BOTHELL — Go for the tie, or go for the win?
It’s the playoffs, and Camas coach Jon Eagle said the choice was elementary Saturday with his team trailing by one pending the point-after try against Bothell.
Quarterback Jake Blair’s 8-yard touchdown run pulled Camas within 36-35 with 23 seconds remaining.
The sideline discussion in the timeout was short: play for the win.
“I”d do it 100 times again,” Eagle said. “… What an epic finish it would’ve been.”
It definitely would have. Instead, sophomore Jacques Birdwell got brought down at the line of scrimmage after the handoff on the left side. That sealed Bothell’s 36-35 state preliminary round win at Pop Keeney Stadium when it successfully recovered the onside kick and ran out the clock.
The win sends Bothell (8-2) into the 4A state playoffs’ round of 16 with its opponent to be determined Sunday by the WIAA’s new state playoff seeding committee. Camas’ season ends at 5-5 and snaps a eight-year state playoff streak. All five of Camas’ losses were by a combined 18 points.
Eagle said postgame the kicking game had no bearing on his decision to attempt the two-point conversion over kicking the PAT. The point-after try got blocked on Camas’ previous series that that the game at 29, and kicker Bryce Leighton drilled a 47-yard field goal as the first-half clock expired.
What did play a big part, though, was the positive offensive momentum Camas generated its final two drives.
That meant coming back from a one-score deficit after leading by as much as 20-6.
Highlighted by quarterback Erik Bainter (18 of 24 for 239 yards), Riley Morrison (11 catches for 145 yards) and Christian Galvan (157 yards rushing), the Cougars scored 13 third-quarter points. Its defense also shut out Camas in the third to build a 29-23 lead.
The Papermakers have been a different team the past few weeks than they were even in early October. Injuries meant player personnel shifting in recent games from Blair becoming the permanent starter at quarterback to Birdsell, a sophomore, gaining a bulk of varsity carries in addition to senior wideout Shane Jamison transitioning to the backfield, and Leighton handling kicking and punting duties.
That’s Camas football, senior Luc Sturbelle said, when it comes to depth and talent.
“All those guys are going to do great coming up in the next few years,” he said. “They stepped up and balled out. They id all that we could ask for.”
Saturday, a heavy dose of Jamison (18 carries, 39 yards) and Birdsell (21 carries, game-high 176 yards) powered the offense. Camas’ largest lead was 20-6 in the first half with rushing touchdowns from Jamison and Birdsell.
Birdsell’s breakout game came Saturday. Of the sophomore’s 21 carries, 11 came on the final two scoring drives. His 9-yard touchdown run tied it at 29 with 7 minutes, 53 seconds left in the game, then rushed five times when Camas’ final drive started at its own 37 with 5:39 remaining.
Sturbelle caught seven passes for 49 yards, including a first-down catch on fourth-and-4 that set up first and goal for Camas on its final drive.
Camas’ final drive took 5:13 off the clock, going 63 yards on 12 plays. Facing third and 8, Blair’s touchdown run on the left side made it 36-35 Bothell.
Confidence couldn’t have been higher, Blair said, the way Camas’ offense was driving even if it didn’t get the end result it wanted
“I felt we left it all out on the field,” he said.
—
BOTHELL 36, CAMAS 35
Camas 6 17 0 12 -35
Bothell 0 13 13 10 -36
First quarter
C — Shane Jamison 1 run (kick blocked)
Second quarter
C — Jamison 1 run (Bryce Leighton kick)
B — Christian Galvin 4 run (kick failed)
C — Jacques Birdsell 6 run (Leighton kick)
B — Galvan 8 pass from Erik Bainter (Mason Locklane kick)
C — Leighton 47 FG
Third quarter
B — Riley Morrison 33 pass from Bainter (Locklane kick)
B — Bainter 1 run (kick failed)
Fourth quarter
B — Locklane 23 FG
C — Birdsell 9 run (kick failed)
B — Morrison 8 run (Locklane kick)
C — Jake Blair 8 run (run failed)
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — Bothell: Christian Galvan 17-157, Erik Bainter 4-22, Brandon Gliege 4-10, Ryan Metz 3-10, Riley Morrison 1-6; Camas: Jacques Birdsell 21-176, Shane Jamison 18-39, Jake Blair 9-39, Tyler Forner 4-10.
PASSING — Bothell: Erik Bainter 18-24-1-239; Camas: Jake Blair 10-18-1-79.
RECEIVING — Bothell: Riley Morrison 11-145, Christian Galvan 4-52, Leon Johnson 3-36; Camas: Luc Sturbelle 7-47, Jackson Clemmer 1-12, Joey Schnell 1-10, Shane Jamison 1-10.
