Even the most die-hard Hermiston Bulldog fans had to wonder if the defending 5A football champions would even make the playoffs this year after dropping their first five games of the season.
Since Oct. 9, however, the Bulldogs have reeled off four straight wins and claimed their fourth straight Columbia River Conference title after beating Pendleton on the road Friday night, 28-12.
Senior quarterback Nathan Hunsaker had a huge game for Hermiston, scoring three rushing touchdowns and throwing for another. He rushed for 161 yards and added another 154 through the air. The Bulldogs scored first to go up 7-0, but Pendleton cut the lead to one when Marcus Taylor ran an interception back 64 yards, but the extra kick failed.
The Bulldogs went up 14-6 thanks to an 80-yard drive that ended with a 36-yard touchdown pass from Hunsaker to Tucker Salinas. That was followed by a 74-yard touchdown run by Hunsaker midway through the second quarter to put Hermiston up, 21-6.
Hunsaker wasn’t done. The quarterback capped off a 66-yard drive with his third rushing score of the game, this one a 4-yard scamper to give Hermiston a 28-6 halftime lead.
The Bulldogs were held scoreless in the second half, while Pendleton managed a late touchdown when quarterback Kai Quinn connected with Nick Lani from 4 yards out in the final seconds to make it 28-12.
Hermiston (4-5 overall, 3-0 in CRC) will have to wait to find out who they will play in the playoff opener. Pendleton finishes the year 3-6 overall and 1-2 in CRC play.
