Despite valiant effort, Eastlake football loses to Tumwater
On Thursday, Sept 19, the Eastlake Wolves faced the third-ranked team in the state, the Tumwater Thunderbirds, in a tense matchup that resulted in a 38-27 loss, marking the Wolves’ second loss of the season.
The Wolves entered the field ready to fight for an upset. On their opening possession, Dominic Miller broke through the wall of Thunderbird defenders to score the first touchdown of the evening. But the extra point was blocked, which meant the 6-0 lead could change easily.
Answering immediately on their first possession, Tumwater running back Tyler Briscoe wasted no time putting the Thunderbirds on the board for a 7-6 lead reversal when he broke through the Eastlake defensive line.
As both teams settled into a rhythm, neither team found the end zone for quite some time. But the Thunderbirds pushed hard on their final possession of the quarter. With 30 seconds remaining, quarterback Charlie Crawford found wide receiver Wyatt Chase for a 60-yard, long bomb to set-up a touchdown to open the second quarter. That came when Tumwater’s Derek Thompson quickly found his way into the end zone for a 14-6 lead for the Thunderbirds.
After a three and out fruitless possession, control returned to Tumwater who wasted no time widening the gap between the Thunderbirds and the Wolves. Jaylin Nixon added to the excitement when he darted up the left sideline with a 40-yard sprint to score another touchdown and a 21-6 Tumwater advantage.
The Wolves knew they needed to put points on the board if they were going to have a chance. With time running out, Eastlake quarterback Ryder Barrysmith connected with Bryson Hodges for a spectacular 24-yard diving completion in the end zone to put the Wolves back in the fight, 21-13, at the half.
With a break and an opportunity to regroup, it appeared the Wolves made few changes to their strategy. The Thunderbirds capitalized on this throughout the third quarter.
Adding an 84-yard drive, they scored again as running back Cash Short made a 23-yard dash, dodging four Eastlake defenders on his way, to tip the balance even further in Tumwater’s direction, 28-13.
Despite a successful 3-point addition to the score on a field goal for the Thunderbirds early in the final quarter, the Wolves were not ready to give up. Barrysmith found Matthew Secrist wide open for a 68-yard, unopposed run down the middle for an Eastlake touchdown to lessen the divide, 31-20.
However, the Thunderbirds quickly responded with another profitable possession. Not to be out done, the Tumwater offense mimicked the Eastlake offense with an unopposed run down the right sideline when Peyton Davis ran for 36-yards to refund the game back to an 18-point deficit, 38-20.
Unwilling to accept a grim reality, the Wolves refused to surrender. This time Barrysmith connected with Hodges for one final addition.
Even though Eastlake would fall to Tumwater in the end, the fourth quarter was their most productive with two touchdowns. While the Wolves seemed to find their rhythm in the last few possessions of the game, they could not bridge gap.
The Eastlake Wolves will play the Woodinville Falcons on Friday, Sept. 27, at Pop Keeney Stadium in Bothell at 7:00 p.m.
