It wasn’t the dark clouds threatening rain that spoiled Sumner High’s Homecoming football game. It was the Clover Park Warriors.

For a while, the Spartans enjoyed a comfortable 14-7 lead and, even when the Warriors scored halfway through the third quarter to make it a 14-13, the Spartans were confident.

As the clock ticked away the final seconds of the third quarter, Sumner’s defense dug in and just when it looked like the Sparts were going to take Brandon Pritchett to the turf and put an end to the Warriors’ drive, the sparky running back slipped through the line and raced 59 yards for the end zone – the horn to end the third quarter blaring as he sprinted past the 30-yard line.

That slim 19-14 lead was all the Warriors needed to shift the winds of fortune. Clover Park backfield running mate DeShaun Green added the last of his three TDs for the night in the fourth quarter for the visitors’ 25-14 victory.

Green and Pritchett provided the Warriors’ one-two punch. Green, who scored on runs of 34, 7 and 3 yards, amassed 178 yards on 25 carries.

The Spartans rushed for 170 yards, 129 on the legs of Lokahi Kamau, who scored Sumner’s two touchdowns on runs of 3 and 1 yard in the first and second quarters.

The loss pushed the Spartans to 1-2 in league, 2-3 overall, as they face Franklin Pierce Friday on the Cardinals’ home field. Kickoff is at 7 p.m. The Cardinals are 3-2 in league, tied with Steilacoom for second place behind league-leading White River.