Knights notch another shutout against Riverside

ROYAL — The the tail lights coming down Dodson Ave. into the Royal Slope numbered 25-30 strong as they made their way through the darkness of the countryside.

As they reached the flashing light at Highway 12, to a man, the right blinker went on up and down the line and they started making the turn, like some lost scene out of “Field of Dreams,” homing in on the stadium lights in the not so far off distance.

All roads lead to David Nielsen Stadium on Friday night, especially this time of year when the 1A state playoff picture is starting to take shape. The three-time defending state champion No. 1 Royal Knights (11-0) did not disappoint. They played like a team on a 52-game winning streak, making short work of a very good No. 16 Riverside team with yet another shutout 41-0.

It’s hard to decide which is the stronger component, an offense that has outscored its opponents 403-3 in the last seven games or the defense, which has shut out 8-of-11 teams so far, including a historic run where they didn’t allow a single point scored in each of the six SCAC East conference games.

Friday night’s victory was yet another shutout for a team allowing just 3.09 points a game. Where it took the offense a quarter to warm up in a game that was 35 degrees at kickoff, the Knights defense delivered bone chilling hits from the opening whistle. Royal held Riverside to just 24 total yards in the first half (zero passing) and 61 for the entire game. The Rams (7-5) best field possession came in the opening minutes of the second half when they took over near midfield on a pass interception, then turned around and went 3-and-out against the stingy Knights.

“We have a lot of guys that have played a lot of football. Sometimes it looks like they’re stunting up front, but they’re really just reading the football,” defensive coordinator Jeremy Scroggins said. “I put a lot on (middle linebacker) Alonso Hernandez to make whatever changes we need.

“In a perfect world, we just want to stay at home and make plays. A lot of people might or not know is that all those (shutouts) come with a lot of our reserves playing in the second half. It’s the next man up and that’s what I love is that it’s not just our starters contributing.”

Hernandez was a big reason behind the Knights’ third consecutive 1A state championship last year, giving them a ground attack when they needed to control the ball in the Tacoma Dome. As a senior, he has been a steady force as they make their way back. Hernandez had 125 yards on 21 carries for four touchdowns. He had 125 of the Knights 157 yards team rushing.

That was a tribute to the offensive line, which controlled the point of impact and set in motion a nigh unstoppable force.

“We were more physical up front and I think that’s what gave us the advantage,” senior Logan Gomez said. “They got off the ball very well and were disciplined up front on defense, so I try to stay on my block as long as I can to give our runners a chance to pick their way through.”

Royal broke open a 6-0 game with 28 second-quarter points. Hernandez scored on touchdown runs of 9 and 1 yard. Quarterback Sawyer Jenks kept the ball himself from a yard out and Angel Farias did a nice job with his concentration, hauling in a tipped ball on a 5-yard scoring play, and the Knights went up 34-0 at the intermission.

“On defense, I just tried to pin my ears back and rush the passer,” Gomez said. “I thought we did a good job stopping the run early and pushed hard when they had to pass.”

Next: vs. No. 9 Mt. Baker, Nov. 17, 1 p.m., at David Nielsen Stadium

Scoring

Riverside 0 0 0 0 - 0

Royal 6 28 7 0 - 41

R - Alonso Hernandez 17 run (kick failed)

R - Hernandez 9 run (Osvaldo Guerrero kick)

R - Hernandez 1 run (Guerrero kick)

R - Sawyer Jenks 1 run (Guerrero kick)

R - Angel Farias 5 pass from Jenks (Guerrero kick)

R - Hernandez 9 run (Guerrero kick)