Spartans shut out Maniacs

OROFINO- The Priest River Spartans got back to winning by blanking the Orofino Maniacs 56-0 in a Central Idaho League away game Friday, Oct. 10.

“The guys really needed this one, and I think it reminded them of what kind of team they are,” Spartan coach Alex Zapeda says. “When you get back to playing schools you’re familiar with, there’s a comfort level — you know what to expect, and that showed on Friday.”

The Spartans went up 16-0 in the first quarter and extended the lead to 32-0 at the half.

“Offensively, we made a few key adjustments that really paid off and should help us the rest of the season,” Zapeda says.

Nate Fergert had another good night rushing, starting out with a 69-yard touchdown run on the first play of the game. Fergert churned out 212 yards and four touchdowns on the ground. It was the third time in his career he has broken 200 yards in a game and is the only player in Priest River history to do that more than once, Zapeda says.

Zepeda praised the team’s defense. Tackling was spread around, with a dozen players having at least one solo tackle. Brady Hatten was in on six tackles, including four for a loss. Niki Porinchok had three tackles for loss.

“Defensively, getting the shutout was huge,” Zapeda says. “We had a pick-six called back, but the defense applied pressure all game and really set the tone up front.”

Colton Kuprienko returned to play after an ankle injury suffered against Newport about three weeks ago.

“We eased him back in by using him only on offense this week to help transition him back to full speed,” he says.

Kuprienko rushed for 116 yards on 16 carries, with his longest run being for 37 yards. He also scored two touchdowns and had one reception for 62 yards.

The Spartans were playing without the services of quarterback Lucas Matthews, who was out with a knee injury “Lucas had a minor knee injury from the Colfax game, so we held him out to give him time to recover,” Zapeda says.

Sophomore Jacob Best handled the quarterback duties, completing five on nine passes for 99 yards.

He was intercepted once. In addition to Kuprienko, he completed three passes to Layton Goins and a 17-yarder to Braden Leach.

The Spartans do have some things to work on, Zepeda says.

“We had four touchdowns called back in the first half, which we’ll clean up, but overall, the effort was exactly what we wanted,” he says.

He was also able to use some younger players in the second half.

“They stepped in and did well,” Zepeda says.

The Spartans return home Friday, Oct. 17, for Senior Night and a chance to win the Central Idaho League title in a 7 p.m. game against St. Maries. Both teams have 3-4 records, but St. Maries is coming off a 50-0 loss to Grangeville.

“If we take care of business against St. Maries and Grangeville beats Kellogg, we’ll win league for the first time since 1957, earn a playoff bye, and host a quarterfinal game,” Zepeda says. “That’s been the goal all year, so we’re locked in.”