Braves escape late rally to post third straight road win

For Bellevue Christian, it felt not so much as a loss as merely running out of time.

For La Conner, on the other hand, the fourth quarter couldn’t end soon enough.

But when all was said and done, it was the Braves who had posted another statement win, though there were nearly as many question marks as exclamation points down the stretch.

Plus one big sigh of relief at the end.

La Conner defender Cameron Hansen knocked down a Bellevue Christian pass in the end zone on the final play of the game to secure a 27-22 non-league thriller Saturday at Lake Washington High School.

For much of the game, though, the Braves had appeared on the verge of a blowout.

La Conner, despite some injury woes, bolted to a 27-0 lead after three quarters and seemed to have their third win in as many starts safely in hand.

That’s when things got kind of wacky.

“We were dealing with injuries to about five different key pieces during the third quarter,” Braves head coach Johnny Lee lamented afterward.

That opened the door for a deep Bellevue Christian team to make a late run. The hosts mounted a frantic comeback bid, fueled in part by a successful on-side kick attempt and a pair of two-point conversions.

The hosts struck for three touchdowns in the final stanza and were driving for the potential go-ahead score in the waning moments, thus setting the stage for Hansen’s heroics.

“Give credit to the kids for persevering through it all and hanging on to get a ‘W,’” said Lee. “The kids played hard and were tested in some good learning situations.”

La Conner, 3-0, opened with an effective ground-and-pound look.

Budda Luna got the Braves on the board first with a 34-yard TD dash in the opening frame.

He found paydirt again in the second period, reeling in a 10-yard James Hulbert scoring toss.

Brady Nelson gave La Conner a commanding 21-0 lead at intermission with a one-yard touchdown blast.

Harrison Orkney provided what, at the time, appeared to be an insurance score — which ultimately proved the game-winner — with a deft six-yard jaunt in the third quarter.

The Braves, behind solid play upfront and strong running from Seth Schuh, controlled the game with their ground attack in the first half.

Schuh churned out a team-best 107 yards on 17 carries.

“Seth ran incredibly hard,” Lee said. “Bellevue Christian was set up to defend the pass, so we knew going in we’d have to rely on our run game.”

Thus the early carries by Schuh and Luna.

“Budda made the most of his carries,” said Lee, “and our offensive line really kept them on their heels.”

La Conner’s stop unit, mean-while, pitched a shutout until the injuries piled up.

Durable Jack Dixon, who didn’t miss a snap, anchored the La Conner defense. Max Miller thwarted two Bellevue Christian possessions with interceptions, one of which in the second half helped preserve the La Conner victory.

“At the end of the day,” Lee noted, “the guys earned this win, and they need to feel proud of that.”

Next up for the Braves is their home debut at Whittaker Field opposite NW2B rival Friday Harbor. The youthful Wolverines are rebuilding under new coach and former University of Oregon football player Garrett Holmes.

Kickoff for the Sept. 25 league clash is set for 6:30 p.m.