Huskies overcome rough start

OTHELLO — The Othello Huskies overcame a raggedy first half, shut down the East Valley (Yakima) offense in the second half and finished the regular season with a 35-10 win.

“That’s about as ugly as you can play and still win,” said Othello defensive coach Kevin Hale.

He attributed the rocky start in part to the two-week layoff since the team’s last game; the Oct. 21 game with Kelso was canceled at the last minute. But the Red Devils came out ready to play, Hale said.

“I give East Valley credit, their hustle, their toughness,” Hale said. I’ve got a lot of respect for those guys.”

Othello never trailed in the game, taking a 7-0 lead on the first of three touchdowns scored by Julian Alegria. He scored from two yards out with 5:11 left in the first quarter, after quarterback Maddox Martinez connected with wide receiver Travis Murdock on a 42-yard pass.

Alegia gave credit to the offensive line, which he said blacked well all night, giving him room to run.

“Without them, we wouldn’t be able to get where we’re at,” Alegria said.

Sonny Asu ran the ball in for a four-yard touchdown with 21 seconds left in the first quarter to increase Othello’s lead to 14-0. The Red Devils came back, pushing down the field before the Othello defense forced them to settle for a 22-yard field goal.

An East Valley interception stopped a second Othello drive, but the Othello defense held again and a second East Valley attempt at a field goal was no good. East Valley didn’t give up; Garin Gurtler scored with 27 seconds left in the first quarter to cut Othello’s lead to 14-10 at the half.

East Valley got the ball at the start of the second half, but the Huskie defense killed the drive when Alex Mendez stepped in front of the receiver, intercepted the ball and ran it back into the end zone for a touchdown.

“I saw the quarterback's eyes and I knew I had to make a play,” Mendez said.

The Othello defense then shut down East Valley, allowing some running and passing plays but holding them scoreless for the rest of the game. The Red Devils got close, but the Huskies forced them to turn the ball over by holding them on fourth down.

Alegria scored a second two-yard touchdown to push Othello’s lead to 28-10, and a third time from 11 yards out with 430 left in the game for the final 35-10 score.

Hale said the team looked better after halftime.

“We executed pretty well defensively in the second half,” he said.

Othello finishes the season with seven wins and one loss and will play the third-place team from the Greater Spokane League. The opponent hadn’t been announced at press time.

Cheryl Schweizer can be reached via email at education@columbiabasinherald.com.