Local teams have final tests of regular season

Somnis said that his team, which won 46-8 over Arlington-Condon last week, is well aware of what is at stake and will need to be dialed in for four quarters against an upset-minded Perrydale squad.

“We will need to come in with the same focus, mindset and excitement that we did last week,” Somnis said. “We know this is a critical game to secure a playoff spot.”

Somnis said that he and the coaches warned against complacency and feeling high and mighty down this final stretch.

At this point, any little slip up can be season-ending, so there are precautions in place to make sure this team stays in its rhythm and flow in all three phases of the game.

“This time of year, you always have that talk with the kids,” Somnis said. “Especially with basketball looming around the corner, kids can tend to start looking a little too far down the road. It’s critical that teams have great senior and junior leaders within the roster, who lead by example and help keep everyone’s eyes focused on the week ahead.”

Riding a two-game winning streak, the South Wasco County Redsides put a bow on an independent football campaign at 7 p.m. tonight on senior night in Maupin against Mitchell-Spray.

With last week’s win, the Redsides are assured of a winning record, and they have outscored Huntington and Monument-Dayville by a 141-51 margin during this streak.

If that is going to continue, however, the Redsides will need to hit the field with a short-handed roster of nine players, as a handful athletes are ineligible to play due to grades.

Mitchell-Spray (2-3 overall) did not play last week versus Alsea, but before that, they had lost a pair of games to Arlington-Condon and Elgin by a combined 115-6 margin.

The Dalles football team set season highs last week in yardage and points scored in a resurgent 53-6 drubbing of Benson to snap a four-game losing skid last week at Sid White Field.

Instead of facing two-win Benson, however, the Riverhawks are to tackle a Glencoe team, in its final year as an independent, that has beaten some quality clubs and competed hard in two losses against No. 10 Central and No. 17 Corvallis with an average margin of defeat of 5.5 points.

Glencoe has scored 40 points or more in five of its six wins, while The Dalles defense has given up two touchdowns or fewer in five of eight matchups, two shutouts.

Radio station 1440 AM KODL broadcasts the game live at 7 p.m. from Hare Field.

Streams can be found at www.kodl.com.

In an effort to maintain its rhythm and flow, the No. 2-ranked Dufur Ranger football team added a game to its schedule with a game at 3 p.m. today against Glendale at Gilchrist High School.

Glendale (3-5 overall), who is coming in off a 58-28 loss to Elkton last week, is a run-based offense that uses Connor McGuire and Devin Lee to move the chains.

The Dufur defense has been steady through the season and will have to be even more on cue playing opposite a physical football team.

Dufur coach Jack Henderson wants to see continued success through the air and on the ground offensively, so execution is critical, especially with the playoffs beginning next week.

“We need to continue to focus on being consistent and fundamentally sharp,” Henderson said.

“As we’ve gained our health back, we have been able to add things that should help us down the road.”

Radio station 102.3 FM broadcasts the game live and a live radio stream can be found on the website at www.gorgecountry.com.