9/25/2026
Peninsula 31, Timberline 14
(Lacey, WA) Friday night the Timberline Blazers hosted the Peninsula Seahawks in Puget Sound League conference play at South Sound Stadium.
The Set-Up
This was the opening of conference play for both teams. The Peninsula Seahawks were coming into the contest with a 1-2 record but coming off a huge win over their cross-town rival Gig Harbor. The Seahawks rung up their first won of the season with an impressive 37-8 victory over the Tides in the 48th edition of the Fish Bowl. That series is now tied at 24-24.
Peninsula took losses to two really good 2A teams to begin the season dropping to WF West and Franklin Pierce.
The host Timberline Blazers were off to a hot start coming into the opening of conference play unbeaten at 3-0. The Blazers rolled to big wins over Stadium, Bonney Lake and Prairie. The Blazers offense had been efficient scoring 96 points or an average of 32 per game while giving up just under 12 points per game.
1st Half
Timberline received the opening kick of the game and got right to work running the football with King Pridgon as they marched right down the field. The junior running back could not be stopped and Peninsula began to load the box to slow him down. That is when Timberline took a shot deep as Cameron Vongdara threw one up the near sideline. Logan Johnson made a great play to pull down an interception and give the Seahawks the ball at their own two. They would have a tough time moving the ball and on third down tried to set up a screen. It was read perfectly by defensive lineman Christian Duenas and he would be right there for the interception for a touchdown. The turnover only delayed the Blazer score as Timberline took a 7-0 lead midway through the 1st.
Peninsula would have much more breathing room on their next drive and as a result, the offense looked way better. Senior quarterback Talen McDonnell methodically moved the Seahawks down the field with a couple different running backs filling in for the injured Brycen McAnally. Both Thomas Marzano and Kai Coit got carries out of the backfield, but it would be the passing game finishing off the drive. A great rub route worked perfectly and freed up Landon Schultz who hauled in a 14-yard touchdown pass from McDonnell. A terrific response by Peninsula evened the score up at 7-7 at the end of the opening quarter.
Penalties would kill the next Blazer drive and gave Peninsula the ball at the Timberline 48 after a short kick. A big 27-yard pass to Jace Shanburn would set up Xavier Jones for a four-yard score and while the PAT was blocked, Peninsula had their first lead at 13-7. Another interception by Logan Johnson was a result of more Timberline penalties putting the Blazers behind the chains. It would lead to another short touchdown for Jones as he scored from three yards out this time. Peninsula went for two and got it as McDonnell found Malachi Peterson to make it 21-7.
Timberline needed to clean up penalties and get back to running the football with King Pridgon and that is what they did on the next series. Cameron Vongdara would move the ball through the air and found Davin Kirkwood on a couple of passes but it was Pridgon that had the big play of the drive. The junior broke a 43-yard run and could only be brought down by a horse collar tackle which saved a touchdown. Rather, it only delayed the touchdown as Cooper Jones came in and finished off the drive with a two-yard score to cut the deficit down to seven late in the 2nd, 21-14.
With still plenty of time and three timeouts, there was no panic from Peninsula as they looked to double dip by ending the first half with a score before receiving the kick in the second half. It was working well until they got caught with a hold that backed them into a bad situation and forced a third and long. Despite being in a tough spot, Talen McDonnell once again came through, finding Malachi Peterson for 31 yards and moving the chains. They would then face a fourth down and were going to try a 39-yard field goal, but a delay of game backed them up five more. It was not a problem for McDonnell as the QB/kicker drilled the 44-yard field goal to make it a two-possession lead at the half with Peninsula leading Timberline 24-14.
2nd Half
A score to begin the second half would give Peninsula a three-possession lead and would force Timberline to have to throw the ball more to try to comeback. With the pressure on the Blazers defense, they showed up immediately as Champean Spearman came away with an interception early in the 3rd quarter to put the Blazers offense back on the field. Peninsula’s defense was fantastic however and created a turnover as a fumble was recovered by Asher Epstein to give the Seahawks the ball back. They had a really tough time getting things going offensively as Timberline’s adjustments created many issues for the Seahawks who had to punt after the takeaway.
