By WESLEY REMMER

Central Kitsap Reporter

Bring on Skyline.

Issaquah is in the Class 4A state championship after rolling over Central Kitsap 31-13 in the semifinals Saturday at the Tacoma Dome.

Coupled with Skyline’s 24-21 victory against Ferris (11-2) in the other semifinal game, Friday night’s championship will be a rematch of the regular-season game between the two, which Skyline won 38-0.

“It’s about the perfect scenario,” Issaquah quarterback Joey Bradley said, beaming, “Senior year, playing Skyline in the championship.”

Most believed Saturday’s game would be won on the ground – Issaquah running back Grant Gellatly and Central Kitsap running back Howard McDonald had combined for more than 1,000 yards rushing in three playoff games – but Bradley proved the difference, completing 13 of 18 passes for 181 yards and two touchdowns.

“We thought we were going to be able to run a little bit more,” Bradley said.

Gellatly and McDonald were limited to 62 and 63 yards rushing, respectively, but Issaquah (11-2) managed to generate points through the air while Central Kitsap sputtered.

Bradley first connected with Ross Zuhl on a 12-yard pass to put the Eagles up 7-0, capping a six-play, 28-yard drive that began after Central Kitsap failed to corral the opening kickoff, a Gavin Schumaker pooch.

Dustin Talley polished off a 12-play, 82-yard drive, which was prolonged by a pass interference call against Central Kitsap deep in Cougar territory, with a 2-yard plunge to make it 14-0 at the 7:53 mark of the second quarter.

Central Kitsap whittled the lead to 14-7 before halftime when quarterback Jason Simonis, who finished 6 of 11 for 101 yards, hit Christian Wesley on a deep play-action pass.

A 20-yard Bradley-to-Gellatly connection on a long third-and-goal in the waning seconds of the first half gave Issaquah a 21-7 halftime lead.

“Our kids just played hard, that’s one of our best characteristics,” Issaquah coach Chris Bennett said. “They just keep playing no matter what.”

One play after Allen Hewey made a miracle 35-yard catch off a tipped ball on fourth-and-long to put the ball at Issaquah’s 2, the Cougars crawled within 24-13.

“Once that happened, we said we couldn’t let it affect us,” Bradley said.

Brennan Miller thwarted the comeback bid with an interception on Central Kitsap’s ensuing drive, retuning it 29 yards to the Cougar 4. That set up a Bradley sneak to push the lead to 31-13.

“Our kids just played hard. That’s one of our best characteristics,” said Issaquah coach Chris Bennett. “They just keep playing, no matter what.”

The Eagles limited Central Kitsap to 179 yards in total offense, wreaking havoc against the Cougars’ usually dominant offensive line.

“I thought it was our best (defensive) game in four weeks,” he said. “We’ve given up some yardage, but we’ve given it up to some pretty good teams.”

For Central Kitsap (9-4), which few believed would advance beyond the Round of 16 after drawing then-No. 3 Olympia, Saturday’s loss marked the final chapter in a surprising postseason run that included upsets of the Bears, Snohomish and then-No. 9 Rogers.

“They did a better job than us up front,” coach Mark Keel said. “We weren’t getting a whole bunch of time to throw the football.”

So nationally ranked Skyline (13-0) awaits Issaquah in the finals. The Spartans cruised through the teams’ first meeting Oct. 17 without allowing the Eagles to score.

“They tagged us pretty good,” Bennett said. “We didn’t play very well, so we know we need to play better.”

Neither Gallatly nor Bradley were effective in the first meeting, being shut down by the Skyline defense, which had allowed just one touchdown before Saturday.

“I think we were shellshocked at first, playing a nationally ranked team,” Gellatly said. “They brought it to us.”

But Gellatly and Co. are confident despite Skyline – which is currently ranked No. 6 nationally in the USA Today poll – being heavy favorites.

“It’s as high as we can get it right now,” Bradley said. “We’re feeling good. It’s going to be fun.”

The 4A championship game was originally scheduled for 4 p.m. Saturday, but was rescheduled to 7:30 p.m. Friday due to the Bellevue football team’s bus crash.

Central Kitsap Reporter Sports writer Wesley Remmer can be reached at sports@centralkitsapreporter.com or (360) 308-9161.