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That’s about the only way to describe Tumwater High School’s opening half of football against visiting River Ridge.
It was supposed to be a showdown with Class 2A Evergreen Conference title implications hanging in the balance.
It turned out to be highlight after spectacular highlight for the Thunderbirds as they raced out to a big lead on their way to an impressive 49-6 victory over the Hawks on Friday night at Tumwater District Stadium.
“The kids are just on fire. These last three weeks or so, they have really been playing well,” Tumwater coach Sid Otton said. “We keep finding things on the film for them to improve on, but all three phases have been exceptional.”
The win moves third-ranked Tumwater closer to an EvCo title. The T-Birds extended their winning streak to six games and improved to 6-1 overall (4-0 EvCo).
Daniel Hinkle threw for 162 yards – 144 in the first quarter – and two touchdowns, and Ronnie Hastie ran for a touchdown and caught another, helping Tumwater jump out to a 42-6 halftime lead.
The T-Birds had 406 yards of offense in the half. They also got two touchdowns apiece from Christian Bush and Kyle Warner, who added an interception from his safety position.
“Our offense has improved each week. We go against our defense every day at practice, and that seems to have made us better,” Otton said.
Tumwater got on the scoreboard before the crowd even had a chance to settle in, scoring 90 seconds into the game on a 1-yard run by Bush.
The T-Birds rode a wave of big plays – the team had eight plays of at least 20 yards in the first half – to a commanding, 28-0 lead after the first quarter.
After Bush scored his second TD on a 12-yard run with 61/2 minutes remaining in the first quarter, Tumwater took to the air. Hinkle hit Hastie on a 39-yard scoring strike, then connected with Warner on a 19-yard touchdown pass to close out the first quarter.
Down by four touchdowns, River Ridge got its first score on a pretty 79-yard pass from Adam Walker to Brad Wallace, who juggled the slightly overthrown pass before securing the ball and zig-zagging through defenders.
The River Ridge celebration was short-lived, however, because Tumwater got touchdown runs from Warner (35 yards) and Hastie (32) on its next two possessions.
After opening its conference slate with a narrow, 15-12 victory over Chehalis, Tumwater has ran roughshod through the rest of the league, beating North Thurston, 46-14, on Sept. 24 and stopping Centralia, 40-7, on Oct. 8 before Friday’s big win over River Ridge.
Tumwater can wrap up the conference crown and a berth in the Class 2A state playoffs by winning one of its final two games. The T-Birds will host Black Hills in the annual Pioneer Bowl on Friday, then travel to Aberdeen to square off against the Bobcats on Oct. 29.
“The team still keeps their hands on the steering wheel,” Otton said. “We have a great group of seniors that provides us leadership and keeps us focused. Next week against Black Hills is a big week for us.”
River Ridge, which started the season 4-0, dropped to 5-2 overall and 2-2 in EvCo play. The Hawks will need to win their two remaining conference games to secure a postseason appearance for the second consecutive year.
The Hawks will play crosstown rival North Thurston, which has won 11 straight games in the series, on Friday night before closing out the regular season against Centralia on Oct. 29.
