WP Cardinals mark end to Bulldogs' playoff run

Led by senior Quarterback Zach Bartlow, Waitsburg/Presccott scored early and often Saturday at the 2B semi-final game in Pasco to win the battle of the east side undefeated and get a ticket to the state title game in Tacoma Saturday. The Cardinals stacked a 28-7 lead in the first half on the way to a 42-13 win over the Bulldogs.

The win reversed the outcome of last year’s semi-final when Colfax took a close win at Martin Stadium and advanced to the title game the next week at Tacoma.

“They were just an awfully good ball club. They seemed to do everything they needed to do to win,” Colfax Coach Mike Morgan said. He noted the Bulldogs, who booked at least three come-from-behind wins in their 11-0 run to Pasco, knew they would have to keep pace with the Cardinals on the scoreboard to keep within range of a win.

The bottom line result was Bartlow and the Cardinals bagged points on six possession and Colfax collected on just two possession.

Bartlow had a role in all six of the WP scores.

Coach Morgan said they did everything they could to bottle up the senior QB, but they couldn’t get him off the tracks.

“Last year, we did the same thing, and rattled him enough to get him out of gear, but this year we couldn’t do it,” Morgan said.

Bartlow finished with a 13-18 passing night for 231 yards. He also carried the ball 15 times to top his Cards’ rushing chart with 107 yards.

Morgan noted Bartlow picked up a lot of those running yards after Bulldog pass defenders covered Cardinal receivers, and Bartlow opted to head up field.

Billy Brown, the Cardinals number-one ground threat, finished with 65 yards on 16 carries against the tough Colfax line.

Saturday’s afternoon game at Edgar Brown stadium in Pasco started with a business-as-usual drive by the Bulldogs offense until the Cardinals stopped them 12 yards short of the end zone.

Bartlow put the Cards offense in gear with a 49-yard pass to Dalton Esters. He then scored on a four yard run with 3:09 left in the quarter. Jose Barajas hit the first of six straight point kicks.

Colfax was stopped at the 37 on their next drive, but the Bulldog defense looked like they had the Cards stopped on a fourth-and -eight play after John Mellor dropped Bartlow on a blitz.

The situation evaporated when Colfax was called for having 12 players on the field, and Bartlow escaped for 20 yards on the next play. He then hit Estes in the corner for a TD. Another point kick put the Cards up 14-0.

Colfax bounced back with Alvin Li scoring on a dive play to cap a drive which featured a power run by Levi Hardy and a pass from QB Justin Berarducci to Jay Hart. Jacob Altieri kicked the conversion point.

Bartlow and the Cards answered with a TD pass to Devin Acevedo with 2:21 left in the half after the Cards’ QB scrambled across the field to avoid a Colfax stop.

WP’s defense again stopped the Bulldogs, and they added one more TD with 28 second left in the half. Bartlow found Acevedo all alone in the corner on a fourth-down play.

That left it a 28-7 for the half.

Colfax’s outlook brightened briefly at the start of the second half when Berarducci intercepted a Bartlow pass to stop WP’s opening drive. However, the Bulldogs again couldn’t convert it into points, and Bartlow stacked another TD with a 49-year escape run.

That put it at 35-7 with 5:13 left in the third quarter and chances of a Colfax comeback fading. The odds worsened when Dustin Wooderchak picked off a Colfax pass on the next series and went all the way to the 11. A pass to Riley Stevens and another Bargas kick put the Cards up 42-7 after three quarters.

Last Colfax TD on the season came with 7:02 left in the game with Berarducci hitting Brady Ellis on a 29 yard pass play to cap a drive. Hardy booked two receptions on the drive to get Colfax into the red zone.

“We told them all along to just keep working, and they never gave up,” Coach Morgan noted.

The game hit a de facto finish when WP Coach Jeff Bartlow pulled the Cardinal starters with 3:20 on the clock.

Berarducci finished with a 9-17-120 night passing and 14-57 rushing. Alvin Li finished with 13-66 rushing, and Hardy finished with four receptions for 59 yards.

Brent Conrad led the defense with 12 tackles.

Overall, the Colfax football campaign rates as a big success this year. Coming off two state title game seasons, the Bulldogs graduated a group of talented seniors last spring.

“If you had told me at the start of the season we’d roll out an 11-0 record and wind up an a semi-final game, I’d would have laughed at you,” Morgan commented on expectations at the start of the season.

Every August, coaches have some idea how a season might unfold, but they can never be sure how a team will come together. The Bulldogs this year turned out to be an unflappable crew who got along exceptionally well as a group, Morgan noted.

“They were a hard working team, and very dedicated,” Morgan said. “They just had a lot of character and a solid work ethic.”

Waitsburg/Prescott Saturday will face Morton/White Pass, a 27-21 overtime winner over Napavine in the 2B division’s other semi-final game. The title game will be the first for the Cardinals who have been in the playoffs twice as a combo club and five times when Waitsburg played on its own.