POULSBO — In their final drive, the Kingston Cavaliers lost their quarterback to an injury, had four penalties against them within the 15 yard-line, and nearly lost possession with a fumble.
But Kingston refused to be denied.
With 28 seconds left in regulation, kicker James Smith put the winning field-goal through the uprights — a rarity in junior high football in its own right — to successfully overcome one of football’s harshest forms of obstacle.
“We knew we’d face adversity,” said Cavs Head Coach Tony Chisholm. “I had a vision this game would come down to (a big play). But I knew we could win.”
Stephan Jones and Brian Cleaver added two running touchdowns for the Cavs, while quarterback Paul Stock ran in two for the Poulsbo Panthers.
Kingston’s winning drive began with a change in offense. In a game that had been fought completely on the ground, Kingston quarterback Steven Kirk went to the air, and completed a 25 yard-pass to Daniel Forrester to put the Cavs within the 20 yard-line.
“We had run all game,” Chisholm said. “Then we took a chance and went for it.”
On the ground, Jones kept pushing the Cavs closer to a touchdown on the drive. But the penalties kept pushing them back. And when Kirk went down, Kingston had its back against the wall.
“We had never even practiced with (Jones) as a back-up.” Chisholm said. “But the players saw that he could step up.”
On fourth down and five yards out, Chisholm brought in Smith with 28 seconds to go and kicked a 22 yarder to put the Cavs up 17-14.
Poulsbo had a chance to score after ensuing kick-off. But an interception deep in Kingston territory — a leaping catch by Evan Henry — sealed the 17-14 win.
Things didn’t quite go as planned early on, with fumbles, interceptions, and missed calls to players from the sideline. But with two touchdowns each for both teams, including one successful extra-point for both teams, and one missed, the game had been knotted at 14.
While Stock ran in two touchdowns, Bubby Detmer and Jaamal Smith were impressive on the ground for the Panthers. But in the end, the team ran out of time.
“We weren’t reacting as well as we should have,” said Panthers Head Coach Dean Maleski. “But we have to take our hats off to Kingston. They played a great game.”
Overall, Chisholm said he was happy with both team’s display of talent they’ll bring to the high school Vikings one day.
“The Poulsbo-Kingston rivalry is a stepping stone to go to North Kitsap,” he said. “I hope the fans realize they were seeing the future of North Kitsap football, and that’s what this is all about. (Poulsbo) blue and (Kingston) red make purple.”
