Week 1: What we learned from high school football in Olympia area

Tumwater hasn’t lost since 2018, Yelm since 2019. Thurston County’s top programs are in the midst of winning streaks that may not end anytime soon.

IT’S 20, NOT 21, BUT T-BIRDS STREAK LOOKS HARD TO BEAT

The last time Tumwater lost was a 28-27 heartbreaker in the quarterfinals of the Class 2A state tournament in November of 2018.

Twenty times since then, the Thunderbirds have walked onto the field and dispatched an opponent. None of the games have been especially close. Thirteen times Tumwater has scored at least 50 points. The narrowest victory margins came in two touchdown wins in 2019 over 4A Bellarmine Prep and, in the state championship game, Steilacoom.

Because Centralia was unable to field a team last spring on the week it was scheduled to play Tumwater, some in the media logged a forfeit and a 21st game in the streak. To their credit, the T-Birds don’t claim that “victory.”

“There was no forfeit awarded for COVID-cancelled games,” said Tumwater athletics director Tim Graham.

So 20 it is, but the potential for the streak to grow is there.

It’s not that Tumwater doesn’t face challenges. This week, it comes off an opening night victory over a Top 10 2A opponent to play a Thursday night game against 3A Capital, 1-0 after winning its first game. Two weeks later, they’ll play perennial Evergreen Conference contender W.F. West.

But Tumwater – still a long way from Bellevue’s Washington streak of 67 straight victories, much less the 151 consecutive games De La Salle (Concord, Calif.) won before Bellevue beat them at then Qwest Field in 2004 – has a way of meeting those challenges.

The top-ranked T-Birds game with No. 10 Enumclaw on Friday night is a prime example.

The Hornets were ready and marched to a touchdown on the first possession of the game, only to see, as the cliché goes, Tumwater rally for 56 unanswered points.

Enumclaw put together its 11-play, 73-yard opening drive with a nice mix of rushing and passing to take a 6-0 lead a quarterback sneak by Malcolm Harper. But when a bad snap deprived the Hornets of their extra point attempt, Tumwater was quick to seize the momentum.

In fact, T-Birds’ coach Bill Beattie wasn’t all that concerned when Enumclaw scored.

“We did what we wanted to on that drive, but we made a couple of mistakes. We had a penalty. We’ve got seven new starters on defense,” he said. “To see our defense play as well as it did with that many new starters was really fun.”

Indeed, when Harper threw incomplete for his favorite target, Dylan Watterson, on third and nine from his own 41-yard line, it appeared the drive would stall. But a pass interference call allowed the Hornets to keep moving toward the end zone.

As usual, Tumwater has a stellar offensive line and a deep stable of running backs. With 10 players getting at least one carry, the T-Birds totaled 367 yards rushing.

Senior Payton Hoyt, who began his career at rival Black Hills, led the way with 10 carries for 142 yards and four touchdowns. Carlos Matheney was right behind with 10 carries for 101 yards and a touchdown. Karson Schreiner made the most of three carries, scoring two touchdowns.

“This is Payton’s second year in the program, so he’s learned how to set up his blocks, plus he’s a gifted natural runner,” Beattie said.

“I’ve never scored four touchdowns in a game before,” said Hoyt, who was a sophomore adjusting to the varsity level at Black Hills in 2019 and a backup for Tumwater last spring. “Our offensive line, our tight ends were blocking amazing, the fakes from our fullbacks were coming together.”

Being at Tumwater has been a good fit, Hoyt said.

“The culture, the love they’ve shown me, they’ve supported me every way,” he said. “We work harder than any team out there.

As the game went on, Tumwater copyrighted the phrase “wasting little time.”

Four times the T-Birds scored on the first or second play of a possession, including once after a blocked punt by Zander Hernandez and once after an Ashton Paine interception.

After Tumwater received the second half kickoff, quarterback Brady Prothero deviated from Tumwater’s 86 percent rush offense for the night, hitting Seth Weller with an 82-yard touchdown bomb up the left sideline and it was 42-6.

