Royal bags stags, 56-0, in state playoff football

The game against Deer Park was nearly perfect. Royal suffered only one penalty, for unsportsmanlike conduct, near the end when one Knight spoke unflatteringly of a Stag, and the best quarterback in the state fumbled the ball.

By TED ESCOBAR

The Sun Tribune editor

ROYAL CITY — Royal High School played its best football game of the year last Saturday in Spokane to defeat Deer Park, 56-0, and advance to the state 1A championship game this Saturday.

Royal was unbelievable. It scored on the opening drive and just kept the pedal to the metal. The large Deer Park crowd was faithful to the end but quieted more with each Royal assault.

“That was brutal,” one Stags fan commented as he walked out of the stadium.

It was brutal. The Stags had won 10 games in a row and had stopped SCAC West champ Zillah, 24-7, the week before.

“We were surprised,” Royal defensive end Adrian Trinidad said. “We thought it was going to be a battle to the end.”

The Stags won the coin toss and allowed Royal to receive the opening kickoff. That was the first mistake. It took Royal only 10 plays to cover 75 yards and score.

With fourth-and-5 at the Deer Park 42-yard line after an incomplete third down pass, Jenks connected with Trinidad to the 11. From there, Jenks ran the all around his left end and waltzed into the end zone for a 7-0 lead.

Royal prepared for Deer Park’s answer. From their 24, the Stags advanced the ball 20 yards and punted. Their drive was thwarted by a third-down pass knock-down by linebacker Isaac Ellis,

Royal started from its 24 this time. In four plays, the Knights were in the end zone again. A pass interference penalty for mugging Royal receiver Corbin Christensen on the first long pass of the game put the ball at the Royal 44.

Three plays later, from the 43, Jenks found Ellis over the middle at the 20. He stepped out of a tackle and scored.

The rout was on. Royal scored on its first four possessions as Deer Park players and fans watched in stunned silence.

If the offense was brilliant, then there has to be a better superlative for the defense. It turned in numerous big plays. Ellis’s bat-down was the first.

Deer Park’s second possession ended on a sack by Ramses Gonzalez. It’s third possession ended on a sparkling diving pass bat-down by Jenks. C.J. Quintero blocked the punt out of bounds. The Stags’ fourth possession ended on a Christensen interception.

Deer Park’s fifth possession included a nine-yard sack by Gonzalez. The sixth ended with the clock running out at the half. The seventh possession, to start the third quarter ended with an eight-yard gang sack. The eighth possession ended on fake punt flea-flicker Royal snuffed out.

The ninth possession, against Royal reserves, netted 38 yards. It ended when freshman defensive back Lorenzo Myrick batted down a pass. Deer Park’s final possession, reserves against reserves, netted zero yards.

Royal was so on its game that the reserves, who played the final quarter, outscored the Stags, 7-0. Sophomore quarterback Sawyer Jenks got that one on a 33-yard run around left end.

The rest of the scoring for Royal was:

Jenks pass to Christensen for 29 yards.

Jenks pass to Christensen for 35 yards.

Jenks pass to Christensen for 18 yards.

Danny Cuevas 30-yard run.

Jenks pass to Juan Niebla for 13 yards.

The kicking game was perfect. Sophomore Alonzo Hernandez made eight out of eight extra points. The junior Quintero sailed most of his kickoffs to near the goal line. Niebla ran a punt back 22 yards to the Deer Park 42. Royal’s lone punt, by Quintero sailed high for 34 yards and no return.

Royal threw a balanced attack at the Stags, churning up 423 total yards. Jenks and the running backs got 209 of them on the ground. Jenks passed for 214 on 12 completions in 14 attempts, and he had no interceptions.

Cuevas led the rushing attack with 80 yards on 11 carries. Jenks added 60 on seven runs. Sawyer Jenks picked up 33 yards, Junior Yovani Cruz added 20 and Trinidad had 14.

Christensen led the receiving corps with four catches for 87 yards and three touchdowns. Trinidad caught three passes for 49 yards, Ellis grabbed one for 43 yards, Niebla caught two passes for 21 yards and a score, Quintero caught one pass for eight yards, and Juan Ojeda made one catch for six yards.

While the Royal offense battered the Deer Park defense, the Royal defense was even more dominant. It held the Stags to 83 total yards. Deer Park completed only one of 12 passes for 61 yards. Royal recovered one fumble and intercepted one pass.

Sophomore linebacker Alonzo Hernandez led the way with five solo tackles and four assists. Down lineman Ramses Gonzalez had four solos and one assist, and defensive back Juan Ojeda had four solos.

Ellis recorded 3-and-3, Angel Farias 2-1, Christensen 2-0, Quintero 2-0, Jenks 1-1, Jhonny Garcia 1-3, Eddie Cortez 1-1 and Javier Huitron 1-0.

Juan Hernandez had two assists, and Yovani Cruz, Trinidad, Jack Diaz, Myrick, and Wyatt Allred all had one assist.