By Jeremy McDonald
Jeremymcdonald73@gmail.com
KEIZER, Ore.– The McNary Football Team came out firing in their first game of the season, their first game under Head Coach Josh Riddell Friday night against Redmond.
The defense was there. Isaiah Longoria (Fumble Recovery) and Jordan Hunter (Interception) anchored the strong defensive start Friday night.
Their offense showed flashes as well. Their first offensive possession resulted in a touchdown off a Tavin Kumm to Jaxson Crawford 71-yard pass off a receiver reverse pass that gave the Celtics a 6-0 lead.
McNary responded as well when Redmond broke the shutout at the 4:49 mark of the second quarter off a Kameron Losoya rushing strike. Down 7-6 at that point, the Celtics pieced together a drive that ended with an Aris Vasseur-Lincoln Goff 16-yard strike that put McNary back ahead with 1:24 remaining in the half. It was 12-7 at this point, and it remained that going into the second half.
“We were focused. We were communicating, we had the energy, and our players were in shape,” Hunter said of the first half. “As a team, we’re working, we’re building together, and I think we’ll get back to it on Monday and get the win.”
The Panthers regained the lead in the third quarter, using some McNary penalties and the passing game to piece together a drive that resulted in a Losoya score that put Redmond ahead 13-12 midway through the frame.
And the Celtics looked as if they were going to have another response for the Panthers when they took over. McNary were piecing together another drive like they did to close out the first half, and by the start of the fourth quarter, they were nine-yards away from retaking the lead.
Then tragedy struck in the form of a turnover. Redmond used it as fuel as they pieced together another drive, eventually adding to their lead at the 8:25 mark of the final quarter. The Panthers got another stop on defense and too turned it into points with 3:17 left in the game.
Within a nine minute swing, a one-point deficit turned into a 28-12 one by that 3:17 mark and held true through the final whistle Friday night in Keizer. Penalties, injuries, and the little attention to detail allowed the game to get away from there. It’s something that McNary will hope to learn from going into Week 1’s game with Ridgeview on September 5at home at 7pm.
“First thing, eliminate the flags. We shot ourselves in the foot a lot. Second thing, knowing our jobs. I feel like sometimes we try covering for other people. Sometimes, we over-communicate and mess stuff up. So just know your job, execute it, and not do multiple jobs at once…if we have 11 guys doing our job, we’ll be great,” said Crawford.
Photos By Jeremy McDonald
