For the second week in a row, the Rochester football team needed a late fourth-down conversion to seal a win, and for the second week in a row, the Warriors got just that.
A 16-yard run from Maddox Rodgers on a fourth-and-15 iced the game in Bremerton, where the Warriors came away with a 36-28 victory.
“The kids played extremely hard, and we’re proud of their effort,” Rochester coach AJ Easley said. “They overcame some adversity. It was a battle. The kids really did their jobs.”
Rodgers’ game-sealing run was the final touch on an outstanding night, one where he finished with 343 yards and three rushing touchdowns on 32 rushes.
Jackson Allman added 54 yards on six carries, Owen Simpkins ran for 37 on seven touches, and Easton Singleton added 16 yards and two touchdowns on four runs.
Singleton added 33 passing yards on two completions, both of which went to Josh Long.
The Warriors recovered two Bremerton onside kicks in the fourth quarter, scoring a touchdown after the first recovery by Brody Easley and milking the rest of the clock after the second by Rodgers.
AJ Easley credited his offensive line of Wyatt Richardson, Peter Hayden, Cody Galpin, Connor Patrick, and Tanner Eaton, saying “they played as well as they could possibly play,” and he also credited his run defense that played “really, really well.”
There are some things to clean up in the passing game, but our kids are resilient,” AJ Easley said. “They will go to work and get better. It was really great to see them go on the road and play well against a tough opponent.”
Rochester (2-0) will head east next Friday, Sept. 18, when it will face Ellensburg in a Week 3 contest.
