Wolves look to finish strong for second seed
Andrew Christiansen
Reporter
Goldendale strengthened their position in the SCAC on Tuesday with a 25-11, 25-16, 25-14 win over Cle Elum on Tuesday, then they muddied the water with a four set loss to Zillah on Saturday. The loss puts the Wolves in a must win situation to secure an opening round home match in the playoffs.
The tale of the two games was told in the number of digs. The Wolves averaged 17 per game against Cle Elum and 28 per game against Zillah, indicating the Leopards had the Wolves playing defense for much of the match. Although Goldendale was not at their best against the Leopards, the total margin over the five games was just nine points. The final score was 24-26. 25-22, 25-23, 26-24.
Serves were very good for Goldendale in both matches. Cassie Kelly and Asia Vanhorn were perfect from the line on both days. Lexi Cameron, MoniQue Scherf and Tayler Bradley were also perfect against Cle Elum. Sadie Shattuck and Haley Hoffman had no misses against Zillah.
Scherf led in digs with 11 against the Warriors and 25 against Zillah. Shattuck was tops in kills with 12 against the Warriors and 21 against Zillah. Hoffman piled up 64 assists in the two matches.
The top four teams in the SCAC have been decided, but the order of finish was still in the air at press time. Granger needed to win over Naches Valley or Mabton to ensure the number one seed. Even if Goldendale should tie the Spartans for first, the Spartans are number one by virtue of drawing the lowest number at the start of the season.
Naches Valley played at Granger on Tuesday and will host Goldendale this Thursday. Should the Rangers win both matches, Goldendale would finish third. The first meeting of the two teams in Goldendale, was a five set thriller won by Goldendale. Fourth place belongs to Zillah who played at Cle Elum on Tuesday.
On the other side of the SCAC, Royal has a lock on first with an undefeated season and River View owns fourth. Connell and Burbank are tied at 8-3 for second. Connell played at Wahluke on Tuesday and Burbank was at River View.
Turnover foils Cougar bid for upset of Colton
Andrew Christiansen
Reporter
Mixed emotions certainly prevailed following Lyle-Wishram's 34-28 lost to Colton, the State's number two ranked 1B football team. The game was an even affair all the way to the final six seconds, and although Colton earned the win, it was a toss up.
Colton's defense managed to contain the Matai brothers, keeping them from reaching 100 yards for the first time this year. Allen Matai had 96 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries. Henry Matai ran for 72 yards on 16 carries.
Both teams were able to march down field in the early going, with Colton scoring on a 38 yard run by Sam Robertson, who finished the game with 279 yards rushing on 29 carries. Allen Matai tied the game on a three yard run and two-point conversion.
Robertson scored once more in the first quarter, but the Cougars shut down the Colton offense in the second quarter. Keale Wiseman scored on an interception for Lyle-Wishram, but the conversion failed and Colton led 16-14 at half.
Robertson scored again in the third quarter and Lyle-Wishram came right back on a spectacular 70 yard run by a speedy Cody Carlsen. Colton's only non-Robertson touchdown came in the fourth quarter on a 35 yard pass play. The extra point kick was missed, leaving the door open for the Cougars.
On a third and six, Wiseman hit Nolan Smith on a crossing pattern for a 25 yard gain inside the Colton 20 yard line. With 3:30 left, Allen Matai followed Henry, Trey Kitchens and Smith on a sweep into the end zone. Henry Matai punched it across for the two-point conversion that tied the game at 28.
Colton drove the ball to the Lyle-Wishram 15 before turning the ball over on downs with six seconds left. Coach Don Smith tried to catch Colton napping, hoping to get the ball to Carlsen and let them try to catch him. The move backfired when Robertson stepped up to intercept the weak-side pass and raced to the end zone for the final score.
Lyle-Wishram travels to Touchet for a 2 p.m. game on Friday and will finish at home on Nov. 6, against LaCrosse-Washtucna-Kahlotus. The only losses on the season for the Cougars were to the top two teams in the league. Colton and Tri Cities Prep both know they dodged bullets this season.
One-dimensional Leopards more than Timberwolves could handle
Andrew Christiansen
Reporter
Zillah flexed their ground game muscle as they steamrolled Goldendale 51-12 last Friday in Zillah. Goldendale's offense had its moments, but a few miscues were drive killers and the defense couldn't slow down the Leopards' wishbone offense.
The Timberwolves' opening drive gained 17 yards showing a nice mix of run and pass. It stalled at the 40 with a pass that was too tall for a wide-open Zane MacRae. Zillah's first drive challenged Goldendale to stop the run that came on nearly every play. Six different Leopards carried the ball on a 62 yard drive that would consume just over six minutes and result in the first score.
Disaster struck when the officials ruled Justin Garrigus' knee was down when he fielded the ensuing kickoff at his 6-yard line. On the next play, Ty Cronin rolled left and looked to throw back right in the face of intense pressure and nose-tackle C.J. Sanchez intercepted for a six yard touchdown.
Goldendale came right back to the Zillah 30, highlighted by a delayed handoff to Torey Spaulding-Jimenez that gained 23 yards. On the first play of the second quarter, facing fourth and one, Goldendale was called for motion, sending them back to the Zillah 35. Opting for field position, the Wolves punted, sending the ball to the end zone for a touchback. The Leopards mixed it up again with carries by Chris Castillo for 10 yards, Rodney Treece for three, Cameron Bounds for four and then a killer end around by the tight end, Kane Koerner that went for 63 yards and a touchdown. The rout was on.
Goldendale tried to come back with a couple of pass plays of 30 yards to J.D. Moss and five yards to Cody Herin, but turned the ball over on downs when an open screen pass was batted down.
Zillah broke the wishbone formation several times, giving the Timberwolves a potential passing game to worry about, but aside from one completion, the Leopards passing game was no threat. Bounds was just 1-4 and was picked off twice in the first half, once by Blake Lesko and then on great coverage by Chase Wing who stepped in front of a receiver inside Goldendale's 40 yard line, ending the Leopard's final attempt to score in the first half.
Goldendale got on the board in the fourth quarter after Zillah pulled their starters. JimJack Davenport ran for six yards and Jose Briseno ran an option right and cut behind a wall of blockers for a 58-yard touchdown. While the loss killed Goldendale's only hope to finish second in the SCAC west, it was a long shot, requiring Naches Valley to also upset the Leopards this Friday. Goldendale finishes at Highland on Friday and will travel to Royal City the following week for their third consecutive, post-season game against the Knights. The Timberwolves moved up a rung this year, hoping to avoid the trip to Royal, but the Knights dropped one rung after losing to Connell. The winner of the game will advance to the state 1A playoff.
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