White River High played its third straight close game Friday night and, to the delight of Hornet fans, picked up a second league victory.

With a 17-14 road win over the Franklin Pierce Cardinals, White River improved its South Puget Sound League 2A record to 2-2 and moved to 3-3 overall.

During the Hornets’ past three games the margin of victory has been a grand total of 11 points. Following a tough 28-26 loss at Orting, White River posted a 20-14 victory at Fife prior to Friday’s win.

To earn the victory over the Cardinals, White River received points from its offense, defense and special teams.

The  Hornets jumped on the scoreboard first, thanks to a short touchdown run by Keenan Fagan, then added a two-point conversion on a pass from kicker Dustin France to tight end Scott Anderson. The first-quarter fireworks continued when Xavier Russell scooped up a Cardinal fumble and jetted 22 yards for a second Hornet TD.

Franklin Pierce made it close with a touchdown in the second quarter, then tied the contest with another in the fourth period.

White River tacked on its winning points when France was good on a 32-yard field goal.

It’s now Homecoming Week on the White River High campus and the  Hornets will help he celebration with a home game Friday night against the Clover Park Warriors. Clover Park also is 3-3 overall and 2-2 in SPSL 2A play. The Warriors are coming off a 22-14 loss to Washington High.