The Siuslaw Vikings football team is going to the playoffs.

Friday, the Vikings wrapped up no worse than a third-place finish in 3A District 2 North with a 32-0 victory over La Pine at Hans Petersen Memorial Field.

Siuslaw is 6-2 overall and 3-1 in league, with a game next Friday at Sutherlin to wrap up the regular season.

Sutherlin also is 6-2 and 3-1, so the winner of the Siuslaw-Sutherlin game will get the league's No. 2 seed at state and the loser the No. 3 seed.

Sutherlin matched Siuslaw's record at 6-2 and 3-1 Friday with a 54-21 victory at Pleasant Hill.

League-leader Santiam Christian, 8-0 and 4-0, beat Harrisburg, 43-22.

Pleasant Hill and Harrisburg are each 1-3 in league and La Pine 0-4, and all three have been eliminated from playoff contention.

Friday, Siuslaw junior quarterback Elijah Blankenship threw for two touchdowns and ran for two more.

The Vikings broke open the game with a three-TD explosion over five minutes in the second quarter, Blankenship scoring on runs of 7 and 10 yards and tossing a 28-yard scoring strike to sophomore Camp Lacouture.

Defensively, sophomore Braydon Thornton had three interceptions, including one at the end of the game that was returned 88 yards for a touchdown.

Thornton's return was the third-longest in school history. Colin Cram-Watkins had a 100-yard return in 2003 against Klamath Union and Scott Gordon a 90-yard return in 2015 against Douglas.

Scoring from play-by-play by Coast Radio's Bob Sneddon
LA PINE      0     0     0     0    —   0
SIUSLAW    8    18    0     6   —  32
First quarter
Siuslaw — Rhys Fleming 8-yard pass from Elijah Blankenship (Camp Lacouture run), 8:06
Second quartter
Siuslaw — Camp Lacouture 28-yard pass from Elijah Blankenship (run failed), 6:18
Siuslaw — Elijah Blankenship 7-yard run (run failed), 4:21
Siuslaw — Elijah Blankenship 10-yard run (run failed), 1:05
Third quarter
No scoring
Fourth quarter
Siuslaw — Braydon Thornton 88-yard interception return (try failed), :08

3A FOOTBALL 16-TEAM BRACKET
Automatic Qualifiers: Fifteen teams automatically qualify for the OSAA's 16-team bracket based on regular season and/or special district tournament play on or before Saturday, November 2. Each special district determines how they will select their allotted playoff spots.

• Special District 1 has six qualifiers determined by the top two teams from each division filling four of their automatic qualifiers. The remaining two spots will be determined by the next two highest ranked teams not already an automatic division qualifier.
• Special District 2 (which includes Siuslaw) has six qualifiers determined by the top three teams from each division.
• Special District 3 has three qualifiers determined by the top three teams in their Special District.

Rankings Freeze Date: The rankings will freeze at 10pm on Saturday, Nov. 2.

At-Large Qualifier: One additional team will qualify for the OSAA's 16-team bracket based on the OSAA rankings. Once the rankings are frozen, the highest ranked team not already an automatic special district qualifier will qualify as the At-Large team.

2019 SIUSLAW VIKINGS SCHEDULE
Friday, Sept. 6 — at Elmira 30, Siuslaw 26
Friday, Sept. 13 — Siuslaw 28, at Philomath 19
Friday, Sept. 20 — at Siuslaw 42, Newport 20
Saturday, Sept. 28 — Siuslaw 48, McLoughlin 46, at Madras High School
Friday, Oct. 4 — at Siuslaw 64, Harrisburg 8
Friday, Oct. 11 — at Santiam Christian 50, Siuslaw 15, Adair Village
Friday, Oct. 18 — at Siuslaw 44, Pleasant Hill 15
Friday, Oct. 25 — at Siuslaw 32, La Pine 0
Friday, Nov. 1 — at Sutherlin, 7 p.m.

