Senior leads Moose past Warriors in Potato Bowl

WASILLA — The Wasilla Warriors spent the 2015 season chasing the elusive first victory. Friday, Wasilla spent four quarters chasing Ferris.

Palmer senior Chase Ferris.

Ferris rushed for a career-high 316 yards and four touchdowns to lead the Palmer Moose to a 42-6 win over the Warriors in the 37th annual Potato Bowl at Veterans Memorial Field in Wasilla.

“He’s a workhorse. Chase Ferris is the best,” Palmer senior Nick Daniels said after the win, as the Moose celebrated as fireworks filled the sky.

Gorilla Fireworks provided the postgame entertainment, the Wasilla High football program’s annual fireworks show. But Ferris provided the fireworks during the game.

The senior finished with 32 carries and scored four times to help Palmer erase an early deficit. Ferris rushed for scores of 24 yards and 1 yard in the first half, and a 2-yard score in the second half. But the highlight of his day, or maybe even his senior season, came midway through the third quarter. With the ball at the Palmer 10, Moose quarterback Clayon Southwick handed the ball to Ferris. The senior ran toward the right sideline, and made a cut back toward the middle. Ferris sprinted toward open space along the opposite side of the field, hit the left sideline and cruised 90 yards for the score.

“That’s just him being an incredible athlete,” Palmer senior offensive lineman Ryker Carrington said of Ferris. “He’s incredible. I’m so glad to have him as my back.”

Carrington, who helped pave the way for Ferris during the last two seasons, had no shortage of praise for the senior running back.

“It pumps up our (offensive line) so much more to have him. He’s such an incredible athlete. When he can gain 10 more yards after breaking tackles, it makes our life easier,” Carrington said. “He blasts through stuff. It’s awesome. It gives us more confidence as an offensive line. We know he’s going to do his work for us, and he knows we’re going to do our work for him.”

Ferris topped the 1,000-yard mark during the win, and finished his senior season with 1,147 yards on the ground. It’s the second straight year Ferris rushed for more than 1,000. As a junior, Ferris led the state with 1,311 yards rushing.

In two seasons as a varsity running back, Ferris rushed for 2,458 yards and 30 touchdowns. Friday marked his first career 300-yard game. He’s rushed for 200 or more yards in six games.

Ferris also hit 1,147 this year despite missing significant portions of three games early this season. Ferris only played in one quarter during a win over Lathrop, left with an injury after Palmer’s second offensive play during a loss to Colony, and played only the first half during a win over Eagle River.

Seniors Wayne Hershman and Chris Yannayon also rushed for touchdowns during the win. Hershman hit the end zone on a 12-yard run in the first quarter, and Yannayon capped the Palmer victory with a 14-yard score in the fourth quarter.

Wasilla jumped to an early lead in the game when running back Aeron Milliron tossed a 32-yard touchdown to receiver Jaden Walkemeyer on the halfback pass. Daniels said the Moose didn’t let the early score impact them.

“We knew we had to shake it off, go out there and get the job done,” Daniels said.

Nick Alexander led the Warriors with a career-high 77 yards rushing. Milliron added 56 yards. Walkemeyer finished with three catches for 55 yards.

With the loss, Wasilla ended its season with an 0-8 record.

With the victory, Palmer claimed its 27th win in the 37-year history of the Potato Bowl. The Moose also took back the Mayor’s Cup, after losing the trophy with a lopsided defeat to the Warriors last year.

“It feels great. It feels amazing to have that trophy back,” Daniels said.

The 37th Potato Bowl presented a few different storylines. With Palmer not competing in the medium-schools Northern Lights Conference and Wasilla still in the large-schools Railbelt Conference, it was the first nonconference game between the Valley rivals. It’s also the first time since 1993 that neither team in the Potato Bowl will advance to the playoffs.

The Moose were eliminated from postseason contention three weeks ago, but Carrington said his coaches told the Moose there was still plenty to play for.

“It feels incredible to end our season with a win. Even though we didn’t make the playoffs, to win the Potato Bowl and take the trophy back is incredible,” Carrington said. “I’m so proud or our whole team, everybody stepping up. Juniors, sophomores stepping up. We had sophomores starting. To end my senior season with a win is just incredible.”

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.

Wasilla 42, Palmer 6

Oct. 2, Wasilla High School

First quarter:

Wasilla — Walkemeyer 32 from Milliron (pass failed) 6:48.

Palmer — Ferris 24 run (Burton kick) 4:10.

Second quarter:

Palmer — Ferris 1 run (Burton kick) 11:36.

Palmer — Hershman 12 run (Burton kick) 7:32.

Third quarter:

Palmer — Ferris 90 run (Burton kick) 6:10.

Palmer — Ferris 2 run (Burton kick) 5:24.

Fourth quarter:

Palmer — Yannayon 14 run (Burton kick) 0:14.

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS:

RUSHING — Palmer: Ferris 32-316, Yannoyan 6-38, Hershman 4-26, Southwick 3-11, Daniels 2-18, Glynn 1-3, Witz 1-(-2), Farris 1-(-2); Wasilla: Alexander 11-72, Milliron 10-56, Lee 9-22, Uti 7-22, Hongslo 2-3, Sodorff 3-(-2).

PASSING — Palmer: Southwick 1-3-0—15, Ferris 0-1-1—0; Wasilla: Hongslo 4-9-1—27, Milliron 1-3-1—32.

RECEIVING — Palmer: Farris 1-15; Wasila: Walkemeyer 3-55, Sodorff 1-14, Lee 1-(-10).