Darrington ekes out 22-20 win

By Chris Beatty

Herald Writer

MOSSYROCK – With the game and the season on the line, the Darrington defense held strong Saturday.

The Loggers kept the Mossyrock Vikings out of field-goal range on their final drive of the game to preserve a 22-20 Class B-11 state qualifying victory.

Darrington will play undefeated Willipa Valley (10-0), which is ranked No. 1 in the Associated Press poll, in next weekend’s quarterfinals. Mossyrock finished its season at 6-4.

“I’m very proud of our kids,” Darrington coach Rob Wales said. “They (Mossyrock) put a lot of pressure on our defensive backs today and they came through. We asked them not to leave anything in the tank and they gave everything.”

Darrington’s victory was far from a sure thing in the fourth quarter. Behind 22-20, Mossyrock had possession of the ball and the game’s momentum.

With less than five minutes remaining in the game, the Vikings drove 45 yards to the Darrington 35-yard line. Then the Darrington defense came alive.

Mossyrock’s leading rusher, Matt Riis, who finished the game with 168 yards on 29 carries, was unable to gain a yard on two attempts. After an incomplete pass on third and 10, Darrington’s D.J. Cochran pulled down Viking quarterback Willie Forrest just as he was in the motion of throwing, causing the ball to float in a high arc and fall harmlessly to the ground on fourth down.

“Those last few minutes were scary,” Darrington senior tackle Kevin Jones said. “You never know. That last drive I was thinking, ‘Crap, this could be my season right here.’”

Fellow teammate and senior Ronnie McCoy also felt the tension during Mossyrock’s final drive.

“I had the heebie-jeebies,” said McCoy, who had 76 yards on the ground, including a 9-yard touchdown run to give Darrington a 22-14 edge. “Being scared just makes me play harder. I get energized and very self-motivated.”

Holding a 22-14 lead going into the final quarter, Darrington watched that lead shrink as Mossyrock drove 94 yards in four minutes to score. The Vikings made it 22-20 on a 29-yard pass from Willie Forrest to Chris Coleman with 8:05 left.

Mossyrock appeared to tie the score when fullback Kevin Brophy made a one-handed catch on the Vikings’ two-point conversion attempt. But they were called for offensive pass interference. The penalty resulted in a loss of down for Mossyrock and kept the Loggers’ lead intact.

Darrington used timely passing to complement an effective running attack to beat Mossyrock. Cochran led the Loggers with 100 yards rushing and a pair of touchdowns on 20 carries, while quarterback Matt Reece was five of nine passing for 96 yards.

Bryce Boyd set up Darrington’s first touchdown with a vicious hit to Mossyrock’s Forrest, causing him to fumble. Logger Devon Walter recovered at the Mossyrock 20-yard line and six plays later Cochran ran the ball in from 5 yards out to give Darrington the early 6-0 advantage.