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closeBengals prevail against charging Cavaliers
Bengal quarterback hurls two clutch touchdown passes in the second half, propelling the Bengals
Shaun Scott
Big plays on the defensive side of the ball propelled the Pierce County Bengals to its second win of the 2008 season.
The Bengals (2-1 overall) fended off a Washington Cavaliers (0-3 overall) fourth quarter rally, registering a 19-14 victory at Sunset Chev Stadium in Sumner on June 21.
Through the first 58 minutes of play, the Bengals’ defense didn’t allow the Cavaliers to reach the endzone. Finally, with just 1 minute, 26 seconds remaining in regulation, Cavaliers’ quarterback Alex Todak connected with Chris Jackson in the corner of the endzone, cutting the Bengals’ lead to 19-14. The Cavaliers followed with an onside kick, but Bengals running back Steven Parley quelled the threat when he caught the ball and fell to the turf. The Bengals offense ran out the clock to end the game.
All in the all, the defense turned in a workmanlike performance, surrendering just seven points against a high octane offensive attack.
Bengals’ burly defensive lineman Ryan Dowell recorded a team-high two sacks in the contest.
“Our defensive line stepped it up,” Dowell said. “It was pretty basic actually. We ran a 4-3 defense and just shut them down. Our defense is really good and that’s what wins you games.”
The Bengals got on the board early when Parley busted through the Cavaliers’ defensive backfield in route to a 37-yard touchdown run, giving the Bengals an early 6-0 lead in the first quarter. The quick lead vanished on the Bengals’ third offensive possession. Cavaliers’ defensive lineman Joel Brown blocked Bengal punter Nick Valentine’s kick, scooped up the loose ball and sprinted 22 yards to the endzone to give the Cavaliers a 7-6 lead. Both teams wouldn’t score for the remainder of the first half.
In the third quarter, the Bengals’ passing attack came to life. On their second offensive play from scrimmage in the second half, Anthony Rios hit Bernard Blosser on a 75-yard touchdown pass, giving the Bengals’ a 12-7 lead with 13:07 left in the third period. Rios was under heavy duress and threw the ball up for grabs to the 6’3” Blosser, despite seeing him covered by a pair of Cavaliers’ defenders.
“It was kind of a broken play,” Blosser said. “It was supposed to be a pump and go. Their defenders were jumping the underneath routes. They got pressure on him. He was scrambling and he just let it go. We’d been working on that play in practice all week without much success. When the ball was in the air, I was thinking god let me catch this one. I guess he was looking down on me. We got the touchdown. It was a great throw.”
With the Bengals clinging to a 12-7 lead early in the fourth quarter, Blosser made a critical error that could have cost his team the game. The Bengal defense had backed up the Cavaliers, forcing a third down with 16 yards to go. On third down, Todak’s pass fell incomplete after Jackson dropped the ball. After the play was blown dead, Blosser was running full speed toward Jackson and hit him late out of bounds drawing a 15-yard personal foul that gave the Cavaliers a chance at a fourth down with one yard to go instead of 16 yards. Luckily for Blosser and his team, the defensive line stifled Cavalier running back Ian Guerrero on the ensuing fourth down, throwing him for a loss which gave the ball back to the Bengals with six minutes left in the game.
Blosser was grateful his teammates made up for his mistake.
“My team bailed me out. No doubt about it,” Blosser said. “I made a big mistake. Even though we won the game I know I’m still going to hear about that penalty in the locker room from the coaches. It was a bad play but our team rallied together. That’s what football is all about.”
Bengals quarterback Rios put the game out of reach on their ensuing offensive possession, throwing a picture perfect 11-yard touchdown pass to receiver Jessie Baines in the right corner of the endzone to give the Bengals a 19-7 lead with 3:11 remaining in the fourth.
Bengals head coach Ron Baines praised his quarterback for his two clutch touchdown passes in the second half.
“Those throws were the biggest plays of the game,” Baines said. “That throw in the end to Jesse (Baines) gave us the final cushion that we ended up needing, putting us up by two scores. It was a heck of a catch. “
Baines praised his defense for making the plays when it had to.
“We bend but we don’t break,” he said. “The only time we broke was on their last drive, but we toughed it out against a good team and got the win. Last year at this time we were 0-3. It feels good to be 2-1 right now.”
The Bengals travel to Vancouver this Saturday, facing off against the Willamette Valley Raiders at 5 p.m. at McKenzie Field.