Carson Graham Eagles fall just short in Yakima

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The Carson Graham Eagles headed south of the border to Yakima, Washington, taking on the 4A Eisenhower Cadets in Friday Night Lights action. In a tightly contested battle, the Cadets slowed down the Eagle's air raid attack in a 19-14 victory.

The Eagles struggled early and were down 13-0 in the second quarter. The Cadet's defense disrupted the Eagle's timing and rhythm early and often moved their front post-snap and sent creative pressures with cleverly disguised zone coverages behind them. 

The Eagle's usually explosive attack finally found their rhythm midway through the second quarter. Quarterback Jack Shih capped off a long drive with a 4-yard run to make it 13-6 at the half.

The Eagles' defense stepped up early and often Friday night. In the second half, trailing 19-6, a goal-line stand followed by an interception by Connor Henry on consecutive drives kept the Eagle's chances alive.

The Eagle's offense paid back their defense's tremendous effort  with their best offensive drive of the game. A long 10-play 95-yard drive had the Eagles within one score.

 Grade 10 receiver Henry Ryan played an instrumental part in the drive. Ryan had four crucial grabs, an eight-yard touchdown, and the ensuing 2-point-convert to cap off the drive. 

With a score of 19-14 Cadets and a score of 1:30 left in the game, the Eagle's last hope was to recover an onside kick. The ensuing onside kick bounced around and fell right into an Eagles player's hands. Unfortunately for Carson Graham, a player was offside, and the recovery was nullified. 

The second attempt was scooped up by the Cadets, and the game was all but over. 19-14 Cadets was the final.

A great defensive effort from the Eagles was led by Kaon Kang with 5 Tackles, Celyan Vermeulen, who finished with 8 Tackles, and Griffin Runnels, who had 7 Tackles, two of those for a loss of yards.


The Carson Graham Football program would like to thank the Eisenhower Cadets for the competitive game and their Boosters for feeding the players and coaches afterward.

Carson is at home next week when they take on the Windsor Dukes.