The Beavers beat the Garfield Bulldogs 26-7 at Memorial on Saturday night, providing the perfect ending to a festive homecoming weekend at Ballard.
Johnny Verduin threw for two touchdowns— including one to Dominic King, who also scored twice— while the Beaver defense played stingy all night.
After an early defensive stand gave Ballard the ball at their own 31-yard line in the first quarter, the Beavers put together a scoring drive, culminating in a 9-yard touchdown run by Jordon McColloch. The drive nearly stalled earlier on, but a huge 22-yard conversion on fourth-down set up the score.
The Bulldogs started to put together a drive of their own in the second quarter, moving the ball into Ballard territory, when the Beavers forced a turnover on a Matt Deehring interception. Capitalizing on the take away, Dominic King broke off a 69-yard touchdown run to put the Beavers up 14-0.
After the 1951 state champions were honored at half time, the Beavers picked up right where they left off with the first play of the third. Blake Sechler took a screen pass from Verduin 68-yards to the end zone, putting the Beavers on top 20-0.
The game went back and forth into the fourth quarter and saw some great defensive plays, including an interception by Eric Brake on a fourth-and-7. The King-Verduin connection sealed the deal with a 19-yard hookup, giving the Beavers 26 points on the night.
With a 26 to nothing lead over Garfield, a brawl broke out on the field. Several players were ejected from the field and will be penalized for fighting.
Other than the incident, the night was a celebratory homecoming for Ballard.
The Beavers’ formula—including an offensive attack led by Verduin and King, as well as a stellar performance from the defense—must have looked familiar to the ’51 state champs in the crowd. That team was also led by strong play at the quarterback and running back positions, along with one of the best defenses in the state.
It was a big win on a special night, as Beaver Nation celebrated the success of one team and the potential of another. The win was the first in conference play for Ballard, as they improved to 1-2 on the season (3-3 overall). They will look to close the gap next Thursday, as they take on Roosevelt at Memorial.
