Kennewick heads to west side to for 3A football quarterfinal game

In the six years that Randy Affholter has been at Kennewick High School, he and his staff have led their Lions football team to at least the state quarterfinals every season.

The No. 6 Lions did it again last Saturday by beating No. 11 Enumclaw 28-7 at Lampson Stadium.

Just what is the formula for such success?

“It’s a couple of things,” said Affholter. “Our staff (personnel) has been very consistent. We have very little turnover. Second, because of that staff, we all know what to do in practice.”

Back when Affholter was coaching at Ellensburg, he called up former Prosser coach Tom Moore and wanted to pick his brain about practicing.

Moore’s script was down to the minute, and players and coaches move from one drill to the next. There is no dawdling, no wasted time as work needs to get done. Affholter decided he would incorporate a lot of what Moore was doing.

But even Affholter admits that a coach still needs something else.

“We’ve had some very good kids come through here,” he said. “Our goal has always been to develop those kids.”

So now the Lions (9-2) will travel to take on No. 3 Eastside Catholic (8-1) in a 3A state quarterfinal game. Kickoff is set for 3 p.m., Saturday (Nov. 22) at Eastside Catholic High School.

Kennewick was one of just four area teams to win in the first round of the state playoffs last weekend.

Mid-Columbia squads in Class 4A (three), 3A (one), 2A (two), and 2B (one) were all eliminated with losses.

But Royal (which had a first-round bye) in Class 1A, and Tri-Cities Prep in Class 2A, will play in quarterfinal games on Saturday.

Prep sits at 10-0, and head coach Kyle Cairns said he and his team have set goals.

“Our goal is to get past this round to at least the semifinal or final,” he said. “Every year since I’ve been here we’ve gotten better.

“I like the camaraderie on this team. These guys genuinely care about each other. They don’t care about stats. They’re asking for their teammates to get to play.”

Meanwhile, in the eight-man 1B division, Walla Walla’s DeSales and Richland’s Liberty Christian are ranked 1-2, respectively, in their playoffs. And they’re both working on a collision course that could end up being a battle for the state title.

Here’s a quick look at what happened last week, and what’s going on this weekend:

Class 4A

(13) GLACIER PEAK 38, (4) CHIAWANA 18: The host Riverhawks ran into a buzzsaw on Saturday in the visiting Grizzlies, which outscored Chiawana 24-0 in the second half for the win.

It was Scott Bond’s team’s only loss this season, making the Riverhawks 10-1.

Bond agreed that Glacier Peak wasn’t your typical 13 seed.

“No. They looked good on film,” said Bond. “They’re big and physical. No. 48 is a big kid. 58 is a big kid. No. 32 scared the heck out of us.”

Still, Chiawana went into the locker room at intermission with an 18-14 lead.

But late in the third quarter, Glacier Peak made a run, as it scored on two consecutive possessions on two Isaiah Owens 1-yard TD runs.

And senior Luke Fullerton stopped two straight Chiawana drives with interceptions — one he returned 54 yards to midfield; the second he ran back 40 yards for a touchdown.

There was nothing Chiawana could do from that point on.

“I’m not good at this part (talking to the kids after a season-ending loss),” said Bond. “But I told the seniors to hold their heads up. They went 30-5 the last three years.”

Owens led the Grizzlies with 154 yards rushing and three TDs, while quarterback Oliver Setterberg passed for 278 yards.

Emmett Osterdock was 22 for 47 for 208 yards passing for Chiawana, while Angel Colon caught 7 passes for 85 yards, with a beautiful, diving 17-yard touchdown catch with a defender draped all over him late in the first half.

Defensively, Jairo Martinez led Chiawana with 8 tackles and a pass breakup.

(2) LAKE STEVENS 55, (15) KAMIAKIN 14: The Braves’ impressive post-season run came to an end at Lake Stevens last Saturday.

Kamiakin played three games in 12 days to get to the first round. It had lost 15-14 at Richland on Oct. 30, forcing the Braves to host the Greater Spokane League’s Lewis & Clark in a play-in game on Nov. 4. The Braves won that game 28-0.,

That victory put the team into the Round of 32 regionals, and Kamiakin went on the road to beat Bethel 34-20 to qualify for state.

However, Lake Stevens forced five Braves’ turnovers and led 41-0 at the half.

Kamiakin finishes with a 9-3 record.

(5) SUMNER 49, (12) RICHLAND 14: The Bombers’ magical run also ended last Saturday, as they lost on the road to the defending 4A state champions.

Sumner led 42-0 at halftime. Running back Lance McGee — a Davis High standout last season who transferred to Sumner — rushed for 166 yards on 14 carries, scoring 4 touchdowns.

