BLAINE – In a back-and-forth contest for the Wesco North Championship, the Bearcats defeated the Golden Eagles 29-27 at Blaine High School on Saturday afternoon.
Monroe got on the board first after its passing game started to heat up, and eventually scored on a 20-yard touchdown pass. Ferndale answered with a powerful Ryan Pelton touchdown run from 14 yards out in the beginning of the second quarter.
The two teams continued to trade touchdowns, with the Bearcats connecting on a 45-yard touchdown on a trick fly sweep pass, and the Golden Eagles answered again with a 4-yard touchdown run my senior quarterback Mark Schlichting.
Monroe scored once again just before halftime on a drive that was culminated by multiple penalties by Ferndale. The Bearcats took advantage, and eventually took an 8-point lead when the snap on the extra point had to be dug out by the holder, who then scrambled to his right and completed a pass into the end zone.
The two-point conversion by Monroe was not planned, but it would end up being one of the biggest plays of the game.
The Golden Eagles had a strong drive near the end of the third quarter, which trickled into the fourth quarter, and ultimately ended with Pelton scoring his Whatcom County leading 17th touchdown of the season. Ferndale went for the tie, but the running play ultimately ended up falling short.
Pelton finished the game with a team-high 95 yards rushing on 19 carries.
The Bearcats answered back quickly with a dynamic 48-yard touchdown strike, and the extra point gave Monroe a 9-point advantage.
The Golden Eagles had another big drive, which was aided by a 32-yard run by senior Thomas Broselle, and they eventually scored on a 3-yard run when junior fullback J.J. Nowack logged his first varsity touchdown.
Ferndale was then able to force Monroe to punt after junior defensive end Jake Mason picked up his third quarterback sack of the game. Broselle proceeded to return the punt 33 yards to the Golden Eagle 46-yard line with 2:40 left in the game, and trailing by just two points.
Strong runs by Pelton and Nowack, as well as a big 3rd-down completion from Schlichting to sophomore wide out Conner Walcker, helped Ferndale get to the Bearcat 26-yard line, but Monroe came up with a huge interception with 49 seconds left in the game to seal the victory.
The Golden Eagles (7-2) will travel to take on Garfield (5-3) for a chance to get into the 3A State Playoffs. The time and date have yet to be determined.
Monroe 29 Ferndale 27 MON 7 15 0 7 - 29 FER 0 14 0 13 - 27 MON - 20 yard touchdown pass (kick good) FER - Pelton 14 run (Yelfimov kick) MON - 45 yard touchdown pass (kick good) FER - Schlichting 4 run (Yelfimov kick) MON - 1 yard touchdown run (2-pt pass good) FER - Pelton 6 run (run failed) MON - 48 yard touchdown pass (kick good) FER - Nowack 3 run (Yelfimov kick)
MON FER 26-40 Rush Att-Yards 54-263 14-23-0 Comp-Att-Int 5-16-1 254 Passing Yards 106 Individual Leaders RUSHING - MON: N/A. FER: Pelton 19-95, Broselle 14-72, Nowack 10-59, McCormick 8-27, Schlichting 3-10. PASSING - MON: N/A. FER: Schlichting 5-16-1-106. RECEIVING - MON: N/A. FER: Walcker 2-41, Broselle 1-38, Castleberry 1-21, Pelton 1-6.
