CARDINALS ARE STATE CHAMPIONS

TACOMA - The 2011 WP Cardinals became the first football team in history to win the 2B State Championship trophy for their communities on Saturday.

The 14-0 team beat Morton/White Pass 33-7 in the state title game at the Tacoma dome in the same convincing fashion as it defeated most previous opponents the past several seasons.

The Cardinals were the first to score and never looked back. They were up 14-0 at halftime. Morton/White Pass scored early in the second half and for a few moments, it seemed like they may still come from behind.

But within minutes, Cardinal Billy Brown answered with a running touchdown in the end zone and the WP defense gave up no more MWP scores.

The Cardinals are the second WP team to win a state trophy this fall, after the WP Tigers soccer team defeated Providence in it's title game two weeks ago.

WAITSBURG -- Cardinals head coach Jeff Bartlow just stopped having Deja vu's.

His team's game against Colfax Saturday was the last echo from last year's playoffs. Now that the big red birds have kenneled the Bulldogs, he and the Cards are in unchartered territory -- meeting a west side team in the Tacoma Dome for the state championship game.

It's a historic time for the Cardinals.

Never before has a football team from this town gone to the modern state final. The closest any team has gotten is the semifinals, three times under Bartlow, including last year's matchup against Colfax in Pullman.

It's a whole new ball game. The state finals, six divisional games over two days, aren't merely of interest to the team's home crowds. Thousands of spectators show up at the Dome to watch the best teams in the state compete.

There will be TV cameras, bright lights, college scouts and indoor playing conditions the Cards will have to adjust to quickly.

"It's a great opportunity for all the kids to perform at the highest possible level in high school football," Bartlow said. "It's a dream come true."

All week, the team will do its conditioning training at Kison Court to get used to the different indoor oxygen mix they'll face in the big arena. The team leaves early on Friday morning to cross the mountains and reach the Tacoma area by the afternoon so they practice inside the dome. They'll be bringing cleats and tennis shoes so they make a choice between the footwear varieties after trying out the turf on the dome floor.

The team they face in the final, Morton/White Pass (11- 1), is already familiar with the conditions at the dome, where the Timberwolves beat Napavine, 27-21, in overtime in the semifinal last Friday.

It was a seasonal comeback for the Lewis County team, which allowed its only loss (14-7) in the entire season to Napavine, a divisional powerhouse along with Adna in recent years.

Morton/ White Pass' strength is its defense, which claimed eight shutouts and allowed only 14 points (those from Napavine) during the regular season.

It wouldn't be fair to compare that number to WP's. Bartlow has been in the habit of fielding his offensive and defensive bench during the fourth quarter, while many of his opponents would only do so on offense.

Otherwise, the Cardinals would likely have clocked at least a handful of shutouts and allowed fewer points during the season.

The Timberwolves have an impressive running game, led by senior Brian Reynolds, who carried 15 times for 98 yards to stage a MWP comeback in the semifinal's fourth quarter and in overtime from a 21-7 deficit to a 27-21 victory.

Bartlow also pointed to tight end Ben Powell and running back Kody Crowder as pillars of the Timberwolves' offense. Though sophomore quarterback Rylon Kolb can't be underestimated.

"They're an aggressive football team," said Bartlow, who viewed the tape of the semifinal game. "They play with a lot of energy and emotion. You could see they really want it."

But the Cardinals and their coaches, three of whom (Bartlow, Joe Estes and Troy Larsen) have sons on the WP team, want it such as much, the head coach said.

"It's the opportunity of a lifetime," Bartlow said. "This has never happened before. We have a chance to win a state title. This is the time to do it."

Kickoff at the dome is at 4 p.m. Saturday. It's the fifth game in the six-game Gridiron Classic.