BAINBRIDGE BAGS BIG HOMECOMING VICTORY: Spartans sail to season’s first football win against Ingraham

Published 10:00 am Friday, October 2, 2015

Good things come to those who wait.

But it really helps if you spend the interim working on your rushing game.

Bouncing back from a disappointing early season losing streak, the Bainbridge High varsity football team trounced the visiting Ingraham Rams during Friday’s homecoming game, claiming their first win of the year, 30-12.

The victory advanced the Spartan conference record to an even 1-1 — and the team’s season record to 1-3 — securing for them the seventh spot in the Metro standings.

Ballard boasts the top spot so far with a perfect 2-0 record.

The Spartans started strong and led throughout the match up.

“I’m proud of the kids,” said Spartan Head Coach Andy Grimm.

Controlling the line of scrimmage better was far and away the team’s best improvement on display during the game, he added.

The Spartans had been playing through a streak of difficult opponents early in the season, the coach explained, and it was good to see their skills tested against a comparable foe.

“I think we were more evenly matched and it showed,” he said. “We controlled the line of scrimmage [and had] four drives [and] four scores in the first half.

“We controlled the ball,” he added. “We had it.”

Bainbridge marched steadily down the field during their initial drives, and then a big run from midfield by junior Eric Jung ended in the first touchdown with still over eight minutes left in the first quarter.

Ingraham had a bit of a run then, but BHS came back into possession short of the end zone and slogged their way back down the field. Jung scored the game’s second touchdown with a short run from near the 10 with seconds left to go in the quarter.

Big gains were made in the second by both halves of the Spartan one-two punch combo of Jung and senior Sam Wysong, who brought in the island team’s third touchdown with a 17-yard run and just over four minutes left in the half.

A last-second field goal left the Spartans up 24-0 at the quarter’s end.

During the halftime festivities, which saw performances by the varsity cheer squad and the marching band, Jordan Maria and Jack Frickleton were crowned the 2015 homecoming queen and king.

BHS gained immediate repossession with a kickoff recovery at the start of the third.

Wysong brought home another touchdown with a run and about five minutes left in the quarter.

Ingraham gathered themselves a bit, it seemed, and recovered a fumble with 4:19 remaining and began another onslaught at the end zone.

It was not to be, however, as BHS junior Keagan Barnes-Grant snatched up an end zone interception which solidified the Spartan shutout 30-0 going into the final quarter.

In the fourth, the Rams managed to mount a response to the Bainbridge beating they’d spent the evening taking, and scored their first touchdown with 8:47 remaining.

They would manage one more before the game’s end — enough to prevent the shutout, but not nearly enough to turn the tide.

Finding a way to neutralize the Rams’ star senior running back Emmery Porter, Grimm said, was key early on in the match.

“He’s a real dynamic player,” Grimm said.

“We knew if we let him out in open field we just didn’t have anybody fast enough to catch him. He got some stuff in the second half, but that was against [the] younger kids, so I’m totally fine with that.”

Across the board the island team saw much improved performances.

Jung and Wysong dominated the Spartan stats.

Jung finished the night with two touchdowns, 18 carries for 174 yards, and four receptions for 19 yards. Wysong managed two touchdowns, had 23 carries for 120 yards rushing, and one reception for 23 yards.

Riley Dunn chipped in three carries for nine yards; Frickleton two-for-10; Jacob Hogger had four carries for nine yards; and Kyle Bierly ended with one-for-three. All said, the Spartans totaled 54 carries for 325 total yards.

Coltrane Brooks led the Spartans’ receiving efforts with four receptions for 73 yards.

Defensively, the island team saw big numbers from all the usual standouts.

Sam Roth led the charge with 11 solo tackles.

Jospin Kingombe managed seven solo and one assisted tackle, Alex Pickett had six solo tackles, Ben McDonald finished with five solo tackles and one assist and Barnes-Grant added five solo tackles to the tally as well.

Tanner Shattuck went three-for-four in field goals.

The homecoming win, Grimm said, was a reward for all of the team’s hard work so far this season, proof positive that they had been doing the right things, even when it didn’t always show up that way in the numbers.

“That’s how we’re rewarded in life, in sports, is winning,” he said. “I’m a competitive guy and I love to win, but it doesn’t make or break me, so I like to see them rewarded.

“It’s sad when you look into [their] eyes and they’ve been working their asses off and it doesn’t show on the scoreboard,” he added.

Bainbridge will play their final home game of the season at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 2 against Lakeside.