The only Division I high school football game that took place in the state on Friday night of Week 6 was a thriller between two of the top teams that went down to the wire.
Coming off its first loss of the season last week at home, Service came into this highly anticipated matchup with the intention of handing West High its first defeat. The Cougars invaded the Nest on Hillcrest but were thwarted as the Eagles prevailed by the narrowest of margins, 17-16, to improve to 6-0 and knock their Cook Inlet Conference foes to 4-2.
“It was exciting and I’m just happy for our guys that they pulled through,” West head coach Brown Faaaliga said. “It was a hard week of practice, I felt like we did all the preparation we needed to do to come out victorious and that’s what we did.”
Service had spoiled Dimond’s homecoming back in Week 4, and the West players were elated to avoid the same fate.
“It feels great and I can’t wait to go to homecoming with my friends and have a great time,” West senior David Sanders said.
The dynamic two-way player was integral to the Eagles’ victory with the way he sparked the offense at wide receiver. He also came up with a pair of big plays on defense.
“I give all glory to God, those plays wouldn’t happen without the man above,” Sanders said. “I give (props) to the rest of my team too. Those plays wouldn’t have happened without my beautiful quarterback and my (offensive) line and everyone else setting me up for greatness.”
Service took an early lead on a 6-yard keeper from quarterback Rock Phelps at the 8:48 mark in the opening quarter.
While West’s offense sputtered out of the gate, its defense didn’t allow a single point on back-to-back red zone drives. The Eagles forced a turnover on downs after a botched snap set up the Cougars deep inside their territory. On the following possession, Sanders intercepted Phelps in the end zone to end a lengthy drive on its 11th play.
After forcing another turnover on downs, Sanders ignited the Eagles’ offense by hauling in a 37-yard heave from senior quarterback Baylor Wasson to get into the Cougars’ side of the field for the first time. Two plays later, he found himself in the end zone after a 49-yard catch and run for a touchdown to give his team the lead.
“I’m not going to lie, I didn’t see nothing,” he said about the first catch. “I looked up in the lights and could barely see the ball but I came down with it and said, ‘I’m just blessed,’ and when I ran across that goal line (two plays later), it was just beautiful.”
Service had to turn to a new quarterback in the second half after Phelps left with an injury, and his replacement Braun Precosky was picked off on his first pass attempt. It set up West with a short field, and the Eagles pounded the rock on back-to-back carries by Manny Maga, including a 7-yard scoring run to go up 14-6.
The Eagles’ defense forced a swift 3-and-out and their offense went on a six-play scoring drive that was capped off by a 21-yard field goal by Elias Sandberg, to go up by double figures late in the third quarter.
Just when it seemed like West was going to run away with the game, Service’s offense found its spark with senior running back Jayden Schmidlkofer. He carried the ball on 11 of the Cougars’ 14 plays on the ensuing drive before they were denied on a fourth down, 1 yard shy of the goal.
Service still wound up scoring on the next play following the turnover on downs because of a holding penalty on West in the end zone, resulting in a safety to make it 17-8. Schmidlkofer went back to work on Service’s next possession, carrying the ball on eight of the next 10 plays, including one for a 3-yard touchdown and two-point conversion. That made it a one-point game with 5:18 left to play.
“I’ve coached a lot of those guys through Pop Warner and travel team and I know how tough they are, what they do over there and they do good stuff over there,” Faaaliga said of the Cougars.
The Eagles’ offense went 3-and-out but their defense responded by forcing another turnover on downs to effectively end the game.
“It was just digging deep,” Faaaliga said. “We’ve got some tough guys up front there, our (defensive line) and obviously our linebackers there were pretty stout as well too. (We) just keep grinding, it may not go our way every time but when it matters the most, it has.”
After Maga was able to pick up one last first down on back-to-back carries for 12 yards, West was able to kneel out the remaining time on the clock.
“It was a great team win, we all worked together and came together and that’s all that matters,” Sanders said. “It was a battle and I give props to Service, they were a hell of a team. I’m just glad we took the (win).”
In Division II action, two-time reigning state champion Soldotna also stayed undefeated with a 58-7 blowout win of Wasilla at home, West Valley snapped a three-game losing streak with a 34-21 win over Chugiak on the road, Palmer pulled away from Lathrop in the second half for a 40-24 win and North Pole edged out Eagle River 31-26. The lone Division III game saw Redington shut out Kenai Central with a low-scoring 8-0 victory.
Results
Friday
Redington 8, Kenai Central 0
Soldotna 50, Wasilla 7
West Valley 34, Chugiak 21
Palmer 40, Lathrop 24
West 17, Service 16
North Pole 31, Eagle River 26