HANNIBAL — Coming off back-to-back lop-sided losses, River knew what was ahead of Friday night when Ohio 7 rival Bridgeport came to town.

Fueled by a tenacious, ballhawking defense and a quick-striking offense, the Pilots (4-4) put up 53 first-half points en route to navigating their way past the Bulldogs, 60-6, on the artificial surface at Martin Flannery Field. The entire second half was played with a running clock under the OHSAA 30-point mercy rule.

River held Bridgeport to 38 yards of offense and the Pilots found the end zone eight times in the first 24 minutes.

“You’ve gotta be able to come into games like this and finish things … not let anybody hang around where bad things can happen,” veteran River head coach Mike Flannery said after watching his team pile up nearly 500 yards in total offense. “The kids knew what they had to do tonight.

“Our defense played exceptional tonight, but that’s what we had to do,” Flannery noted. “You want to make sure that your No. 1s get their reps.”

Two of River’s first-half touchdowns came from that defensive unit. Brody Longwell went high in the air to pick off a Colin Jackson pass late in the first quarter. The sophomore then weaved his way through traffic, found the near sidelines and went untouched 88 yards to paydirt.

Midway through the second quarter and the Pilots holding a 32-0 advantage, a bad snap sailed over Jackson’s head and bounced inside the 5 where it was batted around by River’s Chase Lawrence before the junior corralled it in the end zone for six points.

River rushed the ball 28 times for 278 yards and five touchdowns. Junior speedster Michael Johnson only carried the ball twice but picked up 134 yards, scoring on a 69-yard scamper. He also had a 65-yard run where he stepped out at the 2, which allowed senior Colton Lawrence to reach the end zone a carry later. Senior Carter Dennis had a pair of TD runs from 13 and 2 yards, while freshman Ty Long ran in from 5 yards out. Senior offensive lineman Heath Rosen also had a 7-yard scoring run.

Freshman Brody Lollathin accounted for the other TD when he teamed with junior Jake Rose on a halfback pass that covered 61 yards.

Sophomore Zack Hocutt nailed six PATs.

Stone Thompson was an effective 7-for-10 passing for 137 yards. Rose landed two passes for 82 yards and the aforementioned TD. Colton Lawrence also caught a pair of aerials for 69 stripes.

Bridgeport’s lone bright spot came from running back Cayden Williams who gained 130 stripes on 19 carries. He scored on a 38-yard run in the fourth quarter. The Bulldogs finished with 126 yards in total offense.

“He’s a tough kid. Just a sophomore, he’s going to be a good one here in a couple of years,” Bridgeport head coach Fred Ray assessed of the 6-0, 175-pound Williams. “He did a good job running the ball tonight. We’re still moving people around and had four sophomores in there at times There’s still growing pains, but we’ll be pretty good in a year or two.”

“Bridgeport is a young football team. (Head coach) Freddy (Ray) is doing a great job. I know what he’s going through. I’ve been with small numbers, so I know what he is struggling with. I wish him the best of luck. For the numbers he has, he’s doing a good job. The one thing about Bridgeport is that they never gave up.”

The Bulldogs (1-7) remain on the road at Shadyside next week. River, meanwhile, host Caldwell on Senior Night before trekking to Beaverton to meet a pretty good Frontier squad in the regular-season finale.

“We know what lies ahead of us. It’s up to us to finish the season strong,” Flannery said.