Kennewick beats Wilson to earn quarterfinal trip
The Kennewick Lions running backs have proven they can break big runs.
But they can also grind out the tough yardage, which makes them especially tough come playoff time.
The Lions advanced to the Class 3A state quarterfinals with a 20-13 win over Wilson on Saturday at Lampson Stadium, getting 268 rushing yards and two touchdowns from running backs Ronny Loomis and Raymond Gutierrez.
Loomis, one of the Mid-Columbia’s top returning sprinters, broke through a wall of potential tacklers early in the second quarter, busting out for a 69-yard touchdown run to give Kennewick a 7-0 lead.
“(Wilson defender) had me by my jersey, and one of my linemen took him off me. That broke me free,” said Loomis, who finished with 127 yards on just eight carries. “I felt the momentum going forward. I had faith in my linemen, and everybody else helped out.”
That gave the Lions some confidence early on that carried them through to their next score, a 1-yard touchdown run by Dillon Plew that was set up when Andrew Fridley recovered a muffed punt inside the Wilson red zone. Four plays later it was 14-0 Lions.
“We always talk about how it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish. We got some things ironed out and we’re enjoying the ride right now,” Kennewick coach Bill Templeton said. “Wilson did a nice job against us. Our spread wasn’t working, so we went to more of a power game. (Lineman) D.J. Dyer and company did a nice job keeping their legs driving.”
Raymond Gutierrez added a fourth-quarter rushing touchdown, breaking out for 31 yards to make it 20-0. He finished with 141 yards on 27 carries.
Devyn Edward, a senior, had a strong day, too. The 5-foot-11, 165-pound defensive back was responsible for covering the Rams’ mammoth tight end A.J. Ruffin, a 6-4, 280-pound senior with the capability to take over a game at any moment. But Edward helped shut the big guy down, holding him to just two catches for 37 yards on the day.
“We went through some tough times since last season. Our coaches told us the only people who can beat us is ourselves,” Edward said. “We go out every day and grind. I have to give it up to our offensive and defensive lines, and everybody who did their jobs. Our running backs went beast mode. They were just balling everywhere.”
Edwards also intercepted a pass from Wilson quarterback Alex Motonaga just before the half, ending a Rams drive inside Kennewick territory.
“We just played good assignment football. We wanted to make sure Devyn stayed with Ruffin as soon as possible, especially when he wa split out,” Templeton said. “Overall, we did a nice job of doing our jobs tonight.’
Wilson made a late comeback, scoring two fourth-quarter touchdowns to pull within 20-13, but Kennewick survived a failed onside kick attempt and ran out the clock to end the game.
“That last drive showed their will to win,” Rams coach Don Clegg said. “We needed to set up one more drive, but we self destructed. Sometimes teams don’t necessarily win a game as much as another team loses a game. Tonight we lost it.”
Wilson | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | — | 13 |
Kennewick | 0 | 7 | 7 | 6 | — | 20 |
SCORING PLAYS
K — Ronny Loomis 69 run (Emilio Ramos kick)
K — Dillon Plew 1 run (Ramos kick)
K — Raymond Gutierrez 31 run (kick fail)
W — Xavier Martin-Jones 7 pass from Alex Motonaga (pass fail)
W — Motonaga 2 run (Alek Greenleaf kick)
STATISTICS
RUSHING — W, X.Martin-Jones 1-4, Motonaga 12-68, Elijah Jones 11-21, Sean Domek 1-(minus 5), Jordan Robbins 1-4, team 1-(minus 17). K, Plew 7-(minus 32), Gutierrez 27-141, Loomis 8-127, Isaac Ruiz 7-13, Blake Loftus 1-(minus 3).
PASSING — W, Motonaga 10-22-1-151. K, Plew 8-13-0-66, Gutierrez 1-1-0-12.
RECEIVING — W, X.Martin-Jones 6-59, E.Jones 1-10, A.J. Ruffin 2-37, Charles Summers 1-45. K, Gutierrez 2-21, A.J. Templeton 3-29, Edward 1-8, Keyshawn Owens 1-6, Andrew Townsend 1-2, Plew 1-12.
This story was originally published November 14, 2015 at 8:56 PM with the headline "Kennewick beats Wilson to earn quarterfinal trip."