Ridgefield gets its shot at league-leading Hockinson

Ridgefield will get a stern test in its Class 2A Greater St. Helens League opener. The Spudders travel to Hockinson to meet the league-leading Hawks.

Spudders coming off loss to La Center

Ridgefield Spudders (1-2)

Week 1: Ridgefield 41, Castle Rock 0 Week 2: W.F. West 33, Ridgefield 13 Week 3: La Center 35, Ridgefield 7 Next: Ridgefield at Hockinson, 7 p.m. Friday Ridgefield was in this one deep into the third quarter.

Nice stops:

The score seems like a rout. It did not look like one, though. In fact, it was 7-0 at the half. Ridgefield’s defense made stop after stop in the first half. One came on a fourth-down play when Carter Pankow, with help from Jeremy Martin, stopped a La Center receiver one yard from gaining a first down. Later in the game, Calvin Staker had a big tackle for loss to stall another La Center drive.

Perfect pass:

Just loved watching a pass from Dawson Lieurance to Brock Harrison for a 17-yard gain in the second quarter. Harrison found a spot between three defenders, and Lieurance hit him in stride. Yes, there were three defenders in the area, but not one of them had a chance at this ball. A perfectly thrown ball can beat a good defensive play.

Maybe this should be the plan:

Ridgefield avoided the shutout when Lieurance found Tucker Roberts for a 26-yard touchdown pass. The play did not start so well for Ridgefield, though. A low snap, the ball got away from Lieurance. Instead of just falling on the fumble, he picked it up, looked down the field, and saw Roberts open for the score. I know coaches would never go for this, but there are times I think teams should practice doing this play on purpose. Yes, snap the ball on the ground on purpose. Sure, you have to trust the quarterback here to make the play, but every time the ball is on the ground, the defense reacts to it. In this case, Roberts was wide open. (Yeah, I know. Stupid idea. Too many bad bounces can happen. Still, it worked out here.)

Coach Speak:

What did Kim Ulman learn about his team in Week 3? “We have a lot of improving to do. We played hard, which is good. We need to do a better job of playing as a team.” MVP on offense: Brock Harrison MVP on defense: Hunter Abrams Thoughts on Week 4 vs. Hockinson: “Possibly our toughest test yet,’’ Ulman said. “The goal will be to improve, as it is with every game.”