POCATELLO — Following their first defeat of the season — a decisive 31-7 drubbing at the hands of their crosstown rival Highland Rams — a matchup against the winless Idaho Falls Tigers was just what the doctor ordered for the Pocatello Indians.

Indians quarterback Zach Park continued his sensational season, tossing three touchdown passes and adding a fourth touchdown on the ground to help Poky slough off a slow start on its way to a 32-6 victory over 5A Idaho Falls at Iron Horse Stadium on Friday night.

“I’m really proud of everybody,” Indians head coach Dave Spillett said after the game. “It was a night where we were able to get everyone on the field and create a lot of excitement.”

Park and receiver Matt Christensen hit their stride early, connecting for a 16-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter. It was the just the first of three TD hookups for the dynamic duo in the contest.

Park finished the game an efficient 18 of 25 for 195 yards with three touchdowns and one interception, adding 55 rushes and a touchdown on 10 carries.

Despite two red-zone trips in the second quarter and thoroughly dominating the time-of-possession battle, the Indians led just 10-0 at halftime.

Whatever halftime adjustments Spillett made worked like a charm, as Pocatello found the end zone thrice in the third quarter, twice on Park-to-Christensen throws and once on a Park rush. The defense matched the offense stride for stride, forcing two turnovers in the third frame.

“We had a lot of penalties that prevented us from (sustaining) drives early, but the third quarter was big for us,” Spillett said.

Also big for the Indians was freshman phenom Ryken Echohawk. Echohawk read his blocks perfectly, gaining huge chunks of yardage more often than not. Running with the patience and decisiveness of a much more seasoned back, Echohawk seemingly alternated between winning the race to the edge of the field and fighting defenders to gain extra yards and suddenly jump-cutting back inside, welcoming contact.

He finished with 91 yards on 15 carries.

“He’s a special back who’s able to do a lot of things that other kids of any age can’t do,” Spillett said. “He’s not just a speed guy, he’s much stronger than he looks and he can run inside the tackles too.”

Pocatello’s defense turned Idaho Falls over three times, helping the Indian offense fully dominate time of possession. Tigers starting quarterback Skyler Olsen was a dismal 3 for 9 for six yards and two interceptions. Sylier Balangue led the Tigers with 34 rushing yards on seven carries.

Pocatello will stay at the “home” confines of Iron Horse Stadium next week, where the Indians will take on the 2-3 Burley Bobcats.

POCATELLO 32, IDAHO FALLS 6

Idaho Falls 0 0 0 6 – 6

Pocatello 7 3 19 3 – 32

First Quarter

POC – Matt Christensen 16-yard pass from Zach Park (Jensen kick), 1:56

Second Quarter

POC – Kade Jensen 18-yard field goal, 5:41

Third Quarter

POC – Zach Park 19-yard rush (kick failed), 8:55

POC – Matt Christensen pass from Zach Park (Jensen kick), 4:24

POC – Matt Christensen pass from Zach Park (kick blocked), 0:55

Fourth Quarter

POC — Kade Jensen 38-yard field goal, 8:26

IF – Hunter Miller 4-yard pass from Tyler Elison, (kick failed) :02

Individual Stats

Passing – Idaho Falls: Skyler Olsen 3-9-6-0-2, Hunter Miller 1-1-7-0-0, Tyler Elison 2-3-32-1-0. Pocatello: Zach Park 18-25-195-3-1, Dayton Rice 0-1-0-0-0.

Rushing – Idaho Falls: Sylier Balangue 7-34, Davon Steverson 4-26, Hunter Miller 2-20, Skyler Olsen 2-2. Pocatello: Ryken Echohawk 15-91, Zach Park 10-55-1, Ryan Payne 2-18, Chance Crittenden 1-5, Matt Christiansen 1-(-1), Kaden Yearsley 2-(-1).

Receiving – Idaho Falls: Hunter Miller 2-3-1, Beau Anderson 3-40, Jackson Baker 1-(-2). Pocatello: Matt Christensen 5-79-3, Ryan Payne 5-49, Casey Bruner 2-44, Krue Hales 1-14, Hunter Killian 1-7, Noah Marley 1-0, Ryken Echohawk 2-(-7).