‘We did this for them!’ Rangers deliver first football state championship to city of Estacada

“Our town, our community supports the heck out of our team and our program, and I couldn’t ask for anything more to give them in return for what they’ve given us all through the years.”

By René Ferrán | Photos by Dan Brood 

Twelve months ago, the Estacada football team felt the sting of a semifinal loss to Marist Catholic in the OSAA Class 4A state playoffs.

A season-opening loss to Mazama reminded them of that bitter taste, and the Rangers resolved they wouldn’t feel the pain of defeat again.

Saturday night at Hillsboro Stadium, they completed their yearlong mission by dominating Tillamook 32-8 to earn the program’s first state championship.

“We wanted this one,” said senior lineman Dominic Nacoste. “We had one last shot, and this was it. We knew Week 1, we dropped that first one, and we said, ‘All right, we can pick it up, and we’re going to carry it on to the playoffs and win this ’ship,’ and we did it.”

The Rangers (12-1), making their first appearance in a state final since 1953, set a state championship game record by controlling the ball for 35 minutes, 23 seconds, grinding down a stout Cheesemakers defense that entered Saturday’s game allowing just 12.8 points per game.

“We’re going to punch you in the mouth, and we’re going to keep doing it for all four quarters,” said Nacoste, the Tri-Valley Conference’s lineman of the year. “We’re the most physical team in the state.”

Estacada racked up 329 yards on 67 carries, with senior fullback Waylon Riedel doing much of the grunt work (24 carries, 125 yards) and quarterback Cory James and halfback James Durand cashing in with two touchdowns apiece.

“We’ve trusted (Riedel) since Day 1,” James said. “We knew that just give him the ball and let him do his work. And our line, I can’t express it enough — they’re just amazing.”

The result was a playoff run that captivated the logging community of around 3,700, with a sizable portion making the 48-mile drive to support their team.

“It means everything,” said coach Andy Mott, who finally delivered a title in his 10th season. “Our town, our community supports the heck out of our team and our program, and I couldn’t ask for anything more to give them in return for what they’ve given us all through the years. You can see them out here in force. It’s just really special.”

“We did this for them,” Nacoste said, glancing at the swarm of green-clad fans in the west end zone. “You best believe we’re going to be celebrating this the whole week. It’s gonna be crazy.”

The Rangers’ victory denied Tillamook (10-3) its first title. Like Estacada, the Cheesemakers were making their second appearance in the state final, advancing this far for the first time since 1977.

“This just means everything to us,” coach Kye Johnson said. “Eight years ago, when I got to Tillamook, the Cheesemakers were down and out, and the Cowapa League was tough. There was nowhere for us to go. I mean, it was tough to find .500 seasons, but we’ve just kept getting better and better.

“This year, I think we were kind of the outsiders. We were probably overlooked a little bit, but that’s a really good Cheesemakers football team over there.”

Senior Sam Diaz, who anchored the Cheesemakers line and had a game-high 18 tackles, got to know Nacoste and Rangers right tackle Cody White at the Oregon All-State Game last summer, so he knew what was in store for him in Saturday’s final.

“It’s kind of hard to catch your breath,” Diaz said. “I just had to be as strong as I can be and see if we can keep up the entire game. When we started coming back a little bit and stopping them on defense, our attitude shifted, and we started believing in ourselves a little more. But it was tough. Really, really tough.”

The stretch Diaz recalled came late in the third quarter after the Cheesemakers held Estacada to a 30-yard field goal by Ben Haefs that pushed the Rangers’ lead to 25-0.

Tillamook got a quick-strike score on a 55-yard pass from Tanner Hoskins to Zeyon Hurliman, then forced a three-and-out to get the ball back with 40 seconds left in the third.

A pass interference call erased a first-down pass play, and the Cheesemakers ended up turning the ball over on downs. After another exchange of possessions, the Rangers iced the victory with an 11-play drive that consumed more than five minutes, with James racing 18 yards for the clinching touchdown with two minutes left.

“I felt like we were going to have a great year,” Riedel said. “We were just fired up. Losing against Marist last year, this was kind of our revenge season, I guess. And that (Mazama) game, you know, it kind of woke us up a little bit and made us hungry.”

As dominant as the Rangers were running the ball in their wing-T, it was a pass play that got them going Saturday. They faced fourth-and-8 from the Tillamook 28 when James rolled left and hit Tucker Jackson for 13 yards to keep their opening drive alive.

Four plays later, James tucked behind Nacoste and White on the right side, following Riedel’s lead block to score from four yards. 

The Rangers grabbed a 14-0 lead late in the second quarter when Durand capped a 14-play, 90-yard drive with a 2-yard run. After the Cheesemakers turned the ball over on downs with 2:15 left in the half, James connected with Jackson for 26 yards to kick-start a short scoring drive that finished with Durand’s 5-yard run.

“We ran into a juggernaut tonight, for sure,” Johnson said. “Their whole line is really impressive — they’re superior 4A offensive linemen, for sure — and then you mix in some of the backs that they have, and they can just get downhill on you. Every time we thought we found a package to slow them down, they were just right onto the next page on their play script. They were a fantastic offensive team tonight.”

Mott said his team’s ability to avoid the turnovers that plagued them earlier in the playoffs — including two fumbles in last week’s 14-7 semifinal win over Scappoose — was critical to Saturday’s win.

“At the end of the day, we just felt like we could roll with anybody in the trenches,” Mott said. “That was obviously the strength of our team. We pride ourselves in ball control, taking care of the ball. We struggled with that in the first couple of rounds and had gotten into some tight games. We felt if we could take care of the rock, we’d have a heck of a game.”

—

Estacada 32, Tillamook 8

Tillamook - 0 - 0 - 8 - 0 — 8

Estacada - 8 - 14 - 3 - 7 — 32

First quarter

E — Cory James 4 run (Payton Matney run), 4:26

Second quarter

E — James Durand 2 run (run failed), 4:17

E — Durand 5 run (Durand run), 0:37

Third quarter

E — FG Ben Haefs 30, 3:23

T — Zeyon Hurliman 55 pass from Tanner Hoskins (Judah Werner run), 2:44

Fourth quarter

E — James 18 run (Haefs kick), 2:00

STATISTICS

RUSHING—Tillamook: Werner 13-36, Gilbert Whitlatch 2-27. Total 23-82. Estacada: Waylon Riedel 24-125, Durand 17-86, James 13-67. Total 67-329.

PASSING—Tillamook: Hoskins 8-17-2-162. Estacada: James 2-3-0-39.

RECEIVING—Tillamook: Garrison Gunder 3-73, Hurliman 3-72. Estacada: Tucker Jackson 2-39.

DEFENSE—Tillamook: Sam Diaz 18 tackles; Seth Wehinger 15 tackles; Parker McKibbin 12 tackles; Werner 10 tackles; Whitlatch 10 tackles; Gunder 10 tackles. Estacada: Payton Matney 9 tackles, interception; Andrew Turner 6 tackles; Jackson 3 pass breakups, interception. 

FIRST DOWNS—Tillamook 8, Estacada 22. FUMBLES-LOST—Tillamook 0-0, Estacada 0-0. PENALTIES-YARDS—Tillamook 4-52, Estacada 6-66.

Dan Brood, SBLive Sports