LAKE STEVENS — The Eagles have been accustomed to pressuring opponents into mistakes all season.
But the tide turned on Arlington in a 38-19 loss to Bellarmine Prep (Tacoma) in the first round of the Class 4A football state tournament, Nov. 13, at Lake Stevens High School.
“We just had too many mistakes,” said Arlington coach Greg Dailer. “It wasn’t just penalties, but missed blocking assignments, wrong reads and I made a couple of bad calls.”
The miscues started early for the Eagles, as an interception and a fumble — both inside their own 30-yard line — ended their first two drives and resulted in a 10-0 hole. This was quite the opposite of Arlington’s win over Graham-Kapowsin a week ago, where the Eagles forced five turnovers.
For the most part, however, the Eagles’ defense held the Lions to minimal gains, often taking down Bellarmine’s runners right at, or behind, the line of scrimmage and keeping quarterback Sefo Liufaus’ impact at a minimum.
But Bellarmine increased its lead on its following drive on a 42-yard touchdown pass, leaving the Eagles fighting the rain and the clock. Meanwhile, Arlington’s first attempt to get on the board, a field goal, missed from 26 yards out.
The Eagles’ defense held Bellarmine to a three-and-out, and an ensuing fumble on a punt to put Arlington just inside the 20-yard line. Arlington quarterback Skylor Elgarico ran the ball in from 16 yards to make the score 17-7, but the Eagles would trail 24-7 at halftime.
With a renewed focus, the Eagles drove down the field to open the second half, scoring on Elgarico’s second 16-yard scamper to make the score 24-7, but that is where a pair of interceptions would halt any comeback attempt.
The Eagles finished 8-3 on the season with the Wesco North, Western Conference and District 1 titles, a far cry from expectations around the league outside of Arlington.
“This group of seniors was incredible,” said Dailer. “They laid the foundation to get Arlington football back to where it was, when we had solid years in 2005 and the ‘80s.”
With the game’s result almost certain, Bo Brummel scored a touchdown on a 1-yard pass from Colton Hordyk in the fourth quarter.
Brummel, Arlington’s starting tight end, Blake McPherson (quarterback) and Riley Cobb (halfback) all sustained injuries near the end of the season, leaving younger players, such as Elgarico and Hordyk to fill those roles.
“I think we had a lot of guys step up this year and its definitely created depth for us coming back,” said Dailer.
Cobb, who sustained a broken ankle four weeks ago, surprised fans by playing against Bellarmine Prep. He opened Arlington’s first drive with a 21-yard run.
