Colfax will face Broncos in first NE-South opener

Oregon host Heppner shut out Colfax 27-0 Friday with a tough defense and possession of the football. The loss on the road to the Mustangs ended the Colfax early season win string at 3-0. They will return to NE-South league action with a trip to Ritzville to play the LRS Broncos.

Coach Mike Morgan noted he booked the Mustangs for a two-year stint because he knew the central Oregon club would show up with a strong team.

Friday it was just such a case, Mustang Coach Greg Grant fielding a team which had the size and skills to defeat Colfax.

"We really didn't play a bad game, but we played a team which was just better than we were," Morgan noted.

Heppner rolled out a 21-0 lead with a third TD after the halftime break and scored for the fourth time on a pass interception for the last TD.

"We just could not get any offense going. That meant our defense had to stay on the field, and they were worn down," Morgan commented.

The Mustangs' defense allowed Colfax just 56 total yards while stacking up 349 yards on 61 plays.

Colfax had possession of the ball for just more than 16 minutes, and Heppner had the ball for just under 32 minutes.

Colfax totaled just 44 yards rushing on 21 attempts, and the Mustangs rolled for 246 yards on 40 rushing plays.

The Heppner coach explained to Morgan after the game he threw 21 passes at the Colfax defense because he wanted the Mustangs to work against the Colfax pass defense. Mustang passing stats for the game were 10 for the 21 attempts for 103 yards. Colfax picked off three interceptions.

The shut out win by the Mustangs follows a two-point win they posted here last year against Colfax in a non-leaguer.

The LRS Broncos will host after a 13-34 non-league loss to Columbia of Burbank last Friday. They have also been defeated by Davenport and Lake Roosevelt after getting a win over Northwest Christian in their opener.

Heppner 27-Colfax 0: 7/0 8/0 12/0 0/0: Colfax stats: 21 for 44 rushing, 4-13 with 2 interceptions for 12 yards passing, 2 first downs with 1 rushing, 1 passing. Rushing: Jacob Brown 12-36, Blake Holman 4-10, Damian Demler 4 for minus 2. Receiving Gavin Hammer 1 for 7, Nick Klaveano 1-6, Holman 1-1, Matt Hockett 1-0 minus 2. Tackles Hockett 7, Braden Rogers 5, Klaveano 4, Brown 4,

Heppner team stats: 40-246 rushing, 10 for 21 passing for 103 years with two interceptions, 11-65 in penalties, 19 first downs with 13 rushing, 6 passing.