Photos by Scott DeCamp | CatchMark
MUSKEGON — Friday night’s football game between neighboring rivals Oakridge and Orchard View at Russell A. Erickson Stadium had a bit of everything.
- Rain, heavy at times
- Lightning delay
- Oakridge’s star player getting injured early in the game and not returning
- Role players stepping into the spotlight and thriving
- Homecoming ceremony held inside the school while the game was wrapping up
It all added up to Oakridge’s 50-18 victory over Orchard View in the first on-field competition since the 2016 season.
Oakridge clung to a 14-12 halftime lead, but the Eagles came out of the locker room a different team.
“I just think our mentality (took over) in the second half. At halftime, the coaches got us hyped up,” said Oakridge junior Bryce Bisson, who contributed in many ways, including returning a blocked punt 10 yards to set up his 25-yard touchdown run in the third quarter and notching a team-high eight tackles.
The game was delayed a half-hour because of lightning. Oakridge led Orchard View, 29-12, with 9:34 left in the fourth quarter at that point.
The win improves Oakridge’s records to 4-3 overall and 3-2 in the West Michigan Conference Lakes Division. Orchard View is 3-4 and 1-3, respectively.
Here are more details and notables from the game:
- Oakridge senior standout Trever Jones suffered what coach Cary Harger called a dislocated thumb early in the game. According to Harger, Jones went to the hospital immediately and he had his thumb reset. Later on, Jones was announced homecoming king, although it’s unclear whether or not he made it back to the school.
- In Jones’ absence, other Eagles stepped up and got the job done by committee. Junior Bryson Stephenson ran 11 times for 94 yards. Junior Zac Cribbins rushed 12 times for 83 yards and three touchdowns. Bisson ran three times for 46 yards. Sophomore Jayden Dailey carried the ball once for a 33-yard TD.
Oakridge senior Trever Jones (Courtney Jimison | CatchMark)
- Dailey also returned a kickoff 95 yards for a TD. It answered an 82-yard TD run by Orchard View senior Enrique Gutierrez one play before in the closing moments of the game. “It feels great,” said Dailey about contributing to the win with his big plays. He was elevated to the varsity team for last week’s game at Whitehall.
- Oakridge juniors Michael Wambaugh and Max Hannold finished with seven tackles apiece, while senior Aiden Johnston made five stops.
- All in all, it was a team effort for Oakridge, which has dealt with injuries to a number of key players. “Next man up every time,” Bisson said. “That’s all we talk about — next man up.”
- Gutierrez led all players with 100 rushing yards on nine carries.
- Orchard View senior Stephon Oakes finished with 70 rushing yards and a TD on 11 carries. His 43-yard TD run late in the first quarter gave the Cardinals a 6-0 lead.
- Trailing 14-6 late in the first half after back-to-back TD runs by Oakridge’s Cribbins, Orchard View pulled off a big play to get within two points at the break. Cardinals senior quarterback Alexander Theile connected with junior Curtis Scott on a 41-yard pass play to get in the end zone with 4 seconds left in the second quarter.
- Oakridge took over in the second half, scoring the game’s next four TDs.
- Oakridge leads the all-time series with Orchard View, 20-16, including 11 wins in a row now.
- Next Friday, Oakridge visits longtime rival Ravenna in a WMC nondivisional matchup, while Orchard View hosts Ludington.
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