Game Recap September 8, 2012
If you have followed Tri-City area football for any length of time you have come to appreciate the fact that the hardest place in the conference (whatever that conference may be) to play is in Walla Walla. There are several schools of thought as to why this is true but this is a family column. To that end, the Richland Bombers improved greatly over week one and came away with a hard-fought 26-20 victory over the Blue Devils.
Much like last week's game, the first half bore little fruit in the scoring department for either team. The Bombers were able to get on the board in the first quarter after a sustained thirteen play drive, capped off by Zach Whitby's 26 yard touchdown pass to Cody O'Toole for the 7-0 lead.
That lead carried over halftime and then both teams started kicking it into gear. Walla Walla tied the game at 7 when Jonah Hoe scored on an 11-yard run. Hoe was the workhorse for the Blue Devils, finishing with 143 yards on 26 carries.
The Bombers responded quickly when Josh Phillips broke off a 50 yard run to give Richland a 13-7 lead in the third quarter. Speaking of workhorses, Josh finished the game with 171 yards on the same 26 carries.
The Blue Devils fought hard all night and responded with a long 13 play drive. Hoe scored the touchdown on a 2-yard run and the extra point made the score 14-13. After recovering a Bomber fumble Walla Walla capitalized when Dakota Turner passed to Dean Atkinson for a 31-yard touchdown and a 20-13 lead.
Starting the fourth quarter, the Bombers knew they had to get going again. The drive started out fine with Whitby connecting on throws to Keith Kneblik for 14 yards and Sheldon Liikala for 13 more. Liikala's catch was then padded by a 15-yard unsportsmanlike penalty by the Blue Devils. Momentary disaster struck on the next play when the snap sailed over Whitby's head for a 29-yard loss. Undaunted by the task at hand, the Bombers came right back: 7-yard run by Derek Redden; 21-yard pass to Liikala; and then topped off by a 10-yard touchdown run by Phillips. The extra point was straight and true and the Bombers were tied again at 20.
Being a former kicker one of my favorite things to watch are long kickoffs. Kevin Garza was almost flawless in this department when four of his five kicks went for touchbacks. That's as good as a Dentyne commercial!
Garza's last touchback required the Blue Devils to start on their own 20 yard line. Late in the fourth quarter it is difficult to sustain an 80-yard drive and the Bomber defense made sure that statement was true.Walla Walla was forced to punt and gave Richland a first down 54 yards away from the go-ahead score.
The Bombers methodically marched the ball down the field quickly but were finally stalled inside the Walla Walla 10 yard line. After three unsuccessful attempts, Richland was faced with a fourth down at the 6-yard line. Whitby then hit Gibson McGeorge on a crossing pattern for a touchdown and a 26-20 Bomber win.
I've been told that now is when I should regale you with Gibson's heroic athleticism but being that he is my nephew, I firmly believe that would be unprofessional. It was fun to watch, though.
If you go through the Scores, Rosters, and More section on this website, you will be able to trace the history of Richland football through the years. 2012 celebrates the 100th anniversary of the first high school football game played in Richland. I haven't been able to pinpoint the actual date of that first game but I do know that it was in 1912. Same year Fenway Park opened and the same year the Titanic sank in the North Atlantic.
So, if you want to be a part of history, come down to the game next Friday night at Fran Rish Stadium for the Bombers first home game of the year. The Bombers will be taking on the always tough Chiawana Riverhawks. The weather should still be beautiful so come out and watch the best football the Tri-Cities has to offer. Remember, ALL of this year's game start at 7:00PM!
Go Bombers!
PS. Sorry for the delay in posting this game summary. I was in Pullman watching my beloved Eagles put a scare into those kitty cats on the Palouse. It was a very fun game to watch and even though my Eagles lost the game it was nice to see a great crowd come support Mike Leach and the Cougars.
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September 7, 20121234Final
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Richland Bombers7061326
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Walla Walla Blue Devils0020020
- 1st Quarter
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Touchdown: Cody O'Toole 26 yard pass from Zack Whitby (Kevin Garza kick)
Richland 7, Walla Walla 0 - 3rd Quarter
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Touchdown: Jonah Hoe 11 yard run (Dean Atkinson kick)
Richland 7, Walla Walla 7 -
Touchdown: Josh Phillips 50 yard run (kick fail)
Richland 13, Walla Walla 7 -
Touchdown: Atkinson 30 yard pass from Dakota Turner (kick blocked)
Richland 13, Walla Walla 13 - 4th Quarter
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Touchdown: Phillips 10 yard run (Garza kick)
Richland 20, Walla Walla 13 -
Touchdown: Gibson McGeorge 6 yard pass from Whitby (kick fail)
Richland 26, Walla Walla 13
