PAGE A22, KEIZERTIMES, OCTOBER 15, 2021
CELTS,
Continued from page A21
McNary running back Zane Aicher led the Celtics with 102 yards rushing on 17 carries.
Photo by MATT RAWLINGS of Keizertimes
NEWS
TIPS?
If it's happening
in Keizer, or to someone
from Keizer —
WE WANT TO KNOW.
kt@keizertimes.com
brainfood ANSWERS
sudoku
crossword
drive before Braiden Copleand mus-
cled his way into the end zone from
three yards out to give McNary the 8-0
advantage.
“We just ran it down their throat,”
Smedema said.
South Salem came into the game as
one of the top offenses in the state. But
early on, the Saxons were unable to han-
dle the physicality and athleticism of the
McNary defense.
“The defense was very good all day
long,” Auvinen said. “They fought their
butt off. It was a great job by the kids.”
One of the keys for the McNary
defense was slowing down Saxons
receiver Tini Tinitali — who, coming into
the game, had over 100 receiving yards
three times in South Salem's first five
contests.
Tinitali still had 70 yards receiving
on the night, but the McNary secondary
made it a point-of-emphasis to not let the
senior wideout beat them deep.
Aicher credited his brother, Kyle, who
is the McNary defensive backs coach,
with coming up with a successful game
plan to slow down the Saxons aerial
attack.
“If (Tinitali) ever lined up on the ball,
we knew he was going deep,” Aicher
said. “My brother puts a lot of time in.
Sometimes, I will look over to the side-
line and he will give me a hand motion
telling me what the route is going to be.”
McNary also held Saxons quarterback
Daschel Smith to just 172 yards passing
on the night — it was only the second
time this season Smith didn't break the
200-yard barrier.
“We had a really good scouting report.
We knew everything that they were doing
most of the time,” Smedema said.
After 24 minutes of action, South
Salem had more turnovers (3) than first
downs (2). But McNary wasn't able to cap-
italize on any of the Saxons turnovers as
the Celtics lead remained 8-0 at halftime.
Both teams traded multiple punts to
start the second half, but late in the third
quarter, the Saxons finally broke through
for a score as Smith took it in on a quar-
terback draw from 11 yards out. However,
Aicher broke up a pass on the two-point
attempt, allowing McNary to cling to an
8-6 lead.
The Celtics offense looked to be back
on track to start the fourth quarter, but
their drive stalled in the red zone as
Smedema's pass across the middle sailed
over Logan Ready's head on fourth-and-
seven, giving the ball back to the Saxons.
However, on the following snap, soph-
omore linebacker Ben Allen made the
play of the day for the Celtics.
On first down from the South Salem
17-yard line, Smith faded back to pass and
threw a ball over the middle, intended for
Tinitali. What Smith didn't see was that
Allen had faked a blitz, dropped back in
coverage and was in the perfect spot for
the interception.
After getting the pick, Allen broke a
tackle and sprinted for a 34-yard touch-
down, giving McNary a 14-6 lead, plus all
the momentum.
“I saw the receiver turn to the middle,