Lind-Ritzville rallies to win season opener
RITZVILLE — Down 8-0 and their offense struggling, Lind-Ritzville went to a simplified running game in the second half that sparked a three touchdown rally and an eventual 22-14 victory for the Broncos in their season opener against Liberty of Spangle.
"We ran some quick hitters in the second half," said Lind-Ritzville coach Greg Whitmore. "We just ran where they weren't basically."
Lind-Ritzville's Justin Whitney scored on touchdown runs of 84, 25 and 34 yards to lead the Bronco rally over a tiring Lancer defense. Whitmore finished the night with 233 yards rushing on only 21 carries.
While players on both sides of the ball were bothered by cramps, Liberty appeared to be suffering more from fatigue in the second half of the game.
"We told them at halftime we thought they (Liberty) were wearing down," said Whitmore.
After stopping a Liberty drive at midfield, the Broncos took possession of the ball on their own 16-yard line with 3:48 left in the third quarter. On first down, Whitney ran around the left side, beating the Lancer secondary to the corner and streaking down the sideline to ignite the home crowd and get Lind-Ritzville on the board. A failed two-point conversion left the Broncos trailing 8-6.
"He's got the speed and the wheels," said Whitmore of Whitney. "When he gets out in the open field, he can outrun anyone."
On the ensuing Liberty possession, the Broncos forced the Lancers into a fourth and 14, but a penalty for 12 men on the field gave Liberty a first down. The Lancers drove down the field and appeared to extend their lead on an 18-yard touchdown pass, but a holding penalty took the points off the board. An Erik Hille sack on the next play, followed by another penalty, ended the Liberty scoring threat. Hille led the Bronco defense with two sacks, while Jimmy Bartz picked up the other sack for Lind-Ritzville.
Lind-Ritzville took possession on their 20-yard line, and needed only four plays to march 80 yards down the field for the lead.
On first down, Tyler Bruegeman ran to the right for 11 yards and a Bronco first down. Then, Bobby Helms grabbed a quick pass to the left, made a move past the defensive back and ran 29 yards to the Liberty 40-yard line. Whitney would take over from there, running for a 15-yard gain to the 25 before taking the ball around the right side and into the end zone on the next play to give Lind-Ritzville a 12-8 lead.
Bruegeman then ran the ball into the end zone for the two-point conversion to push the lead to 14-8.
With the lead, the Bronco defense held Liberty to zero net yards on their next possession and forced a punt that set up the Lind-Ritzville offense's final score of the evening. On the night, the Lind-Ritzville defense limited Liberty to 219 yards total offense.
Again, the Broncos would run down the field in four plays to score, as Whitney and Bruegeman each had big carries to get the offense down to the Liberty 34-yard line. From there, Whitney ran around the left side for the score and then took the ball up the middle for the two-point conversion with just over four minutes to play.
Liberty scored late to make it 22-14, but an onside kick attempt failed to travel the required 10 yards, so Lind-Ritzville was able to take possession and run out the clock.