SEQUIM — Sequim senior quarterback Miguel Moroles could hardly bear watching the game’s most pivotal play as he kneeled on the sideline at the Wolves 30-yard line.
His teammates had stiffened in the second half on defense, but with a precarious 27-19 advantage and just more than 2 minutes left on the clock, the Wolves defense was faced with stopping a fourth-and-2 from their own 15-yard line.
Eventually, his curiosity got the better of him, and as Moroles peeked his head around a host of Wolves on the sidelines, he saw his teammates rise to the occasion, stopping Kingston running back Garrett Rouser inches shy of the first-down mark for a turnover on downs.
“So many emotions right there,” Moroles said. “I didn’t really want to watch but I couldn’t stop myself.”
And when the chain crew signaled the Buccaneers were short and it was Sequim ball?
“It felt amazing,” Moroles said.
With 2 minutes still on the clock, Moroles had to temper those emotions, at least temporarily.
The Wolves ran three straight running plays for little yardage, resulting in a fourth-and-4 from their own 21 with 33.6 seconds left.
Sequim coach Erik Wiker instructed Moroles to try and draw Kingston offsides with a hard count for an offside penalty.
The strategy worked, and the Wolves (1-0, 3-0) were able to go into victory formation and drain the rest of the clock.
Moroles rushed for a 40-yard touchdown to open the scoring just 1:28 into the contest.
Kingston answered with a 16-play, 80-yard drive that chewed up 5:33 of the first quarter.
Bucs running back Garrett Rouser did most of the damage on the drive, rushing seven times for 43 yards, including a 5-yard touchdown run.
Rouser had 12 rushes for 74 yards in the first half and totaled 22 carries for 101 yards on the game.
The Wolves regrouped, with Moroles taking to the air for three crucial completions on third downs on the next drive.
He first tallied a 24-yard strike to Ethan Richmond on third-and-9 from their own 30-yard line, followed by a 20-yard screen pass to Bailey Earley on third-and 3 from the Kingston 45.
The 6-foot-4-inch Earley corralled a high pass for another 20-yard connection on third-and-7 that put Sequim on the doorstep at the Kingston 2-yard line.
Moroles then took the ball across for his second score and a 14-7 lead early in the second quarter.
The Bucs then rattled off nine straight points to take a 16-14 lead at halftime.
Kingston broke through and blocked an Adrian Espinoza punt, with the ball trickling through the end zone for a safety.
On the next drive, quarterback Jack Colletto kept the ball on a zone read play for a touchdown from 4 yards out.
During the break, Wiker challenged his team to shake off what he had felt was a flat first-half performance.
“My halftime speech was basically, ‘I can’t, you guys have to,’ and that’s hard to turn on when you are so flat in the first half,” Wiker said.
“More than anything, attitude is everything and emotion is everything [in high school football].”
The Wolves received a boost from freshman running back Gavin Velarde on both of their third-quarter scoring drives.
He got to the corner on a 19-yard rush to move Sequim close to midfield, and then Moroles took over, finding Ian Dennis on a 13-yard crossing route on a third-and-7 from the Kingston 46 for a first down.
A play later, Moroles showed his speed, slaloming between Buccaneers defenders and scampering in for a 20-yard score with a dive over the pylon.
On the Wolves’ next drive, Velarde had another 19-yard gain, this time on a third-and-2 from the Sequim 49.
He ended up with six rushes for 56 yards and another 91 yards on kick returns.
“I’ve told him he’s the Percy Harvin of our team,” Wiker said.
“He’s a situational guy. He comes in and is not an every-down back . . . but he’s rested and he’s a good football player — not a track guy, he’s a fast football player.
“A couple of those plays, he’s the only guy on the team who could have gotten us those yards. Well, Miguel may have been able to get them but Miguel can’t hand off to Miguel.”
Moroles found Ian Dennis twice on that drive, for a 16-yard gain and a 5-yard touchdown pass, for a 27-16 lead with 1:16 to play in the third.
Dennis finished with five grabs for 81 yards.
After forcing a Kingston three-and-out, Moroles made his one mistake of the night, an interception by the Bucaneers’ Alex Barrett at midfield.
He finished the night 13 for 17 for 156 yards, a touchdown and the interception.
Moroles also rushed 15 times for 78 yards and the three scores.
Kingston’s drive stalled at the Sequim 11, and Kingston’s Ryan Fick kicked a 28-yard field goal to make it 27-19 with 7:51 to go in the game.
The Wolves then went three-and-out and gave the Bucs the ball at midfield.
Kingston crept downfield on short gains, reaching the Sequim 24 with a first down.
Two passes netted 3 yards, and a 5-yard Rouser rush set up the crucial fourth-down stop.
Rouser took the ball on a counter to the weak side, and appeared to come close to the pickup on a 2-yard gain.
The measurement was just shy of the marker and Sequim’s turnaround from last year’s winless season moved forward.
“You can tell all the guys in the locker room are together,” Moroles said.
“There’s more charisma and we believe we can compete with anybody.”
That belief will be tested in a big way Friday in a visit to seventh-ranked North Kitsap (0-0, 3-0).
Sequim 27, Kingston 19
Kingston 7 9 0 3— 19
Sequim 7 7 14 0— 27
First Quarter
S—Moroles 40 run (Espinoza kick) 10:32
K—Rouser 5 run (Fick kick) 1:37
Second Quarter
S—Moroles 2 run (Espinoza kick) 10:35
K—Safety (Blocked punt through end zone) 6:30
K—Colletto 4 run (Fick kick)
Third Quarter
S—Moroles 20 run (botched snap no good) 5:11
S—Dennis 5 pass from Moroles (Espinoza kick) 1:16
Fourth Quarter
K—Fick 28 field goal
Individual Stats
Rushing— S: Moroles 15-78, Velarde 6-56, Richmond 5-16, Jones 9-(-3); K: Rouser 22-101, Barrett 4-12, Colletto 9-(-7).
Passing—S: Moroles 13-17-1, 156. K: Colletto 16-30-0, 177.
Receiving—S: Dennis 5-81, Earley 6-39, Richmond 1-24, Lott 1-12. K: English 4-69, Larson 5-49, Shaw 2-36, Barrett 1-11, Ikes 3-7, Draper 1-5, Rouser 1-0.
________
Sports reporter Michael Carman can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5152 or at mcarman@peninsuladailynews.com.
