BY DENNIS BOX AND SHAWN SKAGER
Oh so close.
The Bears came within a whisker of taking down the state’s No. 1 football team, Auburn, Sept. 23 and the game showed the game-by-game improvements on the Tahoma squad.
Tahoma traveled to Auburn Memorial Stadium and lost in the final seconds of the game 31-27.
The loss gives the Bears a 1-3 South Puget Sound League, 4A North Division record. Auburn and Kentlake are both undefeated with 4-0 division records and Kentwood hasn’t lost either, standing at 3-0 in the SPSL North.
The Bears opened the game by holding the Trojans to a three-and-out on their first possession of the game, then recovering a fumble on a botched punt attempt at Auburn’s 19-yard line. Tahoma drew first blood on the ensuing drive, with Niko Madison galloping in from 1-yard out.
Auburn responded in the first quarter with a 27-yard field goal from Aaron McMahon to put the score at 7-3 at the end of the first quarter.
In the second quarter Auburn grabbed a 10-7 lead on a 7-yard Alphonse Wade touchdown run.
In the second half Tahoma continued to pick away at the Trojan defense, with running back Riley Owens busting a 53-yard run to set up a 16-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Dallin Munk to Jason Smith.
Tahoma posted their largest lead of the game in the third quarter with Madison capping a 80-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown to put the score at 21-10.
As good as the Bears played, however, their defense was unable to stop running back Austin Embody on the Trojan’s next possession. Embody found a seam and broke off a 61-yard touchdown run.
Embody added another big run in the third quarter, scoring again on a 74-yard touchdown dash to put Auburn up 24-21.
With upset still on their minds, the Bears replied with a 92-yard kickoff return for a touchdown on the next play, courtesy of Jason Smith. Although the point after failed, the Bears came into the final quarter with a 27-24 lead.
In the fourth quarter Tahoma played ground control, mounting a 78-yard, 10-minute drive that brought them to Auburn’s 1-yard line. The Trojan defense responded by holding the Bears on three straight plays and regained possession with 2:45 left on the clock.
With just 44 seconds left in the game the Trojans found themselves with 99 yards to go. After driving to the Tahoma 35, Trojan quarterback Max Pratt found Alphonse Wade for a 34-yard reception, setting up a 1-yard touchdown run by Pratt to put the Trojans up for the final time at 31-27.
“It would have been real easy to come in here and lay down, but that’s not who these kids are,” Tahoma coach Tony Davis said about his team after the game.
“Tahoma has a great coach,” Embody said. “They just battled. They’re really good at wrapping up and tackling. They’re a bunch of kids that want to play football.”
Embody ended the game with 173 of Auburn’s 343 yards rushing. Wade added 80 yards.
Tahoma was led by Madison with 98 yards on 38 carries.
“We see the improvement and the effort the players are putting in,” Davis said.
The coach said the next step is for his young team to learn how to “finish the game off.”
