Quakers Rally, Avoid Hornets' Sting -- Dillon Caps Franklin Drive For 29-27 Victory

Cory Dillon set up and finished the game-winning drive as the top-ranked Franklin High School football team came from behind to beat the Enumclaw Hornets 29-27 last night at Memorial Stadium in a first-round, Class AA state playoff game.

Aaron Graves recovered an onside kick to end the Hornets' hopes for an upset.

In the quarterfinals next weekend, Franklin (9-1) will play the winner of tonight's game between Anacortes and Mount Rainier.

The Quakers, winners of nine in a row, had to overcome a lethargic defensive effort, numerous penalties and two fumbles that gave the Hornets (8-2) a 14-0 first-half lead.

"I thought we were fairly lucky they didn't have more points," Franklin Coach Joe Slye said.

"We weren't worth anything in the first half. We're going to have to play a whole lot smarter than that."

The Quakers finished with seven penalties for 83 yards. Six of them came in the first half.

The Quakers converted a key fourth-down play with 10 minutes left.

On their own 45, they faked a punt as quarterback Corey Sampson completed a 9-yard pass to Willie Heard. The play proved crucial, keeping alive the Quakers' 14-play, 80-yard drive.

A 12-yard touchdown run by fullback Rob Jones completed the drive, giving Franklin a 22-20 lead with 5:43 remaining.

The Hornets answered with a 57-yard kickoff return by Joel Doss, who took the reverse handoff from Justin Olson.

However, Dillon ended the Hornets' drive by intercepting a pass by Enumclaw quarterback Brian Basteyns.

"I just didn't throw it high enough," Basteyns said. "We thought we could throw on them. We did for a while, but they put a couple more defensive backs on us."

The quickening Quakers needed only two plays to score again.

Dillon, who earlier ran 71 yards for a touchdown, cleared the left end and ran 38 yards for a score and a 29-20 Franklin lead.

Dillon finished with 13 carries for 188 yards. Jones added 16 carries for 115 yards.

Enumclaw was led by Justin Olson's 112 yards on 18 carries and Basteyns' 183 passing yards. He completed 9 of 20 passes, four of them to his 6-foot-5 receiver Dean Smith, who finished with 122 receiving yards and two touchdowns.

"He was outjumping our guys all night," Slye said.

With less than two minutes remaining, Smith gave the Hornets a sliver of hope as he pulled down a 67-yard pass from Basteyns on fourth-and-eight. Four plays later, Smith completed the 96-yard drive by catching a 10-yard pass for a touchdown, leaving the Quakers with a two-point lead.

"They (Enumclaw) are just like flypaper," Slye said. "You can't get rid of them. . . . We've played them twice and they've both been like this."

The Quakers pulled themselves out of their hole with their specialty, the big play.

Said Enumclaw Coach Ron Miller: "We told the kids before the game, `We can't let them break a run. We have to make them drive.' We just can't deal with that kind of speed."