State 2A football: West Valley falls to Hockinson in semifinal matching 12-0 teams
When two 12-0 teams face off in a state semifinal game, something has to give.
Hockinson’s Racanelli brothers – senior quarterback Canon and sophomore wideout Sawyer – proved too much and the Hawks ran away from West Valley 53-30 on Saturday afternoon at Gonzaga Prep to reach their first State 2A championship game.
Canon passed for 307 yards with four touchdowns while Sawyer grabbed six catches for 201 yards with two scores.
Hockinson will face Tumwater, which beat Archbishop Murphy 10-6 in the other semifinal, on Saturday at the Tacoma Dome.
“It’s huge for our football program,” coach Rick Steele said through tears of Hockinson’s first trip to a state title game. “For a little tiny high school to get to this spot is just huge. I’m just so proud of our kids.
“We knew it was going to be a tough football game and it was. (West Valley) was ready to play and they’re a darn good football team. I’m just proud of our kids.”
“Tough loss,” West Valley coach Craig Whitney said. “Tough when you finally lose one. Proud of our kids, proud of our fans, proud of our school. It’s tough to take this one on the chin but that’s a good team over there.
“We’ll lick our wounds but we’re OK. We’ve got good kids, good coaches – I’m very proud of them.”
Matt Allen saw the bulk of playing time at quarterback for West Valley – going 21 of 30 for 315 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions – while All-Great Northern League quarterback Blake Transue watched until Allen got dinged up in the fourth quarter.
Transue finished 6 of 9 for 73 yards and rambled 39 yards for a late touchdown.
“Blake was sick a little earlier in the week – he missed a day of practice. We’ve been using them both all year. That had nothing to do with anything else – matchups, nothing.”
A back-and-forth second quarter resulted in a 28-23 Hockinson lead at intermission. The Hawks proceeded to put up 12 points in the third quarter and 13 in the fourth as West Valley couldn’t find a combination to stop the Racanellis.
Hockinson used a short-passing attack on its first possession to move into West Valley territory. On first-and-10 from the Eagles’ 40, Canon used a head fake and Sawyer broke free down the right sideline. Canon lofted it high and Sawyer ran underneath of it and coasted untouched into the end zone for an early 7-0 lead.
On Hockinson’s second possession, Racanelli tried a slant, but cornerback Collin Sather stepped in front of the pass for an interception and West Valley took over at the Hockinson 33.
Allen picked up 13 yards on a fourth-and-5 scramble down to the 15, and two plays later he kept it for 12 yards and a TD. The kick tied it at 7.
The Eagles were driving again as the first quarter ended. On third-and-7 from the Hockinson 9, Allen was pressured and a deflected pass ended in the arms of Sawyer Racanelli for an interception. Canon hit Peyton Brammer on the left sideline for 36 yards, and then on a designed keeper he took it 29 yards and beat the defenders to the pylon for a touchdown and 14-7 lead with 10:11 left in the half.
The Hawks took over after a punt at their 15 and went backward. A sack by WV’s Ethan Simpson placed Hockinson at its 1, then a QB pressure led to a holding penalty in the end zone resulting in a safety and West Valley cut the deficit to 14-9.
The Eagles returned the free kick to its 48. On the next play, Allen lobbed one down the sideline to Sather, who outjumped a defensive back to make the catch, then trotted into the end zone for a 52-yard scoring play.
Hockinson got the ball back at its 14 and drove out to near midfield. On first-and-10 from its 49, Canon found Sawyer again on a skinny post and Sawyer slipped a tackle and took it the rest of the way for a 51-yard catch-and-run and a 21-16 lead with 3:18 left in the half.
On the next play, Allen found Connor Whitney open in the slot. Whitney made an over-the-shoulder catch, survived a shoestring tackle attempt and went the rest of the way for a 73-yard touchdown. West Valley took a 23-21 lead with 2:58 before intermission.
Hockinson faced third-and-22 from its 12. Canon scrambled to avoid pressure into his end zone, then heaved it toward midfield. Sawyer made a juggling catch, then pulled it down and dashed to the WV 12 before being hauled down.
On the next play, Canon lobbed it to Brammer in the back corner and the 6-foot-3 sophomore pulled it down. Hockinson went ahead 28-23 with 1:34 remaining in the second quarter.
Racanelli racked up 241 passing yards with three TDs and another 59 on the ground in the first half, while Allen went 10 of 14 for 220 yards and two TDs.
West Valley fielded the second-half kick, but slipped and fell at its 7. On the next play, Allen fumbled while being sacked and Kordell Johnson recovered in the end zone for a touchdown. After the two-point conversion failed, Hockinson led 34-23.
“If we don’t fumble – catch a sliding kickoff and then fumble the snap – we gave them six points, seven points in six seconds and you can do that at this time of the year.
“Bad breaks on our part and we didn’t do anything to help us. We hurt ourselves.”
West Valley came back and marched up the field with a series of short- and midrange passes. On third-and-goal, Allen’s pass up the middle was blocked straight up and it fell into Johnson’s arms. The 6-2, 238-pound lineman rumbled all the way to the WV 36.
A pass interference penalty gave Hockinson a first down at the 21. Canon took a draw down to the 7 and then busted one outside to the 1, where he sneaked it in on the next play. The extra-point attempt was no good, and the Hawks led 40-23 with 5:56 left in the third.
West Valley turned it over on downs and the Racanellis hooked up again, for 25 yards, down to the 1. Canon hit Matt Henry with a swing pass for the touchdown and Hockinson went up 47-23 with 6:09 left.
With 2:40 left, Tony Richardson busted one up the middle for 58 yards to put the icing on the cake for the Hawks.
The Eagles took the ensuing possession 76 yards in six plays, culminating with Transue’s 39-yard touchdown run.