Big MCC football matchups Friday + Americans’ WHL home opener Saturday
Two big Mid-Columbia Conference football matchups are set for Friday night, all involving teams still battling for the conference title.
Chiawana (4-1 MCC, 4-1 overall) plays host to Hermiston (3-1, 3-2); while Richland (4-1, 4-1) visits Kennewick (3-1, 4-1). Both games kick off at 7 p.m.
Perhaps the more intriguing of the two will be the Bombers-Lions battle at Lampson Stadium.
The game features the MCC’s top offense in Richland against the Lions’ No. 1-ranked defense.
Under senior quarterback Josh Woodard, Richland has been rolling up an average of 420 yards of offense per game.
Woodard is the top-ranked QB in the MCC, passing for 1,551 yards, 19 TD passes against three interceptions.
Woodard’s top two receivers are Colson Mackey (27 catches, 526 yards and 8 TDs) and Brody Bocek (22, 344, 2).
On the other side of the ball, the Lions average 344 yards of offense, and the Bombers are ranked fourth in defense.
Ambrose Driver, Kennewick’s junior quarterback, has 815 yards passing, with 11 touchdown passes and just three interceptions.
David Wacenske is his top target. The senior has 27 catches (tying Mackey for tops in the MCC) for 437 yards and 7 TDs.
Bombers DB Rayce Reeves leads the MCC with three interceptions.
Kennewick running game is also strong. Alex Roberts is third in the MCC in rushing with 427 yards rushing, with 5 touchdowns and a 6.7 yards-per-carry average. Teammate Canaan Hays is fifth with 345 yards, 4 TDs, and a 6.8 average.
Meanwhile, over at Edgar Brown Stadium, Hermiston brings in the No. 2 offense in the MCC led by junior quarterback Issac Corey (who is also ranked second among all QBs).
Corey has passed for 1,300 yards with 10 TDs and three interceptions. Corey has also rushed for six touchdowns himself.
Statistically, Chiawana has the MCC’s No. 3 defense, giving up just 254 yards per game. But the Riverhawks have been opportunistic this season, scoring six defensive touchdowns themselves.
Cooper MacPherson leads the conference with 11 tackles for loss and five quarterback sacks. Jaxson Baxter is right behind, with 6 tackles for loss and two QB sacks.
Corey’s top target is Jaime Ramirez-Ortega (24 catches, 360 yards, 1 TD), and Ben Larson leads the rushing game with 401 yards, 5 TDs and 8.7 yards a carry.
Chiawana has leaned more to the running game on offense this season. Senior Hunter Taylor leads the conference with 515 yards rushing (5.0 yards a carry), and has scored five touchdowns.
DJ Duran has led the offense at QB, passing for 654 yards, and 7 TD passes against four interceptions.
If the Riverhawks get into a bind where they need a field goal, they’ve got a good one in Aaron Lowry, who is 6-for-6 in field goal attempts — including one from 41 yards.
▪ Confirmed with Kamiakin coach Scott Biglin this week that Camden Schmidt’s six touchdowns against Hanford in last Friday’s 54-21 victory were indeed a school record. “Previous was 30 points (five touchdowns). He scored 6 so that puts him at 36 points.”
Americans
With a 2-1 record (all on the road) to start the Western Hockey League season, the Tri-City Americans finally get to play at home, when they host the Everett Silvertips at 6:05 p.m. Saturday in the Toyota Center.
The Ams opened the regular season two weekends back with a pair of games in Prince George — a place where they saw their 2022-23 season end in the first round of the playoffs.
After dropping the opener 9-0 on Sept. 22, the Ams came back the next night to win 6-4 on the strength of a Jake Sloan hat trick. Sloan also had an assist.
New player Pasha Bocharov — he was acquired from Medicine Hat o n Sept. 19 in a trade for a 2025 draft pick — added two goals. Jordan Gavin added a goal and two assists.
Tri-City also won in Spokane last Saturday, beating the Chiefs 3-1 in front of 8,000 people.
New goalie Lukas Matecha was named first star of the night for stopping 38 of Spokane’s 39 shot.
Deagan McMillan added two goals for the Ams.
Tri-City has added a couple other new faces through trades. Forward Brandon Whynott comes over from the Calgary Hitmen in exchange for a 2024 draft pick, while the Ams also acquired forward Jake Gudelj from Spokane back in August in exchange for a couple of draft picks.
Also back last weekend was defenseman Lukas Dragicevic, who was drafted by the NHL’s Seattle Kraken this past summer. Dragicevic spent a good part of training camp with the Kraken.
Defenseman Alex Serraglio was named the Americans’ captain this past week.
A few other changes: last year’s standout goalie, Tomas Suchanek, was assigned to the San Diego Gulls by the parent club Anaheim Ducks. San Diego plays in the AHL.
Forward Parker Bell signed a three-year entry-level contract with the NHL’s Calgary Flames two weeks ago.
Bell — who had 25 goals and 39 assists last season for the Ams — was drafted by the Flames in 2022 in the fifth round.
The deal was for $2.5 million, for an average annual value of $850,000.
The Flames may send Bell to one of their minor-league affiliates. Or he could end up back with the Americans.
The last Tri-City American to sign an NHL deal was forward Morgan Geekie in 2018 with the Carolina Hurricanes. The last two seasons, Geekie was with the Kraken. This past offseason, he signed with the Boston Bruins.
The Americans also signed a deal with Jacobs Radio last month. The team’s games can be heard on 95.3 FM UROCK Radio. Craig West, who announced after last season that he was stepping down as radio play-by-play announcer, is coming back as the team’s interim play-by-play man until his replacement is signed.
College volleyball
Marin Mackey (Richland) has been outstanding so far this season for the Southern Oregon University volleyball team.
Mackey, a junior who transferred in this fall from Bellevue College near Seattle, leads the Raiders in kills with 160 in 15 matches.
She’s No. 2 on the team in service aces with 14; and she’s third on the squad in digs with 117.
More importantly, Mackey has helped lead the Raiders to a 13-2 record so far this season, and a No. 17 national ranking in NAIA.
Jeff Morrow is former sports editor for the Tri-City Herald.
