By Ray Hamill — Friday night’s game at McKinleyville was not something you see in sports every day.

A team that lost by 70 points walked away feeling good about itself and a team that won by 70 had reason to feel somewhat disappointed.

The Ferndale Wildcats won the game 82-12 and stretched their winning streak to nine straight games while also clinching at least a share of the Little 4 title, a championship they can claim outright with a win over Arcata next weekend.

But their streak of not allowing any points all season came to an end as the Panthers did something against them that no other school has managed this season and found their way to the elusive end zone — twice.

It was a good night for a pair of programs that are at very different stages of development, and it was so for very different reasons.

When McKinleyville quarterback Ruger Baxter connected with receiver Trevor Marsh on the first of their two touchdowns on the night with four minutes remaining in the second quarter, the players celebrated as if they had won the game.

And rightfully so.

This is a program that has taken some nice steps in the right direction this year after back-to-back winless campaigns but still has a long way to go, and to do something that neither Fortuna, Eureka nor Arcata could achieve is something the players and McKinleyville fans should celebrate.

Despite the disappointment of seeing their incredible streak come to an end, the Wildcats also have every reason to feel good about themselves.

The Cats’ 82 points were the most by any H-DNL program in at least 22 years since MaxPreps began keeping records.

(South Fork scored 87 points in wins over Potter Valley in 2019 and Round Valley in 2017, but they were in eight-player NCL III football, which is typically far higher scoring.)

It was also incredibly the fourth time the Cats have topped 70 points in their last five games, as they continue to set standards you rarely ever see in high school football.

But it was the players’ reaction after giving up the first touchdown that was particularly impressive.

It took opponents 404 minutes to score on the Cats this season, but it only took the Cats 38 seconds to respond.

And as the players celebrated that TD, you can see what it meant from the video above.

It’s not so much that the Panthers woke a sleeping giant — the Cats have been wide awake all year and setting standards we may never see again — but it seemed to reignite a fire under them at a perfect time as they head towards the postseason.

Their shot at not giving up any points in the regular season may be gone, but this team’s legacy has yet to be finalized and they have more important goals to focus on.

They can clinch the L4 title outright with a win at Arcata, before beginning what they hope will be another long playoff run the following weekend.

Two years ago, the Cats won a first-ever state championship and they have qualified for NCS championship games in each of the past two seasons.

And with the way they’re playing this year, there’s every reason to believe they can enjoy another successful postseason run.

McKinleyville head coach Jason Benge summed it up perfectly after Friday’s game.

“They’re a really good team, and I’m just excited to see how far they go,” Benge said. “Go get state and make Humboldt proud.”