Union gets rolling in win over Enumclaw

The new Union football team looked a lot like the old one Saturday afternoon at McKenzie Stadium.

With a defense stuffing their opponents, and with an offense starting the click, the Titans rolled over Enumclaw 38-7.

“I don’t think anyone should be stuck in the past anymore,” junior linebacker Bryson Page said. “Union is back, in a big way.”

Page is one of several new names making big plays for the Titans, who reached at least the state semifinals the past two seasons. The Union defense held Enumclaw to 51 yards in the first half as the Titans (1-1) jumped out to a 21-0 lead.

The advantage was 28-0 before the Hornets could get anything going their way.

The Union defense has been solid for two weeks now, and on Saturday the offense got into a groove.

Brandon Brody-Heim rushed for 122 yards and two touchdowns, and Kaben Humphrey-Butler threw a touchdown pass and ran for another in his debut as a starter.

“I was a little nervous, but once the game started flowing, I just relaxed and started playing,” said Brody-Heim, who was in after Week 1 starter Tanner Nelson suffered an injured shoulder. “The O-line held them away, the running backs were doing great. That really calmed my nerves.”

“It’s a big step,” Brody-Heim said of his first 100-yard game as a starting running back. “Hopefully it isn’t the last. I don’t think it will be the last.”

Not with the way the holes opened up for him.

“I gotta give it to my O-line,” he said. “Nothing’s possible without them. They were great today.”

The line and Zak Browning set the tone early on Browning’s 39-yard touchdown run on Union’s second play from scrimmage.

Browning also flexed his muscles on defense after a first-quarter sack.

Then there were all kinds of defenders making plays. Jonathan O’Toole had a run stuff, and later a sack. T.J. Boatright deflected a pass to force a fourth down and also would record a sack. Josh Reynolds and Page made back-to-back standout plays when the game was still close, when the Hornets had some momentum.

“Enumclaw is a good program, and they have a good team,” Union coach Cale Piland said of the Hornets, who are ranked sixth by the Seattle Times in Class 3A football. “To perform the way we did … we still have a lot of room for improvement, but today is a step in the right direction.”

The Union defense was put to the test early in the second quarter. With the Titans ahead 7-0, the Hornets recovered a muffed punt on Union’s 39-yard line.

The Hornets would go nowhere, though. Reynolds, a defensive lineman, burst into the backfield for a tackle-for-loss. On second down, Page filled the hole for a stuff — a run for no gain. After an incomplete pass, the threat was over.

“I think it was a team thing,” Reynolds said. “We really rammed it in their face.”

“Here at Union, there is no single player,” Page added. “We all work as a single unit.”

However it was done, it worked.

Brody-Heim would break free for a 38-yard touchdown run midway through the second quarter. On Union’s next possession, the Titans converted on a fake punt and eventually would score on a pass from Humphrey-Butler to Boatright with 10 seconds left in the half for a 21-0 lead.

The Titans received the second-half kickoff and picked up where they left off — with another scoring drive. This time, Humphrey-Butler converted with his speed, going 26 yards for a TD and a 28-0 advantage.

“Coming out here and knowing I was the guy just boosted my confidence,” Humphrey-Butler said.

The Hornets responded with their best drive of the day and a touchdown but would not get close again.

Hudson Poissant kicked a 29-yard field goal and Brody-Heim scored on a 2-yard TD run to cap the scoring for the Titans.

Union totalled 388 yards of offense and held Enumclaw to 165 yards.

“We did some good things,” Piland said. “We were able to capitalize on some things.”

The result was a lopsided victory for the Titans.

UNION 38, ENUMCLAW 7

Enumclaw 0 0 7 0—7

Union 7 14 10 7—38

First quarter

U — Zak Browning 39 run (Hudson Poissant kick)

Second quarter

U — Brandon Brody-Heim 38 run (Poissant kick)

U — T.J. Boatright 1 pass from Kaben Humphrey-Butler (Poissant kick)

Third quarter

U — Humphrey-Butler 26 run (Poissant kick)

E — Tyler Carlson 4 pass from Dylan Podalak (Andrew Holdener kick)

U — Poissant 29 FG

Fourth quarter

U — Brody-Heim 2 run (Poissant kick)

Leaders

Rushing — Enumclaw: Marcus Joshlin 11-51; Union: Brody-Heim 16-122, Browning 7-61, Humphrey-Butler 12-59, Ryan Stanford 6-29.

Passing — Enumclaw: Podalak 10-23-0-111; Union: Humphrey-Butler 6-9-1-116, Connor Bartmess 1-1-0-21.

Receiving — Enumclaw: Terenn Houk 4-40, Carlson 2-28, Jason Greer 2-21, Derek Forza 1-14, Holdener 1-8; Union: Ray Burney 2-58, Gabe Rego 3-57, Boatright 2-22.