Ballard finishes with best season in recent history

Sam Heikell, Sports Editor
Originally published November 30, 2015

In a high scoring affair, the Beavers were eliminated from the state football playoffs by the Glacier Peak Grizzlies to conclude their season last Saturday night.

Ballard started out the game clicking as their offense was moving the ball up and down the field and the defense wasn’t budging. They took a 19-0 lead early off two rushing touchdowns from senior Antione Patton and a 33 yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Davine Tullis down the seem to junior Simon Robertson.

But the momentum quickly shifted to Glacier Peak. They scored 15 unanswered points by going to the rushing attack and playing solid defense, forcing a safety along the way.

Going back and forth, Ballard entered the fourth quarter leading by five. But the Grizzlies kept pounding the ball, scoring two rushing touchdowns, and by ratcheting up their defense, they forced three turnovers en route to their 41-33 victory.

“We just failed to execute down the stretch. All of the little mistakes started to add up,” head coach Joey Thomas said. “I’m disappointed because that’s a game that we should’ve won.”

Despite the loss, this season is considered a success. The football program hasn’t made it this far in over ten years and they haven’t beaten rival Roosevelt in eight years. “I was happy that we beat Roosevelt. Especially because we beat them twice,” junior Corbin Gabrel said.

“There’s a lot of positives that I can take away from this season,” Thomas said. “The kids got great exposure and we became a closer team. We are a lot more team oriented this year and that’s a major step in the right direction going forward.”

For back-to-back years, Ballard has had their quarterback win the Metro best offensive player award. This year senior Davine Tullis threw for over 1,700 yards and 16 touchdowns, as well as 919 yards nine touchdowns rushing.

Making it to the 3A Metro Championship game and the round of 16 in the state playoffs may have put the Beavers on the map this year. “It feels great knowing that other teams don’t have the opportunity that we have,” junior Eric Henderson said. “I’m looking forward to next season.”