Seahawks repeat as 9-man state champs

The Seward football team defeated Nikiski 36-6 on Friday at Justin Maile Field in Soldotna for a second straight nine-man state championship and second straight undefeated season.

Seward senior Ronan Bickling ran for 129 yards and two scores on 13 carries, and junior Emerson Cross had three catches for 87 yards and two scores, but the most impressive game may have belonged to senior quarterback Brett Gilmore.

In a wind so strong that the referees had to hold the ball at the line of scrimmage between each play so the ball wouldn’t blow away, Gilmore finished 6 of 13 for 142 yards and two touchdowns, plus another score on the ground.

“The wind was crazy,” Gilmore said. “I’ve never played in anything like this. It seemed like I couldn’t get a ball close to where I wanted it to go.

“It was getting there. I guess I completed a few passes. But I definitely had a couple more that should have been completed.”

The Seahawks, who finished 8-0, are now 6-0 against the Bulldogs (5-3) in the two seasons since nine-man started.

The trend has been for Nikiski to take an early lead, then for Seward to come roaring back.

Seward coach Tyler Mallory implored his team all week to start fast and finish strong. As part of starting fast, Mallory was determined to use his team’s strengths, no matter the weather.

“We knew the wind was going to be an issue, but I wanted to try and throw the ball because we have kids that can make catches and I wanted to get them out in space,” he said. “We took a few shots and made some really good completions.”

On the first play of the game from the line of scrimmage, Gilmore completed a 28-yard pass to Cross. That kick-started a drive capped off by a 1-yard run from Gilmore.

After Nikiski went four-and-out (neither team punted all game in the wind), Gilmore hit Cross for a 25-yard touchdown for a 16-0 lead with 8:07 left in the first quarter.

After that, the Bulldogs stiffened on defense.

“Jackson Wittmer balled out the whole game,” Nikiski head coach Matt Trammell said. “Kevin Love balled out the whole game. I was proud of our defensive effort.

“We just couldn’t move the ball in the cold.”

In the second quarter, Nikiski went 84 yards in 11 plays for its lone score.

Senior Ethan Ellis, who was 5 of 13 for 49 yards and two interceptions, hit senior Wyatt Maguire for a 9-yard touchdown.

Love then recovered an onside kick for the Bulldogs, but the Seward defense forced a four-and-out.

Seward senior lineman Jack Gardner said the Bulldogs have good size on the offensive line, but his squad held up the whole game.

“They might be a little taller,” he said. “Our guys are little, but they got big old hearts. They train hard day in and day out.”

Those guys also have speed. Bickling showed that two plays after the four-and-out when he busted loose for a 51-yard scoring run to lead to a 22-6 advantage at the half.

“Getting him on the outside is always nice,” Gilmore said of Bickling. “Especially if you get a few blocks, it’s like a touchdown every time.”

Mallory said Cross, Bickling, Gilmore, Noah Price, Hunter Forshee-Kurtz and Lane Petersen are all players who make plays in space.

“That’s what we’re trying to do, is get them the ball and let them make a play,” Mallory said. “And they did. They made plays when we needed them.”

Two more big plays helped finish off the Bulldogs in the second half — a 34-yard pass from Gilmore to Cross and a 22-yard run from Bickling.

Mallory also pointed out those kids can’t make plays without the line. He said Micah Brueckner filled a hole on the offensive line for this game even though Brueckner is about 175 pounds. Cross moved to tight end.

The Seahawks, who also got interceptions from Forshee-Kurtz and Petersen, an onside kick recovery from Petersen and a fumble recovery from Price, lose seven seniors, including six who have been with Mallory for all four of his years as head coach. That included the two years before nine-man football.

“They had to play as freshmen against big, giant seniors they shouldn’t have had to play against,” Mallory said. “We didn’t have a choice.

“They stepped onto the football field, had to feel that, then had to buy in and continue.”

Gardner said it was worth it.

“It’s everything I could have hoped for,” he said. “Maybe we could have scored a few more touchdowns.

“But this is all I could ask for, to go out with a big bang like this at state.”

Trammell said the wind and injuries limited what the Bulldogs wanted to do on offense.

“I love this team,” he said. “I’m proud of the effort.”

Forced to carry a heavy load due to an injury, senior Oliver Parrish rushed 27 times for 85 yards and also had a fumble recovery.

Trammell, who loses nine seniors, said Ellis was rock-solid at quarterback all season. He also gave credit to senior James Hemphill for playing through a wrist injury, and to senior Wyatt Maguire for doing all the dirty work and anything that’s ever asked of him.

Friday

Seahawks 36, Bulldogs 6

Nik 0 6 0 0 —6

Sew 16 6 8 6 —36

1st Quarter

Sew — Gilmore 1 run (N. Price run), 10:26.

Sew — Cross 25 pass from Gilmore (N. Price run), 8:07.

2nd Quarter

Nik — W. Maguire 9 pass from Ellis (run failed), 5:29.

Sew — Bickling 51 run (run failed), 2:49.

3rd Quarter

Sew — Cross 34 pass from Gilmore (N. Price run), 3:30.

4th Quarter

Sew — Bickling 22 run (run failed), 7:38.

Nik Sew

First downs 8 10

Rushing yards 42-132 44-208

Passing yards 49 142

Comp-att-int 5-13-2 6-13-0

Return yards 37 23

Punts 0 0

Fumbles 3-1 2-1

Penalties 5-25 8-70

INDIVIDUAL STATS

Rushing — Nikiski: Ellis 11-26, O. Parrish 27-85, K. Parrish 4-21. Seward: N. Price 15-74, Gilmore 13-16, Bickling 13-129, Forshee-Kurtz 1-(-9), Schrock 2-(-2).

Passing — Nikiski: Ellis 5-13-2—49. Seward: Gilmore 6-13-0—142.

Receiving — Nikiski: Love 3-35, W. Maguire 2-14. Seward: Cross 3-87, Forshee-Kurtz 2-44, Petersen 1-11.