Week 3 football: Hawks, Warriors head north; Moose host Knights

WASILLA — Participation in small schools sports can create unique opportunities for Alaska student-athletes.

Last season, the Houston High football players spent nearly a week in Southeast Alaska, making stops in Sitka and Juneau.

The trip included flights from Anchorage to Juneau, and a ferry ride from Juneau to Sitka. It was the first time on a commercial airline and a ferry for most of the Hawks.

The 2015 season presents another adventure for the Hawks. This time, the Houston squad is headed 723 air miles north to Barrow, where they will take to the northernmost athletic turf field to face the Whalers Saturday at 1 p.m.

“It’ll be great,” Houston head coach Glenn Nelson said of the trek to Barrow. “Last year we had the huge trip to Sitka and Thunder Mountain. Almost all of these kids were on that trip. They’re excited to go to a new place.”

Saturday’s contest will mark Houston’s second game in Barrow in school history. The first trip came in the 2008 playoffs, a game won by the Whalers. Longtime Houston defensive coordinator Jared Barrett is the coach on the staff who traveled to Barrow in 2008.

The Barrow football program, established in 2006, garnered national attention early in its existence. A writer from ESPN traveled to Barrow to feature the football program. The award-winning piece, which described players in the northernmost prep football program competing on a dirt field, inspired a Florida woman, Cathy Parker, to raise money for the instillation of turf field for the Whalers. Now, Cathy Parker Field, and its bright blue turf, which sits three miles from the northernmost point of land in the United States and about a hundred yards from the Chukchi Sea, is home to the Whalers.

Following Houston’s 45-12 win over Seward last Saturday, Houston senior Noah Griffeth said the players are looking forward to the trip.

“We’re absolutely excited,” Griffeth said. “The experience of going to other places is phenomenal. It’s one of my favorite things about playing.”

But as excited as the Hawks are to make the trip to play on probably the most unique football field in the country, Nelson was quick to note the importance of the game. The Hawks are 2-0 in search of their first 3-0 start since 2008. The Barrow game also marks Houston’s official debut in the small schools Aurora Conference. With only four games on the conference schedule (Barrow, Monroe, Eielson and Valdez), Nelson said the game presents a big moment for the Hawks.

“This is a conference (opponent). They could knock us out of our drive to get to the playoffs,” Nelson said. “That’s where we want to go, and they’re standing in our way for sure.”

Barrow is off to a 0-2 start with losses to Juneau-Douglas (26-20) and Nikiski (42-12). Nelson said the Houston coaching staff watched film of the Barrow-Juneau game, and said the Whalers have some talent at the skill positions and like to throw the football.

Houston has kept it on the ground for the most part during its first two games of the season. During the win over Seward, Houston rushed for 289 yards. Griffeth led the Hawks with 130 yards rushing and three scores. He also returned a kickoff 68 yards for a touchdown. Ben Pelesasa added 125 yards and two scores on the ground.

Colony at Palmer

Friday, 7 p.m.

Palmer, which finished the 2014 season with only a pair of wins, is off to a 2-0 start. The Moose, now members of the medium schools Northern Lights Conference, opened the season with a pair of wins over large schools opponents. Palmer beat Chugiak 28-20 in Week 1 and scored a 35-19 victory over Lathrop last week.

The opponents featured two highly touted quarterbacks in the state, Chugiak’s Ben Stewart and Lathrop’s Glenn Maiden Jr. That trend continues for the Moose tonight as they’ll face Colony senior quarterback Steven Bilafer, a first-team all-state selection last year.

“I’m really glad we played the two teams we played going into Colony,” Palmer head coach Rod Christiansen said. “We’ve seen some things similar to what they’ll do.”

Palmer has done the bulk of its damage on the ground so far. Palmer senior Chase Ferris rushed for 237 yards and three touchdowns in the Week 1 win over Chugiak, and added a pair of scoring runs against Lathrop. Ferris scored on a 63-yard touchdown on Palmer’s first play of the game against the Malemutes.

After Ferris left the game late in the first quarter, sophomore Jeff Glynn stepped in and rushed for three touchdowns, including a 31-yarder in the first half.

First-year Colony head coach Rhett Magner has called for more balance from his offense. During a 45-20 loss to Soldotna last week, Bilafer passed for 201 yards and added a rushing touchdown. Running back Jordan Nero led the Knights with 143 yards rushing and two touchdowns. Nero also added three catches for 73 yards.

Soldotna, which extended its state-record streak to 31 wins, walked off the field with the 25-point victory, but the game was closer through three quarters. SoHi led by only six points at halftime and at the end of the third quarter. Overall, Magner said the Knights will continue to work on their toughness.

“They’re being asked to be a lot tougher than they have in the past,” Magner said. “That’s something I pride myself in 100 percent. Toughness across the board.”

Tonight’s contest will mark the first nonconference game in varsity series history.

Wasilla at Lathrop

Saturday, 7 p.m.

Both teams aim to take a step forward in what’s been a fairly unsuccessful start for the Railbelt Conference. Railbelt teams are a combined 1-6 during the first two weeks of the season.

Wasilla is 0-2 after consecutive nonconference losses to Service and East Anchorage. Lathrop, idle in Week 1, opened its season with a 35-19 loss to Palmer last week.

Wasilla, which graduated about two-dozen players from its 2014 playoff team, led East Anchorage 7-6 at the half last week. East Anchorage scored 14 unanswered points to grab the 20-7 victory.

Wasilla’s new quarterback, sophomore Aeron Milleron, completed 12 passes for 144 yards and a touchdown. Jaden Walkenmeyer, on the receiving end of the touchdown, led Wasilla with two catches for 66 yards. Charles Ward added three catches for 30 yards, and Nick Detherow finished with three catches for 26 yards.

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