Houston is playoff-bound; Soptick sets school rushing mark

HOUSTON — It took a record-setting performance by Waylon Soptick to help the Houston Hawks do something they haven’t done since 2008 — make the playoffs.

The senior tailback rushed for 208 yards on 40 carries Friday in an 18-6 win over the Homer Mariners, breaking the school’s single-season rushing record. He came into the game 203 yards shy of the 1,346 yards Jeff Nagel ran for in 1999. Soptick now sits at 1,351 with at least one game left to play.

“It was beautiful,” Soptick said about winning, advancing to the playoffs and breaking the record. “I can’t thank my line enough.”

While the countdown to the record had the Houston homecoming crowd yelling loud and proud, some of the loudest noise was made on the field by an opportunistic Hawks defense. Houston (3-5) held the Mariners (2-6) to just 19 yards rushing and forced six Homer turnovers, three fumbles and three interceptions.

The teams went into Friday’s game tied with 1-3 records in Northern Lights Conference play and were battling for the conference’s fourth and final playoff spot. The win also snapped a 5-game losing streak for the Hawks.

Leading the way for the Houston defense was senior linebacker Matt Barron, who recovered a pair of Mariner fumbles. The first came in the second quarter, when Barron literally ripped the ball out of Homer receiver David Jack Woo’s hands and returned it to the Mariners 11 yard line. Four After three attempts to get into the end zone, Soptick gave the Hawks a 3-0 lead with a 29-yard field goal.

“Well, my teammate had him by the ankles and I just came in and cleaned it up,” Barron said, adding his second fumble recover in the second half came “also because of my teammates.”

Homer answered with their best drive of the game, taking the ball 64 yards in six plays, more than half on a 35-yard touchdown strike from quarterback Sheldon Hull to Josh Fisk. The 2-point conversion failed and the Mariners held their only lead of the game, 6-3.

It would be a short-lived lead. Soptick scored the first of his two touchdowns on a 1-yard plunge and scored the 2-point conversion to give the Hawks an 11-3 halftime lead.

After forcing a Homer 3-and-out on their first drive of the second half, Soptick found the end zone again with a 37-yard touchdown scamper that would give the Hawks their final 18-6 lead.

For seniors like Soptick, Barron and quarterback Nai Saechao, who returned to the field after missing several games with a head injury, this is the first time they’ve played on a Houston team that’s advanced to the playoffs.

“It’s huge for us,” Soptick said about what that means for the program.

Barron said he feels the Hawks go into their playoff game against the Soldotna Stars on a high note.

“I feel like the team played great tonight,” he said. “I love my team and I’m glad we ended on a good note. We’re going to come at Soldotna with all we got.”

For Saechao, getting back on the field felt good, and so did ending his senior season at home with a win.

“Oh man, it felt great just coming back and getting a W and the team getting to the playoffs, it just feels amazing,” he said.

As for the playoffs, “just dream big,” Saechao said. “We’re going to take the shot we’ve been given and make the best of it.”

To the wire

Soptick finished with Houston’s all-time single-season rushing mark, but it took every carry he could muster. Needing 204 yards on the night to break the record, he was at 203 yards with less than a minute remaining. Finally, at the 48-second mark, his 5-yard grind off-tackle ended the game and his run for the title.

Houston 18, Homer 6

Friday, Houston High School

First quarter:

No scoring

Section quarter:

Houston — Soptick 29 field goal 5:45.

Homer — Fisk 35 pass from Hutt (2-point failed) 2:15.

Houston — Soptick 1 run (Soptick 2-point) 1:05.

Third quarter:

Houston — Spotick 37 run (Soptick kick) 8:48.

Fourth quarter:

No scoring

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING — Houston: Soptick 40-208, Ruta 1-18, N. Saechao 7-(-27); Homer: Fisk 9-17, Cardoza 3-23, McKenna 1-0, Hutt 12-(-31).

PASSING — Houston: N. Saechao 6-8-0—90; Homer: Hutt 9-18-3—136.

RECEIVING — Houston: Ruta 4-15, Kleewein 1-38, Ross 1-37; Homer: Fisk 3-58, Cardoza 3-32, Woo 3-46.