9/11/2026
Centralia 48, R.A. Long 0
(Centralia, WA) For the third year in a row, the R.A. Long Lumberjacks and the Centralia Tigers met on the gridiron in week two of the high school football season. This time around, R.A. Long would be hoping for some payback after losing each of those two games, one in overtime and the other in a shutout. The Lumberjacks would hope the third time would be the charm after falling in week one to Castle Rock.
For the Centralia Tigers, 2026 gave them a new set of challenges as they opted to play a 1A schedule and in the Evergreen 1A Conference instead of the EvCo 2A. Looking to be more competitive as they rebuild their program, the Tigers were hoping to start 2-0 after a shutout win over South Whidbey in the opener. On Friday they honored the 2006 2A state runner-ups and the 2026 Tigers would look to electrify the crowd just like that 2006 team did.
1st Half
Centralia received the opening kick of the game and would fortunately have a flag picked up which would have negated a strong return. Two plays into the first drive of the game and the Tigers were off and rolling. Bill Volavola took a handoff 55 yard to the house for a quick touchdown to put Centralia on the board. A pooch kick was recovered by Centralia and just like that the offense was back on the field. Caden Erickson would go right back to Volavola for a 36-yard score. Just 68 seconds into the game and Volavola had two touchdowns and had given Centralia a 14-0 lead.
R.A. Long’s offense would then take the field for the first time but with backup quarterback Evan Hart under center due to starter Korgin Booth being sick. Kamble Johns picked up 12 yards on the first play of the game but after that, the Lumberjacks went backwards. A short punt gave Centralia great field position and they made it count. Caden Erickson would find Alex Frias this time for a 21-yard score after having the previous passing touchdown erased via a penalty. This one counted though and Centralia led 20-0.
The Tigers defense then began to hunt as they would swarm the Lumberjacks offense. R.A. Long couldn’t get anything going and an interception by Alex Frias gave the Tigers more momentum. Caden Erickson took care of the next two drives himself with short touchdown runs and widened their lead way out to 35-0.
Injuries then began to pile up for R.A. Long. Evan Hart had to leave the game with an injury which brought in Landin Gibson at quarterback. The sophomore was pressured constantly and another interception, this time by Enzo Montee allowed Centralia to blow it wide open. Erickson added another touchdown pass to Bill Volavola to force a running clock. Enzo Montee found his own touchdown, a 42-yard run, to cap off a dominant first half.
R.A. Long lost Landin Gibson to injury as well as they dealt with a plethora of injuries. At halftime, the two teams decided to call the game as the Lumberjacks did not have enough healthy players to continue. That brought the game to an abrupt conclusion with Centralia moving to 2-0 with a 48-0 win over R.A. Long.
Chehalis Holiday Inn MVP of the Game
Our Chehalis Holiday Inn MVP of the game went to Centralia quarterback Caden Erickson. The sophomore was a true duel threat with four carries for 11 yards and two touchdowns while completing 5/7 passes for 159 yards and three touchdowns. Five total touchdowns in 11 plays that he was involved in is a ridiculous stat and showcases how dominant Centralia’s offense was led by their QB.
Stats
Four different Tigers scored on Friday night with Bill Volavola doing it on the ground and through the air. Volavola carried the ball once for a 55-yard touchdown while catching two passes for 74 yards and two touchdowns. Alex Frias would also catch three passes for 85 yards and a touchdown while also recording an interception on defense. Enzo Montee carried the ball three times for 60 yards and a touchdown and also picked off a pass on defense. Andres Coronel had the other three carries for 34 yards.
For the R.A. Long Lumberjacks, Kamble Johns had the most success with seven carries for 24 yards while Treydon Chambers-King tallied three carries for 11 yards. Evan Hart would carry the ball three times while going 2/5 passing for 14 yards. Marcos Canales had a 10-yard reception while Gabriel Morales had a four-yard catch. Kyler Settlemire would carry the ball once for six yards.
What’s Next?
For the first time since 2016, the Centralia Tigers move to 2-0 on the season with two home shutouts. They will hit the road next Friday when they visit the Sammamish Totems at 7pm. R.A. Long drops to 0-2 on the season and will look for their first win at home next Friday when they host the Black Hills Wolves at 7:45pm.
Link to watch full game broadcast on the NFHS Network (subscription required)
West 42 Sports Post Game Show
Game Highlights
Erickson to Volavola for Touchdown
Johns Gets R.A. Long Rolling
Montee Puts up Final TD
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