9/18/2026
Rogers 40, North Thurston 7
(Puyallup, WA) When two rams fight in the wild they ram their heads together repeatedly until one says “no more”. That seemed to be exactly what we would see on Friday night when the North Thurston Rams and Rogers Rams met at Sparks Stadium in Puyallup. Two teams with very talented running backs and strong offensive lines would look to push each other until one finally broke. For Rogers, it was a chance to net their first win of the season while North Thurston would look to get above .500 before the start of league play.
1st Half
Rogers offense was rolling out of the gate while their defense completely shutdown North Thurston. Titus Koch broke a big 27-yard run while Mason Kiblinger hit Jayce Foushee for a big 25-yard gain in a couple of chunk plays. Kiblinger ended the drive with a hard earned three-yard touchdown run to get Rogers on the board. They would not allow a yard of North Thurston offense until the fourth drive and by that time they were up by two scores. A two QB system worked well for Rogers as Mikey Lee Jr. came in and threw a screen pass to Carter Kimble and the freshman took it 68 yards to the house to make the score 14-0. The score could have been worse at halftime but North Thurston got the offense going a bit behind Faatoa Tunai and the running game. They couldn’t put up points, but an interception by Deyton Topasna Toliver prevented Rogers from adding on and kept the score 14-0 at halftime.
2nd Half
The second half was very up and down for both sides. North Thurston lost their starting QB Nicholas Nutu due to an injury late in the 2nd quarter. Mateo Henry was thrust into duty but their was some adjustments that needed to happen on offense. A bad snap on a punt attempt gave North Thurston the ball at the Rogers two-yard-line, but a fumble gave it right back. Titus Koch would open the lead up with a couple of long rushing touchdowns from 66 and 48-yards out. A fumble recovery by Cruz Morales also went to the house for touchdown. Kiblinger added another with a 36-yard touchdown pass to Andrew Hovey. North Thurston did surprise Rogers after being a run-only team in the second half as Mateo Henry found Deyton Topasna Oliver wide open for a 64-yard touchdown to end the shutout. However, Rogers rolled behind a strong line on both offense and defense to get their first win, 40-7.
Sumner Holiday Inn Express MVP
Our Sumner Holiday Inn Express MVP of the game went to Titus Koch for Rogers. The running back was a monster when he was carrying the football and really put the game away in the second half. Koch ran the ball 12 times for 182 yards and two touchdowns, both coming in the second half from 66 and 48 yards out. Right when North Thurston built momentum, Koch put a stop to the comeback bid and helped get Rogers their first win of the season.
What’s Next?
The win is the first this season for Rogers as the Rams move to 1-2 on the year. They will get started with SPSL 4A play on Friday when they visit South Kitsap at 7pm. North Thurston loses their second straight to fall to 1-2 this season. The Rams also begin league play but it will be on Thursday at home when they host a very talented Lakes Lancers team.
Watch the full game replay on the NFHS Network (subscription required)
West 42 Sports Postgame Show
Game Highlights
Screen goes for 68-Yard Score
Koch Breaks 66-Yard TD
Henry to Toliver Ends Shutout
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