WOODLAND – Lane Andersen remembers when football wasn’t such a blast. Losing each of your nine games is tough for even the most enthusiastic player.
So that’s why the senior lineman’s smile was extra wide after Ridgefield’s 60-27 win over Woodland on Friday.
Two years ago, Ridgefield was a football doormat, going 0-9. Now the Spudders (4-0, 2-0) are knocking at the top of the 2A Greater St. Helens League.
“It feels great,” Andersen said. “Me and many of my friends, we’ve been playing together for years. We went through that 0-9 season. Now, I believe we have a shot at winning the league this year.”
It’s a sweet spot to be for four starting senior linemen, all of whom won all-league honors last year.
In the trenches, some strong Spudders are plowing gaps big enough for a tractor.
And Friday, Jalen Williams’ wheels were kicking up plenty of dirt. The junior running back scored five touchdowns and rushed for 196 yards on just 17 carries.
“Our linemen are doing all the work up there,” Williams said. “I’m getting open holes and barely getting touched on every play.”
Tommy Herz added 133 yards as Ridgefield rushed for 282 yards.
“We take a lot pride in that,” Andersen said. “On film, we’re always showing them that there are massive holes to run through. You could drive a car through some of those holes.”
While Ridgefield is holding its head high, Woodland (1-3, 0-2) was in over its head when it came to snapping the ball to its punter.
Four bad snaps resulted in two safeties and set up two Ridgefield touchdowns.
Everything was going against Ridgefield early in the second quarter. The Spudders fell behind 20-7 when Wyatt Harsh hit Tyler Flanagan in stride for a 54-yard touchdown pass.
That looked like a daunting deficit for Ridgefield, which had gained just three yards on its previous three drives. And in recent years, that deficit might have been too much for a less experienced Spudders team to overcome.
But on a cool breezy night, Williams was just getting warmed up. The 210-pound junior carried the ball on six of the next drive’s eight plays. Ridgefield covered 65 yards and pulled within 20-14 on Williams’ 13-yard touchdown run.
Williams’ third touchdown gave Ridgefield a 21-20 lead with 1:29 left in the half. His 5-yard TD run followed a 30-yard screen pass from Cade Morrill to Tommy Herz.
But in the final minute of the half, Ridgefield made a play that made Woodland pay.
A bad punt snap gave the Spudders the ball on Woodland’s 21 yard line. Six plays later, Morrill threw a 17-yard touchdown pass to tight end Brock Harrison, who outmuscled a Woodland defender to make the catch with two seconds left in the half.
Ridgefield pulled away in the third quarter. Two bad punt snaps resulted in safeties. Williams had an 18-yard touchdown carry and Herz added a 48-yard touchdown run.
What had been a close game saw Ridgefield lead 46-20 after three quarters.
RIDGEFIELD 60, WOODLAND 27
Ridgefield 7 21 18 14 – 60
Woodland 6 14 0 7 – 27
First quarter
R – Jalen Williams 11 run (Michael Martin kick)
W – Tristan Thomas 3 pass from Wyatt Harsh (kick blocked)
Second quarter
W – Tyler Flanagan 6 pass from Harsh (pass failed)
W – Flanagan 54 pass from Harsh (Jared Cloud pass from Harsh)
R – Williams 13 run (Martin kick)
R – Williams 5 run (Martin kick)
R – Brock Harrison 17 pass from Cade Morrill (Martin kick)
Third quarter
R – Safety, snap out of end zone
R – Williams 18 run (Martin kick)
R – Safety, snap out of end zone
R – Tommy Herz 48 run (Martin kick)
Fourth quarter
W – Jared Cloud 63 pass from Harsh (Tylor Bishop kick)
R – Morrill 18 run (Martin kick)
R – Williams 47 run (Martin kick)
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING – Ridgefield: Jalen Williams 17-196, Tommy Herz 13-133, Cade Morrill 10-41, Jeremy Martin 2-12. Woodland: Tristan Thomas 16-64, Wyatt Harsh 9-51, Hunter Raney 1-minus-4, Tylor Bishop 1-minus-5.
PASSING – Ridgefield: Morrill 3-10-67. Woodland: Harsh 18-31-219.
RECEIVING – Ridgefield: Nathan Herz 1-20, Tommy Herz 1-30, Brock Harrison 1-17. Woodland: Thomas 9-48, Tyler Flanagan 6-89, Jared Cloud 3-82.
