In recent years, the Montesano-Hoquiam football game generally has decided the Evergreen 1A League championship.
Although several chapters have yet to be written, that may be the case again this year. The last two teams unbeaten in league play, Montesano (1-0, 6-0) and Hoquiam (2-0, 4-2) will square off at 7 p.m. Friday at Monte’s Rottle Field.
Aberdeen (0-2, 2-4) will meanwhile attempt to end a 30-year drought against perennially powerful Tumwater (1-0, 4-2) on Friday at Stewart Field.
Elsewhere on Friday, Elma (0-1, 2-4) is home against Tenino (0-2, 1-4) in Evergreen 1A League play. A trio of SWW 2B Coastal League contests are also on tap, with Pe Ell-Willapa Valley (2-0, 4-2) at Ilwaco (1-1, 3-3), South Bend (1-1, 5-1) at North Beach (0-2, 2-4) and Ocosta (1-1, 3-3) at Raymond (1-1, 2-4).
Taholah, in only its third actual game of the season (the Chitwhins didn’t begin play until late September) travels to Neah Bay for a noon contest on Saturday. Traditionally one of the state powers in 8-man football, Neah Bay is only 2-4 this season, but three of its losses have come in 11-man games.
Hoquiam-Montesano
Although its postseason resumé is not nearly as extensive as Montesano’s, Hoquiam has fared decently against the Bulldogs in league competition. The Grizzlies even trounced the Bulldogs, 41-14, in 2012 — the same year Monte won the state Class 1A championship.
The Bulldogs won last year’s meeting in the rain at Olympic Stadium, 20-14, on Trevor Ridgway’s 28-yard touchdown pass to Nick Chapman in the final minute.
Ridgway is back this year and teams with the likes of running backs Carson Klinger and Teegan Zillyett and a cadre of top receivers to give the Dogs a multitude of offensive weapons.
“Our biggest challenge is just slowing them down on offense. They’re pretty efficient,” Hoquiam coach Jeremy McMillan said. “We have to be able to stop their counter and play-action pass.”
Although the Bulldogs have averaged 43 points per game this season, Monte coach Terry Jensen believes his team has performed more steadily on defense.
“We take a lot of pride with our defense, they kind of set the tone for us,” Jensen said. “We have had some good offensive games, no doubt, but we have been more consistent on the defensive side.”
McMillan expresses similar thoughts about his club, with Chewy Muro, Brady Cummings and two-way threats Payton Quintanilla and Matt Brown among those excelling on defense.
“I would say we’re a little bit stronger on the defensive side than we are on the offensive side,” said the first-year Grizzly head coach.
Hoquiam opened the campaign with a young team, particularly at the skill positions. McMillan believes the Grizzlies have improved every week. Jensen endorses that sentiment.
“Their players play as a team and they have improved a lot since the beginning of the season. They are a very good football team,” the veteran Montesano coach said of the Grizzlies. “We need to take care of the football, create big plays on both sides of the ball and control the line of scrimmage. Our line play on both sides of the ball will be a big key.”
Jensen reports his team is in relatively good health. Hoquiam receiver-kick returner Marques Rivera has been limited in practice by an ankle injury.
Aberdeen-Tumwater
The Bobcats will be seeking their first win over Tumwater since 1987 (although the teams have not met every year since).
Tumwater will be making its first Grays Harbor appearance since the retirement of coaching legend Sid Otton last year.
The T-Birds haven’t missed many beats under Otton’s successor, Bill Beattie. A former Tumwater player and assistant who began his head coaching career at Elma before a successful 22-year stint at Olympia High School, Beattie is (like Otton) a member of the Washington State Football Coaches Hall of Fame.
Tumwater’s only losses this year have been to Class 3A uber power Bellevue (30-13) and to once-beaten Class 4A Union of Vancouver, 33-29.
The T-Birds made their Evergreen 2A debut last week by thumping Centralia, 49-7. Dylan Paine rushed for 119 yards and two touchdowns as the T-Birds led 42-0 at the half.
Aberdeen coach Kevin Ridout admits that matching up with the T-Birds defensively will be a challenge.
“They’re so well-schooled in their wing-T,” Ridout said. “With all the weaponry they have, any breakdown along the line of scrimmage creates a big play for them.”
The Bobcats are coming off easily their finest defensive performance of the season in a frustrating 13-7 loss to Black Hills last week. Ridout is hopeful that showing will give his team a measure of confidence against Tumwater.
“I think we played a pretty good Black Hills team (even),” he noted. “To step in and say we can compete with Tumwater, that’s the message I want to say.”
Bobcat senior running back Kylan Touch is within striking distance of a pair of school records. With 1,321 rushing yards thus far, he is 170 shy of Alex Chicano’s single-season mark of 1,491. Touch is also 62 yards away from Charles Ladd’s career rushing total of 3,029, which is believed to be the school record.
Other games
In its bid to land one of the Evergreen 1A League’s three district crossover berths, Elma must win at home against Tenino this week and at Forks next week.
Pe Ell-Willapa Valley could gain another leg up on a third successive league title when the Titans travel to Ilwaco. The Fishermen were regarded as 2B Coastal Division co-favorites until their loss to South Bend two weeks ago. PWV trounced South Bend last week, 36-12.
