With the outcome hanging in the balance, Crater’s defense came up big when it mattered most to secure a 22-16 triumph over Marshfield in the season opener for both teams Friday night in Coos Bay.

All the scoring in the zero week contest came in the first half but that didn’t mean there wasn’t drama over the final two quarters, especially when Marshfield reached the Comets’ 7-yard line with just under four minutes remaining.

Crater defensive lineman Brayden Sholty and linebacker Brayden Singery combined to hold Marshfield running back Jaden Tice to no gain on first down.

Defensive end Hunter Verstegen then forced Pirates quarterback Ashton Thornton to scramble out of the pocket and his pressured pass to Elijah Fox was dropped.

Thornton was off target on a slant to Christopher Hooper on third down and, after two consecutive timeouts by Marshfield, the Comets closed out their defensive stand when the Pirates opted for a read-option toss to Tice and he was cut down at the 3-yard line by Kyle Petty as Terrius Allen came in for the final touches to force a turnover on downs.

Still backed up in precarious position, Crater (1-0) gave the ball to its closer and senior Valentin Rodriguez steadily moved the Comets up the field as the clock wound down over the final 3 ½ minutes.

“I think the big thing is our defense really rose to the occasion,” said Crater head coach Seth Womack. “Last year, we got better as the year went in and our kids started figuring out how to win and how to do things the right way. When our backs were against the wall tonight, this team last year may not have been able to pull that win off. But with the experience they gained last year, we were able to do the right things and find a way.”

Crater opened the scoring with about four minutes to go in the first quarter when quarterback Ben Higginson faked a reverse handoff to draw the secondary in and then sailed a pass downfield to a wide-open Jaxson Godley for a 61-yard touchdown. Rodriguez followed with a two-point conversion to make it 8-0.

“We did a good job of faking that and going through the steps on that,” said Womack of the TD. “We’ve been working that all week and kind of felt like that’s what would probably happen the first time we ran it. They executed it exactly how it’s supposed to.”

And if ever Godley was going to have an easy scoring chance, that was it after finding no one near him while the ball floated in the air.

“Sometimes those are the tough ones,” Womack said with a laugh, “because they’ve got to sit underneath that thing and just wait for it, and that’s kind of what he did. Those can be kind of scary.”

Hooper stepped in front of a Higginson pass toward the flat intended for Will Maddox and returned the interception 75 yards for a score to help Marshfield (0-1) pull even at 8-all about three minutes into the second quarter.

The teams then traded short-yardage touchdown runs by Rodriguez and Tice in a three-minute span before Rodriguez put his team over the top with a 3-yard score with about 50 seconds remaining in the first half. Another two-point conversion by Rodriguez left the lead at 22-16 at the break, and neither team would advance on that in the second half.

“He’s a terrific running back,” Womack said of Rodriguez, who unofficially eclipsed 100 yards rushing. “He’s a big, physical kid and does things that guys his size at the high school level sometimes can’t do. He hits the crease and he finds an open spot and he’s fun to watch.”

Crater 8 14 0 0 — 22

Marshfield 0 16 0 0 — 16

C — Jax. Godley 61 pass from Higginson (V. Rodriguez run)

M — Hooper 75 interception return (Hooper pass from Thornton)

C — V. Rodriguez 3 run (run failed)

M — Tice 1 run (Fox run)

C — V. Rodriguez 3 run (V. Rodriguez run)

CENTRAL 42, EAGLE POINT 0: At Independence, Eagle Point was unable to generate much consistent offense in a season-opening road loss.

Easton Raber led the Eagles (0-1) with 47 yards rushing on five carries, while Peyton Smith toted the ball eight times for 32 yards. Quarterback Mason DeVry completed 1 of 4 passes for 5 yards and one interception.