TDHS Varsity FB Starts Off Rough In Season Opener
Riverhawks team captains Jaxon Pullen ( number 1 ) and Riley Brock ( number 15 ). Photo Cred: Xavier Orion Olaez
By Xavier Orion Olaez
The Dalles Riverhawks varsity football team played against the Forest Grove Vikings yesterday, September 4th and it didn’t go the way they wanted it to. It was Lynn Helyers first game back as a head coach for TD and he looked comfortable and right at home. He led his team out onto the field for battle with a whole new offense and a switched-up coaching staff. The team responded well to all of them and were ready to play but couldn’t do much on offense or defense.
Riverhawk defense swarms the ball carrier and stops them from getting a first down. Photo Cred: Xavier Orion Olaez
The first half was a close battle with the Hawks defense suffocating the Vikings, while the same could be said for the Forest Grove defense. Early in the first quarter, the Riverhawks got a boost when junior Riley Brock picked off the Vikings quarterback and returned it to the Vikings 15-yard line. Yet they couldn’t capitalize on offense. The Hawks are a young team and this was the first game so there were going to be some mistakes on both sides of the ball and that showed on defense as the game went on. Forest Grove scored twice in the second quarter after pounding the ball down the field with the Riverhawks missing a lot of tackles and leaving Forest grove receivers open to make easy catches. At the end of the first half, Forest Grove led 12-0.
The second half was a mess for the Hawks. The defense couldn’t stop the Viking’s offense. The Vikings scored twice early in the third with tackling mistakes all over the field. It continued on the rest of the game and the offense was still being stopped. The Hawks did score at one point with a great reverse to Jaxon Pullen who then dropped back and threw it to Wesley Parker, one of the receivers who was wide open and sprinted into the end zone but the play was called back due to a flag on the offense.
Forest Grove went on to win 40-0. While the game sounds like a mess, the Hawks battled hard and showed a lot of heart. A young team with so much potential and with every practice and game they’re only going to get better.
The Riverhawks play St. Helens next on Sept 10th at St. Helens.
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This story was edited to include Wesley Parker on Sept 4th at 12pm, thank you Nathan and Corin Parker for your kind messages.
