ROYAL CITY — The Royal Knights (5-0) pitched a shutout Saturday with a 60-0 win over the Kiona-Benton Bears.

“The kids were ready to play and we knew we were probably stronger than them up front, and that carried over to the rest of the team because on the defensive line and offensive line, we were able to dominate up front,” Head Coach Wiley Allred said.  

The Knights were explosive in the first quarter, putting up 26 points in all three phases of the game. They continued to build on their early successes in the second with three more scores to take a 47-0 lead at halftime. Things slowed down in the second half as the depth players got to come into the game, and the Knights added two more scores across the third and fourth quarters to seal the road win.  

What allowed the Knights to hit the ground running starts with the efforts of the offensive and defensive linemen, Allred said.  

“Guys like Krew Jenks at nose (tackle), and then Orlando Santillan and Ernie Weeks up front just set the tone on defense. The first play we got a pick six with Dax Jenks, and that just set it up,” the coach said.  

Multiple Knights made an impact on all sides of the ball on Saturday. Dax Jenks, the team’s explosive running back last season, added to his dynamic play by racking up an interception and two punt returns for a touchdown and a combined 104 yards.  

“He's a heck of a football player, and he's so versatile,” Allred said. “We can put him at receiver, and with Jackson Flood playing most of the reps at running back, it just gives us freedom to use Dax in different ways. He's going to make plays on defense, special teams, receiver (and) running back. He'll get some time there; we just get to see his versatility.” 

Quarterback Grant Wardenaar completed 5-of-5 passes for 123 yards and a touchdown, which went to Fischer Livinston for 41-yards in the second quarter.  

Before he was on the receiving end of a deep shot, Livingston dished one out to open the Knights offensive attack, Allred said. On their first offensive snap, the Knights executed a double pass play which saw Livingston heave the ball to Scout Stevenson for a 68-yard touchdown.  

“We thought we might as well just open with a double pass, and he's very comfortable throwing the ball,” said the coach. “He would make a great quarterback. He, along with Dax, is just so athletic and versatile. He doesn't need warmups to throw the ball or be accurate. The ball was right on the money down the field. He makes it look easy, and as well as other things he does. He had a good game defensively as well; he blew up a couple of blocks and made tackles and made some nice reads on defense as well.” 

Catching most of Wardenaar’s passes was Tyce Christensen with 3-receptions for 72 yards. Allred emphasized his impact as one of his players who doesn’t always get the attention he might deserve.  

“Our outside backers are Tyce and then also David Jimenez and Easton Eilers. All three of those guys just have really come on. They're all seniors, and they've all worked really hard. They're having a great season. They're doing a great job on the outside and outside linebacker for us,” he said.  

Rounding out the Knights' explosive offense is Flood, who carried the ball six times for 110 yards and two touchdowns, one of which went for 80-yards. While last season Jenks led the running backs room, Flood has brought his own wrinkle to add to the dynamic run game of Royal.  

“He's really quick, twitchy and just elusive, strong and fast,” Allred said. “Dax – he's just a smooth runner. They’ve got completely different running styles, but Jackson has had a phenomenal offseason, and we kind of saw it coming, and just forced us to get them both on the field. Along with Fisher Livingston, Tyce Christensen, Manny Ruvalcaba and Scout Stevenson have come along too. We've got lots of good opportunities to get guys in different formations onto the field, whether he's a tight end or not, things like that.” 

On defense, the Knights linemen brought the physicality which opened opportunities for the secondary to feed. In addition to Jenks’ pick-six, Stevenson and Jose Acevedo recorded interceptions while Dalton Goodman recovered a fumble to help keep the ball in the Knights hands.  

“It also creates a lot of three-and-outs, so we get the ball back quickly. Obviously, that's just old-fashioned football. If you win the war up front, you're going to win most games and those guys are just doing a really good job,” Allred said.  

Acevedo joined the Knights this season, formerly playing for the Wahluke Warriors. Since joining the team, he’s come along nicely, said the coach.  

“He fits right in,” Allred said. “He's very coachable and just wants to learn our system and get better, and so we started him on defense this week, and he can roll in on offense at times as well. He's a good football player and just really willing to do whatever is necessary to get on the field. He had a couple of team tackles on special teams as well, so he's been awesome. His attitude's been great.” 

Royal returns to their home field on Friday at 7 p.m. when they host Naches Valley. With back-to-back shutout wins over Zillah and Kiona-Benton, things feel like they’re trending in the right direction for Allred and the Knights.  

“We're trying to get as much film as we can in these next few weeks with some of the games we've got,” Allred said. “Physically we should be dominating those teams a little bit. But we want to continue to work hard, get better, and focus on what we can improve.” 

BOX SCORE: 

ROYL: 26-21-6-7: 60 

KBTN: 0-0-0-0: 0

    Manny Ruvalcaba (8) and Scout Stevenson (21) celebrate in the endzone during their game against Cashmere earlier this season. Stevenson caught a 68-yard touchdown against Kiona-Benton on Saturday.
  

    The Knights’ Dax Jenks (6) tosses the ball back to an official after scoring a touchdown against Cashmere earlier this season. Jenks recorded a pick-6 and scored on two punt returns against Kiona-Benton.
  

    Jackson Flood (33) jukes a Cashmere defender in the open field. Flood ran for 110 yards on six carries against Kiona-Benton on Saturday.