NYSSA – Football fans learned a few things Friday night in Nyssa as the Bulldogs welcomed the Burns Hilanders to town for an EOL matchup.
One thing quick to decipher is the Hilanders can stop the run. The second item learned is Burns has an offense difficult to stop and can add a bit of trickery when needed to place points on the board. With the 35-6 victory over Nyssa, the league perfect Hilanders maintain their spot atop the Special District 3 standings.
Nyssa’s lone score came early in the first quarter. A good drive down the field resulted in a 5-yard TD run by Caleb Benson and the Dawgs took the early 6-0 lead.
From that point on, the game belonged to the Hilanders. Using a punishing running game behind Dakota Ceja, Burns led at the half, 21-6.
In the second half, Nyssa continued with the game plan on pounding the ball on the ground. Burns answered, stopping the Bulldogs and forcing punts or the ball turned over on downs.
Ceja led all rushers in the game, carrying 17 times for 181 yards. Also for the Hilanders, Mike Winn scored three times and continually extended plays with yards after first being touched.
For Nyssa, Benson had 92 yards on 17 carries. Quarterback Landon McDowall threw only six passes for the night, completing three.
The win keeps the Hilanders perfect on the season with a 7-0 overall record and a 3-0 league record. The Hilanders travel to Ontario (0-7 overall record) on Friday, October 25 and wrap up the season with Vale (4-3 overall, 2-0 league) coming to town on November 1.
Nyssa (4-3 overall, 1-2 league) finishes the regular season on Friday with a home game versus the winless Irrigon Knights (0-7 overall, 0-2 league).
With the season coming to the ending games, the Special District 3 (old Eastern Oregon League) places the top three teams in the state playoffs. The league winner will host the first round of the playoffs while the third place team will be on the road. Second place in the league will most likely host, but depending on teams from other divisions, hosting is not guaranteed. One at-large bid is also open, but doubtful for any of the teams in the Special District 3 at this point.
Related: Photo Gallery – Burns at Nyssa Football
