Game Recap October 9, 2010
That Jake McKinney kid is pretty darn good. That is, if you are impressed by 228 yards rushing and four touchdowns. If you're not, then the Wenatchee Panthers certainly are after the McKinney Express shredded their defense in a 31-19 Bomber victory at Fran Rish Stadium.
The game didn't start out in a pretty fashion for either team as the rain from the previous two days had left the field a tad wet. Both teams coughed up fumbles, Richland with two and the Panthers adding one more.
Finally in the Bombers third drive, the offense started to click. Starting at their own 37, Richland embarked on a 6 play drive behind big runs by Colter Quick and McKinney and a 23 yard pass to Elijah Gardaya to get the ball to the Wenatchee four. Jake took the ball the rest of the way with a 4 yard run and the Bombers led 7-0.
Stymied on their next posession, the Panthers were forced to punt. Gage Reynolds took advantage of a low kick and returned the ball to the Panther 7 yard line after a 37 yard return. Not able to punch it in, the Bombers instead settled on a 25 yard field goal from Kevin Garza and a 10-0 lead.
Reynolds then struck again on defense and intercepted a Cooper Helm pass. This time, instead of relying on Jake's legs, the Bombers broke out their dormant passing. Quick played catch with Tyler Powell, connecting on passes of 44 and 29 yards and set up Jake's second touchdown run from 3 yards out and Richland suddenly had a comfortable 17-0 lead with over nine minutes left in the second quarter.
The Bombers were once again poised to strike just before halftime. Starting at the 50 yard line after Wenatchee ran out of downs, Richland moved quickly when Quick connected with Gage Reynolds for 21 yards and Tyler Powell again for 21 more. But, with 10 seconds left on the clock, Quick was sacked for a 5 yard loss. As Quick was going down he launched a desparation pass that was intercepted by the Panthers. But, what looked like a pick six turned out to be moot because the refs had already whistled the play dead. Much to the chagrin of the Panther faithful, the half ended in a shutout.
The second half started off well for the Panthers. After holding Richland on their first drive, Wenatchee engineered a 12 play, 80 yard drive, punctuated by a 14 yard touchdown pass from Helm to Connor Black. The Bombers, however, were able to strke back fast behind Jake McKinney runs of 12, 18, and 24 yards capped off by his third visit to the endzone on a 3 yard touchdown run.
Wenatchee received the kickoff on the 28 yard line but couldn't get anything going. On fourth down, the Panthers attempted a fake punt but punter Keaton Smith's pass fell harmlessly to the ground. On the next play, McKinney blew through the Panther defense for a 33 yard touchdown.
The Bombers' comfortable feeling left just after Kevin Garza's kickoff left his foot. Keaton Smith caught the ball on the 9 yard line and didn't stop running until he had chewed up all 91 yards standing between him and the endzone.
The Panthers weren't through with their comeback. The defense held stiff and then, taking advantage of a low snap, the Panther defenders blocked the punt and took the ball over on the Bomber 17 yard line. The offense then wasted little time and scored again on a 5 yard pass from Helm to Connor Black. The two point conversion failed but the Panthers had new life. Fortunately for the Bombers, the Panthers luck ran out when Kenton Brunson intercepted a Helm pass and Richland was able to run out the clock and savor a nice victory.
Next Friday, Walla Walla comes to town for the annual Homecoming game. If you are a Bomber alumnus, make sure you keep Friday night October 15th open and come out and see the Bombers take on the Blue Devils in the last regular season home game of 2010. See you then!
Go Bombers!
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October 8, 20101234Final
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Wenatchee Panthers0013619
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Richland Bombers10714031
- 1st Quarter
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Touchdown: Jake McKinney 5 Yd Run (Kevin Garza kick)
Richland 7, Wenatchee 0 -
Field Goal: Garza 25 Yd Field Goal
Richland 10, Wenatchee 0 - 2nd Quarter
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Touchdown: McKinney 3 Yd Run (Garza kick)
Richland 17, Wenatchee 0 - 3rd Quarter
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Touchdown: Connor Black 14 Yd Pass from Cooper Helm (Angel Guerra kick)
Richland 17, Wenatchee 7 -
Touchdown: McKinney 2 Yd Run (Garza kick)
Richland 24, Wenatchee 7 -
Touchdown: McKinney 33 Yd Run (Garza kick)
Richland 31, Wenatchee 7 -
Touchdown: Keaton Smith 91 kickoff return (kick blocked)
Richland 31, Wenatchee 13 - 4th Quarter
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Touchdown: Black 5 Yd Pass from Helm (2-pt. Conv. Pass fail)
Richland 31, Wenatchee 19
- News/Media
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Panthers, Bombers eager for win; Big 9 contenders coming off losses
Wenatchee World: Thursday October 7, 2010
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Preview: Wenatchee at Richland
Tri-City Herald: Friday October 8, 2010
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Only 153 yards for Wenatchee in loss to Richland
Wenatchee World: Saturday October 9, 2010
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Richland holds off Wenatchee 31-19
Tri-City Herald: Saturday October 9, 2010
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