Outside school hands Palmer first loss of season

PALMER — The one-two punch of Alek Kacmarcik and Wyatt Smith kept the Palmer Moose on the canvas most of the night Friday, grinding out a combined 350 yards to lead a talented Woodinville, Wash., team to a 42-7 win at Palmer High.

The game, played on a chilly evening that saw persistent rain throughout the day dry up just before kickoff, marked the first time the Moose have hosted an Outside team. What the No. 2-ranked Alaska large schools squad saw was one of the better Washington Class 4A programs.

Kacmarcik, who is being courted by Division I schools, saw little play in the first half, but still finished with a game-high 186 yards rushing, while the speedy Smith gained all of his 164 yards in the first half. With good speed and an aggressive game plan, the Falcons took advantage of five Palmer turnovers, including an interception on the Woodinville 1-yard line that stopped a nine-play Moose drive just short of the end zone.

“We scouted them. We knew what was going on, we just weren’t able to stop it,” longtime Palmer head coach Rod Christiansen said after the game. “They have real good speed, real good running backs, but we’re better than that.”

Asked if he saw anything he liked during the lopsided loss, Christiansen quipped, “Well, I liked them.”

He said Palmer allowed the Falcons to set the tone and made too many mistakes that curbed momentum when the Moose would gain some.

“They’re bigger, more aggressive, a more schooled team that was really getting after it against us,” he said. “And you can’t make mistakes. We had chances. We were driving the ball, then would make a mistake and would fumble the ball or have an interception.”

The Palmer defense also dropped a pair of interception chances, including one that likely would have been a pick-six.

“You have to do the small things,” Christiansen said. “And we have to get better. Right off the bat, we were playing pretty good defense, but couldn’t stop them on third and 3 or third and 5.”

One of the pivotal plays early in the game that helped set the tone for Woodinville was a third down. Leading 7-0 in the first quarter, the Falcons fielded a Palmer punt on their own 27. A pair of quick penalties and a Palmer tackle for loss left the Falcons facing a third-and-26 from their own 10.

Smith ran up the middle for 26 yards to convert the long third down. The play kept what would turn into a 12-play touchdown drive alive, a drive Smith would cap with a 1-yard touchdown plunge to give the Falcons a 14-0 lead.

“We have three goals for the identity of our team,” Woodinville head coach Wayne Maxwell said after the game. “We want to be the most physical team in the state in all three phases of the game, we want to be the most intense team in the state in terms of just working hard and playing hard, and we want to compete at everything we do. If you have that mindset, it blends that style of football.”

Vincent Aumavae led the way for the Palmer offense, gaining 42 yards on 13 carries. He also caught one of quarterback Zeth Merritt’s two completions on the night. Ben Aumavae added 39 yards rushing.

Overall, the Moose managed just 134 yards of offense to Woodinville’s 518. The Falcons didn’t go to the air much Friday evening, but when they did, quarterbacks Will Jack and Mathew Wilson combined to complete 9 of 13 attempts for 128 yards.

‘Great people’

Although the teams were adversaries on the field Friday, Maxwell said he and the Falcons have been impressed with their Alaska visit.

“We were excited to do a travel game and get our boys good experience,” he said. “This is a beautiful town, great people. Both times we’ve been here (for Friday’s game and to scout the Bartlett game), everybody’s been very gracious and friendly. We’re enjoying the time, and I love the surroundings.”

Prior to kickoff, the team visited the Reindeer Farm, and planned Saturday excursions to Matanuska Glacier and the Musk Ox Farm before traveling back to Washington, the coach said.

Woodinville, Wash., 42, Palmer 7

Friday, Palmer High School

First quarter:

Woodinville — Zaback 15 pass from Jack (Zaback kick) 7:50.

Woodinville — Smith 1 run (Zaback kick) 1:11.

Second quarter:

Palmer — Wells 11 pass from Merritt (Inukai kick) 9:04.

Woodinville — Smith 55 run (Zaback kick) 8:49.

Third quarter:

Woodinville — Roland 7 run (Zaback kick) 3:45.

Woodinville — Kacmarcik 47 run (Zaback kick) 1:30.

Fourth quarter:

Woodinville — Sifuentes 34 run (Zaback kick) 7:38.

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS:

RUSHING — Woodinville: Kacmarcik 19-186, Smith 14-164, Sifuentes 4-44, Roland 2-10, Wilson 1-5, Jack 4-(-19); Palmer: V. Aumavae 13-42, B. Aumavae 4-39, N. Aumavae 4-11, Pempeck 4-11, Merritt 7-10, Roth 1-4, Schneider 1-(-1).

PASSING: Woodinville: Smith 5-9-0—92, Wilson 4-4-0—36; Palmer: Merritt 2-5-1—18, V. Aumavae 0-1-1—0.

RECEIVING: Woodinville: Wick 3-70, Accimus 3-25, Zaback 2-18, Hamilton 1-15; Palmer: Wells 1-11, V. Aumavae 1-7.