The scuttlebutt surrounding Montesano’s opening-week loss at the hands of La Center was the Wildcats were the far-superior team.
That wasn’t the case on Saturday, when it counted most.
Montesano flipped the script on La Center to earn a 21-10 upset over the third-seeded Wildcats in a 1A State quarterfinal game on Saturday at Woodland High School.
The Bulldogs (9-3 overall) overcame three turnovers, seven penalties and the lack of a visual play-clock in doing so.
“I’m just so happy with our players and how they responded,” Montesano head coach Terry Jensen said, reflecting on how his team has bounced back after some early-season struggles. “After Week 2, if you would’ve said to us that we’d have a chance to play in the state semifinals, we’d take that in a heartbeat.”
Playing against a bigger, more experienced Wildcats team that featured 19 seniors on the roster, Monte took the opening kickoff and drove to the La Center 12-yard line before back-to-back penalties and an interception of a Tyson Perry pass killed the drive.
The Wildcats (9-2) responded with a possession into Monte territory and had first and goal at the Bulldogs 3-yard line before a fumbled direct snap to running back Isaac Chromey followed by an incomplete pass forced a 30-yard field goal by La Center kicker Nate Rembisz.
Monte responded with a 9-play, 52-yard drive capped by a 9-yard scoring run by Perry for a 7-3 lead early in the second quarter.
RYAN SPARKS | THE DAILY WORLD Montesano quarterback Tyson Perry (7) carries the ball against La Center’s Landen Randall (18) during the Bulldogs’ 21-10 win in a 1A State Football quarterfinal game on Saturday at Woodland High School.
Later in the first half, La Center receiver Parker McKinney took a short pass from quarterback Wyatt Eiesland and outran the Montesano defense for a 57-yard touchdown, regaining the lead at 10-7.
On the Bulldogs’ ensuing possession, Monte drove to the La Center 10-yard line, but was once again thwarted in the red zone when a Perry pass to the back corner was intercepted by defensive back Houston Coyle with just under four minutes left in the first half.
The Wildcats embarked on a 9-play drive that included a fourth-and-long conversion at midfield to set up shop at the Monte 29-yard line in the final minute of the second quarter. But an Eiesland pass to the end zone was intercepted by Montesano junior Toren Crites with nine seconds left as the Bulldogs went into the half trailing by a field goal.
Monte’s defense forced a quick three-and-out to open the third quarter and the offense promptly regained the lead, driving 95 yards on 10 plays to take a 14-10 lead on a Crites 11-yard touchdown run.
The Bulldogs defense followed by forcing a turnover on downs after stuffing a Coyle run on fourth-and-shot at midfield.
Looking to go up by two scores, the Bulldogs offense drove downfield and had a first and goal at the La Center three to start the fourth quarter.
But four straight runs were denied as the drive ended with Monte turning the ball back over to the Wildcats as a Perry run on fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line was stopped short of the goal line.
The Bulldogs’ defense forced another three and out and Monte was in great shape after Mason Rasmussen returned the ensuing punt down to the La Center 23-yard line.
But Monte’s offense continued to fall short of the endzone as on a first-and-10 play from the 13, an illegal-motion penalty followed two plays later by a holding call pushed Monte back to the 20-yard line.
A Perry pass to tight end Marcus Hale was bobbled and then intercepted by La Center linebacker Mason Klein, giving the Wildcats new life.
On the Wildcats’ next drive, an illegal-shift call followed by a huge sack by Monte defensive end Mason Fry had La Center in a fourth-and-long situation with 3:40 left to play in the game.
PHOTO BY FOREST WORGUM Montesano defensive end Mason Fry (8) sacks La Center quarterback Wyatt Eiesland during the Bulldogs’ 21-10 win in a 1A State Football quarterfinal game on Saturday at Woodland High School.
Deciding to go for it, an Eiesland pass fell incomplete to end the drive and give Monte the ball at the Wildcats’ 19-yard line.
The Bulldogs didn’t let a third-straight trip to the end zone slip away as Crites took a handoff on a third-down sweep to the edge and scored from 15-yards out, staking Monte to the all-important two-score lead at 21-10 with 2:26 left in the game.
“We were trying to close the game out and it came down to the final wire,” Crites said of his game-clinching score. “I knew what I had to do and we executed it well. All 11 people on the field did their jobs and we were able to punch it in. It was huge.”
Two long pass plays to McKinney put La Center with a first-down at the Monte 10, but the Wildcats self-destructed a few plays later when Chromey was flagged for a 15-yard personal foul when he threw Montesano tackler Kole Kjesbu down to the ground after the play was whistled dead.
On fourth-and-goal from the 28, a desperation heave from Eiesland to the end zone was broken up by Monte defenders Crites and defensive back Terek Gunter, securing the fate of both teams.
Montesano’s offense got in the victory formation and ran out the final minute of the game to earn a hard-fought 21-10 victory and the program’s first trip to the state semifinals since 2015.
