SK bounces Bellarmine Prep

Ryan Williams is a soft-spoken, unassuming player — off the field, that is.

Opponents only wish his game was as modest on the gridiron.

Williams weaved through defenders on the opening kickoff Friday, outpacing his defenders down the sideline for a 78-yard touchdown.

It was his first kickoff return for a touchdown this season, after three last year.

“It was great blocking by the wedge,” Williams said. “I just saw the hole and went for it.”

The early points proved critical as the Wolves held on for a 21-13 win in their homecoming game against Bellarmine Prep in Narrows League play at Joe Knowles Field.

“It’s huge,” South Kitsap coach D.J. Sigurdson said. “On the very base level, it’s homecoming and you want to play well. Looking down the road, it means a lot because we were both in the same situation.

South (4-2 overall, 3-2 league) seemed poised to rout the Lions in the first quarter when running back Sean Allison finished a 13-play, 73-yard drive with a 2-yard run off tackle for a touchdown.

That score gave the Wolves a 14-0 lead with 4:26 minutes left in the first quarter.

And when the offense wasn’t moving, the defense stepped up.

After stalling at their own 26-yard line, the Wolves punted. But they got the ball back three plays later when Jared Moore intercepted Lucas Schindele and returned it 24 yards to the Lions’ 26.

Four carries — all by Allison — finished with a 1-yard touchdown run to put South up 21-0.

Bellarmine (2-4, 2-3) then took advantage of a turnover when South quarterback Bryan Dorsey was intercepted to start the Lions at their own 46.

Nine plays later, Schindele scored on a 2-yard keeper to bring the score to 21-6 with 27 seconds left in the half.

But mired by mistakes — South was penalized 10 times for 130 yards — the Wolves weren’t able to maintain the momentum they established during the first half.

A pass interference call on third-and-12 at the Wolves’ 26 helped the Lions maintain a drive.

“I didn’t see anything,” Sigurdson said. “But I don’t know — I wasn’t out there. I thought it was a pretty critical situation to make that call.”

They converted a third-and-10 from South’s 13 on a 12-yard run by Schindele.

He then scored on a 1-yard keeper the following play with 5:28 left in the game.

“Overcoming our own mistakes was hard,” Sigurdson said. “We played hard, but we had a tough time overcoming our own mistakes. It’s hard to believe we made that many mistakes.”

Bellarmine had an opportunity to send the game into overtime when it held South to just one first down on the next drive.

The Lions took possession at their own 20 with 3:12 left.

They faced a fourth-and-11 at their own 43 and Schindele’s pass fell incomplete.

But pass interference was called, which gave the Lions a first down at the South 42.

The Lions later converted another fourth-down run by Schindele, who had 78 yards and two touchdowns on 26 carries, and without a timeout remaining, he spiked the ball with 21.7 seconds left.

But his next pass fell incomplete, and he was flushed out of the pocket on third down before linebacker Robert Issa chased him down for a sack as time expired.

“I just went for it,” Issa said. “I had been playing horribly all game, and I finally had my chance for one final play. Considering we won, I would say (it makes up for it).”

The win kept the Wolves near the middle of the 11-team league.

Olympia (5-0), Gig Harbor (4-1), Mount Tahoma (4-1) and Foss (4-2) all have better league records than the Wolves.

South is tied with Central Kitsap (3-2) for fifth place.

The Wolves play at 7 p.m. Friday against Foss at Mount Tahoma.

At South Kitsap 21,

Bellarmine Prep 13

Bellarmine Prep 0 6 0 7 — 13

South Kitsap 14 7 0 0 — 21

First Quarter

SK-Ryan Williams 78 kickoff return (Drew Klopfstein kick), 11:49

SK-Sean Allison 2 run (Klopfstein kick), 4:26

Second Quarter