Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com – From left to right, Ferndale’s Landon Gomes Tristen Martin and Dominic Regli

By Ray Hamill — The Ferndale Wildcats matched high-flying St. Bernard’s stride for stride early in Saturday’s rivalry showdown, before eventually falling 47-27.

The two teams combined for touchdowns on six straight possessions in the first half, with several Ferndale players impressing in the loss.

Most notably, Landon Gomes had a huge day for the Cats, scoring a pair of touchdowns, including one on a 60-yard run.

So too did tight end/defensive end Tristen Martin, who made some outstanding plays on both sides of the ball, and pulled in a 13-yard TD reception from quarterback Jenner Christiansen.

Martin’s emergence gives the 2-2 Wildcats an added dimension as they get set to open conference play at Arcata next weekend.

“Tristen Martin is something we’ve been looking for in our offensive production,” Ferndale head coach Clint McClurg said. “So that was really, really exciting for us moving forward to get him involved in our passing game.”

For more on the game, see Crusaders pull away from Cats after early scare …