Prosser Mustang recap
Prosser vs. Clarkston

Tri-City Herald

This story was published Wednesday, November 10th, 2004

By Mark McKenna, Herald staff writer

PROSSER -- Is it possible to be 11-0, the second-ranked 3A team in the state and still be keeping a low profile?

Well, that seems to be the case with the Prosser Mustangs.

Bellevue is the consensus No. 1, and deservingly so. The three-time defending state champion Wolverines not only are undefeated, but they also opened the season with a stunning victory over De La Salle, the powerhouse from Concord, Calif., that had not lost a game since 1992.

Third-ranked Kennedy is a perennial power and also happens to be the team that knocked the Mustangs from the playoffs last season.

No. 4 Timberline features Jonathan Stewart, the top running back in the nation according to several national recruiting services.

Then there's Prosser, which just keeps quietly going about its business, and Tuesday night that meant a convincing 35-14 victory over Clarkston (5-6) in a regional playoff game at Art Fiker Stadium.

"It's good to get this one out of the way," said Prosser coach Tom Moore. "Clarkston is a good team. They have great team speed. Their wideouts are big and fast, and their defensive backs are quick. It was a tough game."

The Mustangs led 14-7 at halftime but slowly pulled away from their Greater Spokane League foe in the second half. Ivan Merino scored on a 2-yard run early in the third quarter, then sophomore quarterback Kellen Moore tossed a pair of fourth-quarter touchdown passes -- a 5-yarder to Shane Smith and a 15-yarder to Merino -- to put the game away.

Moore finished 13-of-27 for 167 yards and three touchdowns and was intercepted twice. He now has 36 touchdowns and 10 interceptions for the season.

"We're really confident right now," said Merino, who rushed for 77 yards on 16 carries. "I think this team can go a long way."

The Mustangs will find out just how good they are at 3 p.m. Saturday when they play Timberline (9-1) at South Sound Stadium in Lacey.

"It'll be fun. We're really looking forward to it," Tom Moore said.

The Mustangs will need to be sharper than they were in the first half Tuesday night. After Moore connected with Jorgen Gilbertson for an 11-yard score on their first possession, the Prosser offense lost its rhythm. The Mustangs failed to score on their next three possessions, and Clarkston tied the game at 7 on a 1-yard touchdown run by Trevor Charlo.

"For most of the first half, we were making too many mistakes," Gilbertson said. "Everybody was doing their own thing. We weren't playing as a team."

The Mustangs got it together with 4:34 left in second quarter when Moore's 38-yard pass to Miguel Perez set up a 5-yard touchdown run by Jared Hancock to make it 14-7. Hancock led the Mustangs with 98 yards on 19 carries.

"We weren't playing our game early on, but Coach Moore told us that the playoffs is our time of year," Merino said. "This is when we make things happen."