By Kiara Doyal, The Seattle Medium
The Garfield Bulldogs played the Bishop Blanchet Bears last night at Memorial Stadium, in a highly anticipated game for the Bulldogs on their senior night game.
Garfield got off to a quick start as they got a huge punt return to give them the ball at the Blanchet 30-yard line. The Bulldogs would soon capitalize on the field position, as Tariq Shabazz would score on a 15-yard touchdown reception, giving Garfield an early 7-0 lead after an extra point kick by Ardon Liffman.
As the first quarter continued, both teams struggled offensively, as incomplete passes led to punts by both teams. Blanchet would miss a scoring opportunity as Josh Polik kept a drive alive by recovering a fumble, but multiple flags and incomplete passes for Blanchet led to a 40-yard field goal attempt that fell short, leading to a turnover on downs. The quarter would end with Garfield holding on to a 7-0 lead.
In the second quarter, both teams ramped up their defensive and offensive efforts as the game started to move quickly. A little over two minutes into the quarter, Polik would battle his way through almost every Bulldog defender into the end zone for a 34-yard touchdown run to tie the game at 7-7 after a successful extra point attempt.
Garfield, however, was quick to respond. Thanks to a pass interference penalty and a critical fourth-down conversion by James Allison, the Bulldogs reclaimed the lead, 13-7, with six minutes left in the half on a 1-yard touchdown run by J’Andres Castillo. However, a failed two-point conversion kept the lead within one score.
On their next possession, Blanchet would fumble the ball with the Bulldogs’ Zion Moimoi pouncing on the loose ball, giving Garfield an opportunity to extend their lead. Yet, just when the Bulldogs looked poised to break the game open, Blanchet’s Calvin Hanson intercepted a pass intended for Jmitch Mitchell in the end zone, swinging momentum back in favor of the Bears. However, Garfield would regain the momentum and take their 13-7 lead into halftime, after blocking a field goal attempt and recording a sack to halt the Bears’ final drive.
The start of the second half would continue as a back-and-forth defensive battle, as a big hit by Garfield’s Pita Moimoi III on Blanchet’s Patrick Dewey would help set the tone early. However, Dewey would soon take the game into his own hands as he scored a touchdown to give the Bears a 14-13 lead after a successful extra point attempt.
The third quarter was a slow-moving quarter, to say the least, as penalties and miscues saw the teams exchange punt after punt. Late in the third quarter, Garfield would suffer a huge loss as they would lose Pita Moimoi III for the remainder of the game due to injury, which took all of the energy out of the Bulldogs’ sideline, as Blanchet held on to a one-point, 14-13 lead heading into the final quarter.
Just seconds into the final quarter, Blanchet would score another touchdown, stretching their lead to 21-13 as the game slowly started to slip away from the Bulldogs.
The Bulldogs appeared to show some life as they managed to keep the Bears out of the end zone in what appeared to be a critical defensive stance near their own end zone, after Blanchet’s Karsten Wilson pushed his way down to the Garfield 8-yard line. However, a false start penalty would push the Bears back, and a pass breakup by Shabazz would lead to a missed 30-yard field goal attempt by Blanchet’s Thomas Lacy, as the Bulldogs began to show a little swagger.
The Bulldogs were then faced with another tough challenge, as Blanchet’s Andrew Charrier intercepted the ball, electrifying the sideline players and coaches. With 5 minutes remaining in the game, Polik scored a touchdown, stretching Blanchet’s lead to 28-13. Garfield then tried to advance downfield but encountered more penalties and a strong defensive effort from Blanchet. With just 50 seconds left in the game, Mitchell almost secured a touchdown for the Bulldogs, but the pass attempt to him fell short. Following the incomplete pass, Mitchell managed to get the ball to the 4-yard line, but Blanchet was determined to keep Garfield out of the end zone as they deflected a pass intended for a Garfield offensive player, bringing the Bulldogs to their final down with 16 seconds remaining.
On the last play of the game, Blanchet’s Isaac Moore intercepted a pass in the end zone and ran it back for a touchdown, finalizing the score at 34-13 to seal the victory for the Bears.
“It was a really hard-fought game, two teams going for their first league win,” said Bishop Blanchet Head Football Coach Dominic Salle. “Both teams gave great effort. I am happy we were able to pull it out at the end. A lot of respect to Garfield, they played really hard, and they gave us a tough game all the way through.”