David Ukwu’s explosive night fuels Olympia to first state bid in 15 years

It’s time to party like it’s 2011.

For the first time in 15 years, the Olympia Bears football team is state bound, as the Bears outlasted Camas 48-41 in a Class 4A Round of 32 game at Ingersoll Stadium on Friday, Nov. 6.

Olympia is a perfect 3-0 when its games are delayed by power outages or inclement weather. Two hours before kickoff, just as Camas was arriving, Ingersoll Stadium lost power, and it didn’t return for over an hour. Kickoff was pushed to 7:30 p.m.

Every time Olympia deals with a delay, its running game only grows more powerful. When lightning and thunder delayed the Spaghetti Bowl against Capital in Week 1, Ibrahima Diallo rushed for 195 yards and four touchdowns. When the Bears’ game against Yelm was moved back a day due to power outages, Diallo broke the program single-game record with 355 yards and six touchdowns on eight carries in the first half.

And when Olympia’s biggest game of the season was delayed on Friday due to another wacky power outage in Ingersoll, David Ukwu powered up for 238 rushing yards and four touchdowns, including the go-ahead 83-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter. He also popped off on defense for 16.5 total tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss.

“He was a man amongst boys. When he gets rolling, he’s rolling,” Olympia head coach Cary Nagel said of Ukwu.

Olympia and Camas went back and forth in the first quarter, as an Elijah Butler 1-yard TD run for the Bears was sandwiched between rushing scores by Camas in a 12-7 first-quarter lead for the Papermakers.

The Bears stormed in front in the second quarter behind a 10-yard touchdown pass from Noah Faalili to Titon Fuller, and Ukwu scored twice to give Olympia a 27-12 lead before Camas closed the first half with a field goal.

Camas roared back in the third quarter with a pair of touchdown drives, including a 14-yard TD pass that put the Papermakers back in front 28-27. Ukwu erupted for a 70-yard touchdown run along the left sideline, stiff arming a defender inside the 5-yard line to finish off an electric go-ahead score. 

Trailing 33-25 entering the fourth, Camas regained the lead with a 16-yard TD run. Noah Miller put the Bears back on top with an easy 23-yard touchdown run up the middle, and a two-point conversion made it 41-34 Olympia. 

Camas tied the game with 6:21 remaining thanks to an 8-yard touchdown run before Ukwu immediately responded with the go-ahead 83-yard score with 5:35 left. Olympia closed out the victory with a fourth-down stop with 2:35 remaining.

“It’s a big moment for the community. I’m really happy for the kids. They’ve been working their tail off,” Nagel said. “It’s been a fun ride this season with the kids. They want it so bad. They really gel together. We preach playing as a family, and the boys have been resilient all year.”

Olympia (8-2) now heads to the 4A state Round of 16, which begins next weekend. The Bears will learn their seed and matchup on Sunday, Nov. 8.