MOSSYROCK — A raising of the stakes had absolutely no effect on the Mossyrock football team, which continued to roll in the way that’s become business as usual this season for the Vikings, in a 56-6 crossover blowout of Darrington.
“I saw a lot of great things,” Mossyrock head coach Eric Ollikainen said. “We’re kind of hitting our stride right now, and it’s the perfect time to do that. Hopefully we can keep it up.”
The Loggers pulled off a perfect onside kick to start the afternoon off, and managed their lone touchdown of the day on a kick return deep into the second quarter, but once they actually had to take possession of the ball, the Vikings had all of the answers. Darrington went backwards more than forwards against Mossyrock’s starting defense, which logged eight tackles for loss and allowed just one completion.
“Our front six, they’re pretty stout,” Ollikainen said. “Our linebackers are getting better and better every week, and we’re pretty physical up front. We’re happy with how things are developing.”
And one Mossyrock took over possession following the first of many three-and-outs for Darrington, the Vikings got to speed quickly with a punishing ground game.
With their tailback duo of Sage Greisen and Marshall Brockway running behind a line doing just about what it willed, the Vikings didn’t have a rushing play go for fewer than 5 yards before the clock started running midway through the second quarter.
Greisen got the scoring started with a 6-yard pitch play, and led the way on the statsheet with two more first-half touchdowns in goal-to-go situations. Brockway didn’t find the end zone, but racked up 40 yards on five carries for an even 8 yards per rush.
“We’ve got a good combination of power and finesse at times,” Ollikainen said.
For finesse, the Vikings turned to Keegan Kolb, who had yet another game filled with quick-strike touchdowns. In the first quarter, he got on the receiving end of a 52-yard bomb from Easton Kolb of Mossyrock’s second score of the day. The next period, he bagged a pick-six on defense, and went on to take his lone rush of the day 52 yards to the house.
Easton Kolb finished his outing through the air an efficient 4 for 7 for 96 yards, adding a 12-yard touchdown to Zack Munoz for his final throw of the day. Munoz came in to play quarterback with the clock running in the second half, and hit Peyton McClure for a 30-yard score on his lone completion.
Mossyrock will learn its seeding fate at the state tournament Sunday. The Vikings, who have sat in or around the top five in the AP poll most of the season, can get a first-round bye should they earn a top-four seed.
