It doesn’t seem to matter where Dufur plays – home or away - because the result is nearly always the same for the Rangers in Class 1A eight-man football.
Dufur won its third straight Special District 2 League contest 52-14 over Ione/Arlington Friday at Arlington High School. Dufur plays its final game of this short spring season April 3 at noon at home against the defending 1A champion Adrian Antelopes (3-0). Dufur played on the road Tuesday against the Powder Valley Badgers (3-0), but results were unavailable at press time.
“I am proud of the team for playing so well and it’s been a lot of fun during these first three games for sure,” said Coach Jack Henderson, whose Rangers led 40-0 at halftime at Arlington. “Our quarterback, Cooper Bales, did a really nice job of running and throwing the ball and he also returned a kickoff for a touchdown. Trey Darden (four tackles) did a really good job defensively while making a lot of tackles. Overall, our offensive line, led by Parker Wallace, Jacob Jones and August Harvey, did a really good job of blocking people off the ball. Everyone has worked really hard to help the team get better too, so that’s a cool thing.”
Dufur took the initial advantage on a six-play, 70-yard first quarter scoring drive. Bales, who was 6-for-10 passing for 166 yards and carried five times for 51 more, threw a 46-yard TD strike to senior receiver Jacob Peters (two receptions, 63 yards). The formidable Ranger offense then exploded for 32 second-quarter points for the 40-0 halftime lead. The Rangers added another TD in the third, while the Cardinals finally got a touchdown as well, making it 46-8 after three.
Both teams had scoring drives in the fourth quarter. Dufur capped a three-play, 90-yard drive with a 60-yard TD pass from Bales to senior receiver Ben Schanno (two receptions, 81 yards). Junior running back Kaleb Pence, who led Dufur’s ground game with seven carries for 72 yards, added a two-point conversion run for the final margin.
The Rangers accumulated 200 yards rushing and outgained the Cardinals in total yards, 366 to 180.
Sherman County gets second win
Playing at home for the first time this season, the Sherman County High Huskies (2-1) bounced back from a loss the previous week at South Wasco, regaining their momentum with a 39-7 victory Friday over Dayville/Monument. The Huskies, guided by first-year head Coach Kyle Blagg, play Mitchell/Spray/Wheeler in their final contest of the four-game spring season April 1 at 7 p.m in Moro.
“Our defense played lights out and our kicking game came up huge,” said Blagg. “Our quarterback, Eddie Rubio, executed the offense very effectively to help lead us to the win.”
Rubio, a sophomore, was 2-for-2 passing for 34 yards. Husky sophomore Kole Martin was 3-for-3 passing for 76 yards and had two touchdowns. Martin also had 16 carries for 99 yards rushing and scored two TDs on the ground.
Sherman junior Braden Carmine led the Huskies ground game with 14 carries for 120 yards and two TDs. Carmine also led Sherman in receiving with two receptions for 62 yards and a touchdown. Freshman Luke Fritts had two receptions for 21 yards and a score.
South Wasco wins third straight
The South Wasco County High Redsides (3-0) won their third straight Special District 4 six-man football game Friday, 49-24 at Echo High School. The Redsides will try to extend their win streak when they travel to play Mitchell/Spray/Wheeler (1-1) Friday at 2 p.m. in Fossil.
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