Coupeville Sports

Matthew Kelley sports a reminder that football is a contact sport. (Pat Kelley photo)

Not even a cheap shot can derail the Kelley Express.

Bouncing back after a shot to the ribs knocked him out of the game for much of the first half Saturday, Coupeville Middle School gridiron giant Matthew Kelley returned just in time to decide his team’s game.

Flying back on to the field at Friday Harbor, Kelley, a sixth grader at CMS, racked up eight tackles and two sacks, stripping the ball from the quarterback on the second take-down.

That allowed his Oak Harbor Junior Gold squad to recover the ball and turn the tide in what became a 19-12 win.

The victory kept Oak Harbor perfect at 7-0. Having already secured the #1 seed for the playoffs, the Wildcats will close the regular season with an all-Island match-up with South Whidbey (1-6) Oct. 18.

Friday Harbor was clinging to a 12-6 lead and had the ball on its own 35-yard line when Kelley broke through the line, leveled the QB and popped the ball out.

The Wildcats took immediate advantage, recovering the ball and driving for the go-ahead touchdown. They added a final score to pad the lead with four seconds left in the game.

Kelley wasn’t the only Coupeville kid to shine last weekend.

Logan Downes, who moonlights for the Oak Harbor Pee Wees, shined in a 40-6 win over Friday Harbor.

Downes, who attends third grade at Coupeville Elementary School, took a punt back 55 yards and later ripped off a 95-yard scoring run in the third quarter that put the game on ice.

His ‘Cat squad is 6-1.