WIAA 2B football state championship: Okanogan grounds Napavine, wins title-game rematch

David Huffstetler rushes for 191 yards, and Carter Kuchenbuch added four touchdowns as second-seeded Bulldogs hold off No. 1 Tigers, 28-24

SEATTLE - The anesthetic that is the Okanogan running game numbed Napavine in the Class 2B championship game Saturday morning, just as it’s done all season.

And while it needed an assist from the passing game as the clock got late, that rushing attack won the day.

The Bulldogs ran the ball 54 times and gained 267 yards, eating field position and clock en route to a 28-24 victory over the defending state champions at Husky Stadium.

The damage was put in the hands of quarterback Carter Kuchenbuch and running back David Huffstetler, who rushed for a game-high 191 yards. Those two accounted for virtually all of Okanogan’s meaningful offensive production on the ground.

But, trailing 18-14 with just over nine minutes to go and facing a third-and-11 from the Napavine 34-yard line, Kuchenbuch put the ball in the air. He found Tanner Grooms open for 25 yards, giving the Bulldogs (13-0) a first-and-goal at the Tigers' 9.

Two plays later, Kuchenbuch scored his third rushing touchdown of the game to give Okanogan the lead for good, 20-18.

His fourth touchdown run with 4:55 to go made it a 28-18 game.