Cruisers Fall to Fife, 48-20, as Playoff Hopes Begin to Fade

In a game that carried major postseason implications, the Eatonville Cruisers couldn’t find enough answers to slow down the high-powered Fife Trojans, falling 48–20 Friday night at Trojan Memorial Stadium.

Eatonville's Jacob Simon runs a route against Fife this past Friday night. Simons hauled in a 47 yard Cole Fowler pass for one of the Cruiser's three scores on the night. Photo: Trinity Potter

The loss dealt a major blow to Eatonville’s playoff hopes, as the Cruisers entered the contest needing a win to stay in contention for the fourth and final district playoff berth.

Fife (now 3–3, 3-1 league) struck early and often, using a balanced mix of speed and misdirection to keep Eatonville’s defense off balance. After winning the coin toss and deferring to the second half, the Trojans wasted no time once they got the ball. On their first possession, Fife broke loose on a 42-yard reverse run to take a 7–0 lead with 9:25 left in the opening quarter.

Eatonville’s offense struggled to find rhythm early, punting after a quick three-and-out on its opening series. The Cruisers’ best chance to answer in the first quarter came on their second drive, when they marched deep into Trojan territory. But a 30-yard field goal attempt was blocked and returned to the Eatonville 22-yard line — setting up another Fife touchdown just moments later. The Trojans punched it in from 3 yards out to extend the lead to 14–0 with 33 seconds left in the first quarter.

The deficit grew midway through the second when Fife connected on an 18-yard touchdown pass, pushing the score to 21–0.

Eatonville (3–3, 2-2 league) finally broke through when quarterback Cole Fowler found Jacob Simons deep downfield for a 47-yard touchdown strike, cutting the margin to 21–7 with 6:19 left in the half.

Fife responded quickly with a 19-yard touchdown run, though Eatonville blocked the extra point to keep the score at 27–7. The Cruisers showed some life before halftime, as Fowler connected with Amari Samuel in the corner of the end zone on a 28-yard scoring pass to pull within 27–13 just before intermission.

But Fife’s offense kept rolling in the second half, putting the game out of reach with two more unanswered touchdowns. A 33-yard touchdown reception early in the third quarter extended the lead to 34–13, followed by a 39-yard rushing score midway through the frame.

Eatonville’s Connor McIlrath gave the Cruisers a brief spark with a 20-yard touchdown run to make it 41–20 with 4:23 left in the third, but Fife answered on its very next possession with a 40-yard scoring run to cap the night’s offensive explosion.

Despite a late fumble recovery by the Eatonville defense early in the fourth quarter, the Cruisers couldn’t capitalize, and both teams went scoreless the rest of the way.

It was a frustrating night for an Eatonville team that showed flashes of big-play ability but struggled to sustain drives and contain the Trojans’ ground game.

Eatonville will look to regroup next weekend when they host the Washington Patriots (2-4, 2-2 league) at Franklin Pierce Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 18 at noon for Senior Day.