The latest round of high school football brought mixed results for the Plateau teams, as Enumclaw registered a convincing victory over Clover Park while White River was blanked by Steilacoom.
A Saturday (Oct. 2) victory allowed Enumclaw to improve to 3-0 in South Puget Sound League 2A play and 4-1 overall. The Hornets are looking to build on their perfect league record this Friday (Oct. 8) when they host tough Steilacoom for Homecoming. The game kicks off at 7 p.m. at the Enumclaw Expo Center.
The Sentinels, who won the league title last season and played for the state championship in 2019, will bring a 3-0 record to Enumclaw.
Most recently – playing again on a Saturday – the EHS Hornets exploded for 35 points in the second quarter, held a 42-7 halftime advantage and coasted to a 49-14 victory over mismatched Clover Park. The Warriors saw their league record fall to 0-3 (2-3 overall).
After each team posted first-quarter scores, Enumclaw’s second-period outburst included three touchdown tosses by quarterback Malcolm Harper. The first was a 34-yard strike to Dylan Watterson, followed by a short scoring pass to Clive Pond and a 35-yard TD completion to Karson Holt. Harper added to a spectacular 12 minutes by adding a short rushing touchdown. The quarter had opened with a TD run by Emmit Otero.
The Hornets’ final score of the night came on yet another Harper TD pass, again to Holt and this time from 22 yards out. Enumclaw’s additional seven points came on a perfect PAT night by kicker Noah Seabrands.
STEILACOOM 14, WHITE RIVER 0
White River’s offense couldn’t put any points on the board against Steilacoom, but a spirited Hornet defense kept the final outcome very respectable.
It certainly was a marked improvement over last season’s 44-6 loss to a Sentinel team that captured the SPSL 2A title.
White River allowed Steilacoom just 261 yards of total offense and 102 of those came on two plays.
The defensive effort was paced by linebacker Logan Lisherness who was credited with 17 solo tackles and assisted on five more. Safety Tyson Campbell had a dozen solo stops and intercepted a pass and defensive end J.J. Sandoval had a quarterback sack among his 10 solo tackles.
The loss dropped White River’s SPSL 2A record to 1-2 (2-3 overall). Steilacoom, meanwhile, improved to 3-0, all league games.
Next up for White River is another Thursday game, the team’s third in a row. The scheduling oddity is due to a serious shortage of game officials, a situation that has brought change to the traditional Friday night gridiron routine.
This week’s opponent will be the Washington Patriots, who sit at 1-2 in league play (a victory over Clover Park and losses to Enumclaw and Orting) and 3-2 overall. The Oct. 7 contest will be on the Patriots’ home turf (a district stadium on the grounds of Franklin Pierce High School) beginning at 7 p.m.
