BELLINGHAM – After a double-pass trick play that scored a touchdown to begin the game, Cedarcrest wasn’t able to do a whole lot else against the Mariners as Sehome defeated the Red Wolves 35-14 at Civic Stadium on Friday night.
After quickly being down 7-0, the Mariners put together a strong drive with power running that culminated in a 12-yard touchdown run by senior Dawson Smith. Smith had a game-high 117 yards rushing on 21 carries, and probably dragged tacklers hanging off of his body for at least 50 of those yards.
After Smith’s touchdown, Sehome sophomore outside linebacker Caleb Ryan intercepted a pass and returned it deep into Cedarcrest territory. Quarterback Jacob Kaepernick was able to find wide receiver Melloy Nelson a few plays later on a perfectly executed corner route for a 20-yard touchdown.
The Red Wolves had another turnover on their next drive when they mishandled a handoff, and junior outside linebacker Felipe Arreola recovered the fumble. Kaepernick quickly capitalized on a 1-yard quarterback sneak.
Cedarcrest would score before halftime, but that would it as the Mariner defense played tremendous as a team. Arreola and strong safety Colin Dorsch each had near interceptions on fourth-down plays, and defensive linemen Rylie Bair and Gavin Ortega were each able to get to the quarterback for sacks late in the game.
Kaepernick also found junior wide out Tim Malo on a go-route down the right sideline in the third quarter for a 32-yard touchdown. Malo finished with a game-high six receptions for 94 yards. Kaepernick completed 11-of-20 passes for 160 yards.
Smith scored his second touchdown of the game in the final minutes as he and Dorsch each ran for over 100 yards. It was the first time Sehome had two players over 100 yards rushing in the same game since its 46-28 victory over Granite Falls in 2017 when Dylan Roberts and Michael Mindnich accomplished the feat.
The Mariners (4-2) will host West Seattle (1-5) this Saturday at 2:00 at Civic Stadium.
Cedarcrest 14
Sehome 35
CED 7 7 0 0 – 14
SEH 14 7 7 7 – 35
CED – 69 yard touchdown pass (kick good)
SE – Smith 12 run (Nelson kick)
SE – Nelson 20 pass from Kaepernick (Nelson kick)
SE – Kaepernick 1 run (Nelson kick)
CED – 8 yard touchdown run (kick good)
SE – Malo 32 pass from Kaepernick (Nelson kick)
SE – Smith 4 run (Nelson kick)
CED SEH
23-62 Rushing Att-Yards 45-233
11-20-1 Comp-Att-Int 11-20-2
192 Passing yards 160
Individual Leaders
RUSHING – SEH: Smith 21-117, Dorsch 12-105, Kapernick 12-11. CED: N/A.
PASSING – SEH: Kaepernick 11-20-2-160. CED: N/A.
RECEIVING – SEH: Malo 6-94, Nelson 2-34, Clark 1-21, Ryan 1-11, Smith 1-0. CED: N/A.
