PORT TOWNSEND — Port Townsend found itself on the wrong side of a blowout in its 58-22 homecoming loss to second-ranked Cascade Christian at Memorial Field.
If Port Townsend’s routs of Coupeville (41-0) and Vashon Island (48-14) earlier this season were proof of how good the Redskins are and how far they’ve come since snapping a 20-game losing streak in early 2012, then their loss to Cascade Christian revealed the class that’s above them and how far they still have to go.
“They are a tremendous program, tremendous kids,” Port Townsend coach Nick Snyder said of Cascade Christian, a perennial state championship contender.
“And, you know, there were some mismatches; they throw the ball extremely well.”
Junior quarterback Jaelin Goldsmith, who led the Cougars to the 1A state title game as a freshman in 2011, threw three touchdown passes, including a 55-yard hookup with Mason Tobeck and a screen pass to Nathan Roosendaal that went for a 40-yard score.
Cascade Christian also scored on a 50-yard run by Maceo Thomas-Murphy, and 18-yard run by Goldsmith and a 48-yard interception return from Jackie Wood.
Another interception by Roosendaal set up a 5-yard touchdown run by Hunter Austin that put Port Townsend in a 14-0 hole early in the second quarter.
“How many picks did they get, how many big plays did they have? They just big-played us to death,” Snyder said.
With the loss, the Redskins fall to 4-2 on the season and 2-2 in the Nisqually League’s Division 1.
With no remaining regular season games against division foes, Port Townsend locks down the third spot in the standings.
After the game, Snyder implored his team to focus on the upcoming games against Life Christian (1-1, 2-3) and Tacoma Baptist (0-3, 0-5), as well as its crossover games the following weeks.
“I don’t want you to hang your heads. Keep your heads up,” Snyder said to the Port Townsend players in the postgame huddle.
“Promise me, promise me, you’ll keep your heads up.”
Snyder also pointed out how close the Redskins are to the Cougars.
Cascade Christian (3-0, 6-0), for the most part, prevented Port Townsend’s offense from breaking off big plays, but the Redskins did manage to drive the ball on the Cougars’ first-team defense multiple times.
And, despite its struggles, Port Townsend’s defense did make some nice stands.
“It shows that we can be competitive at times,” Snyder said.
“Being able to be competitive for 48 minutes, that’s what you would like, but there were segments in that game that we showed we could be competitive with the best team in the state.
“We weren’t just a patsy for them. We were competitive at times.”
In the last scheduled game of their careers, Port Townsend’s seniors played well.
Quarterback Jacob King had 112 yards rushing and 77 yards passing, including four completions to Skyler Coppenrath for 71 yards.
Tim Russell ran 17 times for 105 yards and a touchdown, while Matt Cain had an 8-yard touchdown run and picked up 26 yards on six carries.
“These seniors, they wanted that game bad. Jacob’s so torn up over it,” Snyder said.
“That’s what you want. I’ve seen them come so far. When guys can accept losing, you know you’ve got problems.
“Jacob played hard, though — he is tough. Skyler made catches, Matt and Timmy ran hard and the O-line was blocking.”
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Sports Editor Lee Horton can be reached at 360-417-3525 or at lhorton@peninsuladailynews.com.
