Mozingo. Rodriguez. Underhill. Rinse and repeat.
The game plan that has worked so well for Onalaska for much of the season was effective again Friday, as the trio combined for 494 yards and eight touchdowns in the Loggers’ 60-12 win over Adna.
“Our backs, they run hard,” Onalaska coach Mazen Saade said. “I thought our offensive line played well, but our backs run hard. All of them.”
A fumble on the second play of the game did little to slow down the Logger (6-2, 2-1 C2B South) rushing attack, as they scored on each of their next eight drives.
Onalaska knew they could have success on the ground against an inexperienced defense coming into the game, and it was clear they were taking advantage of what they saw on the field.
On Onalaska’s third drive of the game, Rodriguez opened the drive with a nine-yard carry. From the sideline, Saade yelled out “same play.” The Loggers rushed to the line, ran the play again, and Rodriguez burst through a hole for a 53-yard touchdown.
“We had a guy on a pull and he missed the block,” Saade said. “And we came right back to it … and it was there.”
The Logger defense also had success throughout, though they did briefly allow the Pirates (2-5, 0-2 C2B South) back into the game late in the second quarter.
Up 20-0, Onalaska forced a big loss on a third down to force fourth-and-long, but a personal foul gave Adna a fresh set of downs.
Four plays later, Lane Johnson found Gavan Muller over the top for a 20-yard touchdown to give the Pirates life.
The Pirates quickly responded with a touchdown of their own, but the dagger came right before and right after the halftime break.
With seven seconds left in the half, Rodriguez was stuffed at the one-yard line. While Saade called timeout with one second remaining, the clock ran out, and the Pirates left the field.
After discussion, Adna was brought back onto the field, and Mozingo ran in a touchdown on the final play of the half.
Two plays into the second half, Blaze Underhill broke free for a 63-yard touchdown. He later scored another 63-yard touchdown on the same play call.
“He played his tail off,” Saade said. “That kid hit it and he was gone. And I’ve never seen him smile so freaking much in his life.”
Underhill finished with 133 yards and two touchdowns on just three carries, Mozingo had 214 yards and four touchdowns, and Rodriguez had 147 yards and two scores.
Adna coach Aaron Cochran was reflective after the game, saying that the Pirates have a ways to go before they can be seen on the same tier as other C2BL teams.
“Everyday, we have to develop a sense of toughness. If you’re gonna play in this league, if you're gonna play against teams like that, you're gonna have to be physical and tough,” Cochran said. “The kids are doing a very good job of getting better everyday, but we have a lot of work to do.”
Johnson did find Muller on another long touchdown later in the game, finishing with those two touchdowns, 164 passing yards and an interception.
Muller led the team with 67 receiving yards on five catches, while Luke Mohney and Beau Miller also hauled in five passes each for 55 and 42 yards, respectively.
With the win and a Kalama win over Toledo, the C2B South standings are set.
Onalaska finishes in second place, while Adna can not move up from fourth regardless of the outcome of their match next week.
Both teams will wrap up the regular season next week, with Adna heading south to take on Kalama and Onalaska heading to Pe Ell to face PWV.