“We all knew how hard we worked and we’ve overcome a lot this year,” Crites said. “There was a lot on the line for us. … We all know how far we’ve come and we’re so close together. We knew we needed to close it out and we got the job done. I’m so proud of everyone.”
Similar to last week’s playoff win and how they have been playing throughout their current five-game winning streak, the Bulldogs defense proved to be a determining factor on Saturday afternoon.
The “Maroon Storm” allowed a La Center team that scored 40 or more points in five of its previous six games to 246 total yards of offense on 45 plays, limiting the run-happy Wildcats to just 81 yards on the ground.
Chromey and Eiesland – the two focal points of Monte’s defensive game plan – rushed for a combined 74 yards in the game.
“(Montesano defensive coordinator Todd) Hoiness put in a great defensive scheme this week and we were able to execute it well,” Crites said. “We knew what they were running and we were more prepared this time. In Week 1, we just weren’t that good of a team and they were the better team. We knew what we had to do and we just executed well.”
“The first game we played them, they just physically outmatched us and I don’t think I had a very good plan for that first game of the year,” said Hoiness, adding he wanted to keep the defense simple while allowing his players to adjust on the fly. “These guys have worked so hard all year that it’s kind of all coming together now. So my plan was to make (La Center) throw the ball because they don’t like to throw the ball. … The kids did a good job of adjusting to their blocking scheme during the game on their own, which is how we teach it.”
RYAN SPARKS | THE DAILY WORLD Montesano linebackers Kole Kjesbu (24) and Marcus Hale (23) tackle La Center running back Isaac Chromey during the Bulldogs’ 21-10 win in a 1A State Football quarterfinal game on Saturday at Woodland High School.
“Our defense is playing really, really well right now,” Jensen said. “They are flying to the ball and getting off blocks.”
Monte’s offense moved the ball well between the 20s, as evidenced by their 213 rushing yards in the game, and totalled 386 yards on 63 plays, with 15 first downs compared to five for La Center.
“I’m real proud of our kids,” Jensen said. “Coach Hoiness had a great comment. He said, ‘The one thing you guys have is you can look so bad on one play and then it just rolls off your shoulders somehow and you’re ready for the next play.’ I’m paraphrasing but it’s exactly true.”
“We deserve this,” Crites said of the win. “We’ve overcome a lot and I’m just so proud of where this team is at right now. … We knew we could beat La Center. We knew what their mindset was going to be. They thought they were going to roll us. We know how big football is in our town and our hearts. This year, we’ve built a lot of character within us. It helped a lot and I just think we were ready this time.”
“The attitude they have is relentless on both sides of the ball,” Hoiness said. “And that’s why we are at where we are at.”
With the victory, No. 6 Montesano will face No. 2 Seton Catholic – which escaped with a 42-41 win over No. 7 Life Christian on Saturday – in a 1A State semifinal game on Saturday, Nov. 30 (time, location to be determined).
RYAN SPARKS | THE DAILY WORLD Montesano’s Zach Timmons (4) catches a pass downfield during a 21-10 win over La Center in a 1A State Football quarterfinal game on Saturday at Woodland High School.
This broken clock was never right
The game was marred with a glaring technical issue as the entirety of the game was played without a working scoreboard and/or game clock, making it difficult for both teams and the officials to monitor the time and play clock as the official time was kept by the scorekeeper in the press box.
“You lose a lot of rhythm with that. You want to know how much time. You’re always looking at the clock, calculating time outs,” Jensen said, noting he didn’t learn of the scoreboard issues until the referee informed him a few minutes before kickoff. “That’s something that should never happen in a playoff game, for sure.”
Both coaching staffs adjusted by keeping in constant contact with the officials, who were continuously informing the sidelines with time updates.
A similar situation happened locally back on Sept. 13 when the scoreboard at Raymond High School malfunctioned and was inoperable ahead of a game against Rainier.
But Raymond athletic director Mike Tully solved the issue by using a backup scoreboard normally utilized at the Raymond gym. The smaller scoreboard was able to provide the game time, quarter and score at a visible field level.
No such solution was apparent at Woodland High School on Saturday.
Montesano 0 7 7 7 – 21
La Center 3 7 0 0 – 10
Scoring
First quarter
LC – Rembisz 30 field goal, 2:22
Second quarter
M – Perry 9 run (Tobar kick), 10:50
LC – McKinney 57 pass from Eiesland (Rembisz kick), 6:21
Third quarter
M – Crites 11 run (Tobar kick), 5:40
Fourth quarter
M – Crites 15 run (Tobar kick), 2:26
Passing: Montesano – Perry 17-27-3-173. La Center – Eiesland 10-24-1-165.
Rushing: M – Crites 9-77, Timmons 6-74, Perry 11-38, Pyhala 4-7, Gunter 6-5. LC – Chromey 13-61, Eiesland 6-13, Emerson 1-4, Coyle 1-3.
Receiving: M – Rasmussen 4-54, Timmons 2-37, Hale 3-30, Gunter 1-27, Crites 2-26. LC – McKinney 4-98, Coyle 4-50, Randall 1-11.
