‘Little brother’ Nelson punches back against ‘big brother’ Clackamas as Hawks show they’re all grown up
By Dave Ball
HAPPY VALLEY — In every sibling rivalry, there comes a time when little brother gets big enough to punch back. That moment came Friday night for the Nelson Hawks in a 42-35 overtime win over crosstown rival Clackamas.
It was a stark difference from last year’s inaugural meeting, which went to the Cavaliers 52-0 with the second half being played under running clock rules.
“Last year, we knew we were the younger brother. This year, we felt like equals. Our kids came in with confidence,” Nelson coach Aaron Hazel said, noting that he has his full team back, while Clackamas graduated a bulk of its starters.
The teams were deadlocked 35-35 heading down the stretch when Sam Lewis stopped a Clackamas threat with a spectacular sideline play worthy of a spot in SportsCenter’s top-10 highlight reel.
Cavaliers freshman quarterback Dylan Brower rolled to his left. Unable to find an open receiver, he tossed a high ball well out of bounds. Lewis sprinted to the spot, left his feet to snag the ball, twisted in mid-air and tossed it to teammate Lucas Womack in bounds to complete the takeaway.
Nelson struck on the first play of overtime, using speedy senior Reid Gray as a decoy to draw extra attention, while Max Kirsch zipped to the back of the end zone. Sophomore quarterback Avirey Durdahl dropped back, bought an extra second for Kirsch to get behind the defense and launched a perfect 25-yard pass for the winning score.
“Their safety had been coming down on that play the whole game,” Durdahl said. “We made the adjustment, and I trusted my receiver to make it happen.”
Kirsch secured the catch and signaled touchdown from his knees under the goal post before being mobbed by teammates.
“That is who we are. We try to hit some shots down the field and teams have to respect that,” Hazel said. “I always tell these guys how proud of them I am, but it was great to see them execute our plan really well tonight.”
The Cavaliers had their shot next, but an intentional grounding penalty on their first play put them in desperation mode. Sensing victory was near, the Nelson student section chanted, ‘Let’s Go Hawks!’ Brower fired a deep ball down the middle toward the goal line, and Womack came down with the interception to seal the win.
“They had been passing to No. 4 and 11 all game long, so we knew where they were going,” Womack said. “Both 11 and I went up at the same time, but I got a little higher and came down with it. I knew the game was over and we’d be rushing the field.”
Added Kirsch: “It feels amazing, especially for us seniors. It means a lot for us to beat them.”
The Hawks served notice that this year’s game would be a battle from the opening kickoff when Gray darted through tacklers for a 68-yard return. No points would come from that opening threat, but Nelson took the lead late in the first quarter when Durdahl hit Gray on a short slant route in the end zone.
“It was definitely more competitive this time around. The fans were loud. The atmosphere was so high and so intense — it was surreal,” Gray said. “There was a lot of talking, but it’s all good. We are rivals, but we are all friends, too.”
The Hawks stayed a step ahead throughout the first half, taking a 21-19 lead to the locker room.
“We felt great coming in, and our confidence stayed high the whole time,” Durdahl said. “We’ve worked our butts off for this.”
Clackamas took its only lead midway through the third quarter on arguably the biggest play of the night.
Cavaliers starting quarterback Blake Baker dropped back, pumped the ball once and let loose with a 40-yard rocket down the middle that hit senior AJ Perez in stride in the end zone.
The good news — Clackamas had its first lead of the night.
The bad news — officials tossed an unsportsmanlike flag on Baker for verbiage while celebrating the play. It was his second of the night, meaning he was disqualified from the game.
Brower came on and found star receiver Cooper Beltz at the pylon for the two-point conversion and a 27-21 lead. Brower and Beltz took turns playing behind center the rest of the way.
Nelson answered the challenge when Kirsch turned his back to onrushing tacklers to scoop a punt off the bounce near the Cavaliers’ sideline. He twisted around, flashed through a crowd and zipped across the field into the open for a 58-yard touchdown return.
Moments later, Owen Hunt crashed through the line and forced a fumble near the goal line. Nelson senior Alex Vita was on the scene for the scoop-and-score from 2 yards.
“I thought for a moment whether I should fall on it or scoop it up. There was a whole lot of adrenaline going, and I just picked it up and scored,” Nita said.
“This was a fun game. It was a chance to show off all we have been working for this year.”
The officials called eight unsportsmanlike penalties and a number of personal fouls in a game where emotions were high and trash talk was constant. None of that carried over to the post-game handshake line, where players often stopped to embrace and pat helmets.
“We all know each other and it was getting chippy out there, but when it’s all over, it’s all love — it’s all having fun,” Womack said.
“The emotions get to you during the game, but at the end of the day, we were all teammates together at one point,” Kirsch added.
In fact, after the game, a large number of Cavaliers players made the long walk to the far end zone to mingle with their friends in another jersey. Laughter and smiles were on display after a hard-fought game, along with plans to meet up on the weekend for a rematch video-game style.
The Hawks (3-1) travel to Barlow on Thursday night, and the winner will be in position to make a run at a spot in the 16-team championship playoff bracket by season’s end.
“A game like this where you fight for four quarters and come out on top against a quality team helps you out down the road — it shows that you belong in the field with everybody,” Hazel said.
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Nelson 42, Clackamas 35
Clackamas — 7 — 12 — 8 — 8 — 0 — 35
Nelson — 7 — 14 — 14 — 7 — 0 — 7 — 42
First quarter
NLS — Reid Gray 3 pass from Avirey Durdahl (Henry Nelson kick), 3:07
CLK — Cooper Beltz 36 pass from Blake Baker (Adam Whitman kick), 1:53
Second quarter
NLS — Reid 15 pass from Durdahl (Nelson kick), 8:56
CLK — A.J. Perez 20 pass from Baker (kick missed), 7:20
NLS — Jaidon Siler 47 pass from Durdahl (Nelson kick), 4:55
CLK — Baker 9 run (run failed), 2:32
Third quarter
CLK — Perez 40 pass from Baker (Beltz pass from Dylan Brower), 5:29
NLS — Max Kirsch 58 punt return (Nelson kick), 0:48
NLS — Alex Nita 2 fumble return (Nelson kick), 0:28
Fourth quarter
CLK — Beltz 9 run (Perez pass from Brower), 5:39
Overtime
NLS — Kirsch 25 pass from Durdahl (Nelson kick)
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