with 1:38 left in the third quarter.

The Hawks reached the Shorewood 21 on their next drive before penalties pushed them backwards. The T-birds regained possession on downs and held onto the ball for the next seven minutes before punting.

Terrace was on the verge of a score with a minute remaining, but a series of infractions resulted in a first-and-43 situation.

“I wouldn’t want to give them another five minutes to play. They probably would have scored a couple,” Weible said. “They’re never out of a game with (Ellersick) at quarterback.”

The T-birds held the Hawks to just 33 rushing yards to lock up their third straight win. Tracey completed seven of his 17 passes and threw for 77 of his 104 yards in the first half.