Peninsula rebounds, blanks Panthers 28-0

James scores three rushing touchdowns to lead Seahawks in win

Marques Hunter

of the Gateway

The Peninsula Seahawks got back on track against Bonney Lake on Friday and grabbed sole possession of second place in the Class 3A South Puget Sound League.

The Seahawks’ running game was exceptional as Peninsula (5-2 overall, 4-1 league) shut out the Panthers 28-0. Peninsula trails only Lakes in the SPSL.

Seahawks senior running back Brandon James had three scores, two of which went for a combined 142 yards. He finished with 19 carries and 200 yards.

“It was big,” James said of the victory. “We hadn’t put together our best two games, but we were really hungry this week. We knew we could play better. We had a hard week of practice, and I think it showed tonight.”

James’ first score was a 66-yard touchdown with 4:03 left in the first quarter. Later, Peninsula sophomore quarterback JR Grosshans threw a 22-yard pass to senior Jacob Pasion with 3:11 left in the half that set Peninsula up at the 1-yard line.

Accordingly, James scored again to give the Seahawks a 14-0 lead and early control of the game.

After the Peninsula defense surrendered 59 points in the past two games combined, they had other plans against Bonney Lake, which was ranked first in the SPSL in rushing and second in overall offense going into the game.

But Peninsula stopped the Panthers’ running attack. Their leading runner, senior Drew Foster, was held to just 47 yards on nine carries. And the team’s captain, running back Mario Harris, was held to 22 yards.

And when Bonney Lake tried to throw it, the Peninsula secondary contained Panthers quarterback Kyle Yanusevich, who didn’t throw a touchdown pass all night.

With 2:17 left in the second quarter, a Peninsula defensive lineman deflected a pass into the arms of safety Tony Lewis. The Seahawks failed to convert, but they forced a Bonney Lake fumble on the next series and defensive end Darrian Creamer fell on it, giving the Peninsula offense one more opportunity to extend its 14-0 lead with 1:03 left in the half.

Creamer showed his versatility on the offensive side of the ball, running up the middle for a 25-yard touchdown to give his team a 21-0 lead.

Grosshans finished with six completions for 82 yards and was sacked twice without throwing an interception.

Pasion had five receptions for 86 yards, and Creamer finished with 40 rushing yards.

“This was an absolutely huge win,” Peninsula coach Ross Filkins said. “This might be one of the biggest wins we’ve had in a long time here.”

Peninsula has three league games remaining in the regular season with games against White River, Enumclaw and Franklin Pierce. Both White River and Franklin Pierce are sub-.500 teams.

If Peninsula can remain in second place, it will have a crossover playoff game at home for a chance to advance to the state tournament.

Gig Harbor smashes Foss, 41-0

The game wasn’t over after the first quarter, but it sure seemed that way.

The Gig Harbor Tides stomped the Foss Falcons 41-0 in a Class 4A Narrows League game that brought the Tides (5-1 overall, 4-1 league) into a second-place tie with the Mount Tahoma Thunderbirds.

Gig Harbor running back Nico Youngren scored two touchdowns and finished with 44 rushing yards on nine carries. He also had two receptions for 42 yards.

The Tides had 411 total yards to the Falcons’ 143.

Gig Harbor senior quarterback Chet Thompson had 11 rushes for 106 yards and two touchdowns. He also completed nine passes for 115 yards and no interceptions.

If the Tides beat Wilson (1-4 league) this week — they host the Rams at 7 p.m. Thursday — they will play Mount Tahoma at 7 p.m. Oct. 24 in a game that could decide home-field advantage in a crossover playoff game on Nov. 7.

Reach sports reporter Marques Hunter at 253-853-9246 or e-mail marques.hunter@gateline.com.