Blaine athletics had a successful week on multiple fronts, with football earning its first win of the season against Chelan, girls soccer stringing together its first winning streak and cross-country hosting its unique, cross-border, home meet at Peace Arch Historical State Park.
The Borderites defended their home turf with a hard-fought, 3-2 win over Northwest Conference rival Nooksack Valley on September 23.
Tuesday’s win was the second in a row for Blaine, which defeated Orcas Island 7-1 on September 20. After starting the season with a 1-4 record, the Borderites seem to have found their footing, stringing together a pair of wins and inching closer to a .500 record.
The game against Nooksack Valley featured multiple equalizing goals, with the Borderites quickly jumping out to a 1-0 lead when Kate Koreski scored on a penalty kick.
But Nooksack Valley kept coming back, scoring equalizers in the first and second half. It was freshman Ruby Belarmino who made the difference for the Borderites, scoring a pair of goals including a sizzling shot in the first half from outside the penalty box.
The game was Blaine’s first conference win on the season, which it hoped to become a streak with its home game against Sedro-Woolley on Thursday, September 25.
Blaine football emerged victorious from its home opener thanks to a historic freshman performance and solid defense.
Playing Chelan on September 20, the Borderites got out to a 14-0 lead and did not look back, winning 33-19 and moving to 1-2 on the season.
The Borderites jumped out to a one-touchdown lead in the first quarter when sophomore quarterback Connor Brown kept a 4th-and-20 play alive to connect with freshman wide receiver Jackson Bogaards for a 30-yard touchdown. According to WhatcomPreps.com, Bogaards became just the third freshman in school history to catch a touchdown pass.
The next score for Blaine came on an electrifying, 87-yard interception return for a touchdown by senior safety Kai Kerwin.
The Mountain Goats kept themselves in the game, scoring once in the first half before Blaine scored again on a Brown pass to sophomore receiver Hunter Candanoza. Chelan scored the next two touchdowns with a chance to tie or take the lead in the fourth quarter.
Chelan decided to go for the lead with a two-point conversion attempt, but Candanoza broke up the pass, making an impactful play on defense.
The very next play, Blaine running back Jaiden Johannesson ripped off a 60-yard touchdown run, giving the Borderites the lead for good.
Brown threw for yet another touchdown pass to put the game on ice late in the fourth quarter, connecting with Kerwin for a 26-yard touchdown pass. Kerwin finished the game with six catches for 80 yards, which is somehow the lowest single-game receiving total for the senior so far this season.
Blaine had its best game of the season defending against the run, allowing just 10 rushing yards on 27 attempts for Chelan. Sophomore linebacker Matt Campion filled up the stat sheet with nine tackles, three tackles for loss, one interception and a fumble recovery. The linebacker to his side all game, junior Axel Shelton, led the unit with 10 tackles.
The Borderites will look to keep the home winning streak alive when they play Granite Falls (2-0) at 7 p.m. Friday, September 26 at Borderite Stadium.
Stats provided by WhatcomPreps.com
In what is likely one of the most scenic and unique cross-country meets in the state, Blaine hosted its second home meet in the past three seasons at Peace Arch Historical State Park on September 17. The team hosted Bellingham, Lummi Nation and Sedro-Woolley for a Northwest Conference clash.
The five-kilometer route, which was designed in part by Blaine head coach Roberto Aguilera who pushed to revive the meet, technically crosses the international border between the U.S. and Canada, though the runners don’t ever leave the confines of the park itself.
Blaine saw solid individual performances, though it didn’t get the team results it wanted in the boys or girls races as the teams both finished third.
On the girls team, underclassmen led the way, with sophomore Carrie Balback running the fastest time for a Borderite at 22:31, and freshmen Zoe Hill and Claire Wenger placing in the top-20 with times of 25:04 and 25:05, respectively.
The Bellingham girls team placed first with 16, Sedro-Woolley secured second with 48 and Blaine finished third with 79..
For the boys side, sophomore Emmanuel Rios-Martinez led the Borderite pack with an 11th place finish and time of 18:02. Juniors Steven Phelps-McDonald and Verdaan Aujla placed in the top-25 out of a heat of 67 runners, with solid sub-20 minute times of 19:11 and 19:41, respectively.
The Borderites then traveled to Whidbey Island for the 46th Carl Westling Invitational on September 20, competing in the JV five-kilometer heat. The boys team finished in first with a team score of 75, beating a field of 19 schools. Rios-Martinez again led the squad with a time of 19:03, and Phelps-McDonald was not far behind, placing fourth with a time of 20:13.
Blaine’s next meet was scheduled at Meridian High School on September 24 (after press time) in a Northwest Conference matchup that included Nooksack Valley and Lummi Nation.
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