Adjustments were also made by Peninsula’s defense as they were going to forced someone other than King Pridgon to beat them on Friday night. They loaded the box continuously and dared the Blazers to throw the ball against a very talented secondary. Timberline would move the ball well but came up half of a yard short on fourth down and turned the ball over on downs back to the Seahawks. Another punt came from Peninsula and the Blazers showed they could throw the ball after as Cameron Vongdara found Davin Kirkwood for 39 yards for a third down conversion. Just a couple of plays later, Thomas Marzano laid a big hit on Vongdara to knock the ball out and it was recovered by TJ Strilcov for a fourth Seahawk takeaway.
It was a scoreless third quarter but that would change in the fourth. Peninsula needed one score to really ice this one away and they actually would score twice. The first touchdown pass from Talen McDonnell to Jace Shanburn was negated due to a penalty but it took just one play for the Seahawks to put that score back on the board. McDonnell went to the air and found Landon Schultz yet again for a 31-yard touchdown pass to seal this one. Peninsula forced another turnover on downs and killed the rest of the clock to defeat Timberline 31-14 to begin Puget Sound League play.
Sumner Holiday Inn Express MVP
Our Sumner Holiday Inn Express MVP of the game went to senior quarterback for Peninsula in Talen McDonnell. McDonnell had a fantastic feel for the game and was extremely mobile in the pocket while keeping his eyes down the field to give his receivers a chance to make plays. For the game, McDonnell went 12/24 passing for 132 yards and two touchdowns while running the ball twice for 12 yards. To cap it all off, the senior hit a huge 44-yard field goal late in the first half to extend the Seahawks lead to 10. Having a two-possession lead at halftime changed the feel of the game and allowed for Peninsula to play freely and earn their first league win of the season.
Stats
Also for Peninsula’s offense, Thomas Marzano stood out with nine carries for 41 yards and five catches for 19 yards in the game. There were multiple different players to get carries as Kai Coit had six carries for 21 yards while Jett Ortega had two carries for 21 yards. Xavier Jones found the endzone twice on four carries for 47 yards before leaving the game with an injury in the first half. Landon Schultz was a standout receiver with two receptions for 45 yards and two touchdowns. Jace Shanburn also hauled in two catches for 29 yards. Three different receivers caught one pass with Malachi Peterson hauling in a big 31-yard reception and also a two-point conversion while Jett Ortega had a three-yard reception. Logan Johnson caught a five-yard pass but also had two interceptions on defense. TJ Strilcov had a sack and a fumble recovery while Asher Epstein had a fumble recovery as well.
On the other side for the Timberline Blazers, King Pridgen was the big standout with 34 carries for 266 yards on the ground in yet another huge performance by the junior running back. Cooper Jones would give him the occasional breather and had nine carries for 14 yards and a touchdown. Cameron Vongdara would go 4/13 passing for 52 yards and added two carries for four yards. All four completions went to Davin Kirkwood who had four catches for 52 yards. On defense, Christian Duenas had a sack and a pick six in the game while Champean Spearman recorded an interception as well. Blake Layton was 2/2 on extra points for Timberline.
What’s Next?
Peninsula wins their second consecutive game to move to 2-2 on the season and begin Puget Sound League Nisqually Division play at 1-0. The Seahawks return home on Friday night at 7pm to host the Capital Cougars. Timberline falls for the first time this season and drops to 3-1 overall and 0-1 in league play. The Blazers look to rebound next week when they host a crosstown foe in the North Thurston Rams at 7pm on Friday.
Watch the full replay of this match on the NFHS Network (subscription required)
West 42 Sports Postgame Show
Game Highlights
Timberline Pick Six
Peninsula Defense Forces Another Turnover
McDonnell to Schultz for the Dagger
www.West42Sports.com