SIUSLAW VIKINGS STATISTICS
Compiled by Sam Johnson
vs. Elmira, Sept. 6, at Elmira
PASSING — Elijah Blankenship 12-20-215-0, 1 TD.
RUSHING — Camp Lacouture 18-131, TD; Hector Garcia 20-102; Elijah Blankenship 11-101, TD.
RECEIVING — Brady Thornton 7-124; Isaac Garza 3-77; Rhys Fleming 2-14, TD.
vs. Philomath, Sept. 13, at Philomath
PASSING — Elijah Blankenship 20-32-318-0, 2 TDs; Camp Lacouture 1-1-5-1, TD.
RUSHING — Elijah Blankenship 14-129; Hector Garcia 14-59, TD; Camp Lacouture 8-48; Braydon Thornton 2-3.
RECEIVING — Braydon Thornton 9-145, 2 TDs; Camp Lacouture 5-75; Isaac Garza 1-65; Brady Libby 4-29, TD; Rhys Fleming 2-9.
vs. Newport, Sept. 20, at Hans Petersen Memorial Field
PASSING — Elijah Blankenship 23-31-337-0, 2 TDs; Camp Lacouture 1-1-41-0, 1 TD.
RUSHING — Camp Lacouture 15-101, 1 TD; Elijah Blankenship 11-75, 3 TDs; Hector Garcia 14-65; Braydon Thornton 1-2.
RECEIVING — Braydon Thornton 14-237, 3 TDs; Camp Lacouture 5-84; Brady Libby 3-19; Rhys Fleming 1-27; Avery Hart 1-11.
vs. McLoughlin, Sept. 28, at Madras High School
PASSING — Elijah Blankenship 5-10-76-1, TD.
RUSHING — Camp Lacouture 21-251, 4 TDs; Elijah Blankenship 11-85; Hector Garcia 5-45.
RECEIVING — Braydon Thornton 3-57, TD; Rhys Fleming 2-19.
vs. Harrisburg, Oct. 4, at Hans Petersen Memorial Field
PASSING — Elijah Blankenship 16-21-339-0, 4 TDs.
RUSHING — Camp Lacouture 21-154, 3 TDs; Hector Garcia 10-38, TD; Elijah Blankenship 8-71; Odin Smith 4-16, TD; Braydon Thornton 3-30; Beau Erickson 3-12; Brady Libby 2-8; Ian Sissel 1-5.
RECEIVING — Braydon Thornton 13-307, 4 TDs; Isaac Garza 2-24; Camp Lacouture 1-8.
vs. Santiam Christian, Oct. 11, at Adair Village
PASSING — Elijah Blankenship 8-20-159, 1 TD.
RUSHING — Elijah Blankenship 15-68; Camp Lacouture 20-134, 1 TD; Braydon Thornton 2-4; Brady Libby 1-1; Hector Garcia 11-47.
RECEIVING — Brady Thornton 1-84, TD; Rhys Fleming 3-52; Isaac Garza 1-5; Camp Lacouture 3-18.
vs. Pleasant Hill, Oct. 18, at Hans Petersen Memorial Field
PASSING — Elijah Blankenship 12-21-249, 2 TDs; Braydon Thornton 1-1-16, 1 TD.
RUSHING – Elijah Blankenship 13-123, 1 TD; Camp Lacouture 9-47; Hector Garcia 14-70; Braydon Thornton 1-5, 1 TD; Odin Smith 1-55; Beau Erickson 1-6, 1 TD.
RECEIVING – Braydon Thornton 2-74, 1 TD; Isaac Garza 1-17; Rhys Fleming 3-23, 1 TD; Camp Lacouture 5-127; Brady Libby 2-24, 1 TD.
vs. La Pine, Oct. 25, at Hans Petersen Memorial Field
Not yet available

2019 SIUSLAW VIKINGS ROSTER
  1 TE/LB Rhys Fleming, sophomore, 6-3, 170
  3 QB/S Elijah Blankenship, junior, 5-8, 170
  5 RB/LB Camp Lacouture, sophomore, 6-0, 170
  7 RB/LB Ian Sissel, freshman, 5-10, 160
  8 WR/CB Braydon Thornton, sophomore, 6-2, 170
  9 TE/DE Avery Hart, sophomore, 6-3, 220
10 QB/S Beau Erickson, sophomore, 5-8, 140
11 WR/S Brady Libby, junior, 5-8, 170
12 RB/LB Hector Garcia, junior, 5-10, 175
13 RB/CB Hunter Petterson, freshman, 5-6, 140
14 RB/LB Mason Buss, freshman, 5-6, 130
15 WR/CB Jake Roberts, freshman, 5-8, 140
15 TE/DE Noah Dotson, freshman, 5-10, 160
22 RB/DB Odin Smith, freshman, 5-8, 150
23 WR/CB James Smith, sophomore, 5-11, 160
26 WR/LB Tyrone Krohn, junior, 5-10, 150
33 RB/LB Skyler Loomis, junior, 5-10, 170
41 WR/CB Jason Garcia, sophomore, 5-8, 150
50 OL/DL Joe Slaughter, sophomore, 5-9, 170
51 OL/DL Henry Rankin, sophomore, 6-0, 220
53 OL/LB Ethan Aaron, sophomore, 5-9, 170
54 OL/DL Julian Loftis, freshman, 6-2, 200
56 OL/DL John Corser, sophomore, 5-9, 180
62 OL/DL Isaiah Jones, senior, 6-0, 180
64 OL/LB Christian Newlan, junior, 5-11, 200
66 OL/DL Matthew Horillo, senior, 5-10, 240
68 OL/DE Dayson Foglio, senior, 6-5, 240
70 OL/DL Tristan Stewart, freshman, 6-2, 170
76 OL/DL Zach Stinger, senior, 5-10, 220
78 OL/DL David Spencer, senior, 6-2, 330
80 OL/LB Victor Ayala, freshman, 5-8, 200
84 WR/CB Isaac Garza, sophomore, 6-0, 160
87 OL/DL Ricky Loza, senior, 5-8, 170
87 WR/CB Colin Leland, junior, 6-0, 160
88 TE/DE John Rose, freshman, 6-3, 200
89 WR/DB Izaac Mattson, sophomore, 6-0, 140
Head coach: Sam Johnson (first year)
Assistant coaches: Andy Johnson, Billy Jones, Bob Teter, Dennis Davidson, Gerald Fleming, Jeff Gray, Nick Johnson, Tom Shinn.

