Fans at Gary Moore Stadium on the campus of Issaquah (Wash.) High School were treated to a thriller on Friday night as the Mount Si Wildcats defeated the host Eagles 28-20.
The game hung in the balances, with Issaquah even holding a halftime lead, until late in the 4th quarter when the Wildcats were able to come up big in key moments to steal the victory on the road. One player who kept stepping up time and time again, on both sides of the ball for the Wildcats was senior Beau Shain.
If there was a play to be made on Friday night, Shain was making it. He caught two touchdown passes, one of which was the eventual game-winner, and in the fourth quarter when Issaquah was driving to try and regain the lead he had a fumble recovery and an INT to end consecutive Eagle drives.
“It was such a great feeling [to catch the go ahead score]. The play was called towards me and the ball came my way, I am just glad it went our way, ” Shain told NEI following the win.
“The plays just came my and I did what I had to,” Shain said referencing his big plays defensively.
Mount Si head coach Charlie Kinnune said before the game that the Wildcats would need to run the ball well if they were going to come away with the win, and when things got tight in the 4th, running back Bailey Takacs took over the game helping clinch the victory.
WR Trevor Daniels also made some remarkable catches on the night, and linemen Chris Schlicting and Bradly Christensen had big games on both sides of the trenches.
But the play of Shain was the story of the game for Kinnune. “Unbelievable. He’s got to be the athlete of the week for anybody that’s in this business,” Kinnune said. “Two touchdowns, a fumble recovery, an interception, numerous tackles – he’s a senior, he led the league in interceptions last year, and he’s just a big play type kid.”
In a close game of this nature, there are also many bright spots for the team that comes up short, and Issaquah had a handful of them.
Senior running back Jack Gellatly continues to look like one of the top ball-carriers in the state, with a rare combination of power and speed. QB Jack Neary showed flashes of what he is capable of when given time to throw, and was able to make some really nice plays on the night. Senior WR’s Tommy Nelson and Derek Chapman both played well, with Nelson hauling in several catches and Chapman returning a kickoff for a touchdown in response to a Mount Si score.
The brightest spot of all for the Eagles was probably the play of All-KingCo defensive lineman Jacob Peterson, who totaled four sacks on the night after missing last week’s season-opener with an injury.
The effort from numerous Eagles just wasn’t enough to overcome the playmaking ability of Shain.
Shain, however, was already looking towards next week’s showdown with Juanita by the time Mount Si was heading to the bus. “We just need to have a great week of practice, put in the film work, and then go out and handle things on Friday night,” he said.
