By Kiara Doyal, The Seattle Medium
The Rainier Beach Vikings battled it out with the Bishop Blanchet Bears on Senior Night in a closely contested game at Bear territory that saw momentum swing back and forth. Despite a late-game rally by the Bears, Rainier Beach managed to hold on and secure a 33-27 victory.
The game began with the Bears kicking off to the Beach Boys, who quickly advanced the ball with great runs by Vae Lindsay. The defensive abilities of the Bears were showcased early, as Blanchet’s Caden Armes repeatedly took down Viking players play after play. Viking Daniel Haynes tried to make his way through the Bears’ defensive line but was tackled by five Blanchet players, forcing Rainier Beach to call a timeout just four minutes into the game.
After the timeout, the Vikings were flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct, briefly halting their momentum. But Rainier Beach bounced back when Akeem Murph Jr. scored the game’s first touchdown. The Vikings attempted a two-point conversion but were unsuccessful, leaving the score at 6-0. The Bears then took possession and tried to gain momentum, but the Beach Boys were determined not to let that happen. The Vikings’ Khiel Jackson had a big tackle on Blanchet’s Mason Mandell, and Rainier Beach’s Jay’Shaun Banks Hall sacked the Bears’ quarterback, forcing them to punt after an incomplete pass on third down.
As the first quarter wound down, Blanchet’s defense began to push back. JR Carlson made a huge tackle, and Armes recorded a sack to stall the Viking offense. Rainier Beach tried to extend their lead with Murph gaining a first down, but the quarter ended with the Vikings holding onto a narrow 6-0 lead.
Minutes into the second quarter, Rainier Beach’s Ze Watkins made a game-changing interception, energizing the Vikings. Murph brought the ball close to the end zone, but a penalty pushed them back. Despite the setback, Ray Proctor-Mills Jr. scored on a 7-yard touchdown run. However, Rainier Beach failed to convert another two-point attempt, which made the score 12-0 with 9:19 left in the half.
Blanchet’s Will Condon and Karsten Wilson collectively started to move the ball down the field in an effort to gain yardage for the Bears. Blanchet was now at the 32-yard line on 1st down, but a false start penalty moved them back 5 yards. After the penalty, Viking Maceo Rivers intercepted the ball and began to make a run down the field. Shortly after the big play for Rivers, Watkins fumbled the ball, which was then recovered by Blanchet.
Down by two scores, the Bears finally began to find some rhythm offensively. Will Condon and Karsten Wilson started moving the ball down the field. Blanchet reached the Vikings’ 32-yard line, but a false start penalty pushed them back. Moments later, the Vikings’ Maceo Rivers intercepted a pass to give the Vikings good field position. However, a few plays after Watkins’ big play, Watkins fumbled the ball, which Blanchet recovered, as they regained possession of the ball.
With four minutes left in the first half, the Bears would get their first points of the game on a 27-yard field goal to bring the score to 12-3.
However, Rainier Beach would respond quickly as they marched down the field behind the strong running of Murph, which led to a touchdown by Watkins that was followed by a two-point conversion by Marques Ili-Meneese as the Vikings increased their lead to 20-3. Riding a wave of momentum, the Vikings’ defense continued to hold strong. As the half came to a close, William Ahomana blocked a Blanchet pass attempt, forcing the Bears to settle for a 30-yard field goal from Thomas Lacy, as they narrowed the gap to 20-6 heading into halftime.
The second half started slowly, with both teams struggling to make significant progress. A false start penalty against Blanchet gave Rainier Beach a first down, but Blanchet regrouped when Finley Suess intercepted a pass. The Bears would capitalize on the turnover, with Hoerschelmann scoring a touchdown, followed by a successful extra point, cutting the Vikings’ lead to 20-13.
Blanchet’s Andrew Charrier kept the Bears’ hopes alive with an interception late in the third quarter. However, Rainier Beach responded when Khi Fields intercepted a pass and returned it 58 yards, bringing the Vikings back into scoring position. After a timeout to strategize, Ili-Meneese scored another touchdown, stretching Rainier Beach’s lead to 26-13 as the third quarter came to a close.
The final quarter began much like the third, with slow progress from both sides. However, Blanchet refused to give up, with Hoerschelmann scoring his second touchdown of the night and converting the extra point, bringing the Bears within striking distance at 26-20.
With just under half of the final quarter remaining, the Vikings worked to extend their lead. Murph continued to pick up critical first downs for the Vikings, while Lindsay fought his way through multiple defenders to make it into the end zone, stretching out the Vikings’ lead to 33-20.
With 1:39 left in the game, Blanchet made a final push, but they were met by a solid Beach defense. Blanchet called a timeout with 32 seconds remaining, and Wilson managed to contribute the final points of the game, scoring a late touchdown to bring the score to 33-27. However, it was too little too late, as Rainier Beach held on to claim the victory.
“Tonight was a barn burner, man. I got nervous a little bit; we made a little bit of mistakes, but we’ve got to correct some things,” said Corey Sampson, Rainier Beach Football Head Coach. “We are a young team, but we played hard and have to keep playing hard. We had to make some adjustments in the second half to get our team to play with a little more enthusiasm, but tonight’s win was great.”
