Warden cruises by Cle Elum, 56-0
Casey McCarthy/Sun Tribune Warden running back Cael Cox rushes outside for the Cougars in the first half against Cle Elum-Roslyn at Warden High School.
Casey McCarthy/Columbia Basin Herald Cael Cox rushes behind a blocker amidst a pile of players during the Cougars’ 56-0 win over Cle Elum-Roslyn on Friday.
Casey McCarthy/Columbia Basin Herald Warden running back Cael Cox scores the touchdown for the Cougars on Friday night at Warden High School.
Casey McCarthy/Columbia Basin Herald Warden’s Tyson Wall pulls down the catch in the second half of the Cougars’ 56-0 win against Cle Elum-Roslyn on Friday.
Casey McCarthy/Columbia Basin Herald Garrett Chamberlain rushes forward for the Cougars on Friday night at Warden High School
WARDEN — Warden picked up a big win against Cle Elum-Roslyn on Friday night at home, 56-0, to move to 2-1 on the season.
The opening drive for the Cougars ended with an interception in the end zone before Warden took back over with a pick of their own. Quarterback Ryan Arredondo opened up the scoring for the Cougars with a 5-yard run in for the score to help put the home team up 8-0.
A 35-yard strike from Arredondo put the Cougars up 14-0, before a short run near the goal line made the lead 22-0 going into the second quarter. The Warden quarterback secured his second rushing touchdown of the day to put his team up 28-0 with under four minutes to play in the half.
A pair of touchdown passes within a few minutes gave Warden a 42-0 edge going into the third. Edgar Hernandez opened the scoring back up for the Cougars in the second half with a pick-6. After another interception, the Cougars were able to score again through the air with under 20 seconds to play in the third.
The Cougars would hold on for the shutout through the fourth quarter to take the commanding win at home. Warden head coach Robert Arredondo said, missing five starters, the kids who stepped up in the game who were the biggest highlight of the night.
“We’ve got five starters out, five seniors, about four all-league players,” Robert Arredondo said. “The fact that their backups came in and performed like they means tons. Tons. So we’re pretty close to being full strength next week, so it’s pretty good.”
With a balanced approach, getting a lot of results on both sides of the ball, Robert Arredondo said that this is something he preaches to his team during practice.
“It’s give and take,” he said. “We preach the blocking and the tackling, not only on the offensive line, but on the perimeter with the receivers. And on the defense, the same thing, and the kids did a good job of it.”
Even with the wide margin of victory, Robert Arredondo said he knows there’s stuff they’ll look at to work on and improve moving forward into next week.
“Sometimes these wins aren’t too good, and it’s tough,” Robert Arredondo said. “They had some first downs and they made some stuff happen. There’s always stuff you can find wrong.”
Quarterback Ryan Arredondo said the win was a team effort.
“The blocking did really well tonight, receivers did well running routes tonight,” he said. “It was a testament to the whole team, good on the coaching staff this week, and looking forward to River View next week.”
Coming off a big game, with four touchdowns through the air and a pair on the ground, Ryan Arredondo said he’s always looking at the things he could have done better.
“Yeah, we like to celebrate, but in 24 hours, they’re out of my mind,” he said. “And we’re focused on things we can get better and looking better next week.”
The Cougars will travel to Kennewick to face River View on Sept. 27.