HILLSBORO – Finally, Central Catholic can turn its full attention toward West Linn.
With their ninth consecutive running-clock victory – a 42-6 win over Lakeridge in a 6A quarterfinal at Hillsboro Stadium on Friday night – the Rams knocked down the final barrier to a semifinal rematch with top-seeded and reigning state champion West Linn.
“I'm super excited. They're a great team,” Central Catholic senior quarterback Cru Newman said. “We've got a lot of work to do to beat them, but we know we're going to compete with them, for sure. It should be a grudge match to the end. Our guys are ready.”
Newman completed 17 of 25 passes for 230 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for 88 yards and two scores on seven carries as the fourth-seeded Rams (11-0) routed the No. 5 Pacers (8-3).
The Rams started slow – going three-and-out on their first series and Newman losing a fumble at the Lakeridge 3-yard line on their second series – but scored on their next six possessions. They finished with a 391-143 edge in total yards.
“I feel good. We've been playing better and better each week,” Central Catholic coach Steve Pyne said, adding, “The defense has been playing lights out for the last four or five weeks.”
Central Catholic will play in the final four for the seventh time in the last 10 postseasons when it meets West Linn next week. Last year, the Lions dethroned the 2021 champion Rams with a convincing 49-17 win in the semifinals.
“They were good. That was a great team,” Central Catholic junior defensive lineman Zach Davis said. “That's been with us the whole season. We were ready to get back. We knew this game was going to happen.”
The Rams are eager to erase the memory of last year's loss.
“This is really our championship game. This is our get-back from last year,” said senior safety Timmy Mitchell, who had two interceptions Friday, giving him seven for the season. “That stuck with us. This is what we've been waiting for the whole season. It's been West Linn, West Linn, West Linn. Hey, we're ready.”
After a choppy start Friday, Newman got the Rams' offense rolling. He got loose for a 49-yard run on an option play, then hit sophomore Tyson Davis for a 20-yard touchdown pass to make it 7-0 early in the second quarter.
Newman capped a 74-yard drive with a touchdown pass to sophomore tight end Andreas Nicolaidis on fourth-and-goal at the two-yard line for a 14-0 lead. He completed a 24-yard pass to junior Landon Kelsey, then ran for a one-yard score to extend the lead to 21-0 with 1:06 left in the half.
Tyson Davis and Newman added touchdown runs of eight and 13 yards, respectively, in the third quarter to make it 35-0, triggering the running clock. Newman closed the scoring with a 32-yard touchdown pass to senior Pomer Davison.
“We started off slow, very slow, at least offensively,” Newman said. “Defense was on all night. They've been playing great.
“After the first few drives, we started getting things clicking. We just started reacting instead of thinking. We got things moving. We looked a lot better after those first two drives.”
Central Catholic rushed for 161 yards, getting 66 yards on 14 carries from sophomore Killian Sombe.
The Pacers, bidding to make the semifinals for the first time since 1994, made the Rams dig a little deeper than they have in the past two months.
“We haven't had a true, true challenge since Week 2,” Newman said. “Just being out there with a bunch of good athletes, Division I athletes, it's awesome. It's super fun. Our guys took upon the challenge and they balled out.”
Lakeridge was missing its leading rusher in sophomore Ansu Sanoe (6-2, 215), who hasn't played since injuring his ankle in a Week 8 loss at West Linn. Without Sanoe, the Pacers used the wildcat formation with sophomore tight end Noah Tishendorf (6-3, 235), who ran for 34 yards on 11 carries.
Under a heavy pass rush, Lakeridge senior quarterback Gabe Motschenbacher completed 5 of 11 passes for 77 yards and one touchdown (13 yards to senior Luke Womack) with two interceptions. The Pacers unable to unlock USC-bound senior receiver Joey Olsen (6-5, 240), who had two catches for 13 yards.
Mitchell (5-10, 175) led the way in Central Catholic's secondary, once again showing his play-making ability with two acrobatic interceptions. He is excelling at free safety after moving from cornerback this season.
“Over the offseason, Matt Jones had talked about moving him to free safety, and I was like, 'Oh man, I don't think that's a great idea,'” Pyne said, referring to his defensive coordinator. “But I said, 'I'm going to trust you,' and I'm glad I did because Timmy is all over the place. He's a special player. Why he doesn't have any college offers right now is beyond me.”
jerryu@osaa.org
Subscribe
