ADNA — After losing 60-12 against Onalaska 11 days ago, Adna coach Aaron Cochran and his staff decided that they needed a spark offensively.
While Lane Johnson had been playing well at quarterback to that point, they opted to turn to junior Layden York under center, aiming to get Johnson more touches running the ball.
The Pirates offense executed at a higher level in a loss Thursday at Kalama, and on Tuesday, they followed with one of their best performances of the season, tallying 430 yards of offense en route to a 56-6 win over Wahkiakum in a 2B crossover play-in game.
Adna will play at Napavine on Saturday in a crossover, with the winner advancing to the state tournament.
While the Pirates' 3-6 record isn’t overwhelming, Cochran has been impressed with the team’s consistent growth over the course of the season, which showed in the blowout win.
“Over the course of the season, our team has been focusing on getting better every day, every rep. And I think that they’ve been doing that,” Cochran said. “There’s been bumps, but this team has done a really good job of battling every day and getting better.”
On Tuesday, York wasn’t asked to do the heavy lifting on offense, but he didn’t need to. As a team, the Pirates ran for 313 yards, with Luke Mohney leading the way with 97. Johnson had 10 carries and ran for 69 yards, while also still taking snaps at quarterback intermittently.
York only threw the ball seven times, but he completed all seven of his passes to five separate receivers for 98 yards, including touchdown passes to Gavan Muller and Grayson Humphrey.
“Layden’s done a great job this year,” Cochran said. “Every day, he gets better, and now he’s getting an opportunity to help our team get better too.”
Defensively, the Pirates were all over the field, forcing five turnovers and limiting the Mules to 222 yards of offense.
Cochran noted that the unit was communicating well throughout the game, adding that it was made more difficult by coming into the game on short rest.
“It’s hard to be able to plan defensively for that,” Cochran said. “I think our kids did a good job preparing in that short amount of time and came ready to play.”
In the final moments of the first half, down 28-6, the Mules drove down inside the Adna five, but the Pirates held firm to keep it a three-score game prior to the break.
It quickly became more lopsided early in the second half. After opening the third quarter with a quick four-play touchdown drive, Johnson snagged an interception that set the Pirates up in the red zone. On the next play, Luke Mohney took a jet sweep 14 yards to the house.
Wahkiakum’s next possession also ended in a turnover, as Jack Smith came away with an interception. Three plays later, Elijah Jimenez was in the end zone for the second time.
The Adna special teams unit generated a takeaway of its own, as they pounced on a loose ball downfield on a kickoff to put the Pirates right outside the red zone. York ran in a touchdown four plays later.
In a span of just 18 plays, the lead had ballooned to 50 points, and the Pirates spot in Napavine was secured.
While the Tigers present another challenge, Cochran is happy that the Pirates will get to take the field again.
“We’re excited, we want to play on Saturday,” he said. “I think that our kids are pumped to go do it, and we’re not ready for the year to be over yet.”
