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MILLVILLE — In its biggest game of the year so far, Ridgeline was hoping to leave the weekend undefeated. But rival Green Canyon stood in the way.
In the Friday night battle, Ridgeline junior quarterback Nate Dahle was everything the team needed against the rival Wolves, totaling four touchdowns and leading his offense to 35 points — more than Green Canyon's defense had given up through four total games this season.
Dahle — the southpaw quarterback who also pitches for the RiverHawks baseball team in the spring — has been the man under center for the RiverHawks since his freshman season and has totaled over 6,000 yards over 2.5 years of play.
As a sophomore, Dahle threw for 3,170 yards and 29 touchdowns to just 12 picks; he also rushed for four touchdowns, enabling his abilities as a dual-threat quarterback.
"I am just a piece of the puzzle on our team," Dahle said. "Watch out for our whole team and our scheme."
Dahle was going to be put to the test this week against a good Green Canyon team who had shut out three opponents up to that point in the season and was 4-0 while outscoring opponents 114-27 through four games.
But Dahle and the RiverHawks were destined to soar over the Wolves.
Through the first half, Dahle connected with two of his receivers for touchdowns, including a 70-yard touchdown pass to Graham Livingston that gave the RiverHawks an 18-0 lead over the Wolves just before halftime. But like every rivalry game, the Wolves did not make it easy.
Green Canyon scored 14 unanswered points to trim the lead to four, which meant Dahle had to move the offense and put points on the board to keep the visiting team in the lead.
Dahle took advantage of a short drive that started on the Wolves' 33-yard line, and finished it off with a 6-yard run that gave Ridgeline a 25-14 lead through three quarters of play.
On the next drive, Dahle found Livingston for another long touchdown that went for 76 yards, putting the game out of reach for the RiverHawks.
Head coach Travis Cox was not surprised with Dahle's ability to lead the Riverhawks over the Wolves.
"Obviously great quarterback for us and won a ton of games," Cox said. "The biggest thing with him over the years is just getting more and more confident and his abilities and being able to make all the throws. I think whenever he drops back he can reach all levels of the field. And in a quick manner, I think he's mastered that.
"He does a really good job of making decisions and delivering the ball in places where our receivers can make plays, and he allows them to do that quite well."
Dahle's three touchdown passes against Green Canyon was the sixth game where he's thrown three or more touchdown passes in a game in just 29 career games as a RiverHawk.
Dahle recently visted hometown Utah State for their game against Utah this weekend and was pleased with his experience.
"Growing up I have always watched Utah State," he said. "They offered Graham (Livingston) while we were there, and it was cool to be there for that, and it was a really fun experience being at the game."
The RiverHawks and Dahle will battle Bear River (1-4) on Friday night, looking to go 2-0 in region play.
