Washougal looks to rebound in matchup at Woodland

Despite last week’s loss to league-leading Hockinson, Washougal still remains firmly in the race for one of the Class 2A Greater St. Helens League playoff berths.

Panthers are 5-1 on the season and 3-1 in Class 2A GSHL action

Washougal Panthers (5-1, 3-1 2A GSHL)

Week 1: Washougal 54, West Seattle 0 Week 2: Washougal 41, Castle Rock 14 Week 3: Washougal 17, Columbia River 0 Week 4: Washougal 20, Mark Morris 14 Week 5: Washougal 34, Ridgefield 14 Week 6: Hockinson 41, Washougal 7 Next: at Woodland, 7 p.m. Friday The Panthers lost in one of the most anticipated games in Washougal in years. Now it will be up to the players and coaches to bounce back.

Special appearance from Mr. Vance:

Most of the notes below come from ClarkCountyToday.com editor Ken Vance, who made his triumphant return to covering high school football last week. (We wanted to be at two huge games, so I went to the Camas-Skyview game and Ken headed east to Washougal for the Hockinson game.)

Finding the end zone:

After entering the game averaging 33.2 points in their five victories this season, Washougal found the yards tough to come by against Hockinson’s spirited defense. The Panthers did get their offense on track during their lone scoring drive, which came in the third quarter. Washougal went on a nine-play, 80-yard drive that culminated with a 30-yard scoring strike from quarterback Ryan Stevens to receiver Jakob Davis. On the drive, Stevens completed all five of his pass attempts for 59 yards. Three of those completions went to Davis and on the other two, Grant Lewis was on the receiving end of Stevens’ passes. A key play on the drive might have appeared to be a pass to the casual eye. Stevens found running back Kade Coons on a swing pass, which technically traveled backward from the line of scrimmage, which makes it officially scored as a rushing attempt for Coons. The play covered 18 yards and gave the Panthers a first down at the 30-yard line, setting up the touchdown strike to Davis.

A missed opportunity:

Davis finished with three catches for 43 yards and the touchdown. All accounts will show that he played well against a very good opponent. But, I’m sure the sophomore would like an opportunity to re-do one play early in the game. The 6-foot-1, 180-pounder broke free on a post pattern and Stevens hit him with a strike right in the hands, but the athletic Davis couldn’t corral the football. If he had completed the catch, which would have occurred near midfield, there was nothing but open field ahead of him. The missed opportunity came on Washougal’s second offensive possession of the game with the Panthers trailing 7-0. There’s no reason to believe it would have changed the overall outcome of the game, but it might have helped improve the emotional mindset of the Washougal players, allowing them to be more competitive against the high-powered Hawks.

Coach Speak:

Washougal coach Dave Hajek called Grant Lewis the MVP of the team on offense in Week 6 and named Nathan Tofell the MVP of the defense. Thoughts on Week 7 vs. Woodland: “They are a lot better than their record,’’ Hajek said. “A very good quarterback, and a tough defense, and we are going to Woodland. I hope after the defeat last week we are able to regroup and play a good game.”