Ahead of No. 4 Rochester’s matchup against No. 21 Castle Rock in a 1A Round of 24 matchup on Saturday in Centralia, Rochester coach AJ Easley had one request for his team.
“Come out and play with your hair on fire,” Easley said.
The Warriors did that and then some, running away with a dominant 68-0 victory to secure their spot in the state tournament.
“The team played extremely well tonight,” Easley said. “They did exactly what we asked them to do.”
Maddox Rodgers needed just six carries to tally 204 yards and score five touchdowns, while Owen SImpkins ran for 77 yards and two touchdowns on 12 attempts.
Marshall Turnquist only had two rushing attempts, but he tallied 95 yards, including an 86-yard touchdown run.
Rochester (10-0) is firmly in the mix for a top-four seed, which would give them a bye to the state quarterfinals on either Nov. 20 or 21.
The Warriors will learn their seed on Sunday afternoon, when the WIAA releases its state tournament brackets.
“We are excited to see where we land in the playoff seeding,” Easley said.