“Coach (Rob) Hinkle saw that their corner was looking into the backfield on the play action,” said Beattie. “So we changed to a go route on that play.”

It wasn’t the first time Tumwater shed its conversative image to throw long. Midway through the second, Weller made a difficult catch on a pass from Prothero that appeared to give the T-Birds a first down at the Enumclaw 12, but a penalty called the play back.

“Our offensive coaches did a great job of seeing what they were doing,” said Beattie. “They were putting our kids in the right position to get some blocks. Our whole line did a great job and (tight ends) Austin Terry and Ryan Otton opened things up on the edge for our sweeps.”

Beattie didn’t argue with the scoreboard when evaluating his team’s opening night performance.

“I’m super impressed with our kids,” he said. “They spent the off-season working hard and I’m really happy with how far we’ve gotten with so many new guys.”

YELM’S STREAK IS MORE MODEST BUT ALSO MAY BE GROWING

Like Tumwater, Yelm traces its seven-game winning streak back to a one-point playoff loss, 35-34 at Kennewick in 2019’s first round. Like Tumwater, the Tornados don’t play an easy schedule.

This week, they’ll travel to Snoqualmie to meet another team that hasn’t lost since the 2019 playoffs, Mount Si. The Wildcats, who blasted Federal Way 51-0 on Friday, were scheduled to meet Lake Stevens, but the Vikings cancelled their first two games as did Yelm’s original Week Two opponent Spanaway Lake.

Mount Si is no stranger to COVID-19 cancellations, having played just two games during the spring season, beating Bellevue and Issaquah.

Although the Wildcats weren’t ranked in the opening Associated Press poll, they will give the Tornados a challenging foe for the second straight week after Yelm dropped No. 9 Lincoln, 34-18, in front of the first packed grandstand since 2019 on Friday night.

There was a smell of freshly-popped kettle corn in the air. Students decked out in school colors, smiling parents, cheerleaders and fans were on hand to watch.

“It was fun,” said Yelm coach Jason Ronquillo. “It was like yelling on the field and the crowd noise behind you is so loud, the players can’t hear you. You’re losing your voice trying to yell and you’re back to a real Friday night football game. So it was fun.”

One thing became clear as the Tornados pulled away from the Abes: Brayden Platt will be a Yelm player to remember.

The 6-foot-2, 230-pound sophomore is a difference maker at running back and linebacker for Yelm. And colleges are already swirling; Platt holds an offer from UW, and more will surely be rolling in shortly.

On offense, Platt rushed 16 times for 107 yards and three touchdowns, also catching three passes for 26 yards. And defensively, he was everywhere at linebacker making tackles, highlighted by a fourth-and-short stop in the second half, in which Platt completely blew up the play, lighting up the Lincoln running back and forcing a fumble and turnover on downs.

“I take quite a bit (of pride in setting the tone),” Platt said. “I might be younger than them, but we’re all like brothers. We grew up together. We’re all working together.”

Ronquillo said Platt is beyond his years as a sophomore.

“He’s a stud. Even though he’s younger, he’s a leader vocally. He’s a great leader for us on both sides of the ball. The greatest thing about him is his passion and energy. He’s always having fun. He brings out the fun in everybody else. That just makes everyone play faster.”

Meanwhile, Yelm’s previously most well known player, junior Kyler Ronquillo, the coach’s son, added toughness to the list of qualities he’d displayed in sharing 3A South Sound Conference MVP honors during the spring.

Coming off a sprained ankle suffered the previous Friday, Ronquillo didn’t practice all week, rehabbing his ankle and anxiously trying to make a return for week one.

“On Wednesday, I really saw improvement,” Ronquillo said. “The swelling went down. I had faith. I got some confidence back and kept working from there.”

He led the Tornados with 101 receiving yards on eight catches. With Ronquillo’s ability to stretch the field, combined with Yelm’s rushing attack, there’s a balance and unpredictability that makes Yelm difficult to defend.

