Rarely this season has gaining a yard on the ground been a challenge for the Auburn football team.

With a deep stable of bruising backs, led by senior Jeff Gouveia – eating up ground to the tune of 382 yards a game this season, trying to eke out a couple of yards has not been issue for the Trojans.

Until last Saturday in the state Class 4A quarterfinals.

In a contest pitting the final two unbeaten teams still alive in the playoffs, the Skyline defense managed to do what 11 other teams failed to do this season – stop the fly sweep and defeat the Trojans.

Skyline (12-0) contained Auburn, 38-2, at Spartan Field in Sammamish to reach this week’s semifinals.

Meanwhile, the Trojans, South Puget Sound League North Division champions, ended a solid season 11-1.

Coming into the game, Spartans coach Mel Taylor knew he had his hands full.

“We knew it was going to be a hard-fought battle, we knew it was going to be a war,” he said. “And defensively we set the tone. We didn’t let them get anything going. They had the long drive at the beginning. But the kids just responded well.”

Twice Skyline thwarted Auburn on long drives, denying the Trojans a measly yard on third- and fourth-down conversions.

“We saw the fly sweep probably a hundred times in the past week alone, just getting ready for them,” Taylor said. “You can’t simulate it in practice, but it was really fresh in the kids’ minds, and they executed in the game.”

Auburn shot out to a two-point lead in the first quarter, when a Skyline player batted the ball out-of-bounds in the end zone, giving the Trojans their only points of the game.

After stopping Auburn on its next possession, Skyline turned to its high-powered offense – led by quarterback Jake Heaps and a pair of Division I-caliber receivers in Kasen Williams and Washington State-bound Gino Simone. The Spartans erupted for 24 points before the end of the first half.

“They’re a good football team and to beat a team like that you’ve got to play at the top of your game,” Auburn coach Gordon Elliott said. “At times we looked well and I thought we made them work for a lot. But we gave them some big plays and you can’t do that against a team like that,” Elliott said. “We didn’t control the football like we do. They played really good defense and we just couldn’t move the ball like we needed to. They’re really a super football team.”

The Spartan defense held the Trojans to just 173 yards on 45 carries.

“They did a lot of stuff to take Gouveia away,” Elliott said. “And you can do that, it’s part of our offense. But that’s why we have the other guys. If you take one guy away, hopefully the other guys step up. And we got some yardage here and there, but we weren’t consistent.

“Our offensive line just didn’t get the movement that we’ve gotten in other games,” Elliott summed up. “And that’s because of them. That’s a good defensive line.”

The Spartan offense wasn’t bad either, with Simone notching eight receptions for 95 yards and Heaps adding 17 of 24 passing with two touchdowns and no interceptions.

Skyline running back Nich Washburn chipped in with 101 yards on 14 carries and a touchdown.

Down by more than three touchdowns in the second half and unable to move the ball consistently on the ground, the Trojans found themselves unable to score offensively in a game for the first time this season.

Auburn had averaged 37 points a game this fall.

“We tried to mix some things in, but that’s not who we are,” Elliott said. “You’ve got to have some confidence that your plays will work.

“We threw some more and ran a few of what you would call trick plays than we’ve ever done because we were down. But that’s the gamble that you take when you’re that kind of team. We’re not built like that.”

Skyline now moves on to the semifinals where it will face Ferris (11-1) this Saturday in Spokane. The winner of that contest plays the winner of the Issaquah (10-2) versus Central Kitsap (9-3) contest in the state championship game Dec. 6 at the Tacoma Dome.

For Elliott and the Trojans, it’s been quite a run and a season to treasure.

“This senior group has had four great years,” he said. “They’ve been in the playoffs four years. And that’s a tough group to say goodbye to.”