BY JEFF WOOD – for Whatcom Preps
BELLINGHAM – It was the second consecutive week in which Squalicum hosted a team from north of the border and came out with a win. However, the road to get there was much more difficult this time.
This Canadian squad, the Seaquam Seahawks, included a couple of linemen big enough to be on the Seattle Seahawks as well as some fine skill players. The game was back and forth all night after not starting until after 8PM due to being on the back end of a double-header at Civic Stadium.
The Storm jumped out to a first quarter lead with a 28-yard touchdown pass from Marcus Nixon to Nevhye Egging.
During the second quarter, some ball handling issues plagued the backfield for Squalicum as they put the ball on the ground twice. The second of these fumbles led to a short field for the Seahawks and a 21-yard TD pass which tied the game at 7.
Squalicum came out with the ball in the third quarter and on a couple of nice runs by Nixon and senior Deandre Dunmore, moved the ball to midfield. Two penalties stalled the drive; however, and an interception gave the ball back to the Seahawks who promptly drove down the field and scored on 4-yard rail route to the running back out of the backfield.
On the ensuing kickoff, speedy junior returner Joaquin Ortiz took a well blocked return 90 yards to the house to tie the game at 14.
The fireworks continued into the fourth quarter with Chase Nelson who made two nice tackles behind the line of scrimmage. Seaquam was unfazed though, and calmly completed a 66-yard fade for a TD on third and 12.
That included a 15-yard penalty on Squalicum which was assessed on the kickoff. Curiously, instead of kicking it out of the end zone, a pop-up kick resulted in another big return for the Storm this one by Nick Laughlin. Good execution and blocking on the drive ended in a 9-yard TD run for Dunmore, but the extra point was blocked, giving the Seahawks a small advantage, 21-20
Having a significant size advantage, Seaquam went on a long, clock killing drive that all in the crowd feared would end in a game-winning touchdown. However, Storm defensive coordinator Jordan Chalfant’s defense stiffened inside the red zone.
On second and goal from the 4, a cover 0 blitz led to no gain for the Seahawks. On third and goal, a pass looked to be intercepted by Ortiz but was determined to be incomplete by the officials. The Seahawks ultimately settled for a field goal and a 24-20 lead.
With 3 minutes to play, Coach Lucey’s offense stayed calm and a run of 16 yards by Malakai Smith began the drive. Two quality rushes by Dunmore got Squalicum within striking distance, and then Nixon capped it with an 11-yard scamper to the short side of the field for the game-winning touchdown.
The Storm held strong on a last-minute drive by Seaquam. On the Seahawks last attempt, a strip sack by Nelson was recovered by senior Colby Lewis which sent the Squalicum fans home happy after the exciting 26-24 victory.
Next up Squalicum (2-0) heads into league season at Defending State 2A Champion Lynden (1-1) on Friday at 7:00.
Squalicum 26 Seaquam, BC 24 SEA 0 7 14 3 - 24 SQU 7 0 7 12 - 26 SQU - Egging 28 pass from Nixon (Haggen kick) SEA - 21 yard touchdown pass (kick good) SEA - 4 yard touchdown pass (kick good) SQU - Ortiz 90 kickoff return (Haggen kick) SEA - 66 yard touchdown pass (kick good) SQU - Dunmore 8 run (kick blocked) SEA - 21 yard field goal SQU - Nixon 11 run (kick blocked) SEA SQU 39-195 Rush Att-Yards 35-255 7-17-0 Comp-Att-Int 2-6-1 110 Passing Yards 33 Individual Leaders RUSHING - SEA: N/A. SQU: Dunmore 10-155, Smith 8-52, Nixon 16-44, Ortiz 1-4. PASSING - SEA: N/A. SQU: Nixon 2-6-1-33. RECEIVING - SEA: N/A. SQU: Egging 1-28, Smith 1-5.