Richland finished the season with an 8-3 record.

Class 3A

(6) KENNEWICK 28, (11) ENUMCLAW 7: Dominic Driver tossed TD passes to Peter Smith and Carter Bendewald, and Jakob Gay rushed for another score as the Lions won.

Kennewick’s defense shut down the Hornets’ offense.

“Enumclaw was a real physical team,” said Affholter. “But I thought our kids did well on defense.”

Affholter said his team tried to control the ball, chewing up clock, and then have the defense shut down Enumclaw’s offensive unit.

“I think that’s how we have to win right now,” he said. “We need to gain 3.5 yards every carry. I mean, we’ve got kids who can catch the ball too. But we’re trying stay ahead of the chains. Keep the chains moving.”

Now, the Lions face a familiar foe in Eastside Catholic.

“We’ve played them three times in the last five years,” said Affholter. “They’re a challenge. But when you get to the round of 8 in 3A, I don’t care who it is. Everybody has got guys. Everybody has good coaches.”

(3) EASTSIDE CATHOLIC 42, (14) SOUTHRIDGE 7: The Suns saw their season end with a road loss to the Crusaders in the first round.

EC led 42-0 at halftime and forced two Southridge turnovers.

Tytan McNeal led the Crusaders with 4 carries for 108 yards and two touchdowns.

Coppin Hunkapillar was 5 for 7 passing for 68 yards and a TD pass for the Suns, while Tayton Jackman rushed 14 times for 55 yards.

Southridge finished the season with a 6-5 record.

Class 2A

(9) SEHOME 24, (8) OTHELLO 21: The host Huskies fell to Sehome in the first round, ending their season with a 9-2 record.

(4) ORTING 21, (13) PROSSER 7: The visiting Mustangs saw their season end at the hands of unbeaten Orting last Friday in the first round.

Prosser sophomore quarterback Daniel Diaz was 14 for 25 passing for 133 yards and a touchdown, while sophomore running back Autrey Hoefer rushed 12 times for 64 yards.

Orting (11-0) held Prosser (7-4) to 189 yards of offense.

Class 1A

Unbeaten Royal got last week off with a first-round bye.

The Knights are 10-0, and unlike the other classifications, 1A is a 12-team tournament.

But Wiley Allred’s squad, which has won five consecutive 1A state titles, will play host to No. 8 Seton Catholic (9-2) in the quarterfinals.

That game will kick off at 1 p.m., Saturday (Nov. 22), at Royal High School.

Class 2B

(3) TRI-CITIES PREP 56, (14) PE ELL/WILLAPA VALLEY 0: The Jaguars defense forced 4 turnovers and gave up just 74 offensive yards in the game played last Saturday at Chiawana High School.

With the victory, Prep improves to 11-0.

The Jaguars will now host No. 11 Liberty Bell (a 40-38 winner last week over No. 6 Okanogan) at 1 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 22, at Edgar Brown Stadium in Pasco, in a state quarterfinal contest.

Cairns says the Jags need to win three categories: win the turnover battle; make more explosive plays than the other team; and win the missed tackling margin.

“We live by those things,” he said.

(1) TOLEDO 45, (16) COLUMBIA-BURBANK 14: The visiting Coyotes saw their season end to the top-ranked and 11-0 Riverhawks.

Burbank ends its season with a 5-6 record.

Class 1B

(1) DESALES 56, (16) OCOSTA 16: The host Irish routed Ocosta in the first round, as quarterback Cohen Wood was 9 for 13 passing for 149 yards and three TD strikes.

Caleb Bingham added 4 rushes for 75 yards and a score. Jason Guest found the end zone three times — twice rushing and one on a catch.

Now DeSales (11-0) will play host to No. 9 Neah Bay (7-2) in the quarterfinals. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m., Saturday (Nov. 22) at DeSales High School in Walla Walla.

(2) LIBERTY CHRISTIAN 62, (15) QUILCENE 7: The host Patriots rolled to a 48-6 lead after the first quarter and never looked back in last Saturday’s first-round win.

Trenton Ralston was 5 for 5 passing for 106 yards and 3 TDs, while Ryker Wageman had 3 catches for 69 yards and a score. Silas Bjur added 66 yards rushing on just three carries, scoring a touchdown.

Ryan Powell led LC defensively with 7 tackles (4 for loss).

The Patriots (9-1) advance to the quarterfinals, playing No. 7 Darrington (9-1) at 12 p.m., Saturday (Nov. 22), at Fran Rish Stadium in Richland.

Jeff Morrow is former sports editor for the Herald.