Jason Ronquillo said he thinks the more balanced Yelm is, the more dangerous they’ll be this season.

“We try to stay balanced,” he said. “I think if we stay balanced, we can keep people on their heels. If a team tries to get us one dimensional, I think that hurts us a little bit. We’ve got weapons all over the field, we just try to utilize it.”

THURSTON COUNTY’S 3A SCHOOLS START STRONG

Along with Yelm’s victory over a ranked foe, three other local South Sound Conference schools, Capital, River Ridge and Timberline, won on the first weekend and the other, North Thurston, lost by a narrow 22-20 margin.

Capital knocked off White River, 37-20, behind a 286-yard, five touchdown rushing performance from senior running back Jake Kennedy.

“Obviously, Jake had a monstrous game for us,” said coach Terry Rose. “But it also comes down to our front line. They have a lot experience and played very well.”

Rose said that the Cougars’ defense was “lights out” against White River, with junior lineman Jabrayan Richburg and cornerback Deonte Burns turning in stellar performances.

River Ridge came from behind to edge Fife, 14-10, on the road.

The Hawks had six takeaways on defense and kept the Trojans out of the end zone with a goal line stand right before halftime that denied Fife a chance to expand on what was then a 10-7 lead.

“That was the big turning point,” said Hawks’ coach Steve Schultz, who credited Emilio Lopez with leading the defensive line.

Fife scored its lone touchdown on defense, running an interception back for a touchdown.

“It was a great game if you love defensive battles,” Schultz said.

Meanwhile, two-way standout Franco Segura added special teams to his versatility, running back two punts for touchdowns as Timberline blasted Cleveland, 43-0, in Seattle.

Kicker Gage Pedro put six Blazer kickoffs into the end zone and barely missed a 42-yard field goal attempt wide left that had plenty of power behind it.

The Rams, in falling to Washington, rallied to within two points midway through the fourth quarter, but couldn’t get over the top.

TENINO STAYS ON THE OFFENSIVE IN OPENER

At the end of the spring season, Tenino, which had scored just eight points in its first three games, suddenly came to life on offense, beating Seton Catholic 54-6 and 2A Rochester 60-40.

The 1A Beavers began the fall season the same way. Four ball carriers rushed for more than 100 yards as they blasted host King’s Way Christian on Friday, 56-21.

The Beavers pulled their starters in the second quarter after taking a 56-0 lead, playing mostly freshmen the rest of the way as the clock ran.

Tailback Dylan Spicer led with three touchdowns and over 100 yards rushing, while senior Takari Hickle, Tristan Whitaker and Gavin Watson each rushed for triple digits as well.

“The offensive and defensive lines played really well,” Tenino coach Cary Nagel said. “It was a team effort. We were firing on all cylinders and it helped us get an early lead. It was a good night. The kids played hard and King’s Way was a good host. They battled.”

Tenino hosts 2B rival Rainier at 7 p.m. this Friday.

“It’s a big-time rivalry game for us,” Nagel said.

TOUGH TURNAROUND FOR BEARS AFTER OPENING LOSS

Olympia dropped an achingly close game to Bellarmine Prep, 30-27, on Saturday night despite 327 yards passing and three touchdowns from junior quarterback Gabe Downing.

It won’t get any easier for the Bears this week as they host 4A’s No. 1 team, Graham-Kapowsin. The game is schedule for Friday, already a short week for Olympia coming off a Saturday game. It’s possible, though, the game might be moved even closer, to Thursday, if game officials prove difficult to assign for Friday.

The Eagles crushed Rogers, 48-0, in their opener.

Olympia’s first effort saw Downing’s expected top receivers come through as Mason Juergens caught seven passes for 138 yards and a touchdown while Parker Fouts made five grabs for 129 yards and two touchdowns.

Kenyatta McNeese rushed eight times for 91 yards and a score.