Mustangs get even with Raiders

After more than 60 years of Raider/Beaver/Tiger dominance over Bridgeport in football, the Mustangs are now getting even.

Last Friday they notched their second win in a row over the Raiders. With the 34-12 loss, the Raiders dropped to 1-9 overall, and finish sixth in Central Washington 2B play.

When asked what the attitude was after the game, “We were disappointed with the outcome for sure,” Head Coach Steve Files said. “Not the way we wanted to finish our season.”

The game started well for the Raiders as Trey Nicolson picked up a fumble on the opening Mustang drive that lead to a Justus DeWinkler 61-yard touchdown run.

On the ensuing kickoff, the Raiders were penalized and on the rekick the Mustangs ran it back for a score. They made the extra point to take the lead 7-6. The Raiders answered right back with a good drive, ending with another DeWinkler touchdown on a 15-yard run. With the failed extra point the score was 12-7, LR.

Some of the success for the offense was the use of different motions by both running backs and tight ends, splitting two wide, using a flexbone look, and the use of a shotgun flex which had Bridgeport tied up in knots in the first half.

The momentum changer for Bridgeport came toward the end of the second quarter. Andrew McClure and Sean Waters were able to stuff the inside run during the series, so the Bridgeport coach decided enough was enough. The formation became a jumbo overload, with two fullbacks lined up in the gaps between the tight end and tackle.

For the rest of the series, the Mustangs smashed their way through the overloaded side all the way for a touchdown past an unadjusted Raider defense. The score at halftime was Mustangs 14, Raiders 12.

After the half, options and inside runs were not there from the slanting blitzes and stacked gaps the Mustang defense used.

“Our offensive line play was pretty good in the first half,” Files noted, “but as the game wore on we had a hard time blocking their defensive tackles and linebackers effectively. … In the second half, I thought we had some opportunities to get outside with our option and just didn’t execute.”

The Raiders also went for it on fourth down on their own 13, and failed, giving the Mustangs excellent field position. Then, on their best offensive series of the half the Raiders fumbled. After that the game was totally Bridgeport’s.

On defense, the Raiders were up and down the entire second half. The Mustangs scored on a 85-yard, off-tackle play with at least three Raiders missing a tackle. At other times the defense played well, forcing fourth downs and ganging up for backfield tackles (Waters and McClure again.)

“Our defense played well at times in the second half,” Files said. “We forced a couple punts, but gave up too many big plays. Our problems on offense put a lot of pressure on the defense.”

DeWinkler rushed for over 100 yards and two touchdowns, and kicked two great punts. One was over 50 yards, and the other pinned the Mustangs inside their own 20.

Austin Rosenbaum passed for more attempts than previous Raider games, but the moisture and pressure from the Mustangs led to many dropped passes and overthrown balls.

Ben Samuels caught a 12-yard reception and played very well in his last game. Waters and McClure both teamed up for two tackles and played solid inside defense.

Central Washington 2B

Standings League Overall

Kittitas Coyotes 6-0 6-2

White Swan Cougars 5-1 8-2

Oroville Hornets 4-2 5-4

Liberty Bell Mt. Lions 3-3 3-6

Bridgeport Mustangs 2-4 2-8

LAKE ROOSEVELT 1-5 1-9

Manson Trojans 0-6 0-8