Kennewick at Chiawana: Riverhawks strong ground attack meets stout Lions’ rush D
In a game that will be all about who wins in the trenches, the Chiawana High School football team hosts Kennewick on Friday at Edgar Brown Memorial Stadium.
Even with first-year quarterback Enoch Vargas’ role in the offense seeming to expand every week, the Riverhawks (3-1, 1-1 MCC) still boast the top rushing offense in the league, with the MCC’s leading-rusher Tayden Jenkins (54 carries, 411 yards, 6TD) and Ethan Garcia (59-288, 3TD) carrying it behind that big, bad offensive line.
The Lions (1-3, 0-2) will be looking for a stronger showing after picking up just one yard of total offense in a 20-3 loss to Walla Walla last week, a game in which tailback AJ Templeton was absent for the third straight week with an ankle injury. They’ll counter Chiawana’s heavy rushing attack with the No. 2 run defense in the MCC, giving up just over 105 yards per game.
Kennewick (1-3, 0-2) at Chiawana (3-1, 1-1)
When, Where: 7 p.m., Edgar Brown Memorial Stadium
Last year: Chiawana 54, Kennewick 7
Team offense: Ken—251 rush (7th in MCC), 222 pass (7th), 118.3/game total (last), 69 points (6th). Chi—692 rush (1st), 584 pass (5th), 319/game total (5th), 100 points (3rd).
Team defense: Ken—422 rush (2nd), 569 pass (4th), 247.8/game total (4th), 96 points (5th). Chi—383 rush (2nd), 750 pass (6th), 283.3/game total (6th), 59 points (3rd).
Key players: Ken—QB Tim Gee (25-65-5—202, 2TD); RB AJ Templeton (Injured ankle in Week 1, hasn’t played since); RB Cedric Riel (36-155, 1TD); DE/TE Moses McAninch; RB/LB Isaac Ruiz; WR/DB Talon LaFontaine; WR/DB Tucker Newman. Chi—RB Tayden Jenkins (54-411, 6TD); QB Enoch Vargas (56-90-2—593, 2TD); RB Ethan Garcia (59-288, 3TD); WR Daylen Storaci (20-184, 1TD); DB/WR Riley Cissne (5INT); WR/DB Tavin Blair (3-64, TD rec; sack at Hanford last week); K Ryan Lowry (10XP, 4FG); OL/DL Ford Powers; OL/DL Josh Alvarez; OL/DL Julian Benitez; OL/DL Joey Aikala; DL Nelson Cardenas.
Last week: Walla Walla def. Kennewick 20-3; Chiawana def. Hanford 26-7
Next week: Hanford at Kennewick; Chiawana at Southridge
This story was originally published September 28, 2017 at 9:47 PM with the headline "Kennewick at Chiawana: Riverhawks strong ground attack meets stout Lions’ rush D."