QUILCENE — Shorthanded Quilcene gave the Crescent Loggers all they could handle in a nonleague B-8 game that went down to the wire and created scoring fireworks in the fourth quarter.
The Loggers, though, prevailed 36-34 to open the season 1-0.
The Rangers, 0-1, can hold their heads high after going into the game with just 11 players available to play and no room for injuries.
Five Quilcene players are suspended for two games for breaking team rules and a few others can’t play because they don’t have the required number of practices in (12) to be able to participate.
“This was a hard-fought contest from the outset,” Crescent coach Darrell Yount said.
“Give Quilcene credit. They played shorthanded the entire contest with many of their finest athletes not suited, and they proceeded to give us fits for 48 minutes.”
Both teams struggled early with the Loggers coughing the ball up three times in the first quarter alone, and each squad settling for a 0-0 tie in the first quarter.
Defense kept Crescent in the game early, not allowing Quilcene to take advantage of the Logger mistakes.
“I did like the way our defense responded at critical times to get our offense back on the field,” Yount said.
“Take away a few big mistakes defensively on our part, and it’s a different kind of game.
“But that’s early season football. We’re going to go through some growing pains with so many young kids on the team.
“We’ll get better with experience. And as long as we can hang around in these early season games, I think we can eventually get where we need to be come mid-season when the schedule really hammers us.
“But for right now we’re really leaning on our big seniors, quarterback Beau Bamer and running backs Eric Larson and Derek Findley.”
After a scoreless first quarter, the Loggers got their offense moving with Findley and Larson doing the bulk of the damage; Larson bullying in from the nine to take a 6-0 lead.
Bamer flipped a pass to Findley for the conversion and it was 8-0 Loggers.
Crescent had a 14-6 lead at halftime and held onto a 20-12 advantage going in the final period of play.
That’s when the fireworks hit with the Rangers outscoring the Loggers 22-16 but coming up just short in the barn-burner of a game.
Qulcene went to its ultra-spread offense to hammer home 22 points in the period.
“The difference in the game was conversions,” Yount said.
Crescent scored five touchdowns and three two-point conversions while Quilcene scored five touchdowns but converted only two.
Bamer passed for 86 yards for the Loggers while Brandon Bessey, filling in for ill starting quarterback Jacob Pleines, was 6 for 7 passing for 153 yards and two touchdowns for the Rangers.
Bamer also was 8 for 43 yards rushing and two scores while Bessey, also a speedster, ran eight times for 32 yards and a touchdown.
Larson led Crescent on the ground, rushing 15 times for 144 yards and two touchdowns while Findley ran 13 times for 105 yards and a score.
Jacob King was the top rusher for Quilcene, taking 19 handoffs for 206 yards and a touchdown.
Eddie Perez, meanwhile, ran 11 times for 80 yards and a touchdown for the Rangers.
King caught the two touchdown passes from Bessey.
Tyson Szetich had a team-high nine tackles for the Rangers while Kyle Hutto totaled 17 tackles, seven solo, for the Loggers.
Larson ended up with 12 tackles while Bamer earned nine with Crescent.
Collin West and Larson had a fumble recovery each for Crescent.
Crescent has its home opener next week against Lake Quinault (1-0) on Saturday.
Quinault edged Evergreen Lutheran 62-52 last weekend in a high-scoring affair.
“They will be tough,” Yount said about Lake Quinault.
Quilcene, meanwhile, will host Mary M. Knight
