Kenai 14, Houston 12
Recap provided by Bob Bird
The Kenai Kardinals held a 14-0 lead through three quarters but succumbed to a late rally by the Houston Hawks. Despite twice missing 2-point conversions in the 4th quarter, Houston found themselves in the driver’s seat after their kickoff following their 2nd TD.
With only 2 minutes to play, the Bulldogs were deep in their own zone when they fumbled on their own 20-yard line. It was one of many fumbles and penalties by both teams during the steady rain that made ball control, whether passing or on the ground, difficult.
Sure enough, one play later, Houston QB Blake Baskett lost his grip on an intended pass. It went wildly into the air and was easily picked off by the Kardinal defense, which was able to run out the clock for the win.
The Kardinals were posted to a 14-0 lead after TD runs of 18 and 11 yards by Bobby Hayes in the first and third quarters. The Hawks were able to move the ball with their top runners Elias Johnson, Aiden McDonnell, and Terje McClurg. However, rain-induced fumbles, interceptions, and penalties kept the Hawks off the scoreboard until the 4th quarter.
QB Tony Perez mixed his plays well with Hayes and Campanella doing most of the running. Kicker Cole Langham hit a punt of over 50 yards in the dead calm air. When Perez missed a series of downs due to an injury, Garrett McCanna did well in his brief appearance.
Seward 36, Nikiski 14
Recap provided by Bob Bird
The Nikiski Bulldogs traveled to Seward on Friday, September 13, to continue the unofficial 9-man football season among themselves, Seward, Valdez, and Kodiak.
The Seward fans were thrilled to open play on their spanking-new artificial turf, complete with political and school dignitaries, cookies, and a specially crafted cake.
The Bulldogs grabbed an early 8-0 lead with a TD pass by Ethan Ellis to Oliver Parrish, but Seward quickly replied with two fast TDs of their own. QB Brett Gilmore used the running of Noah Price and Ronan Bickling to great advantage, with those two springing loose for big gains throughout the day, including an 80-yard run for TD to close out Seward’s steady day of ball control.
The Seward defense was good at containing the Nikiski brother-duo of Oliver and Kaiden Parrish, with the exception of a 50+ yard run by Kaiden late in the game. Micah Broeckner, Hunter Kurtz, and Emerson Cross led Seward’s defense.
A consolation TD came the Bulldog’s way late in the game with an Ellis pass of about 20 yards.
Soldotna 42, Palmer 14
The Soldotna Stars followed up a dominant 63-27 win over the Palmer Moose in week one of the 2024 high school football season with another lopsided victory on Saturday.
Soldotna was without team leader and running back Wyatt Faircloth, who was dressed out to play but never entered the game. Nevertheless, Faircloth’s understudy, Dax Walden, turned in a stunning performance. Walden, a junior, carried the ball 10 times for 108 yards and 2 touchdowns. He also hauled in an interception in the second quarter.
The Stars fought through one of the most heavily penalized games in recent memory to secure the win. More than 20 holding flags were thrown between the two teams–the bulk of those called on Soldotna–and more than 30 penalty flags overall in the game.
Jaycob Kemp also crossed the century mark, rushing for 163 yards on 17 carries and scoring the game’s opening touchdown.
Penalties in the first quarter and an extended, albeit unsuccessful drive by the Moose held Soldotna to its lowest scoring opening quarter in the last two years. However, once the Stars entered the second quarter, things started going downhill for Palmer. SoHi scored three touchdowns in the second quarter and two more in the third, notching a 42-0 lead over the Moose before SoHi’s JV hit the field.
With the win the Stars move to 5-0 on the season.
Next up, Soldotna heads to Wasilla to face the 1-4 Warriors.
