11/29/25
One game remains in the 3A classification to determine the state champion in Washington state. The top two seeds in defending champions #1 O’Dea and fellow undefeated #2 Mount Tahoma fought through tough semifinal victories to move on to Husky Stadium to play for the 3A state title.
Our goal is to have the information updated as quickly as possible and you can return to this post to find everything you’re looking for regarding the 3A State Football tournament. We’ll continue to update this post until a State Champion is crowned.
Links of Note
Link to Eli Sports Live Broadcast page
Link to WIAA for Fan information
Link to WIAA official bracket
All Games are Loser Out
Semifinals
Saturday, November 29
O’Dea 20, Bellevue 14
(RENTON, WA) The rematch of last year’s 3A State Championship Game lived up to the hype. O’Dea’s Tevita Nonu’s strip sack in the closing seconds shut the door on Bellevue to send the Irish back to the State Championship. Allias Moimoi accounted for two touchdowns on the ground and Owen Brustkern returned a blocked punt for a touchdown for O’Dea. Bellevue saw Max Jones and Nick Norrah score touchdowns in the loss.
The Irish were vying for back to back trips to the State Championship, while Bellevue aimed for their third consecutive trip to the 3A State Championship Game.
This game was a rematch of last year’s 3A State Championship Game won by O’Dea 38-15 thanks to a 233 all purpose yard performance from Uriah Stringfield including three touchdowns. O’Dea would not have been in that position without the heroics of Lio Banchero who scored the go ahead touchdown with 21 seconds left in the ’24 Semifinal against Eastside Catholic. With O’Dea in the same position as last year, who would imagine what heroics might be needed for O’Dea to return or Bellevue to make their way back to the State Title Game for third straight year.
Saturday afternoon’s game is the third straight year Bellevue and O’Dea have met in the playoffs, with Bellevue’s most recent win coming in the 2023 3A Semifinal (21-17). O’Dea and Bellevue had met in the playoffs seven previous occasions with Bellevue winning four of the postseason encounters.
In the first quarter only two drives amounted to the entirety of the quarter. Bellevue’s ensuing drive ended on a turnover on downs. O’Dea’s drive ended in an interception by Nick Norrah.
The game remained scoreless until late in the second quarter. Lio Banchero’s fake punt led to a first down for O’Dea. Freshman QB Allias Moimoi engineered the Irish down the field resulting in a touchdown scamper from 15 yards out. The ensuing drive led to a punt for Bellevue, and on the punt, Tevita Nonu blocked the Nick Norrah punt and Owen Brustkern snatched the loose pigskin and scored the touchdown. O’Dea led 14-0 at halftime.
Bellevue accounted for 105 first half yards with 65 of them thanks to Max Jones. O’Dea’s offense was largely dependent on J Shaun Wilson ran for 51 of O’Dea’s 101 yards in half number one.
O’Dea got the football first to start the second half. On the second play from scrimmage Keigo Aoyagi intercepted O’Dea quarterback Hutton Leverett to set up Bellevue first and goal. On the ensuing play, Max Jones scored from a yard out and Bellevue was right back in the game. A 14-0 O’Dea lead was cut in half to 14-7. Late in the third quarter, O’Dea got the football near midfield. Allias Moimoi engineered O’Dea into the end zone when the freshman quarterback scored from nine yards out. The Irish missed the extra point to lead 20-7 after three quarters.
Bellevue down by two scores looked into the passing game to bring them back into the game. Nick Norrah played a massive role for the Wolverines in their fourth quarter drive. Norrah reeled in a 28 yard catch and coerced a pass interference call. Kason Carta found Norrah for a 25 yard touchdown to cut the deficit to 20-14 with eight minutes left. Bellevue’s defense needed a stop. Nick Norrah intercepted an O’Dea pass on the ensuing drive to set up four minutes for Bellevue to travel 87 yards to head to the State Championship.
Bellevue methodically converted several third downs even a fourth down when Dreson Jimerson kept Bellevue’s hopes alive in the dying seconds. With 10 seconds left, Bellevue with the ball at the O’Dea 13. Carta rolled out to his left. He slipped and O’Dea’s Tevita Nonu forced a fumble and fell on the loose ball to secure O’Dea’s trip to the State Championship Game.
The win secures O’Dea back to back trips to Husky Stadium in the 3A State Championship Game. O’Dea is set to face Mount Tahoma next Friday night at 7pm from Husky Stadium. The title game is a rematch of last year’s quarterfinal game won by O’Dea 42-21.
Bellevue for the second straight year sees their journey end with a loss to O’Dea. The Wolverines saw senior Max Jones run for 96 yards and a score. Kason Carta threw for 77 yards with Nick Norrah catching 53 of them.
O’Dea’s J Shaun Wilson ran for 73 yards in the win.
The Holiday Inn Express MVP of the Game was O’Dea Freshman Quarterback Allias Moimoi with 38 yards on the ground and both of O’Dea’s rushing touchdowns.
