River View overwhelms Wolfpack 41-6

Loyal Baker | Mar 25, 2021

-Chronicle photo count

Colton VanBlaricom (19) pulls in the pigskin for a complete pass from Dayton-Waitsburg quarterback Monte Pettichord with River View Panther defender Pio Guzman coming up to push VanBlaricom out of bounds. This was one of six passes the received caught for 155 yards through the air and DW's sole touchdown.

WAITSBURG–The River View Panthers' first play set the tone–a 54-yard, up-the-middle touchdown by Bio Mendoza, and though Dayton-Waitsburg was competitive and went eyeball-to-eyeball with the Panthers, they couldn't contain River View's offense and came away with a 41-6 loss here Friday, March 19.

Dayton-Waitsburg travels to Columbia-Burbank tonight, March 25, for a 7 p.m. kickoff. The outcome of this week's games will determine opponents and locations in crossover games scheduled for Tuesday, March 30. The crossover games will conclude the covid football season.

"On senior night/homecoming, I thought our heads were in good place then Riverview runs up the middle for a touchdown," commented Head Coach Troy Larsen. "To give our team some credit they came out and made Riverview go three and out on the next three possessions.

"They were big and fast, and pretty athletic, but we knew that going into the game," he said.

"I thought we came out and played with them in the first half," Larsen said. "But some turnovers hurt us; we had a couple interceptions that killed our drives.

"Monte Pettichord was getting a lot of pressure and hearing footsteps, so he's trying to get the ball out fast. But our routes were open, our kids were open...I think we moved the ball pretty well, and then we have that one penalty, or that one bad snap," he said.

After Mendoza's early touchdown, it was grind it out around midfield for both teams for the rest of the first quarter, until Tre Sakota threw to Pio Guzman for an 18-yard score with :41 to go and a 14-0 lead. Then, as time expired, Anthony Vasquez intercepted a Pettichord pass for six and a 20-0 first-quarter lead.

River View scored twice in the second quarter, a Sakota to Jude Senger pass of 16 yards and an unmolested 45-yard run by Mendoza with :31 remaining in the half.

Mendoza did it again in the third quarter, 48 yards up the middle and that started the running clock.

Both teams duked it out, trading possessions for drives which stalled as the time evaporated in the third and into the fourth quarter.

Dayton-Waitsburg's score was a little razzle dazzle: Pettichord tossing a swing pass to Mason Finney, who launched a long sideline pass to Colton VanBlaricom for a 60-yard touchdown with four minutes to go.

RV 14 20 7 0-41

DW 0 0 0 0-6

RV-Mendoza 54 yd run. Mendoza kick.

RV-Guzman 18 yd pass from Sakota. Mendoza kick.

RV-A. Vasquez 35 yd interception return. Kick fail.

RV-Senger 16 yd pass from Sakota. Mendoza kick.

RV-Mendoza 45 yd run. Mendoza kick.

RV-Mendoza 48 yd run. Mendoza kick.

DW-Double pass Pettichord to Finney, Finney to VanBlaricom 60 yds. Kick blocked.

Passing: Team 8-29 – 172 yds, 4 INT, TD.

Pettichord 7-28-4, 112 yds.

Finney 1-1, 60 yds, TD.