Hood River wins District 1 football opener, 39-14, over Aloha

HRV line Coach Chris Mallon’s experienced offensive front moved a young Aloha defensive front off the ball throughout the game. The Eagle advantage up front was most evident in the second half. The Warriors had pulled within 26-14 with a touchdown on their first possession of the third quarter. Hood River answered with scores on its next two possessions, capped by Bam Layna’s one-yard run and, later, Deacon Ybarra’s 5-yard scamper.

Layna finished with three one-yard TD bursts, primarily behind Jack Miller, Lars Welch, Miguel Arriola, Tristan Pasto and Emery Croke. The Eagles never trailed and compiled 401 yards of total offense and 23 first downs.

Quarterback Davis Parr was sharp on HRV’s opening drive, completing all three of his passes to three different receivers. Cooper Wells caught the first one on the opening play from scrimmage for a 13-yard gain. Nick Tuttle had a six-yard reception two plays later. Then, facing a third-and-21 situation, Parr found Bodie Stuben for a 33-yard touchdown.

Hood River quickly went ahead 12-0 on its next series, as Aloha lost a fumble on its first play from scrimmage. The Eagles needed just five plays to take a two-score lead. Parr and Davin Snyder connected on a 15-yard score to cap a five-play, 40-yard drive. Parr finished 11 of 15 for 154 yards.

Aloha answered on its ensuing possession, taking advantage of good field position at its 40-yard line. The Warriors moved 60 yards in nine plays, capping the drive with a nine-yard, Jayden Nava to Luca Blanchet TD pass.

The teams traded punts before Hood River took over again on offense early in the second period. During the drive, the Eagles survived a holding penalty which nullified Layna’s would-be, 56-yard touchdown jaunt. Layna, fittingly, eventually scored nine plays later behind HRV’s offensive front.

Aloha went three-and-out on its next series, and Hood River took a 26-7 lead on another Layna one-yard TD run. The set-up play in the drive was Parr’s 30-yard pass to Ybarra, which moved the ball to the Aloha 4. Layna, who finished with 136 yards on 23 carries, scored two plays later and added a two-point conversion, giving HRV a 19-point lead.