Olympic League standings

Team Lg. Over.

North Kitsap 6-0 8-0

Sequim 4-1 6-2

Olympic 3-2 4-4

Bremerton 2-3 4-4

Kingston 2-3 2-6

North Mason 1-4 1-6

Port Angeles 0-5 0-8

It wasn’t always pretty, but Sequim locked up the Olympic League No. 2 seed to districts with a resounding 49-9 home win against rival Port Angeles on Oct. 21.

Gavin Velarde had four touchdowns and Riley Cowan threw for 373 yards and four scores in the rout, the Wolves’ second lopsided win in the Rainshadow Rumble in as many seasons.

“I thought we had a better team,” Sequim head coach Erik Wiker said.

Sequim (4-1 in Olympic League play, 6-2 overall) overcame 70 yards in penalties — including a trio of unsportsmanlike calls — to dominate on both sides of the ball, out-gaining the Roughriders 460-229 in total yardage.

“We had a lack of discipline and PA played tough,” Wiker said.

It was Sequim’s second game of the week, after a matchup with Olympic was pushed from Oct. 14 to Oct. 17 with the threat of a severe storm.

“The Monday game threw everything off,” Wiker said. “I think we didn’t focus. This week was kind of an ‘off’ week. That showed up a little bit.”

Unfortunately for Port Angeles, Velarde — a first team all-league receiver and special teams player in 2015 — showed up Friday night in a big way. After Cowan found Kyler Rollness for a score to put Sequim up 7-0, Velarde snagged a 38-yard pass from Cowan for a 14-0 Sequim lead.

Late in the first quarter, Port Angeles halved Sequim’s lead when PA quarterback Matthew Warner found Garrett Edwards near the sideline and Edwards shrugged off a would-be tackle for a 61-yard scoring play.

The Roughriders intercepted Cowan on the next possession but were forced to punt, and Cowan found Velarde in the flat where he raced 64 yards, a touchdown and a 21-7 Sequim lead.

“(Cowan) is a young kid; he’s a sophomore but he doesn’t play like a sophomore,” Wiker said.

“I feel more of a leadership role (this year),” Cowan said.

The Wolves added another score before halftime when Cowan found Velarde again on a slant; he raced 75 yards for a touchdown.

Velarde finished with seven catches for 244 yards and three TDs.

Cowan connected with junior receiver Payton Glasser from seven yards out midway through the third quarter, giving Sequim a 35-7 lead.

Glasser, who finished with five catches for 59 yards, played quarterback his freshman year but didn’t play football his sophomore year. He said the biggest adjustment in switching positions is the physicality of his receiver role.

“I’m not used to getting hit,” he said.

Tyler Conn finished off Sequim’s next drive with a score from six yards out, putting SHS up 42-7.

Down 42-7, Port Angeles showed some life with a 10-play, 82-yard drive that spanned the third and fourth quarters. But Warner fumbled the snap at the Sequim 1-yard-line.

The Riders picked up a safety when Cowan was called for an unsportsmanlike penalty in the end zone on the following play.

Velarde capped the scoring with an 85-yard punt return touchdown with 5:56 remaining.

Sequim rushed for 87 yards, with Conn and Velarde (38 yards each) leading the way.

“Our linemen did really good,” Cowan said.

It’s the most wins for a Wolves since 2011, the last time they won a league title.

For continued success, Cowan said Sequim still has some work to do: “We need to fix mistakes and execute better on both sides of the ball.”

Looking ahead

With the win, Sequim takes the No. 2 playoff seed into a state 2A tournament play-in game set for Nov. 5, likely at 7 p.m. at Silverdale Stadium.

Sequim finishes the regular season at Kingston on Oct. 28.

The Buccaneers (2-3, 2-6) are coming off a 40-6 loss at Bremerton on Oct. 21.

Last season, Sequim edged Kingston 13-10.