With a little more than six minutes left in the third quarter, it appeared the Bellevue Wolverines would reclaim the Class 3A state championship after a one-year hiatus in a matchup against the Eastside Catholic Crusaders.

Bellevue running back Christoph Hirota scored on a 12-yard touchdown run, giving the Wolverines a commanding 42-14 lead against Eastside Catholic with 6:10 left in the third quarter of play.

Unfortunately for the Wolverines, it was the final time they would score for the rest of the night.

Eastside Catholic outscored Bellevue 34-0 down the stretch, earning an improbable 48-42 overtime victory on Dec. 4 at the Tacoma Dome. Eastside Catholic running back Brandon Wellington scored on a 1-yard touchdown run in overtime for the game-winning score.  Bellevue head coach Butch Goncharoff told his team at halftime they would have to deliver the knockout punch in order to knock off the undefeated Crusaders.

“We talked at halftime about how we needed to finish. They were the champs and you have to knock them out. At 42-14 (lead), you feel pretty good about your chances. They really hadn’t stopped us all night. They started making some plays and we started cramping up. You could just feel them get the momentum and we couldn’t finish it,” Goncharoff said. “It snowballed.”

The Wolverines dominated every facet of the game for the first 30 minutes of action. Bellevue running back Ercle Terrell finished the game with 33 carries for 227 yards and four rushing touchdowns. All four of Terrell’s touchdown runs came in the first half. Wolverines’ quarterback Justus Rogers connected with Tyson Penn on a 4-yard touchdown pass on a fade route just before halftime, giving Bellevue a commanding 35-14 lead against the Crusaders. Hirota appeared to ice the game with his 12-yard touchdown scamper, giving the Wolverines a 28-point lead with 18 minutes left in regulation.

The Crusaders wouldn’t go away quietly. Crusaders’ quarterback Harley Kirsch hit Hunter Bryant on a 28-yard touchdown pass and a 5-yard touchdown strike on their next two offensive possessions, cutting Bellevue’s lead to 42-28 at the end of three quarters of play. Kirsch hit Matt Laris on a 4-yard touchdown pass, slicing Bellevue’s lead to 42-35 with 5:49 left in the game.

Bellevue appeared to stop the bleeding with 2:09 remaining in regulation. With Bellevue clinging to a 42-35 lead, Eastside Catholic faced a third down with 15 yards to go at the Bellevue 32-yard line. Crusaders’ quarterback Harley Kirsch’s pass was intercepted by Bellevue’s Michael Medzegian. Bellevue’s sideline experienced jubilation until the yellow flag was discovered on the field. The Wolverines were called for a face-mask penalty and Eastside Catholic’s drive remained alive. Brandon Wellington scored on a 11-yard touchdown run tying the game at 42-42 with 1:24 left in the game to force overtime.

“That play at the end where we picked the ball we felt like we won it then,” Goncharoff said. “That is a hell of a call to make at the end of the game.”

In overtime, Bellevue gained possession of the ball first. On third down, Rogers lofted a pass to the left corner of the end-zone intended for Penn but the pass was broken up by Eastside Catholic’s Victor Guevara. Bellevue attempted a 39-yard field goal but the kick was wide left. It took the Crusaders just three plays to find the endzone. Wellington scored the game-winning touchdown on a 1-yard run up the middle to clinch the victory.

“Give credit to Eastside Catholic. They played really well,” Goncharoff said.

Bellevue stalwart defensive back Isaiah Gilchrist, who will play football at the University of Washington in the fall of 2016, was stunned following the loss against Eastside Catholic for the second year in a row.

“They finished, we didn’t. That is all,” he said.

Eastside Catholic head coach Jeremy Thielbahr said winning the state title for the second year in a row against Bellevue was special.

“I don’t care what anybody says, Butch Goncharoff is the best coach in the state. That guy does an amazing job. It is an honor competing against him. That is what you want as a coach, you want to compete against the best coaches in the state. Butch is definitely that guy,” Thielbahr said.