Defense carries Woodcreek to win over Ponderosa

It was far from a clean game offensively, but Woodcreek played well enough defensively to get by Ponderosa 24-7 last Friday night and remain undefeated at 4-0. Fumbles by the Timberwolves on their first two possessions gave the Bruins the ball on their 30- and 25-yard lines respectively, but they came away with nine yards and no first downs or points on both drives, as the Woodcreek defense held. At the end of the first quarter, there was no score, but Woodcreek finally got on the board with a five-yard touchdown pass from Joey Melendez to Tilden Hall. Ponderosa tied the score, however, as the score was 7-7 at halftime. "If we were looking to start a game in the worst way we achieved that," Woodcreek coach Kyle Stowers said. "We fumbled on the first play, got the ball back, and fumbled it on the first play again. Our defense bailed us out, though. They played lights out minus one or two plays all night long. "Two players who really stood out up front were Danny Morton and Brody Kee. We also had a sophomore starting his first game at inside linebacker and that was Mason Schilhabel. He played really well and that was encouraging." The good news for the Timberwolves is that the team played better in the second half. Blake Hastings, who scored two rushing touchdowns in the third quarter, finished the game with 84 yards rushing. Quarterback Joey Melendez gained 51 yards on the ground and also threw for 151 on 9-of-17 passing. Trace Murchison caught five passes for 104 yards. Brody Simpson also kicked a field goal in the fourth quarter. "The bad part is I don't know if we can play worse, but the good news is we still found a way to win the game," Stowers said. Next week the Timberwolves play host to Rio Americano, who is 3-2 and coming off a somewhat surprising 28-8 win over Vista del Lago. "They're coming off a nice win against Vista del Lago and they've got some momentum," Stowers said. "It will be another good test for us."