A pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns, combined with a last-minute defensive stand, allowed White River to pick up a hard-fought 19-14 victory Friday over Eatonville.
The win pushed the Hornets’ record to 3-0 in SPSL 2A and 4-1 overall. Only a heartbreaking, double-overtime loss to Bonney Lake in the season opener has kept White River from building a spotless record – a notable accomplishment for a team that finished 1-9 a season ago.
This is Homecoming for White River and the Hornets will be looking to go 4-0 in league play Friday when they host Fife. Fife is 1-2 in SPSL 2A play and 3-2 overall. The Trojans were most recently blasted 43-7 by Washington, a team that fell to White River 41-28.
Last week’s home-field battle saw the Hornets and Cruisers tied 7-7 heading into the fourth quarter. That changed less than two minutes into the period when White River quarterback Zach McMillen connected with Dev’a Johnson on a 20-yard scoring toss. The extra-point kick was blocked, a development that would, for a time, loom large.
It was then Eatonville’s turn for fourth-quarter heroics and Shane Saunders did the honors, scoring on a 24-yard run with 4:37 remaining on the game clock. It was the second TD of the night for the Cruiser, who put his team on the board in the first quarter with a 13-yard run.
Adding to the drama, Cruiser Woody Moore booted the extra-point, giving his team a 14-13 advantage.
The Hornets didn’t fail their fans, driving in the final minutes for a game-winning touchdown. Josh Miller completed the task, scoring on a 5-yard burst with 1:54 showing on the clock.
Eatonville had one final possession, but the Hornet defense came up big, halting the Cruisers on a fourth-down play to seal the victory.
WRHS’s first TD came shortly before halftime, when McMillen kept the ball on a 3-yard run. Tyler Worthen tacked on the extra-point.
White River had the more balanced attack, as McMillen completed 13 of 23 passes for 171 yards while the Hornet ground game added 100 yards. Eatonville ran the ball 44 times for 178 yards with two completed passes for another 44.
