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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Chewelah Tops No. 1 Royal Cougars Stick To Basics In Moving On To Semifinals

Flashy Royal, with its grab bag full of tricks, learned a lesson Saturday from predictable Chewelah:

Simplicity has its rewards.

The reward in this case was a passport to Saturday’s State A semifinal against second-ranked Cascade of Leavenworth.

Third-ranked Chewelah (11-0) reached its lofty goal by ramming the football down top-ranked Royal’s throat during a 28-13 quarterfinal win at Neil F. Lampson Field.

Cougars senior fullback Greg Belzer rushed for 113 yards and the final three touchdowns of the game, and backfield mate Cody Katzer, a junior, added 120 yards. Chewelah ran 50 plays from scrimmage, all but 13 requiring handoffs to Belzer or Katzer.

“I have equal confidence in both,” first-year Chewelah coach Roy Albertson said of his running backs. “In the end, Belzer wears people down.”

The Cougars’ other 13 plays were eight rushes by junior quarterback Dan Macrae - for another 52 yards - and five Macrae passes. Three hit the ground and two fell into senior tight end Jeremy Rogers’ hands for 14 yards.

“We just plain couldn’t handle them up front,” said coach Bob Nielsen of Royal, a state finalist last year. “Their offense isn’t spectacular … but the front five people are what win football games.”

Chewelah was concerned about outsized Royal because of its speed and complicated offense. Eight different Knights ran the ball and four attempted passes, but Chewelah held the Yakima Valley East champions scoreless for the final 32 minutes.

“We had everything figured out,” said the 6-foot-1, 225-pound Belzer. “The whole week we prepared for every trick play they had.”

Royal (10-1) scored on its first two possessions. QB Derek Allred, a midseason replacement for Jed Wardenaar, put the Knights up 7-0 with a 7-yard run in the first quarter.

Macrae answered with a 7-yard TD run in the second quarter, then Wardenaar showed he doesn’t need to play QB to contribute. He kept a Royal drive going with a first-down pass on a fake punt, then beat Cougars linebacker Brett Skok for a 34-yard TD reception.

Royal spent the early going swarming to Belzer when he handled the ball. The tactic worked well, but left Katzer free for good gains.

“Whichever one that they want to stop, we’ll go with the other one,” Belzer said.

Katzer rushed for 25 yards during the Cougars’ go-ahead-for-good drive, but on a fourth-and-2 from the Royal 24 Belzer bulled through for 8 yards. With less than a minute left in the half, and Chewelah facing a fourth-and-1 at the 7, Belzer powered slightly wide of the clogged middle for the telling score.

Chewelah slowed Royal’s running game in the second half and stopped the most serious Knights drive with sophomore Jason Landram’s interception at the Cougars 9.

Katzer slashed for 54 yards during an early fourth-quarter drive. His 45-yard scamper preceded Belzer’s 1-yard TD plunge. Belzer’s final TD, a breakaway from the Royal 30 with 1:09 left, was set up by Rogers’ second blocked punt of the year. “Our defensive coordinator (Jeff Bengtson) had a great plan,” Albertson said. “As far as I’m concerned this is a defensive victory.”

Chewelah is scheduled to meet Cascade at 1 p.m. Saturday in Moses Lake. Cascade advanced by edging Zillah 38-36 on Saturday.

Chewlah 28, Royal 13

Chewelah 0 14 0 14 - 28

Royal 7 6 0 0 - 13

R-D.Allred 7 run (Harris kick)

C-Macrae 7 run (Murbach kick)

R-Wardenaar 34 pass from D.Allred (kick failed)

C-Belzer 7 run (Murbach kick)

C-Belzer 1 run (Murbach kick)

C-Belzer 30 run (Murbach kick)

, DataTimes