After breaking their winless streak last week, Ilwaco looks to continue the trend at home, while the Comets hit the road to open league play
Game of the Week
Ilwaco vs. Stevenson, 7 pm, Friday, Sept. 17, Peterson Field
As the final seconds ticked off the clock at Rockaway Beach last week you gotta wonder what was going through the minds of the Ilwaco players. Joy? Disbelief? Rejuvenated hopes for the season?
This may sound like hyperbole, and in some ways it is, but there is a portion of the team that had never won a game in their high school career, and many others who had seen limited success almost two years ago (when they last won a game).
The Fishermen (0-0, 1-1) totally dominated the Neah-Kah-Nie Pirates last Friday to the tune of 34-6. The Fishermen continued to keep it on the ground, racking up 315 yards with multiple players putting up good stats, and four different players scoring including QB Nick Cox twice.
They will need to bring some of that offense to keep up this week with a red-hot Stevenson (0-0, 2-0) team coming to town to open the Trico League season. So far the Bulldogs have outscored their opponents 78-0, albeit to less-than-stellar opponents — last week beating a start-up private school and the week before beating a Tenino team that has occupied the bottom portion of the Evergreen league for the last few years. The Bulldogs possess a good offense and can hurt you through the air as well as on the ground. The QB, Zach Castro, can run and throw with equal success, as he did last week to the tune of 77 yrds on the ground and another 132 through the air, rushing for two TDs while throwing another for 89 yrds. The Bulldogs have multiple running backs that can get in the endzone and apparently have a very strong defensive line as well, which may be able to stuff up the Fishermen's double-wing pound the ground game.
Perhaps the equalizer? Looks like the stormy, rainy weather will continue into tomorrow night, which usually means a reduction in pass completions, making it perhaps a battle of who can run the ball better in the slop.
Don't forget to check back Saturday for a game recap and photo gallery
Naselle @ Raymond, 7 pm, Friday, Sept. 17, Raymond
Those who weren't there to watch it might have thought that last week's home opening win by the Comets (0-0, 2-0) was an easy one, but they'd be wrong. After a really fast start, scoring twice in the first quarter, the Comets did not score again until a couple minutes into the fourth quarter. Not that they didn't have their chances, but they let them slip away, literally. The Comets continued the unfortunate trend of fumbling away the ball — 10 times in two weeks. By the fourth quarter though the Comets had pretty much shut down the Warrior offense — only giving up a kickoff return — while the offense pretty much had its way. Throw in a couple of really head-scratching calls from the officials and multiple players cramping up again late, and you have a game that was a lot closer than the score implied at the end.
Now let's get to the good stuff. When the Comets did hold onto the ball they ran, and ran, and ran some more. Three players rushed for more than 100 yards — Mendoza, R. Eaton and Leach. Fullback Robert Eaton had a career night, rushing for 156 yards and three scores. And when young QB Dustin Eaton went down with cramps late in the third quarter, senior Leo Mendoza stepped in to run the "Wild-Comet" offense, and did so very well, scoring in the fourth quarter on a 14-yard run. Leach should have been given a TD score as the game expired, but once again the refs blew an easy call (one of four on the night).
This week the Comets go on the road to open the Pacific League season at Raymond (0-0, 0-2), which has lost their first two games by a combined score of 13-59. The Gulls have been the league punching bag for awhile and went 0-10 last year. So while the Gulls may not put up much of a fight, perhaps the Comets biggest challenge Friday is not beating themselves.
Pacific League Notes:
• The Comets are the only team in the league to have not lost a game thus far, as South Bend lost last week to Onalaska.
• The 12 points the Comets have allowed are the least in the league, with NWC close behind with 17 allowed. Meanwhile, Ocosta has already given up 91 points while only scoring 12.
• Though a Comet player mentioned last week that the team was in the 2B state rankings, I have yet to be able to confirm that. From what I've seen, Colfax is tops with Napavine right behind (both undefeated), while the rest of the top 10 have at least one loss, including third-ranked South Bend.
Pigskin Pick'em
Called the Ilwaco win last week, oh-yeah, 3-0 this year
W- Ilwaco vs. Stevenson
I think Stevenson's record and scoring differential are deceiving and the Fishermen have a shot at back-to-back wins
W- Naselle @ Raymond
Not a question of if but probably more like by how much
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