If you want to catch the full game broadcast of this instant classic Click Here (NFHS Subscription Required).
The Holiday Day Inn Express MVP of the Game was O’Dea Freshman Quarterback Allias Moimoi with 38 yards on the ground and both of O’Dea’s rushing touchdowns.
Below is our full postgame interview with Moimoi followed by highlights from the game.
ESN Interviews Game MVP O’Dea QB Allias Moimoi
Allias Moimoi Touchdown Scamper
Owen Brustkern Scores on Blocked Punt
Max Jones Punches It In
Allias Moimoi Scores His 2nd TD
Nick Norrah Over the Shoulder TD Catch
Dreson Jimerson Keeps Bellevue Alive
Tevita Nonu Clinches the Title Game Berth
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(Tacoma, WA) Two very different programs crossed paths on Saturday in the first 3A state football semifinal as the Eastside Catholic Crusaders rolled into George Nordi Field to take on the Mount Tahoma Thunderbirds. Eastside Catholic came in as the #3 seed while Mount Tahoma was the #2 seed but it felt like Eastside Catholic was playing the role of Goliath while Mount Tahoma tried to add the latest chapter of their underdog, David-like story.
Eastside Catholic has been a perennial power in the 3A classification in the last decade. With four state titles since 2014, the Crusaders are always right there on semifinal weekend but entered Saturday night looking to make it to their first state championship game since 2022 after back-to-back semifinal losses. After a shutout of Kennewick in the quarterfinals, this had the feeling of a team catching fire at the perfect time.
On the other side, the Mount Tahoma Thunderbirds came into the semifinals with a perfect record after a dominant win in the quarterfinals over their league foe in Lincoln. The T-Birds 30-78 record since 2014 entering the season has improved as has the health of the program under fourth-year head coach Keith Terry. Now Mount Tahoma was one win away from advancing to the state championship for the first time since 1980.
Mount Tahoma 21, Eastside Catholic 6
Eastside Catholic received the ball to begin this semifinal and the drive got off to a promising start. Nick Jones picked up 11 yards on his first carry as the Crusaders immediately moved the chains. A nine-yard pass from Luca Villasenor to Caden Weber moved them into T-Bird territory. However, a loss of four yards on a screen pass followed by a false start killed the momentum and the Crusaders had to punt. A terrific punt by Cade Boehl pinned Mount Tahoma at their own three-yard line to put the Crusader defense in a good spot.
It didn’t matter where Mount Tahoma started with the ball, the T-Birds were going to run it constantly. With an injury to Keshawn Hines, the workload increased for Nezie White and Felix Diaz but they both handled it very well. Mikkah Cordero had to use his arm a bit more than he has had too as of late but found completions to Kane Roy as Mount Tahoma moved the ball down the field. The T-Birds would kill the rest of the opening quarter and faced a fourth and 4 to begin the 2nd. A false start backed them up and Junior Contreras-Barragan was on to save the day with a 37-yard field goal to give Mount Tahoma a 3-0 lead.
Eastside Catholic seemed to be off to a terrific start on their next drive as Cayden Pili broke a 22-yard run on the first play of the next series. However, the ball was knocked free and recovered by Felix Diaz for the first turnover of the game. It didn’t take long for Mount Tahoma to get the ball down the field thanks to an 18-yard pass from Mikkah Cordero to Quentin Hodge. A couple of plays later, Felix Diaz was in for the game’s first touchdown. While the extra point was blocked, Mount Tahoma had a nice 9-0 lead.
The Thunderbird defense then began to really frustrate the Eastside Catholic offense as the Crusaders struggled to get anything going. The Crusaders managed only 52 yards of offense in the first half and most of those game on the first two drives. Fortunately for Eastside Catholic, their defense kept Mount Tahoma from adding on thanks to an interception by Hudson Schock. We would go to halftime with Mount Tahoma in control, 9-0.
It was T-Bird football to begin the second half but Eastside Catholic’s defense was more than ready for the challenge in half number two as they forced a turnover on downs after getting a stop on fourth and one. That gave the Crusaders the ball in T-Bird territory but Mount Tahoma’s defense made their own plays. A sack from Teavan Jones followed a false start penalty and then Shan Jones came away with an interception. Jones took it all the way back to the Crusader six but the defense of Eastside Catholic kept them in it. They held Junior Contreras-Barragan to a 19-yard field goal to keep their deficit at two possessions at 12-0.
It looked like Eastside Catholic would get on the board as a fourth and two went for a 32-yard touchdown from Dash Lamebull-Ingram, but a holding penalty negated that. It turned into fourth and 12 and eventually a turnover on downs as the teams traded empty possessions as the game moved to the 4th quarter.
