Moses Lake drops game to Eisenhower

MOSES LAKE - It was a crisp autumn evening when the Cadets came strolling into town Friday, looking to do battle with the Chiefs for sole possession of second place in the CBBN league standings.

Both teams, reminiscent of two prize-fighters, stood toe-to-toe trading punches all night long as Moses Lake and Eisenhower drove the length of the field to put points on the board.

Unfortunately, the Cadets got in the last blow and the Chiefs came up seven points short on the scorecard, losing 21-14 on senior night.

The loss marks the teams' third in a row and lands Moses Lake in third place with three games left in the regular season.

"The kids really played their hearts out and didn't let up until the final whistle sounded," coach Todd Griffith said. "But we had too many costly penalties, and you if you want to win football games in this league, you can't make those kind of mistakes."

It didn't take long for a crooked number to be racked up on the scoreboard as seven points were scored 80 seconds into the game.

Eisenhower won the coin toss and elected to defer to the second half. The opening kick was downed in the end zone for a touch back, giving the Chiefs the ball at Moses Lake 20-yard line to start the game.

The Chiefs rushed the ball for-1yard on their first two plays. Facing third down and 11 yards to gain, a pass by quarterback Justyn Simmons was intercepted and returned for a Cadet touchdown (PAT) and a 7-0 lead.

"We dug ourselves a hole right of the bat," Griffith said. "But even after the pick-six, I thought we'd win the game."

The ensuing kickoff by Eisenhower bounced out of bounds, giving the Chiefs their second possession at the Moses Lake 35. The Chiefs, looking to even things up on the scoreboard, went on a 4-minute, 65-yard drive, capped off by a Simmons 4-yard touchdown run (PAT) to do just that, 7-7.

"I was really proud of the way the kids bounced back after the quick score," Griffith said. "I've said it all year long ... these kids are resilient ... there is no quit in them."

The Cadets initial offensive possession of the game began at the Eisenhower 34.

Utilizing the fast pace of a no huddle offense, the Cadets marched 66 yards in two and a half minutes to retake the lead on a 6-yard run by Branden Curtis (PAT), 14-7.

"Eisenhower came out with a different look (from the previous game) and we didn't quite know how to handle it at first," Griffith said. "But we did a good job of making adjustments on the field and were able to slow them down and keep them in check for the most part."

Trino Rubio returned the ensuing kick to the Moses Lake 17. But the Chiefs went three and out and had to punt.

Eisenhower took over at the Moses Lake 48 and moved the ball to the Chiefs 8-yard line with 1:34 left in the quarter.

A stellar defensive stand by Moses Lake backed the Cadets to the 19. On third and goal, Cameron Law sacked quarterback Anthony King for a 12-yard loss and moved Eisenhower out of field goal range as the quarter came to an end.

In surprise move, the Cadets decided to go for it instead of punting the ball and pinning the Chiefs deep in their own territory. The move backfired and Eisenhower turned the ball over on downs at the Moses Lake 39.

It also lit a fire to the Chiefs offense as Moses Lake took advantage of the defensive spark and drove the rock 61 yards, capped off by a 21-yard TD pitch and catch from Simmons to Rubio (PAT) to even the score 14-14 with nine minutes left in the second quarter.

"That was a big stop for us," Griffith said. "We were able to take advantage of the momentum it gave us and get back in the game."

The score held up through intermission as the teams went into the locker room tied at the half.

After exchanging punts to begin the third quarter of play, Eisenhower drove 36 yards in two minutes to go up 21-14 on a TD by Ridge Harmon (PAT).

Colton Kelly returned the Cadet kick to the Chiefs 26. After moving the ball to the Eisenhower 34, Moses Lake went for it on fourth and one, but failed to convert and turned it over to the Cadets.

Eisenhower gained one first down, but had to punt to ball back to the Chiefs. Moses Lake took over at the 14. A 36-yard pass from Simmons to Brett Moser put the ball at mid-field as the quarter came to an end.

The Chiefs drove the pigskin to the Cadet 17 to start the final 12 minutes of action. But the drive stalled and the team had to settle for a field goal attempt to try and close the gap to four points. The kick was wide left and the ball went back Eisenhower with nine minutes left in the game.

The Cadets took possession of the ball at the Chiefs 27 and drove it to the Moses Lake 36. Eisenhower fumbled on the next play and Renwil Bacat recovered the ball with 6:30 left on the clock.

But that's when the wheels started to fall off for the Chiefs.

Instead of taking advantages of the turnover Moses Lake shot itself in the foot three times as a holding and unsportsmanlike penalty nullified two first downs, and a Simmons sack put the Chiefs in a fourth and 41 at the Moses Lake 5-yard line.

A 41-yard Easton Baker punt gave the Cadets possession at the Chiefs 46 with three minutes left.

Moses Lake's defense held Eisenhower to no gain on two rushing attempts, and then called a quick time out to conserve time, as the Cadets were content with letting it tic away. The Chiefs were hoping to prevent a first down and force Eisenhower to punt, but the Cadets quarterback Anthony King scrambled for 19 yards to the Moses Lake 35.

The Chiefs had to burn their final two time outs on the drive, but an illegal procedure penalty on the Cadets on fourth and two yards to gain, stopped the clock with 55 seconds left in the game.

It appeared as though Moses Lake had held and would get the ball back after an Eisenhower punt.

But the Chiefs hopes were dashed as Moses Lake was whistled for a face mask penalty, which gave the Cadets a first down to seal the victory for Eisenhower.

The loss to the Cadets drops Moses Lake to 3-3 in conference play and puts the team on the outside looking as the Chiefs need to win out on the road and get some help to qualify for postseason play.

Moses Lake is back on the gridiron Friday when the Chiefs travel to Wenatchee to take on the Panthers.

"Wenatchee is playing a lot better now after taking a dip the last few games," Griffith said. "We do need help to make the playoffs, but we have to take care of business Friday or it won't matter."