QUILCENE — Quarterback Holdem Elkins put in his best game of the year, throwing for 232 yards and four touchowns as the Rangers took the inside track to the Sea-Tac 1B title with a 50-18 win over Rainier Christian.
Rangers’ coach Trey Beathard thought that Tacoma Baptist and Rainier Christian would be the two biggest challenges for his team this season. The Rangers passed that test with flying colors, beating the two squads by a combined 100-52 the past two weeks.
Quilcene rides the legs of running back Olin Reynolds much of the time, but in Saturday’s game, Elkins provided much of the fireworks. Elkins threw touchdown passes of 50 and 30 yards to Zach Budnek in the first quarter, then tacked on TD passes and two and 34 yards as the Rangers built up a lead of 30-6. After an Reynolds 15-run touchdown run, Elkins even added a six-yard TD run of his own to make it 44-6 just before the end of the first half.
Elkins finished the game passing 9 for 10 for an average of 23.2 yards per attempt.
In the second half, holding on to a huge lead, the Rangers cruised, letting all of their players get in the game.
“They turned it up a little. I feel good about where they are,” said Beathard.
Beathard said that while a league title is obviously a goal, a bigger goal is getting better.
“You want to win, but you also want to keep improving and be prepared for the playoffs,” he said.
Reynolds only ran the ball eight times, but still managed to gain 110 yards on the ground. Bishop Budnek had 123 yards from scrimmage as he ran five times for 52 yards and caught four passes for 71 yards. Zach Budnek ended with three catches for 106 yards. Reynolds also had a 46-yard catch.
Zach Budnek also had 15 tackles on defense with a sack, while Robert Comstrock III had 10 tackles and three sacks. Dustin Hughes had eight tackles and a fumble recovery. Coach Trey Beathard said Ben Bruner also played a good game defensively covering Rainier Christian’s best receiver and holding him to one catch.
Quilcene (2-0, 6-0) is actually tied for first in the Sea-Tac 1B League with Evergreen Lutheran, but the Rangers beat the Eagles handily in a preleague game. They meet again on Oct. 27.
The Rangers next game will be at home against Seattle Lutheran (0-2, 0-3) at 1 p.m. Saturday.
Quilcene 50, Rainier Christian 18
RC 6 6 0 0 — 18
Quilcene 22 22 6 0 — 50
First Quarter
Q—Z. Budnek 50 pass from Elkins (Raynolds run)
Q—Z. Budneck 30 pass from Elkins (Reynolds PAT)
Q—B. Budnek 2 yard pass from Elkins (PAT failed)
Second Quarter
Q—B. Budnek 34 pass from Elkins (Dugdale PAT)
Q—Reynolds 15 run (PAT failed)
Q—Elkins 6 run (Comstock pass from Elkins)
Third Quarter
Q—Reynolds 53 run (PAT failed)
Individual Stats
Rushing—Q: Reynolds 8-110; B. Budnek 5-52, Dugdale 10-24, Elkins 3-(-6), Bruner 1-6, Miller 4(-1), Kieffer 1(-2), Williams 2(-7).
Passing—Q: Elkins 9-10-232, 4 TDs.
Receiving—Q: Z. Budnek 3-106, B. Budnek 4-71, Reynolds 1-46, Comstock 1-9.
Bellevue Christian 54, Port Townsend 38
BELLEVUE — The Redhawks gained more than 360 yards on offense and outscored Bellevue Christian 38-23 in the first, third and fourth quarters.
But, a disastrous second quarter was Port Townsend’s undoing as the Vikings blitzed the Redhawks for 31 unanswered points off three turnovers and two bad punt snaps en route to a 54-38 win.
Those turnovers and turnover on downs gave Bellevue Christian possession inside the 29-yard line on five possessions in a row.
“We didn’t make it hard on them. And there were too many missed tackles,” said coach Patrick Gaffney.
Stil Gaffney said he as impressed with how the Redhawks responded in the second half, outscoring the Vikings 30-16 in the second to make them sweat.
“I was really proud of the way we played in the second half. We played with a lot more heart,” Gaffney said.
In addition to the three turnovers, the Redhawks were forced to play without one of their key players, Nico Winegar, a fullback and starting defensive back, who was out hurt.
“That was a pretty big loss,” Gaffney said.
Noa Montoya ran 19 times for 120 yards and a touchdown while Dylan Tracer ran 13 times for 122 yards, including a 58-yard TD run. The Vikings were able to contain the Redhawks’ Jerome Reaux Jr., who only gained three yards on four carries.
Tracer finished the day with three touchdowns, his other scores coming on a 1-yard run and a 13-yard catch.
Montoya also threw for 123 yards a two touchdowns, but had a mixed day throwing it. He went 14 for 39 with three interceptions.
Murphy Klemann also had a 13-yard touchdown reception, while Tracer and Riley Yackulic each caught five passes.
The loss was Port Townsend’s first in Nisqually 1A/Olympic 1A play as the Redhawks fell into a three-way tie for second place. It was also their first loss since Sept. 14.
Port Townsend (2-1, 2-4) next plays a nonleague game at Concrete (2-0, 2-4) at 7 p.m. Friday.
Bellevue Christian 54, Port Townsend 38
PT 8 0 16 14 — 38
BC 7 31 7 9 — 54
First Quarter
PT—Klemann 13 pass from Montoya (Coggins pass from Montoya)
Third Quarter
PT—Montoya 19 run (Klemann pass from Montoya)
PT—Tracer 1 run (Yackulic pass from Montoya)
Fourth Quarter
PT—Tracer 58 run (PAT failed)
PT—Tracer pass from Montoya (Tracer pass from Montoya)
Individual Stats
Rushing—PT: Montoya 19-120, Tracer 13-122, Reaux 4-3.
Passing—PT: Montoya 14-39-123 2TDs 3INTs.
Receiving—PT: Reaux 1-17, Tracer 5-28, Coggins 1-3, Yackulic 5-59, Klemann 2-16.
