CENTRALIA — With Mabton bringing eight or sometimes nine men into the box to shut down Pe Ell-Willapa Valley’s run game, the Titans proved they are more than a one-dimensional team on Saturday. PWV quarterback Matt Pearson connected on passes to running back Ever Gutierrez four times for 135 yards and two touchdowns to help pave the way for a 30-13 win for the Titans in the Class 2B state playoff matchup at Tiger Stadium in Centralia.

The Titans will now face Napavine in the state quarterfinals at 7 p.m. on Friday at Tiger Stadium.

Facing 4th down and long for the second time in the game, the Titans decided to roll the dice and Pearson hit the jackpot. The sophomore quarterback rolled out on a bootleg and Gutierrez was wide open for the 23-yard touchdown pass to put PWV up 6-0 less than four minutes into the contest. From then on, whenever PWV needed a Titan-sized play the Pearson to Gutierrez connection was open.

Just six minutes later, Gutierrez hauled in a 39-yard touchdown pass. While his two other receptions weren’t for touchdowns, both set up scores.

The passing game gave the Titans the spark they needed, but in the second half it was the same old formula that has got PWV to the state quarterfinals. PWV senior running back Kaelin Jurek ran for 129 of his 165 total yards in the second half to score add two more touchdowns and wear down the Vikings.

“It’s been a little bit of everything this year,” PWV coach Josh Fluke said. “It was a big struggle. The whole game was a struggle. They tackled well and shut us down so we noticed they were sending everybody, even the safety was coming up hard. We decided to run that bootleg that we always run and Gutierrez was open four times and he made good catches. Our O-line wasn’t doing the best like they have in the past and (Jurek) got first downs and he earned it with his legs and his will power.”

Gutierrez’s first score was set up by a botched special teams play by Mabton. After the Titans forced a 3-and-out on the Vikings first possession, Mabton’s Oscar Aguilar was unable to hand the snap on a punt and PWV’s Matt Smith wrangled him down on the Vikings 22-yard line.

Mabton answered the Titans’ first score with a 12-play drive capped off by a 5-yard run on a sweep by Christian Mendoza to take a 7-6 lead. However PWV needed just three plays and 1:30 to jump back ahead. This time it was the 39-yard pass to Gutierrez to put the Titans up 12-7.

The Vikings weren’t about to go away and Mabton put together a quick scoring drive. The Vikings used up a little less than two minutes over five plays to march 42 yards. Rocky Arriaga toted the ball in from five yards out to make it a 13-12 game at the end of the first quarter.

The Titans put together a 13-play drive to start the second quarter, but PWV stalled on the Mabton 11-yard line and handed the ball over on downs. Neither team would get another first down in the half until PWV got the ball back on its own 49-yard line with 16.8 seconds left in the second quarter. The Titans took to the air with Pearson connecting with Gutierrez for the third time. The junior hauled in a 48-yard pass before being tripped up at the Mabton 3-yard line. With 4 seconds left in the half, the Titans called Jurek’s number and the senior busted through as the buzzer sounded to give PWV a lead it would keep for good.

“Our quarterback just had faith in me to throw it and I caught it,” Gutierrez said of each of his three first half receptions. “I saw the ball coming to me, caught it and started running as fast as I could. I’m pretty happy and excited. We all are.”

Despite PWV’s Tyson Nissell recovering a Mabton fumble on the second play of the third quarter, the Titans were unable to capitalize on several opportunities to leave the score at 18-13 going into the final 12 minutes of play.

With around eight minutes left in the fourth, the Titans were able to literally run away with the game. PWV put together a 13-play drive, including a 25-yard pass to Gutierrez, that milked the clock. Jurek scored on a 2-yard run with 2:37 left in the game to give the Titans some breathing room.

Nissell intercepted a pass from Mabton’s Ventura Rodriguez four plays later to put the Vikings on the ropes and Jurek delivered the knock out punch. Jurek needed just three rushes, including a 43-yard run, to score and tally the games’ final touchdown.

“We can get right back to work on Monday,” Fluke said. “We play Napavine and they are studs. It doesn’t get any easier, but we are happy we are going to the quarterfinals.”

PWV’s Tyler Justice added 35 rushing yards for the Titans, while Mabton’s aerial attack saw Rodriguez throw for 166 yards.