A new scoreboard got plenty of use Friday for the third-ranked team in the state.
Tigard, which christened the scoreboard minutes before the first round of the OSAA Class 6A state playoffs, used a pivotal second-half scoring barrage en route to a 56-21 home win against Sprague.
Sprague (5-5) played well in the first half, thanks to a 73-yard touchdown run by Devvon Gage and a 10-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Jon Schaub to Austin Johnson, and found itself down just 21-14.
However, the Tigers (10-0), a team that leads the state in scoring at 49.5 points per game, used three touchdowns in the third quarter to end Sprague's season. The Tigers outscored the Olympians 35-7 in the second half.
"They came out with a purpose in the second half, and we didn't adjust to the speed of what they were trying to do," Sprague coach Robin Hill said.
"They got physical and even though our kids were giving it their best shot, (Tigard) made the plays they needed to make and made the adjustments they needed to make.
"That's a sign of a well-coached team with a lot of good athletes."
Tigard opened the second half with a six-play, 74-yard drive that ended with Zach Floyd's 8-yard touchdown run with 9:31 to play in the third quarter. From there, Tigard had its way with Sprague.
The Tigers forced a three-and-out on Sprague's following possession and capitalized with a 3-yard touchdown run by Kaz Greene with 8:04 left. Sprague trailed 35-14.
After a failed fourth-down conversion attempt by the Olympians, Tigard receiver Brandon Wick hauled in a 25-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Niko Freni with 1:23 left in the third to boost Tigard's lead to 42-14.
"They're a good team, I'll give them that," said Gage, who finished with 13 rushes for 121 yards and a touchdown. "We knew that coming in, but the second half just went down for us.
"We didn't do our jobs, couldn't get the offense started and couldn't get back into the flow of the game."
Sprague seemed to have life in the fourth quarter when Schaub hit John Marshall for a 34-yard touchdown pass with 11:20 remaining, but Tigard bounced back with a score of its own when Freni hit Wick for a 25-yard touchdown pass.
Tigard offensive lineman Jeremy Moore fell on a fumble in the end zone for Tigard's final touchdown with 7:33 to play.
"I was proud of our kids, though," Hill said. "They hung in there the whole time and made it interesting for awhile. We just couldn't keep up with the amount of playmakers they had.
"They execute at a very high level, and I thought our defense played very well at times, but they have a lot of good football players on that side of the ball."
Schaub finished 5 for 17 for 103 yards and two touchdown passes. Taylor Page rushed for 36 yards for the Olympians.
Tigard running back Benny Wick rushed 22 times for 148 yards and two touchdowns.
Despite the loss, Hill said he felt good about how the Olympians played. Before Friday's game, Sprague had won four of its past five games after a 1-3 start.
"From the beginning of the season to where we are now, our kids grew up a lot and came a long ways from earlier in the season," he said.