The home-field advantage of the Barrow High Whalers is not to be trifled with.
The Whalers started fast and never lifted their foot off the pedal Saturday in a 46-18 victory over the Houston Hawks in a small schools Alaska quarterfinal game at Cathy Parker Field, a stirring victory in the first playoff game above the Arctic Circle.
The victory earned Barrow a trip to the state semifinals later this week at the Anchorage Football Stadium. The opponent is the always tough Kodiak Bears.
With temperatures in the high 20s and a brisk 25-mph wind off the Arctic Ocean whipping up snow, the Whalers turned to their running game, amassing 363 yards and holding the visiting Hawks to only 119.
We thank Eric Engman of the Fairbanks News-Miner for the photo of Barrow coach Mark Ross getting doused with water as time expired, along with newspaper's Danny Martin and James Brooks.
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