FERNDALE – In a must-win situation for the Golden Eagles, they took care of business at home by defeating Timberline 42-14 on Saturday night to earn a 3A state playoff berth.
The Ferndale offense was very machine-like with methodical drives that ended in touchdowns.
Senior running back Conner Walcker scored the first two touchdowns of the game, and finished with a team-high 112 yards on 15 carries. Senior running back Phoenyx Finkbonner also scored the first of his two touchdown runs in the second quarter.
The Blazers scored late in the first half, which kept them in the contest, but the Golden Eagles made sure they held on to the momentum in the third quarter, and scored two more rushing touchdowns with Finkbonner and junior fullback Talan Bungard.
Finkbonner finished with 69 yards on the night, and Bungard’s 53 rushing yards put him over the 1,000-yard plateau on the season.
Junior running back Jacob Gandy scored Ferndale’s final touchdown of the night in the fourth quarter from two yards out.
Walcker led the defense once again, this time with 6.5 tackles, a pass broken up and a 21-yard fumble return. Senior cornerback Bishop Ootsey not only forced the fumble in which Walcker returned, but he also broke up three passes.
The Golden Eagles (8-2) received the 8-seed, and will host Mount Tahoma this weekend. The date and time is yet to be determined.
Ferndale 42 Timberline 14 TIM 0 7 0 7 - 14 FER 7 14 14 7 - 42 FER - Walcker 8 run (Eldridge kick) FER - Walcker 5 run (Eldridge kick) FER - Finkbonner 12 run (Eldridge kick) TIM - 16 yard touchdown pass (kick good) FER - Bungard 6 run (Eldridge kick) FER - Finkbonner 4 run (Eldridge kick) FER - Gandy 2 run (Eldridge kick) TIM - 21 yard touchdown pass (kick good) TIM FER 26-26 Rush Att-Yards 53-286 12-24-0 Comp-Att-Int 5-6-0 160 Passing Yards 41 Individual Leaders RUSHING - TIM: N/A. FER: Walcker 15-112, Finkbonner 9-69, Bungard 15-53, Ootsey 5-33, Gandy 5-11, Atwood 1-4, Stanek 1-3, Telles 1-1, Moore 1-0. PASSING - TIM: N/A. FER: Ootsey 5-6-0-41. RECEIVING - TIM: N/A. FER: Thomas 1-17, Bungard 1-10, Walcker 1-7, Moore 1-7, Gandy 1-(-1).
