HOCKINSON – Levi Orem had one heck of a game in the second quarter on Friday.
The Woodland junior running back scored four times in the second quarter as the Beavers rode a strong game from their offensive line to a 34-25 win over Hockinson in the Class 2A Greater St. Helens League opener for both teams.
“I just run straight up the field. I try my best on every play and I have to give a shout out to my offensive line for some great blocking,” Orem said after running for 205 yards on 29 carries.
Orem scored all five of Woodland’s touchdowns, including scoring runs of 40 yards in the second quarter and one of 43 early in the third quarter. But this was far from a one-man show.
Tyler Flanagan ran for 60 yards, including a 49-yarder to set up the Beavers third touchdown. Flanagan also caught six passes for 62 yards, helping quarterback Wyatt Harsh to an efficient 145-yard passing night.
After a scoreless first quarter, the teams combined for 40 points in the second quarter. Orem started his scoring spree with an 11-yard touchdown run on the first play of the second quarter.
For a Woodland team that had been handled by La Center one week earlier, opening league play with a win over the defending champions was big.
“It’s great,” said Harsh, whose first win over Hockinson came on his 17th birthday. “It feels good to get our first league win. Levi really stepped up and the line stepped up, too.”
Hockinson quarterback Canon Raconelli ran for a pair of touchdowns in the second quarter. The junior finished with another big night statistically with 277 passing yards and 45 rushing. But Woodland’s defense took away the big pass plays in the middle of the field and came up with two timely interceptions to halt promising Hawks’ drives.
“We just wanted to weather any storm,” Woodland coach Mike Woodward said. “We had some adversity in this game, but we stayed the course and it paid off.”
Perhaps the most unsettling moment for the visitors was when Hockinson’s Colton Wheeler stole the ball from a Beavers’ running back and took it 24 yards for a third-quarter touchdown. The play gave the Hawks two scores in less than 30 seconds and cut a 22-point deficit to nine points with most of the second half still ahead.
But that was the last score for either team.
Harsh, forced to play defense because of injuries, came up with a big play on defense. With the Hawks threatening to pull within one score midway through the third quarter, Harsh jumped in front of a pass at the 7-yard line for an interception.
“We’re proud of our guys,” Woodward said. “We stuck with the game plan. The big emphasis this week was trusting one another. Don’t do someone else’s job, and our guys did a great job of that.
WOODLAND 34, HOCKINSON 25
Woodland 0 28 6 0–34
Hockinson 0 12 13 0–25
Second quarter
W – Levi Orem 11 run (Orem run)
W – Orem 40 run (run failed)
H – Canon Racanelli 18 run (kick failed)
W – Orem 1 run (Tyler Flanagan pass from Wyatt Harsh)
H – C. Racanelli 3 run (pass failed)
W – Orem 5 run (pass failed)
Third quarter
W – Orem 43 run (kick blocked)
H – Sawyer Racanelli 35 pass from C. Racanelli (C. Racanelli kick)
H – Colton Wheeler 24 fumble return (kick failed)
Individual leaders
RUSHING — Woodland: Levi Orem 29-205, Tyler Flanagan 7-80, Wyatt Harsh 8-(minus 32). Hockinson: Colton Wheeler 2-4, Ganon Kytola 3-7, C. Racanelli 12-45, Matt Henry 3-14, Devan Riggs 1-20.
PASSING — Woodland: Harsh 14-25-0-145. Hockinson: Canon Racanelli 22-43-2-277.
RECEIVING — Woodland: Tyler Flanagan 6-62, Levi Orem 1-12, Logan Knight 1-5, Wyatt Wooden 3-28, Marques Lies 2-30, Harsh 1-6. Hockinson: Henry 4-59, Riggs 2-19, S. Racanelli 4-73, Nicholas Frichtl 3-28, Kytola 2-1, Wheeler 1-5, Bailey Jones 5-67, Aidan Mallory 1-5.
