Not everything went according to plan for the No. 12 Eagles (5-1), who suffered regular penalties and missed an extra point to keep the Knights hanging around. But kicker John Holley had a chance at redemption in overtime, when he nailed a 30-yard field goal to give his team the lead.
“I had some upsetting kicks earlier in the game, and that was on me, but I just stayed locked in,” Holley said. “But honestly, I’ve been waiting for a game-winning field goal. You ask any of my friends. I’ve been telling them this is what I want because I know I’m going to make it. It’s just the moment I’ve been waiting for.”
Despite coming up short, Friendship (4-2) walked off the field confident it has what it takes to compete with the area’s top teams. Against a perennial Washington Catholic Athletic Association powerhouse, the Northeast Washington public charter school was in it the whole way — but always a play away.
Gonzaga’s relentless defense kept the Knights scoreless through the first quarter, yet Friendship senior quarterback Brenton Toles wasn’t fazed by the consistent pressure.
With his team trailing by six in the fourth quarter, Toles got the ball at Friendship’s 26-yard line and navigated a long drive — both in time and yardage — that ended in a touchdown run by senior Donte West to tie the score at 13 apiece.
Friendship missed what would have been the go-ahead extra point, but an offside penalty gave the Knights another chance. They missed again, paving the way for overtime.
“I’m proud of the fight, man. I like how they kept going,” Toles said. “I’m glad they didn’t keep their heads down. We were ready to go out there fighting, and that’s what we did. … We will come back on Monday. We will practice things, and we’ll see how things go and get the next one.”
As much as pressure was the theme of the night, both in how the defense applied it and the offense handled it during several intense moments, Gonzaga Coach Randy Trivers had another word in mind.
“The word of the week was ‘finish,’ ” he said. “ … We were able to win the last play of the game and seal it. … But I told the kids, it’s not really the last play of the game as much as it’s all the things that lead up to it.”