OSAA Class 3A Special District 2 North Schedule
Friday, Oct. 4
at Siuslaw 64, Harrisburg 8
Sutherlin 29, at La Pine 28
at Santiam Christian 63, Pleasant Hill 20
Thursday, Oct. 10
Sutherlin 45, at Harrisburg 7
Friday, Oct. 11
at Santiam Christian 50, Siuslaw 15
at Pleasant Hill 21, La Pine 0
Friday, Oct. 18
at Siuslaw 44, Pleasant Hill 15
Harrisburg at La Pine
Santiam Christian 43, at Sutherlin 7
Friday, Oct. 25
at Siuslaw 32, La Pine 0
at Santiam Christian 43, Harrisburg 22
Sutherlin 54, at Pleasant Hill 21
Friday, Nov. 1
Siuslaw at Sutherlin, 7 p.m.
Pleasant Hill at Harrisburg, 7 p.m.
Santiam Christian at La Pine, 7 p.m.

SO WHO WILL THE VIKINGS PLAY IN PLAYOFFS?

The question no longer is if the Siuslaw Vikings will make the playoffs.

The question now is who they will play. And when. And where.

The Vikings remained at No. 12 Saturday in the Oregon School Activities Association Class 3A rankings after clinching a playoff berth Friday with a 32-0 victory over La Pine.

League members Santiam Christian and Sutherlin also have clinched playoff berths, with No. 2-ranked Santiam Christian the Special District 2 North's top seed.

Siuslaw travels to Sutherlin this coming Friday, with the winner earning the league's No. 2 seed and the loser assured the No. 3 seed.

If the season ended today, the Vikings would be heading to No. 5 Amity (6-2), a Special District 1 West team located just south of McMinnville.

The 16-team state playoff is scheduled for Friday and Saturday, Nov. 8 and 9, with the top eight-ranked teams hosting games.

Rankings freeze at 10 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 2.

Current rankings are online at http://www.osaa.org/activities/fbl/rankings

TRIVIA QUESTION: Before Friday, when was the last shutout by a Siuslaw Vikings football team? (Answer below)

Possible first-round pairings, based on current rankings

• No. 18 Scio at No. 1 Hidden Valley
• No. 16 Nyssa at No. 2 Santiam Christian
• No. 14 Umatilla at No. 3 Clatskanie
• No. 13 Madras at No. 4 Yamhill-Carlton
• No. 12 Siuslaw at No. 5 Amity
• No. 11 St. Mary's, Medford at No. 6 Rainier
• No. 10 Sutherlin at No. 7 Burns
• No. 9 Cascade Christian at No. 8 Vale

3A FOOTBALL PLAYOFF GLANCE
Rank as of 5 a.m. Saturday (Oct. 25), team, season record (Nov. 1 opponent)
Special District 1
Top 2 from each division plus next 2 highest ranked
East
No. 4 Yamhill-Carlton, 8-0 (vs. Blanchet Catholic)
No. 13 Madras, 5-3 (at Salem Academy)
West
No. 3 Clatskanie, 6-2 (at Willamina)
No. 5 Amity, 6-2 (vs. Dayton)
Next 2
No. 6 Rainier, 6-2 (vs. Taft)
No. 18 Scio, 4-4 (at Corbett)
Special District 2
Top 3 from each division
North
No. 2 Santiam Christian, 8-0 (at La Pine)
No. 10 Sutherlin, 6-2 (vs. Siuslaw)
No. 12 Siuslaw, 6-2 (at Sutherlin)
South
No. 1 Hidden Valley, 7-0 (vs. Brookings-Harbor)
No. 9 Cascade Christian, 7-1 (vs. St. Mary's, Medford)
No. 11 St. Mary's, Medford 6-2 (at Cascade Christian)
Special District 3
Top 3
No. 7 Burns, 8-0 (vs. Vale)
No. 8 Vale, 5-3 (at Burns)
No. 16 Nyssa, 5-3 (finished regular season)
At-large qualifier
Highest-ranking remaining team
No. 14 Umatilla, 4-3 (vs. Irrigon)
Outside looking in
No. 15 Brookings-Harbor, 6-2 (at Hidden-Valley)
No. 17 Pleasant Hill, 3-5 (at Harrisburg)

TRIVIA ANSWER: Five years ago. Siuslaw beat Marshfield 14-0 in a state 4A play-in game at Coos Bay on Oct. 31 (yes, Halloween!), 2014.