Pomeroy Junior High Football wraps season with home stand

By Kyler Lovgren

Coach

The Pomeroy Junior High Football team started its season September 9 in Palouse against Gar-Pal with a 20-13 victory. The Pirates came out slow with some untimely errors in the first half and quickly fell behind by two touchdowns. Late in the second half the Pirates were able pull together a long drive with great running by Kyzer Herres and Levi Bowen. Just before the half, Vinny Vecchio found the end zone on an aborted pass play scramble. With a successful PAT run, the Pomeroy Pirates went into the half down 13-7.

Hitting their stride and reducing errors in the second half, the Pirates came out and put together a dominant defensive performance with Gunner Magill and Peyton Cannon putting pressure on the quarterback and the Gar-Pal passing game. Again the Pirates were able to pick up a lot of yards on the ground with Bowen and Herres. The defense held Gar-Pal scoreless in the second half with the offense picking up two more touchdowns and capping off the game with a Michele DeBord interception.

The second game for the Junior High Football team was played against Troy, Idaho where the Pirates won 47-20. This game proved to be the breakout game for Tyler Matheny offensively, adding multiple scores, and Braxton McKeirnan defensively with multiple tackles and containments from the Defensive End position.

Cole Zimmerman got in the game early on defense and was able to plug gaps in the middle of the Troy line and Cayle Mullins snuck in his first Junior High conversion reception to aid in the Pomeroy lead.

The Pirate team performed well in all aspects of the game, including special teams where Michael Thorsen and Michael DeBord were able to apply their influence on the opposing team with downfield blocking and excellent containment.

The team’s first home game came on Week 3 where the Pirates met a Potlach team that was limited in numbers, but had some size.

Grayson Slaybaugh played a great game from the Tight End position and Bowen, Herres and Matheny kept the Potlach defense on their heels with their “Running Back by Committee” rotation often confusing the Potlach defense. Lucian Setzer and Robbie Van Vogt contributed to some well-played blocking on the line which aided Cannon and Magill as they enforced the Pomeroy Will on an eventually exhausted Potlach defensive front four.

Vecchio put his increasingly famous quarterback sneak to use multiple times to help gain critical short yardage and scores during the game, following his workhorse front men Magill and Cannon. The Pirates finished with a 25-13 win over the Potlach Loggers.

Pomeroy’s first loss of the season came on game 4 with a 67-7 loss to Kendrick, Id.

The Kendrick squad was a tough, athletic and well-coached group that were able to outmatch the Pomeroy team.

Kendrick jumped out to a 13-0 lead in the first quarter before the Pirates put together their best drive of the game, marching 60 yards for a touchdown pass from Vinnie Vecchio to Braxton McKeirnan. Tyler Matheny and Kyzer Herres picked up the majority of the yards in the long drive as the Pirate front line was able to push Kendrick down the field.

It didn’t take long for Kendrick to re-organize and counter the Pirates as they returned with a score and held the Pirates scoreless the rest of the game while scoring almost at will.

After the loss, Pomeroy was left to regroup and repair in preparation for their final game, at home against Deary Thursday, October 14.