Hockinson soars in Woodland mud

WOODLAND — This is exactly what the Hockinson Hawks wanted Friday night.

Just.

Like.

This.

Rain in the forecast?

Bring it on.

Sloppy conditions?

Yes, please.

Oh, and a victory in the biggest Class 2A Greater St. Helens League football game to date this season? Sure.

The Hawks will take that, too.

“We’re mudders, man. We’re mudders all the way,” Hockinson senior Tommy Harshaw said.

Harshaw broke free for a 67-yard touchdown run in the third quarter and the Hockinson defense showcased its usual tenacity, leading the Hawks to a 14-7 victory over Woodland in a matchup of two unbeaten teams.

Only Hockinson (8-0, 5-0 GSHL) remains unbeaten now in the 2A GSHL.

“I’m so stoked, I can barely talk,” Harshaw said. “I’m so happy right now.”

Lineman Will Ortner had a sack on defense and as left tackle helped open enough holes for the Hawks to rush for 224 yards.

“Our field (at Hockinson) is just like this,” he said, referring to the mud and squishiness that can only be found on a natural grass field. “We got a whole week to prepare for it. We knew we were going to have to ground and pound it. That’s what we did tonight.”

Hockinson scored on its first drive of the game. Quarterbck Mitch Lines capped a 12-play possession with a 1-yard plunge to make it 7-0.

Defenses prevailed for much of the rest of the game. Woodland (7-1, 5-1 GSHL) was held to 34 yards of offense in the first half.

“We had a game plan, and we executed it very well. Everyone did their jobs,” Ortner said. “That’s what you have to do against a great running back like Eli.”

That would be Woodland’s Eli Whitmire, who came into the game with 794 yards rushing and 21 offensive touchdowns this season. He ended up with 80 yards on 24 carries, with 23 yards coming on his final two carries of the night.

Woodland got on the board with 1:25 to play in the game when quarterback Wyatt Harsh found Jared Cloud on a 2-yard touchdown pass. Hockinson recovered the onside kick, though, and sealed the win with a first down.

Hockinson coach Rick Steele said Woodland is such a good team, but the weather favored the Hawks. Hockinson is more of a running team, while Woodland likes to pass to set up the run.

“We knew the conditions were going to be good for us,” Hockinson coach Rick Steele said. “We knew we were going to have an advantage. It worked out that way. That was the gameplan. Run the football and play good defense.”

Still, the Hawks had to execute. The Hawks did not lose a fumble in these sloppy conditions.

Woodland, meanwhile, did not find its footing on offense for most of the night.

“We couldn’t get any sustained drives. We couldn’t get a grip on the ball,” Woodland coach Mark Greenleaf said. “They took a lot of things away from us.”

Woodland had three first downs in its five first-half possessions.

Josh Carter, Nick Martin and Ryan Sleasman also had sacks for the Hawks. Gage Seekins had an interception. Joseph Davis had a couple big stops, as well.

The Hawks went 65 yards on 12 plays on their first drive for that first touchdown, then they, too, could not get much going against Woodland’s defense.

Late in the third quarter, though, Harshaw found an opening, ran out of the grasp of a defender who was tugging on his jersey, then outsprinted the rest of the Beavers for the 67-yard touchdown run for some breathing room.

“I was just happy for the team at that point,” said Harshaw, who finished with 109 yards on 10 carries. “It was one more touchdown. It gave us another chance at winning the game.”

The Hawks also excelled when not scoring, killing 6 minutes and 39 seconds of clock with a 14-play drive from the end of the third quarter through the beginning of the fourth.

Woodland’s defense would force a loss of downs, and the Beavers would get their lone scoring drive. Harsh, who was injured earlier in the drive, returned to the field and found Cloud for the touchdown.

Unfortunately for the Beavers, it took 17 plays and more than six minutes off the clock. Woodland had to try the onside kick.

The Hawks got down in the mud again to recover the ball.

Exactly where they wanted to be Friday night. In the mud. With the victory.

HOCKINSON 14, WOODLAND 7

Hockinson 7 0 7 0–14

Woodland 0 0 0 7– 7

First quarter

H — Mitch Lines 1 run (Quentin Bodenhamer kick)

Third quarter

H — Tommy Harshaw 67 run (Bodenhamer kick)

Fourth quarter

W — Jared Cloud 2 pass from Wyatt Harsh (Tylor Bishop kick)

Individual statistics

RUSHING — Hockinson: Austen Johnson 24-83, Lines 10-(minus 17), Steven Carlisle 4-30, Jacob Pearrow 2-0, Tommy Harshaw 10-109, Joseph Davis 2-19. Woodland: Eli Whitmire 24-80. Wyatt Harsh 9-0, Troy Flanagan 4-11, Team 1-(minus 16).

PASSING — Hockinson: None. Woodland: Harsh 7-12-1-52, Whitmire 0-1-0-0, Flanagan 1-1-0-4.

RECEIVING — Hockinson: None. Woodland: Whitmire 2-16, Troy Flanagan 1-1, Hunter Raney 1-16, Trevor Huddleston 2-17, Cloud 2-9.