Pierce Whips Jackets 42-0

Jeff Davis High’s performance against a strong Pierce County team was riddled with mistakes in the 42-0 loss to the Bears. Nonetheless the Yellow Jackets fought hard but couldn’t match the hard-hitting Bears.
The Jackets’ performance Friday night was far superior to their 2022 battle against the Bears as Pierce scored effortlessly on all five of their first half possessions to race to a 35-3 halftime lead. But the 2023 meeting was much different as Pierce had to fight for every yard on offense as they took a 21-0 halftime advantage. They added three more TDs in the second half, but fell 14 points short of their 56-pt. outburst the year before.
The Jackets took the opening kickoff and quickly signaled that this year’s game wouldn’t be a cakewalk for the Top 10 ranked Bears. On the first play from scrimmage, Kyrice Hunt took the ball around the right side and raced 11 yards for a first down as wingback Bryaun Reyes threw a key block on Pierce’s defensive end, and guards Lewis Baker and Uriel Ortega Silva cleared the way downfield.
But the Jackets could only pick up eight yards in three plays and had to punt the ball away.
But the punt snap sailed over punter Konnor Munsayac’s head and he had to fall on the ball at the Jackets’ five where Pierce started its first possession. A holding penalty moved the ball out to the 13 but the Bears scored from there on a pass play as the JD defender stumbled. The kick made it 7-0.
On their next possession, it looked like Messiah Swinson would pick up a first down but he slipped on the wet artificial turf and Munsayac retreated into punt formation. Munsayac, under heavy pressure, got off a 46-yd. punt to the Pierce 14.
It took the Bears six plays to score to up the tally to 14-0 late in the first quarter.
Starting their next possession at the JD 35, Jacket quarterback Colby Beach threw a strike to wingback La’Trell Sellers at the Bear 48 but a pass interference broke up the play. The flag moved the ball to midfield. But a 4-yd. loss, a 5-yd. penalty and a dropped snap backed the Jackets all the way to their 26 and Munsayac again had to kick the ball away early in the second quarter.
Pierce started their next possession at the JD 47. The Bears went to the airways and scored in six pass plays to up the score to 21-0.
Starting at their 19, JD picked up a first down on an 18-yd. completion from Beach to Sellers as Beach showed nimble footwork to avoid a sack. But a 5-yd. walk-off helped prevent the Jackets from moving the chains as Munsayac punted the ball away.
Pierce was unable to pick up a first down and the Jackets took over on downs at their 49.
Beach hit Sellers again, this time for 15 yards to the Pierce 36. But another dropped snap lost 18 yards and Munsayac was called on to punt the ball again this time from the JD 32. He got off a 38-yd. punt to the Pierce 26.
Pierce picked up a quick first down but Aiden Dent broke up a pass, then Josh Worthington came up with a big defensive play, and the first half came to an end.
Pierce took the second half kickoff and put together a 13-play possession in which the Jacket defense gave up ground grudgingly. When the Bears got deep into JD territory, Kace Galbreath batted down a pass and Christian McDaniel pressured the quarterback and the Yellow Jackets took over possession on downs at their own 16 yard line.
Beach kept the ball for a big 17-yd. run but three plays later, Munsayac was called on to punt from the Jeff Davis 39.
Pierce scored in seven plays, capping the drive with a 22-yd. run early in the fourth quarter to make it 28-0.
A blocked punt set up Pierce for their next score, going 37 yards in three plays to up the tally to 35-0. On the first play after the kickoff, a Bear defender returned a Jacket fumble 28 yards for the final score of the game.
On the last possession of the game, Jeff Davis put together a 9-play drive highlighted by Messiah Swinson’s running and Beach’s passing but time ran out.
Colby Beach had his best performance since taking over the signal-calling duties for the Jackets last season as a sophomore. He completed 12 passes, nine of which were caught by junior Eli Saunders.
But a high punt snap, the slip of a running back, three dropped snaps, three fumbles and several inopportune illegal procedure penalties hurt the Jackets greatly.