It wasn’t pretty in pink.

The Oak Harbor football team, donning pink socks supplied by the Wildcat cheer squad to promote Breast Cancer Awareness Week, gave up 21 unanswered points and lost in overtime to visiting Shorecrest 28-21 Friday, Oct. 15.

The loss put a big hit on the Wildcats’ playoff hopes and solidified Shorecrest’s.

The Highlanders finished the Wesco 3A season with a 4-3 record. They have one nonleague game left with Ferndale next week.

Oak Harbor is 3-3 and plays Meadowdale (3-2) in two weeks after a nonleague game with Lethbridge Collegiate Institute (Lethbridge, Alberta) at home next Friday.

Meadowdale plays winless Lynnwood next week and will most likely come to Oak Harbor a game up on the Wildcats. If Oak Harbor beats Meadowdale, both teams will be 4-3 and Oak Harbor will have the tie-breaker because it defeated the Mavericks.

Comparing scores against common opponents can be folly, but it would appear Meadowdale has the upper hand on Oak Harbor. The Mavericks defeated Shorecrest 38-2 and Mountlake Terrace 16-7 (Terrace trounced Oak Harbor 48-13). However, this week Meadowdale lost to Everett 16-10; Oak Harbor stopped the Seagulls 13-12.

The top three Wesco 3A teams qualify for the playoffs and the fourth place team meets the No. 2 team from the Northwest Conference (Ferndale, Sedro-Woolley or Mount Vernon) in a play-in game.

Glacier Peak is 5-0, Everett 4-1, Meadowdale 3-2, Shorecrest 4-3, Oak Harbor 3-3 and Mountlake Terrace 2-3.

There are multiple chances for some ties, but unless Oak Harbor gets help from Lynnwood on several fronts, it comes down to beating Meadowdale for the ‘Cats to advance.

In the Oak Harbor/Shorecrest game, the Highlanders entered the fourth quarter trailing 21-7. With running back Damon Richards doing most of the damage, mixed in with a few strikes from quarterback Ted Hammond, Shorecrest rallied.

The Scots capped a 13-play drive, which included 10 Richards carries, when Hammond hit Dillon Baker with a 9-yard pass with 10:53 left in the game. Sam Shober’s PAT kick made it 21-14 Oak Harbor.

The Shorecrest defense finally stiffened and held Oak Harbor to just 10 yards on nine plays (Oak Harbor earned a first down with the help of a Scot penalty).

Wildcat coach Jay Turner wasn’t sure why Shorecrest suddenly was able to stop the Oak Harbor running game that had averaged nearly seven yards a carry. From the field he said they didn’t appear to be doing anything differently. “I’ll have to look at the film, but I suspect they just started getting off our blocks.”

With 6:24 left, Shorecrest began at its own 35 and scored in just over three minutes. Hammond hit Baker twice for 14 and 32 yards to highlight the drive. Richards plowed 16 yards to the 2 and fumbled; however, teammate Favian Ortega scooped up the ball and scored. Shober’s extra point boot tied it with 3:16 left.

Both teams went three and out and Oak Harbor got the ball back with 34 seconds left and 86 yards to go. That drive ended when Matt Burgoyne’s desperation pass was intercepted on the final play in regulation.

Shorecrest scored on its second play in overtime when Hammond connected with Ortega from 24 yards out.

Oak Harbor earned one first down, then on third-and-11 from the 14, Burgoyne was intercepted to end the game.

The Scots started the game with a flurry by recovering an onside kick then bulldozing 39 yards in 10 plays to take an early 7-0 lead.

Oak Harbor, behind runs of 25 and 28 yards by Josiah Miller, drove to the 10 before turning the ball over on downs.

In the second quarter, the Wildcats tied it when Miller raced 35 yards for six and Peter Franssen kicked the extra point.

Taking a page from Shorecrest’s playbook, the Wildcats attempted their own onside kick; Franssen recovered his own dribbler after it bounced off several players. Starting at the Highlanders’ 45, Oak Harbor scored with 4:50 left in the half on Zack Ayer’s 1-yard rush. Franssen finished what he started with the PAT and the Wildcats led 14-7.

Oak Harbor threatened one more time before the half, reaching the 18 before Burgoyne was intercepted on the quarter’s final play.

Oak Harbor scored with 4:25 left in the third quarter. Again it was Miller, this time on a 25-yard run. Franssen’s kick made it 21-7.

Miller finished the game with 187 yards rushing on 18 attempts; he also intercepted a pass. Sam Wolfe rushed for 71 yards on 11 carries, and Ayer had 67 on 16. In all, Oak Harbor piled up 349 yards on the ground.

Burgoyne was five-for-16 with three interceptions for 43 yards.

Richards, was entered the game after the break (he had another obligation), carried 24 times in the second half for 100 yards. The player he replaced, Troy Phillips, had 91 yards on 11 carries, all in the first half.

Hammond was six-for-13 for 122 yards and one interception.

Turner said it was “pick your poison” when trying to stop the Scots, who moved the ball on the ground with Richards and Phillips and picked up chunks through the air behind Hammond, who liked to strike deep.

Oak Harbor outgained Shorecrest 392 to 336.

The Wildcats host Lethbridge Collegiate Institute at 7 p.m. next Friday.