The score was 29-21 in the class 1A state championship game with a contest still going at 5:00 of the third quarter when the officials made a call that will long last in the memories of Royal High School fans.

With Knight quarterback Alex Myrick lying in the end zone with the ball, the referee signaled that Myrick had been stopped short of the goal line.

It was a stunning call, not only for Royal fans but also for observers in the press box. The Montesano contingent was praying for a false start penalty to negate the score.

"I guess they said his knee touched down," one of them said.

If Myrick's knee touched, it was after the ball crossed the goal line, and it probably touched on a mass of sprawled bodies. That would mean a touchdown and a score of 29-28 or 29-29.

Pete Christensen had a better perspective. He was on the field near the play, and he saw a touchdown.

The fateful play came at the end of a methodical Royal drive of nine plays from the Knight 24 to the Bulldog 6-yard line. Myrick dived into the end zone behind the left side of his line.

What a difference that score might have made. The Knights would have soared emotionally and possibly made a final push to victory. Instead they had a letdown.

They gave up a 16-yard run for a Bulldog first down at the 18 and then an 82-yard scoring run on a reverse. In about a minute, there was a 14- or 15-point swing that ultimately was too much to overcome.

I saw former Granger basketball coach Don Helvie, now at Montesano, as I headed for the car after the game. He thought the game had been decided on that play.

"It looked to me like Royal gave up after that goal-line stand," he said.

Maybe. Momentarily. But the Knights came back for another score to make it 36-28 with a quarter left.

However, Montesano made more big plays than Royal down the stretch, including a 43-yard scoring run.

I mention the "call" not to make excuses for the Knights. They don't need any.

The Knights deserve nothing but congratulations for their season and their effort at the Tacoma Dome. It's not every year a community has a group of youngsters as special as these.

I don't mention the "call" to advocate for instant replay. That would be impossible at the prep level.

And I don't mention it to blame the refs. They don't cheat for one team or another, but they do make mistakes.

I do mention it to remind us all that life is not always fair. We don't always get what we deserve or think we deserve.

Montesano was a fine team. It was ranked in the top five to begin the season. It had a flukish start in which it lost its second and third games.

But the Bulldogs were on a 10-game win streak when they got to Tacoma. Their victims included No. 1-ranked King's.

There were more big plays for the Montesano offense than the Royal offense. It was more a matter of Montesano winning a football game than of Royal losing one.