By RayJaun Stelly, The Seattle Medium
In a battle across the West Seattle Bridge, both Chief Sealth and West Seattle High School entered their Friday night matchup undefeated, setting the stage for a highly-anticipated game in their storied rivalry.
The Seahawks (3-0), who came into the game after winning a defensive battle with Franklin, had secured two of their three wins this season on the road.
West Seattle (2-0) came into the game averaging 33 points per game while giving up only 12.5 points per game on the defensive end.
The two teams had split their series over the last two seasons, with West Seattle winning 42-0 in 2021 and Chief Sealth winning 34-8 in 2022.
In the first quarter, West Seattle’s offense could not be stopped as they scored 14 unanswered points.
Within the first four minutes, Wildcats quarterback Bo Gionet scored on a 10-yard touchdown run to give his team a 7-0 lead. Putting their defense back on the field for a short stint, Chief Sealth only possessed the football for two minutes before West Seattle forced a three-and-out.
Giving the ball back to their offense, Gionet would lead another successful drive starting with a 15-yard pass to tight end Myles Mutchler, then scrambling for 20 yards, which led to a 20-yard touchdown pass to Gibson Aguilar. In a span of nine minutes, Gionet had thrown two touchdown passes, and the Wildcats were in control.
Retaining possession for six minutes to start the second quarter, West Seattle scored a field goal to take a 17-0 lead before Chief Sealth mounted a comeback.
Chief Sealth’s defensive line and linebackers began putting enormous pressure at the line of scrimmage, forcing West Seattle’s quarterback to make difficult or incomplete passes.
Being held scoreless in the first quarter and down two touchdowns, Chief Sealth needed an answer before the Wildcats had the opportunity to expand on their 17-0 lead going into halftime.
During the second quarter, the Seahawks found success making short throws and running the football, as they made their way to the red zone for the first time in the game. Quarterback Issac Martinez handed the ball off to Jamal Guy Jr., who bounced off tackles as he scored on a 20-yard touchdown run to cut the deficit to 17-7 heading into halftime.
Receiving the second-half kickoff, Martinez and the Seahawks did not disappoint. Martinez made the right reads against the Wildcats’ defense, getting all of his receivers and running backs involved in the offense.
The Seahawks’ up-tempo offense wore down West Seattle’s defense and kept them out of sync. Martinez got his team down to the red zone for the second straight possession, and building trust with coaches, his number was called. With the football on the 14-yard line, Martinez bulldozed his way to the endzone on a quarterback sneak as Chief Sealth cut the lead to 17-14.
Now without a touchdown for two straight quarters, West Seattle’s offense had gone stagnant due to Chief Sealth’s defensive adjustments. The Seahawks continuously forced punts, incomplete passes, and kept the Wildcats’ rushing game to a minimum. The play by both teams set up an entertaining fourth quarter.
Defense was the theme for the first 11 minutes of the fourth quarter from both teams. Neither team gave up a touchdown, remaining aggressive at the line of scrimmage, not allowing extra yards after catches, and minimizing the rushing attack.
Although the offenses weren’t thriving as they were during the first three quarters, Chief Sealth marched downfield and got themselves in field goal range with 1:18, as kicker Ogi Petronijevic made a 20-yard field goal to tie the game at 17.
Giving up 17 unanswered points, West Seattle retained the last possession and an opportunity to potentially win the game with either a field goal or touchdown. Samuel Turner gave the Wildcats excellent field position, returning the kickoff to the 40-yard line, giving Gionet and the West Seattle offense a short field to orchestrate a game-winning drive.
Gionet found Mutchler near the sidelines for a 15-yard completion, then Logan Imel for 10 yards in the middle of the field. Keeping the defense off-balance, Gionet, on a run-pass-option, ran for 10 yards to secure a first down. Getting the ball down to the 10-yard line, West Seattle had to decide to go for a touchdown or field goal with nine seconds left.
West Seattle kicker Scott Bremen ran out on the field and kicked a potential game-winning field goal, giving the Wildcats a 20-17 lead.
With five seconds remaining, the Wildcats needed one stop to survive Chief Sealth’s second-half rally and hand them their first loss of the season. West Seattle dropped their defense back to prevent a Hail Mary touchdown, Martinez threw downfield for an incompletion as time expired.
Chief Sealth’s comeback fell short as they were handed their first loss to West Seattle 20-17. The Wildcats remain undefeated at 3-0; they’ll face Roosevelt on the road next week, and Chief Sealth will host Ingraham.
Pictorial Highlights Of Chief Sealth vs West Seattle
