Prep football: Hawks’ season ends after loss against Marysville-Getchell

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After earning just three victories during the regular season, the Mountlake Terrace Hawks were left on the outside looking in at any possible playoff scenarios for 2016. But Coach Kelly Dougan still found motivation for his squad going into their final tilt of the year against the Marysville-Getchell Chargers.

“We were hoping that we would end the season on a two-game winning streak,” Dougan explained. “And that would be the lasting memory for our seniors and for the younger guys going into the off-season and into next year.”

Dougan’s aspiration didn’t come to reality as the Hawks were defeated by the Chargers 17-6 in a Week 10 Wesco League crossover game played at QuilCeda Stadium in Marysville on Friday.

With the loss, Terrace finished the year with an overall record of 3-7, the team’s worst since going 2-8 in 2011.

Although the Hawks offense gained 242 total yards on Friday, the team struggled to sustain drives long enough to get into scoring position. Terrace’s only points came late in the fourth quarter when sophomore quarterback Jesse James Martineau found Keegan Grayson streaking across the middle and completed a 27-yard TD pass to the junior receiver to end a 63-yard drive.

Martineau went 12-for-29 for 111 yards in the game, tossed the one touchdown pass to Grayson, but also threw three interceptions, including one that ended up as a Charger score. With 8:14 to go in the fourth quarter, Martineau was hit by a pair of M-G lineman just as he was attempting a pass; the ball fluttered softly in the air and was grabbed by the Chargers’ Ethan Watts who returned the errant pass 39 yards for a touchdown.

Dougan credited the Chargers defense for pressuring Martineau and restraining the Hawk’s passing game.

“I think Getchell did a nice job of mixing up their pass rush,” said Dougan. “They hit Jesse early on. If you start moving your feet playing quarterback, that’s going to affect your accuracy and it definitely affected (his).”

The Hawks also played without sophomore standout Brandon Back who didn’t make the trip to Marysville due to illness.

“Brandon’s absence definitely affected our passing game,” Dougan said. “He’s one of our key receivers, he runs great routes, he gets open, he catches the ball.”

Marysville-Getchell’s offense also sputtered through the match-up, but did just enough to give the Chargers an early lead that was never threatened. M-G scored on the first offensive possession of the game when Gage Thomas finished off a six-play, 49-yard drive with a 2-yard touchdown run.

The Chargers’ scoring drive was helped by a critical mistake committed by the Terrace defense. “We had that offside’s penalty on the first drive; that killed us,” Dougan noted. “That was fourth and four, we were going to stop them and take possession of the ball.”

After the Hawks’ penalty gave M-G a new set of downs, the Chargers went on to score their only offensive touchdown on the game.

Later, Declan Sweatt kicked a 20-yard field goal in the second quarter to close out the Chargers’ scoring.

Playing his last game for Terrace, Austin Bach led the team with six solo tackles and three assists on tackles. Dougan praised the senior after the contest.

“(Austin) plays great every week,” Dougan offered. “Both sides of the ball, special teams: exemplary; he’s the type of guy we like to coach. He works hard, technically sound, he’s effort level is high and he motivates his teammates.”

With the 2016 season over, Dougan is already looking forward to the possibilities for building up the underclassmen that will be back for the 2017 season. After team meetings are completed next week, players will be encouraged to become regulars in weight room workouts and optional training get-togethers on Sundays.

Dougan stressed that preparations for playing prep football must be a year-round endeavor, not just during the fall season.

“If you’re not doing (offseason workouts), you’re falling behind,” he said. “The high-caliber football teams, in a lot of ways, they’re as good as they are because of what they do in the offseason. You also have to strive to be that good in the offseason.”

Prep Football: Mountlake Terrace at Marysville-Getchell, Nov. 4

Mountlake Terrace               0          0          0          6          —            6
Marysville-Getchell              7          3          0          7          —          17

First Quarter
  9:05  Gage Thomas (Marysville-Getchell) 2-yard TD run; Declan Sweatt PAT kick good

Second Quarter
11:52  Declan Sweatt (Marysville-Getchell) 20-yard field goal

Fourth Quarter
  8:14  Ethan Watts (Marysville-Getchell) 39-yard interception return for TD; Declan Sweatt PAT kick good
3:43  Jesse James Martineau (Mountlake Terrace) Keegan Grayson 30-yard TD reception; 2-point conversion fails

Records: Mountlake Terrace 2-5 in 2A/3A Wesco League South Conference, 3-7 overall; Marysville-Getchell 0-6 in 2A/3A Wesco League North Conference, 2-8 overall

Mountlake Terrace next game: 2016 season completed

–By Doug Petrowski