HS Football: Bearcats Shutout Rapids, Move into Round of 16

11/7/25

(Chehalis, WA) Playoff football had arrived in Washington state on Friday night as the Round of 32 began in high school football. In a game that had the feeling of the old format with the crossovers, the Greater St. Helens 2A and Evergreen 2A conference would battle as the Columbia River Rapids traveled north to take on the WF West Bearcats. Both teams entered the matchup with just two losses each but one would see their third loss end their season while one would be into the Round of 16.

The Columbia River Rapids finished third in the GSHL 2A and were looking to get to the Round of 16 for the first time since 2015 when they were still in the 3A classification. The Rapids would look to Savion McCoy after his 235 yard and five touchdown performance on the ground last week to try to lead the offense against a fast Bearcat defense. WF West finished second in the EvCo 2A and after making semifinals in two of the past three years would try to get into the Round of 16 for the fifth consecutive season. The Bearcats have gotten better and better each week behind sophomore quarterback Wyatt Hoffman’s quick growth along with a dynamic duo at running back in Miles Martin and Kade Mohoric.

WF West 45, Columbia River 0

Columbia River started the game with the ball and got a nice 13-yard run from Savion McCoy on the very first play of the game. WF West’s defense tightened up after that and ended up forcing a punt to bring their offense onto the field. Miles Martin and Kade Mohoric moved the Bearcats right down the field and into Rapids territory quickly. Columbia River then tightened up on defense and forced a third down. Wyatt Hoffman pulled the ball on the option this time and angled his way out left where there was nothing but green grass in front of him. The sophomore scored from 33 yards out to give WF West a 7-0 lead.

The teams traded punts but the tone of the game changed on the next two drives. Starting quarterback Cole Pearson would leave the game with an injury sustained on the Rapids second drive. Sophomore Max Lawrence would take over for the remainder of the game for Columbia River after that. WF West’s punt by Hoffman would down Columbia River inside their own five-yard line as well. With the Rapids pinned back, the Bearcat defense got aggressive and Hudson McCallum would sack Lawrence in the endzone for a safety to make it 9-0.

WF West continued to roll after that. Miles Martin ate away on the ground while Wyatt Hoffman dominated with his legs and arm by spreading the ball to multiple different Bearcat receivers including Jalen Amoroso and Constantine Robertson. The balance of the Bearcat offense was extremely impressive as Columbia River had to react so quickly to a run or pass and if they were wrong it was going to be a big play. Miles Martin capped off the first drive of the 2nd quarter with a nine-yard score plus a successful two-point conversion on a run by Jack Becker to make it 16-0.

Columbia River showed some life on their next drive as Max Lawrence began to show what he could do through the air. Lawrence would get a couple of chunk plays on third downs on passes to Scott Alvord and Savion McCoy as they moved the ball into Bearcat territory. They then ran into a wall but looked to go for it on fourth down. Back-to-back pre-snap penalties would back them up and force a punt where Zach Sims pinned the Bearcats back at their own nine-yard line.

It didn’t really matter where the Bearcats started, the offense was too hot to stop. Hoffman continued to sling the ball around the field mixing up which receiver he would go to and that really spread out the Columbia River defense. The sophomore got a couple of 10-yard completions to Connor Coleman and Jack Becker before a big 20-yard pass to Jalen Amoroso. As they got inside the five, Hoffman had his number called once again and scored his second rushing touchdown of the half. Another two-point conversion followed by a Jack Becker interception took this one to halftime with WF West leading Columbia River 24-0.

Not much changed in the second half as WF West began the 3rd quarter with possession of the football. 13 yards for Miles Martin got WF West going but Columbia River’s defense would force a third and 11 behind some strong defense from Joey Ianello at linebacker. WF West would end up converting to move the drive along and Wyatt Hoffman had one more rushing touchdown in him, this one from 16 yards out to make it 32-0.

It seemed like the Bearcat defense came out even more energized as they looked for the shutout and began to really play physical football Josh Vigre would have back-to-back big defensive plays with a tackle for a loss followed by a sack to get the ball back to Hoffman and company. This would be the Kade Mohoric drive as the senior tailback dominated the ground as the Bearcats flew down the field. Runs of 33 and 15 yards pushed the Bearcats inside the 10 where Mohoric would finish off the drive with a two-yard score. The two-point attempt was no good so the Bearcats lead was 38-0.

Max Lawrence and the offense looked alright at times as the Rapids mid-game adjustments took shape but they would also lose starting running back Savion McCoy for most of the second half. Losing a QB and RB in the same game made the task nearly impossible but the Rapids never stopped fighting. Luke McWilliams would register a sack on defense for the Rapids but they just couldn’t solve the Bearcat defense. WF West added one more score on a 34-yard touchdown pass from Wyatt Hoffman to Connor Coleman to put this one away. It was all Bearcats as they completed the shutout with a 45-0 win over Columbia River.

Stats and MVP

Our Thorbeckes MVP of the game went to WF West quarterback Wyatt Hoffman. Always composed and never panicked, the sophomore led a very effective offense all game long as they moved up and down the field both on the ground and through the air. Hoffman went 21/30 passing for 239 yards and a touchdown while also running the ball eight times for 58 yards and three scores on the ground. 297 yards of offense and four touchdowns for Hoffman while also playing strong in the secondary made this an easy call for MVP.

The dynamic rushing duo for WF West also played a big role in this one. Miles Martin ran the ball seven times for 44 yards and a score while catching four passes for 17 yards while Kade Mohoric had eight carries for 70 yards and a touchdown. Jalen Amoroso was the leading receiver for the Bearcats, catching six passes for 70 yards while Connor Coleman had five catches for 60 yards and a touchdown. Jack Becker and Constantine Robertson each had three catches with Robertson tallying 49 yards and Becker 43 yards and he also had an interception. Hudson McCallum had a sack for a safety while Josh Vigre also recorded a sack on defense. Asher Adams went 3/3 on his extra points.

For Columbia River, Cole Pearson was 1/2 for 11 yards before leaving the game and Max Lawrence actually had some nice numbers. The sophomore went 10/21 for 109 yards to multiple receivers. Ethan Bumgarner was his go-to as he had five catches for 63 yards and a two-yard carry. Scott Alvord had a nice night as well with three catches for 28 yards while Greg Blau had an 11-yard reception. Savion McCoy ran the ball nine times for 13 yards while catching two passes for 18 yards. Joey Ianello balled out on defense and had 10 yards on four carries on offense. Luke McWilliams recorded a sack on defense after creating multiple pressures all game long.

WF West moves to 8-2 on the season and will await the bracket reveal on Sunday to see their seed and opponent for next week’s Round of 16. Columbia River’s season comes to an end with a 6-3 record and the Rapids graduate 15 seniors from this year’s talented team with quite a bit of young talent returning for the 2026 season.

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