Game Recap September 10, 2016
Despite knocking off a top-ranked West side team in week one, grabbing the top ranking, and thoroughly dominating a former Big Nine opponent, the Richland Bombers are not yet playing like a well-oiled machine. Week two against Wenatchee, in Wenatchee, showed there is plenty of room for improvement.
The Wenatchee Panthers put up a fight, despite being overmatched, but the 40-12 final score was not entirely indicative of the disparity between these teams. From the opening kickoff, which was an unexpected on-side kick to Richland, the Panthers showed they weren't rolling over, but their recovery was negated almost immediately by Richland's fearsome front four, as linebacker Victor Strasser pummeled the quarterback and defensive tackle Jax Lee retrieved the ball. From there the Bombers appeared to be ready to air things out, going for the dagger on a long pass from Paxton Stevens to a streaking Alex Chapman, but the ball bounced out of his hands. The first drive could be seen as a foreshadowing of the rest of the game—a dominant offense sparked by a tough defense, met with frustration but ultimately succeeding. Keeping the first drive alive with the running game, the Bombers eventually put Parker McCary into the endzone for a 6-0 lead. The rest of the first quarter and much of the second was dominated not by either of the teams but by an unprecedented series of holding calls against Richland, resulting in several big runs by Ben Stanfield being called back, totaling forty plus yards. While the defense kept the Panther offense from any significant advances, the offense continued to try to find their footing, throwing several more incomplete passes and an interception, but eventually used McCary and Stanfield as tag team runners, keeping it on the ground to complete a 60 yard drive with Stanfield smashing up the middle to go up two touchdowns, and then Stanfield sweeping to the right for a two point conversion to make it 14-0. The Bombers spent the rest of the half trying to get the passing game on track, struggling to reel the ball in on good passes, but eventually finding Chapman cutting left from the middle of the field for a 30 yard catch and score. The 21-0 halftime score could have and should have been much worse for Wenatchee, having no answer to the ferocious defense thrown at them by the Bombers.
The second half was more of the same, with some bright spots for the Panthers. Highlights included and acrobatic catch by Wenatchee receiver Otoniel Esquivel, who caught the ball over Chapman's head, side-stepped McCary, broke an attempted tackle by William Harshaw-McDonald, and then barely beat Strasser into the endzone. Refusing to let any wind be taken out of their sails, Richland's line crushed through and Dantae Powell easily slapped the kick to the ground. The following kickoff was taken 60 yards back for a touchdown by Gaven Brasker. More touchdowns were scored by tight end/defensive end Braden Powell and running back Jared Whitby to put the game far out of reach. Interceptions by Josh Mendoza and Alex Chapman stifled more drives, and the Wenatchee quarterback was continually terrorized by interior linemen Brigham Whitby and Jax Lee. The Panthers attempted to salvage some pride by scoring on a catch in the right corner of the endzone, but it was too little too late, and the game stood at 40-12.
The Bombers played another physical game, playing a fast and tough defense that any team would find hard to handle. Opposite of the Skyline game, the running game provided points while the passing game struggled. If the offense had been firing on all cylinders, Richland could have put up 70 or 80 points using the multiple weapons at their disposal. All cylinders will be needed next week as the Bombers play Kennewick at Lampson stadium. Despite beating Richland only once since 1994, Kennewick always plays tough and is never a gimme game. There were nearly as many Bomber fans in Wenatchee as there were Panther fans, so a vocal green crowd should be expected for a great game next week.
Go Bombers!
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September 9, 20161234Final
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Richland Bombers40
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Wenatchee Panthers12
- News/Media
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Full throttle for Week 2
Tri-City Herald: Friday September 9, 2016
Tri-City Herald article from September 9, 2016. Prep Football Preview story written by Annie Fowler.
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Richland 40, Wenatchee 12
Tri-City Herald: Sunday September 11, 2016
Tri-City Herald article from the September 11, 2016 edition.
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Panthers pushed aside: Wenatchee falls to top-ranked Richland in home opener
Wenatchee World: Sunday September 11, 2016
Wenatchee World article by Daniel Rubens in the September 11, 2016 edition.
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