Odessa-Harrington runs away from ACH in 1B state quarterfinals
Rodney Harwood/Columbia Basin Herald Odessa-Harrington defensive back Gaven Elder (3) is called for a horse collar tackle trying to bringdown Almira/Coulee-Hartline receiver Hayden Loomis during Saturday’s Class 1B state quarterfinal game at Gonzaga Prep in Spokane.
SPOKANE — Almira/Coulee-Hartline senior Kameron Goetz stood in the middle of a dejected Warrior locker room following Saturday’s 60-28 loss to Odessa-Harrington in the Class 1B state quarterfinals.
Some of his teammates were sitting on the floor, slumped against the lockers. Others standing in a daze. “It is my honor and my privilege to play with you,” the senior captain said following his final high school football game. “I want to thank each and every one of you for allowing me to be a part of this team.”
It wasn’t what the defending state champions had in mind when they took the field Saturday night at Gonzaga Prep in Spokane. ACH (10-2) took the early 14-0 lead with Maguire Isaak touchdown passes to Hayden Loomis and Payton Nielsen. They led through the first nine minutes, but Odessa-Harrington scored 44 unanswered points to advance to the semifinals.
“They’re just a good, physical football team and I think we ran out of steam,” said ACH coach Brandon Walsh, whose only two losses of the season came at the hands of the Titans. “This is a special group of kids. We asked a lot of young guys to do things they’ve never done before and they stepped up and did a wonderful job for us.
“This game itself hurts, but I’ve never been more proud of any team I’ve coached. I was proud of the way they never gave up tonight.” Unless you win the final game of the season, you’re going to walk away feeling like you could have done more. But it was the second straight season the Warriors have gone deep into the 1B state playoffs. Last year, they won the championship. This year they finished as one of the top eight teams.
Senior linebacker Damian Maes-Leander broke both the bones in his wrist in the fourth game of the season. He missed three games, but came back for the stretch run playing with a cast. He wasn’t going to be denied the opportunity to finish what he started with a group of guys that’s more of a brotherhood than a team.
“I’m proud to be a part of this for the last four years,” Maes-Leander said. “This is one of the best seasons we’ve had, with exception of last year. It’s good to make it to the quarterfinals. Not many teams can say they're one of the top eight teams in the state.”
Odessa-Harrington’s Gaven Elder scored four touchdowns in the second half, including a pick six and 45-yard return to make it 52-14 with 6:41 remaining. Even with the inevitable looming, the Warriors found a little something to show the defending champions were going down swinging.
Isaak broke off a 14-yard touchdown run with 5:11 left. The ACH sophomore then rolled to his right and found Loomis for a 65-yard touchdown pass for the final score with time ticking down on their season.
“This shows we have character and we’re willing to fight for everything,” Nielsen said. “We just didn’t roll over. We played our butts off.
“Playing on this team builds friendships and character between teammates. You see guys out there fighting when most teams would give in. We were giving it one last block, one last tackle. We played with heart to the very end.”
Score by qaurters
ACH 14 0 0 14 - 28
Odessa 6 14 16 24 - 60
Scoring summary
ACH - Hayden Loomis 6 pass from Maguire Isaak (pass fails), 9:30
ACH - Payton Nielsen 15 pass from Issak (Gage Burchill pass from Isaak), 6:37
O - Colton Hunt 28 run (pass fails), 3:28
O - Hunt 6 run (pass fails), 6:29
O - Sage Elder 6 pass from Hunt (Hunt run), :12
O - Gaven Elder (Hunt run), 11:27
O - Hunt 1 run (Hunt run), 3:14
O - Gaven Elder 18 run (Gaven Elder run), 9:58
O - Gaven Elder 45 pass interception (Hunt run), 6:41
ACH - Isaak 14 run (pass fails), 5:11
O - Gaven Elder 7 run (Gaven Elder run), 1:58
ACH - Loomis 65 pass from Isaak (Isaak run), 1:21