When the Yelm High School football team’s classification elevated to the 4A level, so did the standard for head coach Jason Ronquillo.
The Tornados opened 4A South Puget Sound League play with a 52-14 throttling of Spanaway Lake at Art Crate Field on Friday, Sept. 27, led by three touchdown passes by junior quarterback Parker Myers and three total scores by freshman running back Marcus Ronquillo. But Jason Ronquillo wasn’t satisfied with the performance from top to bottom.
He gathered his players and gave a passionate speech about maturity following a game in which the Tornados were called for numerous personal fouls. Ronquillo told his team that, while he was content with the blowout victory, such immaturity could cost them in a contest with higher stakes.
“We just have to mature. I’ve just got to keep having that talk with the kids and understand that they’re harping down on some things,” he said.
It looked like Yelm was going to be in for another back-and-forth dogfight like it was against Kamiakin last week, when the Tornados prevailed, 52-48. Myers, donning a gold mouth guard, led Yelm to an opening-drive touchdown for the third consecutive game. He connected with senior running back Ethan Owens for an 11-yard score, but the signal-caller’s two-point conversion attempt on the ground came up short.
The Sentinels’ first drive looked doomed from the start as the Yelm pass rush abused the Spanaway Lake offensive line and made quarterback Chase Best uncomfortable. But on a fourth-and-17, Best survived a hit and threw a dart to Rico Hawkins, who scampered for 34 yards and set the Sentinels up with a goal-to-go situation.
Best found Malik Burns in the end zone from 5 yards out, and the successful extra point attempt gave the Sentinels the lead, 7-6.
Fueled by Jacob Ford’s long kickoff return, the Tornados once again marched down the field, overcoming a couple of pre-snap penalties. Marcus Ronquillo capped off the drive with a 4-yard rushing score, and Sterling Temple extended the margin to 14-7 with a two-point rush.
After the first Spanaway Lake drive, the Yelm defense clamped down and suffocated the Sentinels offense. The pass rush overwhelmed Spanaway Lake’s backfield on nearly every snap, and the Tornados secondary made every catch difficult.
Myers completed three passes of over 50 yards last week against Kamiakin, and he continued the air raid Friday night. As senior receiver Jameson Patin slipped past the defense, Myers found him in stride for a 68-yard catch-and-run. Ronquillo punched in his second rushing touchdown of the night to push Yelm’s lead to 21-7.
If the Tornados didn’t already have momentum on their side, they snatched it halfway through the second quarter. Myers launched another deep ball, this time finding Jay Sumich for an 82-yard strike. Just 18 seconds later, Ford intercepted a pass from Best right in his chest and took it to the house. In a blink, Yelm led 35-7 and eventually finished the half with that score, although Ford could have added to it with a punt return touchdown had it not been for a block in the back penalty on Yelm.
“He’s great. He can play multiple roles,” Jason Ronquillo said of Ford. “We’ve got him at nickel, we’ve got him at corner and then at safety. On offense, we’ve got him as a slot receiver and at running back. He’s a Swiss Army knife.”
Tensions rose in the third quarter as the Tornados and the Sentinels exchanged words after a second-down play on a Yelm drive, and officials called a 15-yard personal foul on the Tornados. On a fourth-and-25, Patin punted the ball back to the Sentinels but he was hit by a Spanaway Lake defender, giving Yelm an automatic first down. With the second chance on offense, Myers threw his third touchdown pass of the night to Marcus Ronquillo, who also logged his third score, with a 23-yarder in which the freshman juked a defender en route to the end zone.
“I was really happy that I was putting in my full effort. I’m happy I broke one loose and got a long touchdown because I’ve only gotten short touchdowns so far,” Ronquillo said. “It was as hyped as I’ve been and one of the best moments of my life.”
Yelm added to the scoreboard with a Temple 25-yard field goal, and Spanaway Lake closed the third quarter with a 96-yard kickoff return touchdown by University of Washington commit D’Aryhian Clemons. With a 45-14 lead headed to the fourth, the Tornados finished off the Sentinels with Hunter Owens’ 2-yard rushing score, and Yelm prevailed, 52-14.
Ronquillo, who has stepped up for injured running back Nathan Ford, finished the day with 38 rushing yards and two scores on 12 carries, and he added a third touchdown on his lone reception of the night.
“I’m excited for him. He’s balling out. He’s filling Nathan Ford’s role and doing a great job at it,” Jason Ronquillo, Marcus’ father, said.
Myers continued his tear through the air, completing 87% of his passes (13 for 15) for 275 yards and three touchdown passes. Sumich had a breakout game for Yelm, logging 103 receiving yards and one touchdown on just three catches.
Defensively, the Tornados put Spanaway Lake’s offense in a straitjacket, holding the Sentinels to just 106 total yards, including just 7 rushing yards. Defensive end Bol Bol, who recently picked up offers from Boise State University and the University of California, Berkeley, terrorized Spanaway Lake with three sacks, two tackles for loss and a fumble recovery. Junior Tyeyo Larson added a pair of sacks as well.
“They’re putting in the work and they’re balling out. They’re playing really well as a unit, and hopefully we can continue that,” Jason Ronquillo said of his defensive line. “They’re helping our secondary out and the secondary is helping out the defensive line. It’s not just a player that gets an interception; it’s because of the pressure from the defensive line. And if we’re in great coverage and the quarterback has nowhere to go, the defensive line gets a sack or tackle for loss.”
For the Tornados, there has been some dry ink on their calendars since the schedule came out as their Week 5 home matchup against Graham-Kapowsin is one of the most-anticipated games of Yelm’s inaugural 4A season.
“We’re gonna play a much cleaner game. On some penalties, sometimes we’re trying too hard and our technique is not good, and you end up with a hole or you end up tackling late,” Ronquillo said. “We’ve got to rely on our technique and just play sound football, particularly against Graham-Kapowsin because they’re going to come to our place and give us the best game of the year. They’re very physical. They’re big. They’re fast. Their quarterback is super talented, and they’ve got pieces all over the place.”
Yelm (4-0, 1-0 SPSL) will meet Graham-Kapowsin (2-2, 1-0 SPSL) on Friday, Oct. 4 at 7 p.m. The Eagles defeated Bonney Lake, 42-0, in their league opener on Friday, Sept. 27 and have won two straight after dropping their first two games to O’Dea and Skyview.
