FOOTBALL

Grizzlies 55, Spartans 22

FORKS — Second-half eruptions are becoming a way of life for Hoquiam.

One week after exploding for 42 second-half points in a 48-40 win over Hockinson, the Grizzlies put up 41 in the final two quarters to beat Forks in an Evergreen 1A League game Friday night at Forks.

The win gave the Grizzlies (3-1, 6-3) second place in the league. They’ll travel to King’s Way Christian for a state-qualifying district crossover game Friday.

Artimus Johnson rushed for 230 yards and scored three touchdowns (one on a fumble recovery), while quarterback Gregory Dick passed for 205 yards to pace the Grizzlies.

Down 16-7 early in the second quarter after experiencing difficulty stopping Forks’ power running game, Hoquiam narrowed the halftime deficit to two on Dick’s 5-yard touchdown pass to Anthony Nash and Naz Mazariegos’ conversion kick.

Dick’s 6-yard TD run midway through the third quarter gave the Grizzlies a lead they never relinquished.

In one of the turning points of the game, Hoquiam’s Jarrett Skorzewski recovered a Spartan fumble in Grizzly territory moments later. On the next play, Johnson broke a 65-yard TD run.

“That was a spark,” HHS coach Rick Moore acknowledged.

Dick sneaked 1 yard for a touchdown on the final play of the third quarter. The Grizzlies added three fourth-quarter TDs, on Matt Brown’s 3-yard run, Johnson’s fumble recovery in the end zone and Ryan Espedal’s 20-yard pass to Nash.

Johnson also scored Hoquiam’s first touchdown, on a 31-yard run in the first quarter. Mazariegos kicked seven conversions.

“I thought we picked up our tempo in the second half and weathered the storm,” Moore summed up. “The team is developing confidence they can overcome adversity and they have.”

Brown, Chewy Muro and Jackson Folkers were cited for defensive play.

Indians 41, Wildcats 3

SOUTH BEND — A.J. Sanchez closed out his prep career by scoring five touchdowns as South Bend pulled away from Ocosta in a SWW 2B Coastal Division finalé for both teams Friday night at Millam Field.

Sanchez rushed for 99 yards and intercepted three passes. He scored on scrimmage runs of 3 and 18 yards, interception returns of 26 and 98 yards and a 50-yard punt return.

Despite the lopsided final count, South Bend led only 6-3 late in the first half. Sanchez returned an interception 57 yards to the Ocosta 4-yard line and Ben Byington threw a 4-yard touchdown pass to Raul Mora with eight seconds remaining in the half.

The Indians (1-4, 3-6) broke it open with three Sanchez touchdowns in the third quarter. Between the interceptions and the punt runback, South Bend went nearly 13 minutes between offensive scrimmage plays in the second half.

“They came ready to play,” South Bend coach Tom Sanchez said of Ocosta. “We made a (defensive) adjustment in the seccond half and when we had the ball in the third quarter, we were able to move.”

Ocosta’s Matt Hart completed 28 of 44 passes for 240 yards. Kobe Beck had 17 catches for 133 yards.

For all that, Ocosta’s only scoring came on Cosmo Silver’s 28-yard field goal in the second quarter.

Josiah Markwell made 18 tackles and Sanchez 12 for South Bend. Coach Sanchez also cited Byington, Jordan Dockter and Chase Flynn for fine defensive work.

Chitwhins 44, Comets 32

TAHOLAH — At Ben Charley Field, Dylan James accounted for six touchdowns and Taholah compiled 642 yards of offense to knock off Naselle in a pivotal Coastal 1B League eight-man football game on Wednesday night.

Today, Taholah (3-0, 4-2) can clinch the league title and the District IV 1B state berth with a win over Mary M. Knight in the season finale.

“We had a very stellar performance,” Taholah head coach William James said. “It was very good all-around play on both sides of the ball.”

James ran for 157 yards and three touchdowns, plus caught three passes for 128 yards and one score. To add to his overall totals, James threw for 122 yards and two touchdowns and one interception on 3-of-5 attempts.

Zach Cain threw for 169 yards and one touchdown and added 114 yards ruhsing on 12 carries and one score. Tom Anderson led the receivers with 155 yards on four catches and two touchdowns. Terrance Jones also had a touchdown catch.

Dawson Bastian led the defense with 11 1/2 tackles, including one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and three tackles for a loss. Zach Cain added 9 1/2 tackles, with two forced fumbles, one interception and three tackles for a loss.

Fishermen 37, Hyaks 14

OYEHUT — North Beach was unable to catch Ilwaco on this night, falling to the Fishermen in a Southwest Washington 2B Coastal Division finale on Friday.

Tavo Muro ran in two rushing touchdowns for the Hyaks (2-3, 4-5), who will be the No. 4 seed in the division and will travel to Napavine for a district-to-state crossover game next week.

“The kids played hard to the bitter end,” North Beach head coach Todd Bridge said. “I just want to acknowledge the seniors tonight for their efforts.”

C..C. VOLLEYBALL

Chokers win in five

LAKEWOOD — Needing a win to keep its postseason hopes alive, Grays Harbor College needed five sets to knock off Pierce 21-25, 25-18, 26-28, 25-13, 15-13 in a key NWAC Western Division matchup on Friday night.

Lexi Fetui led the Chokers (6-5, 18-18) with 25 kills and 19 digs and Bria Buchanan added 22 kills and 20 digs. The duo combined to attempt more than 100 hits and had just 10 errors between them.

“I felt Bria and Lexi didn’t want to lose; they weren’t going to be denied,” GHC head coach Christine Nelson said. “(Assistant coach) Cassie Sawin and I were talking, saying we had one game for the season (in the fifth set). We had to win or we were done. Now, we just need to take care of the games we have to.”

Sierra Cummings brought up 28 digs, while Megan Gibson dished out 37 assists and Sara Caraveo 23 assists for the Chokers.

On Wednesday, GHC will host Centralia on Sophomore Night.

GIRLS SWIMMING

Subdistrict meet

LACEY — Four Aberdeen swimmers earned district berths in the subdistrict 2A meet Friday at River Ridge’s pool.

Aberdeen’s Rylee Watson attained an unusual double by winning both the 50-yard freestyle in 30:51 and the 500 free in 7:35.92. Aliyah Tageant took the 100-yard backstroke in 1:21.21.

Other Bobcats to meet district qualifying standards included Kenadi Bridges in the 50 and 100 freestyles and Madi Green in the 100 freestyle. No team scores were compiled.

Many Bobcats had already qualified for the district meet Friday and Saturday at The Evergreen State College pool.

Aberdeen’s Katie Cournoyer finished third in an 11-dive competition running concurrently with the subdistrict meet. All four Bobcat divers (including Trudy Butcher, Vicky Cournoyer and Mary Lang) have earned district berths.

Bobcat coach Jan Simons commended Butcher and Vicky Cournoyer for both competitng in diving and leaving the rotation to swim two events. She also cited Hannah Palmer and Sarah German for outstanding efforts.