Right when it looked like the Crusaders were beginning to find a groove in the passing game with Luca Villasenor, Shan Jones popped up with yet another interception. While his second pick of the day didn’t yield a big return like the first, it set up something much bigger. A 68-yard pass from Mikkah Corder to Anthony Quintanilla Jr. set the T-Birds up at the two-yard line. Nezie White put the stamp on that series with a one-yard score to open up the lead to 19-0.
Mount Tahoma added a safety on a chop block in the endzone to make it 21-0. Eastside Catholic would manage a strong drive to get on the board on a 23-yard touchdown pass from Luca Villasenor to Tyten McNeal to avoid the shutout. However, the onside kick was recovered and it was victory formation for Mount Tahoma. A dominant defensive performance ended a 45-year drought as for the first time since 1980, the Mount Tahoma Thunderbirds are headed to the state championship with a dominant 21-6 win over Eastside Catholic.
Stats and MVP
Our Sumner Holiday Inn Express MVP of the game went to one of many defensive standouts for Mount Tahoma in Teavan Jones. The junior had a pass break-up, a tackle for a loss, and a sack in a dominant defensive performance by the Thunderbirds.
For the Mount Tahoma offense, Felix Diaz would carry the ball 13 times for 69 yards and a score while Nezie White had 22 carries for 65 yards and a score to lead the talented rushing attack of the T-Birds. Kamarjae Davis also carried the ball twice for four yards while Keshawn Hines had a two-yard carry and Mikkah Cordero had a one-yard carry. Through the air, Cordero went 8/18 for 143 yards in one of his busier days throwing the football. Anthony Quintanilla Jr. caught two passes for 72 yards while Elijah Durr had two catches for 30 yards. Kane Roy caught three passes for 23 yards to lead the team in receptions and Quentin Hodge caught one pass for 18 yards while having a pass break-up on defense. Felix Diaz also recorded a tackle for a loss while Shan Jones had two interceptions. Junior Contreras-Barragan hit two field goals from 37 yards and 19 yards out.
Eastside Catholic was led by their quarterback Luca Villasenor who went 14/25 through the air for 111 yards and a touchdown. Cayden Pili had four catches for four yards but also carried the ball four times for 24 yards and he had a pass break-up on defense. Nepo Fareti caught three passes for 69 yards as the leading receiver while Asa Thompson matched him with three catches for six yards. Tytan McNeal caught a 23-yard touchdown while Caden Weber had a nine-yard catch. Nick Jones carried the ball six times for 21 yards and caught two passes for 10 yards. Wassie Lugolobi had one carry for six yards and had a tackle for a loss on defense. Hudson Schock was the star defensively for the Crusaders with a sack and an interception.
With the win, Mount Tahoma moves to 13-0 on the season and will play the O’Dea Fighting Irish at Husky Stadium on Friday, December 5th in their first state championship appearance since 1980. Eastside Catholic finishes their season with a record of 10-2 with their only two losses coming to the teams playing for the 3A state title.
Click here for the 3A football bracket
Click here for the link to the full game replay (Subscription Required)
ESN Postgame Show
Game Highlights
T-Birds INT
Quintanilla Catch and Run
Eastside Catholic TD
Quarterfinals
Saturday, November 22
#6 Kennewick 0, #3 Eastside Catholic 41
#10 Lincoln 14, #2 Mount Tahoma 42 (Story by Matthew King)
#5 Lakes 18, #4 Bellevue 49
#8 Sedro-Woolley 21, #1 O’Dea 56 (Story by Tyler Hergert)
Opening Round
Friday, November 14
#12 Liberty 34 #5 Lakes 35 (Story by Tony Davila)
#16 Ferndale 0 #1 O’Dea 49 (Story by Dominic Murphy)
#15 Seattle Prep 7 #2 Mount Tahoma 42 (Story by Tyler Hergert)
#10 Lincoln 28 #7 Rainier Beach 19 (Story by Matthew King)
Saturday, November 15
#13 Kelso 0 #4 Bellevue 56
#14 Southridge 7 #3 Eastside Catholic 42
#11 Enumclaw 7 #6 Kennewick 28 Lampson Stadium
#9 White River 7 #8 Sedro-Woolley 28
Round of 32 Games
Tuesday, November 4 (Play-in Game)
University 18, Walla Walla 13
Friday, November 7, 2025
Ferndale 35, Cheney 34
Peninsula 17, White River 28
Mount Vernon 14, Lincoln (Tac) 48
Prairie 7, Mount Tahoma 58
Inglemoor 14, Bellevue 51
Evergreen (Van) 28, Liberty (Renton) 49
Federal Way 10, Kelso 13
Decatur 7, Lakes 49
Shorewood 20, Enumclaw 42
Snohomish 14, O’Dea 58
Stanwood 21, Rainier Beach 47
Seattle Prep 20, Mountlake Terrace 10
Southridge 29, Mount Spokane 28
Saturday, November 8, 2025
West Seattle 7, Kamiakin 35
Gig Harbor 7, Sedro-Woolley 14
University 0, Eastside Catholic 48
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