It wasn’t the start to the season Mossyrock’s first-year head coach Eric Ollikainen wanted for his team. The Vikings were outmatched in a 46-0 season-opening defeat on the road to Naselle Tuesday night.
The Vikings (0-1) garnered just five first downs on the night against a powerhouse Comets team that’s coming off an appearance in the 2019 Class 1B state title game. Naselle lost that game to Odessa 80-26, and it looked as though the Comets took their frustration out on a Vikings team that was playing its first game after dropping down to Class 1B this season.
Mossyrock quarterback Aiden Weist went down with an injury in the first quarter and was relieved by Keegan Cole, who finished with a team-high 34 yards rushing on nine carries, which mostly came from scrambling. Mateo Mendoza was the Vikings’ second-leading rusher with 20 yards on seven touches.
“We played better in the second half,” Ollikainen said. “The kids didn’t give up and we played until the end.”
Mossyrock will get an easier test on Saturday when they travel to face Ocosta.
