Saturday, Nov. 22, 2008

Colfax shuts down DeSales

By Jack Millikin, Herald staff writer

KENNEWICK -- At first, Colfax's fumbled handoff on fourth-and-1 at the DeSales 14-yard line looked like the break the Fighting Irish needed to regain control.

But instead, Bulldogs quarterback Alex Teade used it to break DeSales' back.

The 6-foot sophomore recovered his own botched handoff to fullback Ethan Smith with 9 minutes left in the game and scampered around left end for a touchdown to cap Colfax's 14-6 win over the Irish in the 2B quarterfinals Friday at Lampson Stadium.

The Bulldogs (11-0) advance to the 2B semifinals Friday to play Asotin (11-1) -- a 41-20 winner over White Swan.

"I'd like to tell you I drew it up that way. The old fumble-rooskie," smiled Colfax coach Mike Morgan. "Alex is a great athlete who made a great play."

DeSales, the defending 2B state champion, held the Bulldogs' triple-option scoreless in the first half and managed to grab a 6-0 lead on its final offensive play of the half.

Irish quarterback Pat Richard dropped back with 23 seconds remaining in the second quarter and connected with Bryce Hayunga in stride on a post route. Hayunga was well-covered but still managed to haul in the pass over his shoulder and run in for the score.

"We had run that set a couple times before," said Richard, who completed 7 of 18 passes for 92 yards and ran for 84. "I told (Bryce) if you just run down the field, it's wide open."

But DeSales couldn't keep up the momentum in the second half, making just two first downs on just 90 yards of offense.

Nearly half of that total came on a 42-yard quarterback draw by Richard with 8:54 left in the game.

"Both defenses played very hard," said Irish coach Mike Spiess. "They did a good job stopping our run. If we could have executed our passing game better, I like our chances."

Colfax tailback Joe Cammack rushed for just 39 yards on seven attempts in the first half but picked up steam after halftime. The 5-foot-10 senior burst off right tackle on the Bulldogs' second play from scrimmage just 2:29 in the third quarter and scored on a 49-yard run to give Colfax a 7-6 lead.

Cammack finished with 135 yards on 16 attempts.

"Tyler McNannay did a fantastic job getting us field position," Morgan said after the sophomore punter pinned DeSales inside its own 5-yard line three times, including one on the 1-foot line after the Bulldogs' first drive.

Colfax's second touchdown came after McNannay had pinned the Irish on their own 5. After a three-and-out by DeSales, Teade drove his team down to the Irish 14 to set up the winning score.

Hayunga finished with 48 yards on 12 carries.

"I know he's probably frustrated, " Spiess said. "Last year he was really able to showcase himself, but this year he's been a marked guy. But as a coach, I should have gotten him the ball more."