There’s no place like Fishback Stadium for the Washougal High School football team.
After losing at Rainier, Ore., and at R.A. Long, in Longview, the Panthers returned to a festive homecoming atmosphere and defeated Ridgefield 36-18 Friday. Washougal is 3-0 on the new turf.
“It’s an inspiring environment to play in front of that large crowd,” said head coach Bob Jacobs. “These kids will always play hard for this community and this town.”
Washougal only managed to score three points in a loss at Ridgefield a year ago. The Panthers also blew a 17-point lead in their last homecoming game. Those were two pitfalls they were determined to avoid Friday.
Washougal wasted little time. Brandon Casteel crossed the goal line on a 37-yard touchdown run in less than a minute after the opening kick off. Bobby Jacobs rushed for 230 yards in the game and scored four touchdowns. All of them came after Ridgefield took a 12-7 lead following the first drive of the third quarter.
“We rallied in that second half. Nobody gave up and it went in our favor,” said Casteel, a junior. “We gave up a tough [homecoming game] to R.A. Long last year. We wanted to give the seniors the best experience possible because they had a crummy one last year. It meant a lot to them and it meant a lot to us to be a part of it with them.”