Demons run to first win of the season

It was almost as if a switch was flipped at halftime.

The Washington football team scored on its first possession of the ball game, but couldn?t muster any more points the rest of the first half.

After the break, the Demons put their foot on the pedal.

A 35-point outburst in the second half helped Washington (1-1) defeat Marion (0-2) 42-12 on Friday night, in a game the Demons knew they needed to have.

?After that loss last week, it really made people open their eyes and work harder this week,? Washington senior Bryce Rickey said. ?That led to what happened tonight. It got a lot of people?s heads up and it got us excited again.?

The offensive excitement may not have come until the second half, but the Demons? defense was stellar in the first half, holding Marion scoreless, only allowing the Indians onto the Washington side of the field once (coming after a semi-blocked punt).

?You can?t say enough good things about the defense,? Washington head coach Garrison Carter said. ?(Marion) had two big pass plays which were one-on-one situations, but when you talk about team defense, they were unmatched. They were physical and unafraid to hit.?

In the second half, the offense used the run game to its advantage, and senior running back Jack Giardino found the end zone four times. In the longest of the night, an 82-yard scamper, Giardino had the ball stripped from his hands but the ball bounced in just the right spot for the senior running back to pick it up in stride and continue running to the end zone.

?I have to give all the credit for everything tonight to them,? Giardino said. ?If it weren?t for them, there wouldn?t be any holes and I couldn?t be any happier with them.?

The offensive line paved the way for Giardino to run for more than 200 yards and his four scores, in a performance that Carter said he hasn?t seen in his time here.

?I?m sure I?m not giving enough credit to a game from last season, but I think that was our best offensive line performance we?ve had since I?ve been here,? Carter said. ?Every play, they were going the right direction and moving people and opening holes.?

The Demons opened up the game with big plays to sophomore wide receiver Jaivonn Willis and Giardino, but it was sophomore quarterback Ryan Reighard who punched the ball in from four yards out to open the scoring.

After going the rest of the first half without a score, the Demons replicated their success on the first drive of the second half.

A long reception by Ethan Hansen set up Reighard?s second touchdown run of the game, before Giardino scored from six yards out in the next drive.

After a Marion punt, Giardino found the end zone again with a 47-yard score to make it 28-0.

?We really put an emphasis on being more uptempo and establishing a rhythm and just trying to click,? Carter said. ?Our kids did a good job with that. When we play with high intensity, I?d put our offense against anyone.?

Marion struck back quickly, ending Washington?s shutout bid with a 65-yard touchdown pass, but the Demons quickly responded with Giardino?s 82-yard scoring run.

?He had a huge, huge night,? Carter said. ?You love seeing that for such an unbelieveable kid. He?s our leader and he has put a ton of time into this program and to see a second half like that, it?s great.?

Marion used a long kick return to set up a 17-yard touchdown pass, but the Demons found pay dirt again with a four-yard run by Giardino to cap off the game and earn the Demons? first win of the season.

?It?s very nice,? Giardino said. ?We could have easily come out and played like we did against Pella, but we didn?t. We were the more physical team tonight and we bounced back on track which is great.?

Washington will look to make it two in a row against Clear Creek Amana who fell to Mid-Prairie on Friday night, making them 0-2 on the season.