River offense runs dry at wrong time

Columbia River scored so quickly through 37 minutes Friday night, it seemed the points would never stop.

But after hitting 40 with 11 1/2 minutes remaining, the Chieftains didn’t score again, and Centralia was able to rally for a wild 41-40 victory, spoiling Homecoming night at Chieftain Stadium.

“Sometimes, you start going through the motions, and before you know it, it’s a tie game,” said River senior Alex McGarry, who had a career night with eight catches for 172 yards and three touchdowns to go with a key fourth-quarter sack. “That was the situation we found ourselves in. It was a good job by our offense to get 40 points. Our coaches put us in position to win, but it didn’t go our way tonight.”

McGarry’s third touchdown, hauling in a 71-yard strike from Garrett McKee, came one play after Noholoa Lidstone’s interception and gave River (2-1) a 40-25 lead with 11:24 remaining. At that point, River had rolled up 510 yards and 27 first downs while holding the ball just over 15 minutes.

“We were able to extend our lead all the way throughout the game,” said CR coach John O’Rourke. “When it was 40-25, I felt we still had a cushion, and we still had the opportunity to score some additional points.”

McGarry’s sack of Tigers quarterback Joey Aliff on fourth down with 7:06 to play seemed to settle matters. But after gaining one first down, River was forced to punt.

Two plays later, backup wingback Josh Towle, playing only because Riley Christianson was injured in the third quarter, sprinted 80 yards for a touchdown that drew Centralia within 40-33 with still 4:45 to play.

Following a quick three-and-out, the Tigers got the ball back with 3:32 left and went 48 yards in 2 1/2 minutes, capped by Dylan Ferrians’ 3-yard run.

With all the momentum behind them, the Tigers went for two, with Nathan Yahn bulldozing over left tackle for the go-ahead score.

“I’m still shaking right now,” said Yahn, who rushed for a game-high 145 yards and two touchdowns. “The last couple of years, we haven’t had a win like this. We needed this game.”

River still had one last chance to steal the win, but McKee was sacked three times on the final possession, including being unable to elude three blitzing defenders on fourth down at midfield.

While the Chieftains offense clicked for the first three quarters, they gained just 11 yards and two first downs on their final three possessions.

Meanwhile, the Tigers befuddled River most of the night with their wing-T. Ferrians added 124 yards on the ground, and Centralia finished with 436 rushing yards–286 coming in the second half.

“We just couldn’t handle their sweep play,” McGarry said. “They did a good job of setting it up and getting good matchups against us on the outside. That’s something we’ll need to work on.”

McKee finished 22-of-38 for 337 yards and five touchdowns, but he also was sacked six times in the second half. Hunter Pearson led River with 88 rushing yards on 11 carries.

CENTRALIA 41, COLUMBIA RIVER 40

Centralia 12 0 13 16—41

Col. River 14 13 7 6—40

First quarter

CR — Travon Santiago 20 run (Garrett McKee kick)

Cent — Nathan Yahn 46 run (kick failed)

Cent — Yahn 3 run (kick failed)

CR — Koben Jamison 15 pass from McKee (McKee kick)

Second quarter

CR — Alex McGarry 26 pass from McKee (pass failed)

CR — Royce Cone 31 pass from McKee (McKee kick)

Third quarter

Cent — Yahn 2 run (run failed)

Cent — Nolan Wasson 12 pass from Joey Aliff (Riley Christianson kick)

CR — McGarry 23 pass from McKee (McKee kick)

Fourth quarter

CR — McGarry 71 pass from McKee (pass failed)

Cent — Josh Towle 80 run (Dylan Ferrians run)

Cent — Ferrians 3 run (Yahn run)

Individual statistics

RUSHING—Cent, Ferrians 20-124, Yahn 16-145, Towle 4-96, Aliff 6-18, Christianson 6-40, Desmond Molina 1-5, Raul Lopez 1-10, team 2-(minus 2). CR, McKee 12-(minus 12), Hunter Pearson 11-88, Santiago 6-73, Ryder Waite 6-35.

PASSING—Cent, Aliff 7-19-1-61. CR, McKee 22-38-1-337.

RECEIVING—Cent, Wasson 5-41, Lopez 1-16, Cody Parker 1-4. CR, McGarry 8-172, Jamison 5-58, Dalton Garrett 4-40, Cone 3-46, Dakota Mason 2-21.