MCC’s best head to WA football playoffs rounds

Scott Bond was pretty positive his Chiawana Riverhawks could repeat this season as Mid-Columbia Conference football champions.

“I knew we had some good bigs (linemen) coming back,” said Bond. “And the way that the Cissne boys (Cooper and Tayten) play, they just make you a good ball club.”

Last week, senior Anthony Godino rushed 19 times for 213 yards and three touchdowns as Chiawana finished the regular season by beating host Walla Walla 51-0.

The victory gives the Riverhawks a perfect 9-0 Mid-Columbia Conference record, and another regular-season championship.

Cooper Cissne added 80 yards on 6 carries, scoring two TDs. On defense, the sophomore had 9 tackles.

Meanwhile, senior Ramsey Livingston rushed for 57 yards on 6 carries, and he had a touchdown.

Junior linebacker Tayten Cissne added 6 tackles (2 for loss) and an interception.

“(The Cissne’s) just find the football,” said Bond, who said this past weekend he expected to be a 4 or 5 seed going into the Class 4A Round of 32 playoffs. He was right. Chiawana got the No. 4 seed, and the Riverhawks (9-0) will play host to No. 29 Wenatchee (4-4) at 6 p.m., Friday, at Edgar Brown Stadium.

The winner qualifies for the 4A state playoffs, while the loser’s season is done.

Lincoln Heinrich led the Blue Devils with 148 yards passing, while defensive back Gregory Powell had 8 tackles to lead the Wa-Hi defense.

Wa-Hi visited University on Tuesday, losing 18-15 to the Titans to see its season end.

MCC Football Standings

Chiawana (4A) 9-0 MCC, 9-0 overall

Kamiakin (4A) 7-2, 8-2

Kennewick (3A) 7-2, 7-2

Richland (4A) 7-2, 7-2

Southridge (3A) 5-4, 5-4

Pasco (4A) 3-6, 3-6

Walla Walla (3A) 3-6, 3-7

Hanford (4A) 2-7, 2-7

Hermiston (3A) 2-7, 2-7

Sageview (3A) 0-9, 0-9

Oct. 30 — Chiawana 51, Walla Walla 0; Pasco 33, Hanford 30; Richland 15, Kamiakin 14.

Oct. 31 — Kennewick 55, Hermiston 6; Southridge 70, Sageview 6

Nov. 4 — 4A play-in game: Kamiakin 28, Lewis & Clark 0

Nov. 4 — 3A play-in game: University 18, Walla Walla 13

Nov. 7 — 4A Round of 32 games: Mount Si at Richland, 7 p.m.; Wenatchee at Chiawana, Edgar Brown Stadium, 6 p.m.

Nov. 7 — 3A Round of 32 game: Southridge at Mt. Spokane, 7 p.m.

Nov. 7 — Non-league: Hanford at Ellensburg, CWU field, 7 p.m.; Pasco at Eisenhower, 6 p.m.; Ridgeline at Hermiston, 6 p.m.; Sageview idle

Nov. 8 — 4A Round of 32 game: Kamiakin at Bethel, 3 p.m.

Nov. 8 — 3A Round of 32 game: West Seattle at Kennewick, 2 p.m.

KENNEWICK EARNS NO. 6 SEED: Kennewick senior running back Rivion Brooks finished the regular season with a flourish, as he scored six touchdowns to lead the Lions over Hermiston 55-6 last week.

Brooks finished the game with 14 carries for 163 rushing yards.

Dominic Driver carried the football 4 times for 76 rushing yards. The Kennewick QB also was 7-for-11 passing for 101 yards and one TD pass. Brady Matson caught 3 passes for 102 yards.

The Lions (7-2) are seeded No. 6 in the 3A Round of 32 playoffs, and they will host No. 27 West Seattle (7-1) at 2 p.m. Saturday at Lampson Stadium.

BOMBERS, BRAVES MOVE ON: Last Thursday night, Josh Jelinek told his team they were going to drive the ball down the field and score. And then they would go for the 2-point conversion.

So it all happened like that.

Jelinek’s Richland Bombers football team had trailed most of the game to visiting Kamiakin.

Tucker Watkins burst through a hole from the Braves’ 31 and raced down to the 4-yard line for a 27-yard gain. And then Micah Mayer took it in for a touchdown from 4 yards out.

This made the score Kamiakin 14, Richland 13, with just 3 minutes and 37 seconds to play.

The meaning of this moment was important: the winner of this game would earn the Mid-Columbia Conference’s No. 2 berth to the Class 4A Round of 32 playoff games; the loser would have to play host to Spokane’s Lewis & Clark on Tuesday in a play-in game (with the winner visiting Bethel at 2 p.m. Saturday).

Essentially, the loser of this contest could play three games in 10 days.

So maybe it was no surprise when the kicking team for Richland ran out onto the field.

“I admit I had chickened out,” said Jelinek on the call. “But then I called myself on it. I know what we needed to do.”

The Bombers went for 2, and after the first attempt was stopped on a Kamiakin defensive pass interference call, Richland QB Jackson Woodard found Brody Bocek for a quick pass and score to give their team at 15-14 win.

The No. 13-seeded Bombers (7-2) now play host to No. 20 Mount Si (3-6) at 7 p.m., Friday at Fran Rish Stadium.

Kamiakin coach Scott Biglin wasn’t surprised by Jelinek’s move.

“I know Jelly would go for it,” said Biglin. “So I’m not really surprised. It was a great call on his part.”

Kamiakin was able to bounce back on Tuesday night, beating Lewis & Clark 28-0 to advance into the Round of 32.

The No. 17 Braves (8-2) will visit No. 16 Bethel (5-4) at 3 p.m. Saturday, with a chance to advance into the state tournament.

Freshman quarterback Jagger McEwen had 239 passing yards for the Braves against Richland, while Mason Severson caught 11 passes for 131 yards.

Kiyen Williams was the big guy for Richland. Williams caught 6 passes for 77 yards, had 5 tackles one pass breakup, and an interception.

SOUTHRIDGE MOVES ON: Gabe Borisch finished the MCC season by carrying the football 11 times for 305 yards rushing and four TDs, as Southridge took down Sageview 70-6 last week.

The Suns had 621 total yards on offense.

Tayton Jackman added 111 yards rushing on 5 carries, scoring two TDs; while Ramses Chavez had 114 yards rushing on 5 carries, also scoring twice.

Alex Flores led the Lobos with 184 yards passing and one TD strike, while Jaysen Beasley caught 7 passes for 122 yards and that one touchdown.

Now the Suns (5-4) are seeded No. 22 in the Class 3A Round of 32 playoffs, and they will travel to Spokane on Friday, where they’ll meet No. 11 Mt. Spokane (7-2) at Union Stadium in Mead.

PASCO ENDS MCC SEASON WITH A WIN: Senior Max Valencia returned a kickoff for a touchdown 81 yards with 30 seconds left to give Pasco a 33-30 win over Hanford last weekend.

Valencia had a big game, as he had two interceptions, 4 tackles, and caught 8 passes for 149 yards and two more scores.

Teammates Jayden Williams (25 carries, 128 yards rushing) and JoJo Cole (14 tackles) also had big games for the Bulldogs.

For Hanford, Asa Perkes caught 7 passes for 91 yards; Owen Beaver was 13-for-25 for 171 passing yards; and Sione Nuku rushed for 72 yards and a TD on 13 carries.

Jeff Morrow is former sports editor for the Tri-City Herald.

This story was originally published November 13, 2025 at 12:58 PM.