MUSKEGON — The Whitehall football team’s offense attracts a lot of attention. The Vikings feature several playmakers and average 51.5 points per game.
But in Whitehall’s 42-8 domination of Oakridge in the North Grove Brewers West Michigan Conference Game of the Week Friday night, the story was the Vikings’ fast, physical and swarming defense.
In a matchup of top-five, state-ranked, unbeaten teams, Division 4 No. 2 Whitehall held Division 5 No. 3 Oakridge to 127 yards of offense. Seventy-eight of those yards came on the Eagles’ lone scoring drive early in the fourth quarter after the Vikings built a 42-0 lead.
Whitehall (6-0 overall, 3-0 WMC Lakes Division) took a big step toward winning the divisional title after the Vikings shared the conference championship with Oakridge and Montague last season. Oakridge is now 5-1 overall and 3-1 in the WMC Lakes.
Photos by Scott DeCamp | CatchMark
Here are notables and more details from Friday’s game:
Whitehall junior quarterback Kyle Stratton assembled another big game. The 5-foot-8, 165-pounder completed 12 of 15 passes for 187 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions and he ran 14 times for a game-high 93 yards and three TDs. Stratton scored on runs of 23, 2 and 23 yards.
Whitehall senior running back Jackson Cook rumbled for a pair of TDs himself. In the second quarter, he crashed in for scoring runs of 4 and 2 yards. Cook finished with 71 yards on 11 carries.
Whitehall senior Nate Bolley caught four passes for 81 yards, including a 44-yard TD that made it 35-0 midway through the second quarter.
Whitehall sophomore Camden Thompson caught three passes for 45 yards.
Whitehall outgained Oakridge in total offense by nearly a 3-to-1 margin, 366-127. The Vikings dominated the running game as they outgained the Eagles 179-36.
Whitehall totaled 21 first downs to seven for Oakridge.
Senior linebacker Jaiden Altgilbers led Whitehall’s dominating defense with six total tackles.
Whitehall senior linebacker Graycen Shepherd, in his first game since Week 2 coming off an injury, notched five tackles.
Whitehall junior defensive back Trannon Aylor also made five stops.
Whitehall junior defensive back Ca’Mar Ready intercepted a pass.
Oakridge senior QB Matt Danicek completed 12 of 17 passes for 91 yards. He scored the Eagles’ lone TD on a 6-yard scramble with 3:55 remaining in the game.
Oakridge junior Trever Jones, who was coming off back-to-back 200-yard rushing games, was limited to 23 yards on 13 carries. Jones was the Eagles’ leading pass-catcher on the night with five receptions for 54 yards.
Oakridge junior Brody Jennings led his team with 11 tackles. Sophomore Bryson Stephenson had 6 1/2 stops.
Whitehall has outscored opponents this season by a combined 309-70 tally.
Friday marked Whitehall’s second straight win on Oakridge’s field. The Vikings also defeated the Eagles, 32-18, in the 2020 season, which marked their first victory at Russell A. Erickson Stadium since the late-1990s.
Last season, Oakridge defeated Whitehall, 32-19, on the Vikings’ home field.
Next Friday, Whitehall welcomes Ludington (5-1, 3-1 WMC Lakes) on homecoming night. Meanwhile, Oakridge will renew its rivalry with Orchard View (0-6, 0-3 WMC Lakes) with a matchup in the Cardinals’ stadium.