Sandy football rides 3 non-offense touchdowns to 38-13 win over Franklin

Published 11:57 pm Friday, September 6, 2024

Playing a more well-rounded game might not have been possible for Sandy High School football in its 38-13 win over Franklin.

The Pioneers got two touchdowns and a field goal thanks to the offense, but also had two pick-sixes on defense and had a kick return touchdown to pick up the win.

All that effort came in Portland after Sandy was supposed to host the game, but had it moved to Franklin due to the smoke out east.

Despite the late change of venue, the Pioneers were in control for most of the game to start the year 1-0 thanks in large part to a defense that held a strong Lightning offense in check all night.

“(Defensive coordinator Tim Brink) is brand new with us and he’s put so much on the kids and has demanded excellence out of them and it showed tonight,” Sandy head coach Josh Dill said. “I knew it was coming (on defense), and then it hit. It makes it a lot easier for an offensive coach like myself to look good when your defense and special teams (score).”

Franklin took the opening kick, but stalled and midfield and had to punt. However, the Pioneers fumbled the catch and the Lightning recovered deep in Pioneers territory.

That eventually turned into a 1-yard touchdown run by King Solomon Hamilton to put Franklin up 7-0.

On the ensuing kickoff, Sandy senior Mataio Olomua made his first punch of the night by collecting a loose ball and taking it untouched down the near sideline for a 95-yard TD return.

After a penalty on the PAT, Sandy went for the two-point conversion and got it to go up 8-7, and it never looked back.

A couple of possessions later, Mason Frederickson snagged a tipped pass out of the hands of Franklin junior quarterback Silas Combs and took it 45 yards to the house, making it 15-7 Sandy in the second frame.

Sandy added a field goal, and then picked up turnover on downs on their own 8-yard line right before halftime. The Pioneers moved the ball up a few plays, and then nailed the big one with quarterback Micaiah Turin finding Gracyn Fitch down the far sideline. Fitch made a move to get off his defender and was gone for the 74-yard touchdown before halftime.

“Sandy is a good football team and all credit to them, they played extremely hard under some strange circumstances with the weather,” Franklin head coach Adam Grimes said.

Coming out halftime, Sandy received the ball but struggled to move it, giving it back to Franklin.

On the Lightning’s first play of the half, Caden McMahon tipped a pass to himself and took it to the end zone for a 25-yard pick-six, the Pioneers’ second of the night to make it 31-7.

“I’m proud, this year we got thrown a whole new defense at us,” McMahon said. “We lost a lot of seniors last year, so our sophomores are really stepping up and filling in on those positions. I’m really proud of how those boys stepped up.”

Franklin wasn’t going down without a fight though as it scored early in the fourth quarter on what might be one of the best catches in the state of Oregon all year.

Senior wide receiver Cash Landau, an Idaho commit, hauled in a 26-yard pass with one hand over the middle of the field over his defender, reaching back to snag it out the air.

“It’s pretty ridiculous, I mean his hands are freaking huge and his catch radius is huge,” Grimes said of Landau. “The play isn’t even designed for him … Cash is a tremendous football player. Defensively I think he had two sacks as well.”

However, Olomua made sure the comeback was not on as he continued to pound the ball on the ground for the Sandy offense.

He capped the Pioneers’ ensuing drive off with a 13-yard scamper, putting Sandy up comfortably 38-13 with less than five minutes to go in the game.

Olomua finished with 15 carries for 118 yards with one rushing touchdown and the kickoff return TD. Turin went 2-for-6 passing for 95 yards with one touchdown.

On the Franklin side, Combs went 26-for-40 passing for 217 yards with one TD and two picks. Landau had 11 catches for 138 yards and the one TD. Jay Sayre led the way on the ground with 15 carries for 55 yards. 

Franklin ended up with 287 yards of offense, Sandy had 236.

“I wanna thank my O-line for their great blocks and pulling,” Olomua said. “I wanna shout out Nick Harrell and Colton Lucas, those are two dawg guards right there that pull for me all the time. Most of the plays are wide open when I get the ball.”

Up next for Sandy is another road trip, this one a planned one as it heads further west at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 13 to take on Hillsboro at Hare Field.

For Franklin, it looks to bounce back at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 13 at home against Beaverton.

“I think getting that first win just feels great and our (young) guys can calm down,” Dill said. “We’ve done it now, we’ve been there now so let’s keep going.”