Nyssa loses tough battle to Umatilla
Saturday, October 4, 2008 11:21 PM PDT
Argus Observer sports staff
Nyssa
The Nyssa Bulldog football team ran into a buzz-saw against Umatilla Friday in Eastern Oregon League action in Nyssa.
The Bulldogs kept the game close in the opening quarter, but in the end, Umatilla was 28 points better winning 35-7.
Umatilla began the night with the first score of the game in the first quarter, but Nyssa responded with a score when Kyle Schoorl found paydirt from 8-yards out, John Iverson added the point after and the game was tied 7-7.
Then it was all Umatilla. The Vikings reeled off 21 unanswered points in the win, with 14 coming in the second quarter.
Nyssa compiled 222 yards of total offense to Umatilla’s 252.
The Bulldogs maintained a balanced attack with 117 yards through the air and 105 yards on the ground.
Leading the Bulldogs rushing attack was Schoorl with 83 yards on 19 carries. Nyssa quarterback James Larsen went 13-of-22 for 117 yards passing. Larsen connected with Iverson on five passes for 31 yards, while Eric Jensen pulled in four catches for 51 yards.
“They (Umatilla) were well coached, and we tried hard,” Nyssa head coach Lee Long said. “But they didn’t do anything exceptional to win, it was more of the mistakes we made.”
Nyssa had four turnovers in the game, two of which cost them scores. Schoorl fumbled a punt, which resulted in a score and Larsen threw an interception resulting in another Viking score.
“You take away those turnovers and it is a manageable game for us,” Long said. “ We had one bad quarter, that’s been the story all year with us.”
The loss dropped Nyssa to 1-4 overall and 0-1 in the EOL.
The Bulldogs will hit the road Friday for a date with Riverside, where they will try to rebound and turn their season around. Riverside (0-4 overall, 0-1 EOL) is coming off 32-7 loss against Burns. The game is set for a 7 p.m. kickoff in Riverside.
