Bellevue’s game Saturday night against Grant High School of Sacramento, Calif., was historic for all the wrong reasons.

Historic because Bellevue was shut out for the first time since Aug. 31 of 2007.

Historic because for the first time in Wolverines coach Butch Goncharoff’s nine-year reign, the team lost two games in a row.

Historic because Grant became the first team from California to knock off Bellevue, who had made a habit of defeating powerful programs from the Golden State.

But tonight, in the same showcase in which Bellevue had knocked off teams like De La Salle, Long Beach Poly and California High School, the Wolverines looked like anything but themselves, fumbling four times (losing two), being intercepted once and getting flagged for two key pass interference calls on third down late in the fourth quarter to lose 14-0 to the Pacers.

“Grant’s a good team and we just made too many mistakes,” Goncharoff said. “You can’t win big games when you make mistakes like that.”

Grant (3-0) running back Devontae Butler rushed for 132 yards on a workman-like 28 carries and helped key the Pacers offensive attack. The junior who rushed for 1,980 yards and 37 touchdowns a year ago scored the put-away touchdown with just 2:51 left in the game to give Grant a two touchdown lead.

“He’s been such a fierce warrior for us,” said Grant coach Mike Alberghini. “His were hard-earned yards.”

Butler’s score came after Bellevue was flagged twice for pass interference on third down, keeping Grant’s drives alive.

Neither team could find success offensively early in the game, and the closest the Wolverines (1-2) would come to the end zone was their first drive.

Bellevue looked to put the first points of the game on the board, driving down to the Grant 14-yard line before Race Sciabica missed a 30-yard field goal. Neither team would score in the first half, and the scoreless streak extended until Dezmon Epps scored on a 7-yard end-around with just 43 seconds left in the third quarter that culminated a 12-play drive that took up over five minutes of clock.

“We just came out and wanted to keep pounding the ball down their throats,” Butler said.

Bellevue fumbled away the ball on its next possession, and would punt, turn the ball over on downs and throw an interception on its last three drives of the game.

“We had chances to score and we just didn’t finish plays,” Goncharoff said. “We have to get better.”

The Wolverines rushed for 163 yards, which largely came from the 92 yards from Sean Coley and 56 yards from Freddie Levine. Bellevue played without starting running backs David Nguyen (fractured foot), Will Fields (ankle) and Connor Abramson (ankle). Linebacker John Kanongata’a was a game-time decision, but played through an ankle injury.

It was the third-straight shutout victory for Grant.

“If someone would have told me we’d do that to start the season, I’d have gone out drinking,” Alberghini said. “Our kids played with their hearts and souls today.”

After last week’s loss to Katy, Texas, it’s the first time Bellevue has lost two-straight games since the 1997 season, when the Wolverines lost five-straight under former coach Bill Heglar.

“We’ve played two great teams and the bottom line is that we’ve got to start getting better,” Goncharoff said. “You learn more from a loss than you win. But you have a choice to go one way or the other – to get worse or to get better.”

Bellevue opens up KingCo 3A/2A play Friday at Mount Si.