Junior quarterback Levi Crum threw for 388 yards and six touchdowns and junior Sawyer Racanelli had 152 yards receiving and four touchdown catches as the top-ranked Hockinson Hawks kept rolling along with a 62-28 win over the W.F. West Bearcats in a 2A Evergreen District playoff game at District Stadium in Battle Ground.
While Racanelli had four receiving touchdowns it was his 90-yard kickoff return for a touchdown which may have been the biggest play of the game. Hockinson (10-0), the defending 2A state champions, found themselves down 14-0 early in the first quarter, setting the stage for Racanelli’s kickoff return. The ball came to him on a couple of hops and he darted through a hole in the middle of the field, found his way to the sideline and outraced the Bearcat defenders en route to the end zone.
“We talked and said we didn’t want the season to end this way,” Racanelli said. “It was a reality check that we’re not as good as we think we are”
Hockinson would reel off the game’s next 55 points, including 34 in the second quarter, to win going away. Crum threw for five of his six touchdown passes in the quarter despite W.F. West’s best attempts to stop both Racanelli and junior wide receiver Peyton Brammer.
“They were bracketing me (double coverage) which left Peyton open and then they started to bracket him in the second half,” Racanelli said.
Crum’s 18 completions on the night went to seven different wide receivers.
“We have so many weapons,” Racanelli said “We have so many guys that come off the bench and make plays…they would probably be starting for a lot of other teams.”
The Hockinson defense shrugged off W.F. West’s hot start and held the Bearcats’ Jayden Canoza, who rushed for over 300 yards last week, to one yard on seven carries.
— Paul Williams, for The Columbian
RAINIER BEACH 37, KELSO 27 — Josh Webb rushed for 117 yards and returned a kickoff for a touchdown but it wasn’t enough for the Hilanders in a 3A state qualifying game.
Down 20-7 at halftime, Kelso got within a touchdown when Webb’s 55-yard touchdown run cut the deficit to 20-14.
After the Vikings extended their lead to 27-14, Webb made it 27-21 on his 80-yard kickoff return for a score in the fourth quarter.
Rainier Beach put the game away on Ja’mezz Johnson’s 70-yard touchdown reception.
Marshall Coleman passed for 115 yards and rushed for 71 for Kelso.
BLACK HILLS 45, COLUMBIA RIVER 7 — Jarrett Seelbinder scored Columbia River’s only touchdown on a 24-yard run in the fourth quarter as the Chieftains saw their season ended by Black Hills for a second consecutive season.
Sophomore Jaden Cote threw four touchdown passes and Taylor Simmons rushed for two other scores for the Wolves.
LINCOLN 52, PRAIRIE 6 — The Falcons’ season ended with a 3A state qualifying game loss in Tacoma.
