Lake Stevens High School Athletics
Grante Falls High School Athletics
Purple and Gold Pigskin

 

Lake Stevens did what it needed to do —it beat Stanwood at Lake last Friday 28-7 to nail down third place in Wesco North’s final standings.

   The win kept Lake alive in the state playoff race.  The Vikings, who finished the regular season at 6-2 overall and 3-2 in Wesco North, host Mariner, Wesco South number three finisher, this Friday in a winner advances, loser is out Wesco crossover contest.

   Lake played an efficient overall game against one-dimensional Stanwood (1-4 in Wesco North, 1-7 overall), whose ball-control rushing game used up lots of clock and kept Lake from turning the game into a blowout.

   In a statistical oddity, Lake was held to a net of minus 10 yards in the first and third quarters combined, but netted 229 yards in quarters two and four.

   Even though Lake’s offense sputtered early, it still managed to post a 7-0 lead in the first quarter thanks to Duke Dolphin’s 86-yard punt return for a touchdown, just shy of the school record 88-yarder in that department.
   Meanwhile, the Viking defense forced Stanwood into three-and-out punts on all four of the Spartans’ first quarter possessions.

   Lake extended that to six consecutive Stanwood three-and-out punts before the Spartans finally gained a first down late in the second quarter—a “drive” that ended with Bryson Daggett’s sack of Stanwood quarterback Kyle Strachan for a four-yard loss on fourth down as the half came to an end.  That was one of three QB sacks by Daggett (Josh Berg also had one for the Vikings).

   Lake’s best quarter was the second, where it outgained the Spartans by 164 yards to 13, during which time Jake Nelson connected with Christian Gasca for touchdown passes of 28 and four yards for a 21-0 Viking lead at intermission.  Shawn Morgan kicked all four of Lake’s PAT conversions for the game.

   Lake was lethargic in the third quarter where it ran just seven plays for minus-10 yards.  But it was Stanwood’s best quarter of the game, as it launched a 12-play, 37-yard touchdown drive, all on the ground (Woody Hayes would have been so proud).  The march began when the Spartans blocked a Dolphin punt, taking over on the Viking 37.  Stanwood averted the shutout on Devin Wooldridge’s four-yard touchdown on fourth and goal.  Sam Harris added the PAT to cut the gap to 21-7.

   Stanwood threatened to make a game of it early in the fourth quarter when, on a “flea-flicker” halfback pass Joshua James hit Jordan Taylor for a 36-yard gain to the Viking 33.  Short running gains advanced the ball to the Viking 15 but on fourth down on the 20 Daggett sacked Strachan for a nine-yard loss.

   Lake then put the game away with a 71-yard, nine-play touchdown drive featuring a 22-yard gain by Nelson, a 15-yard roughing the passer penalty against Stanwood, Nelson’s fourth-down nine-yard pass to Gasca for a first down on the seven.  Nelson scored on the next play, when he fumbled but the ball bounced directly back to him and he scooted around the left side for a diving touchdown (nice blocks by Cody Tupen and Gunnar Eklund).  That ended the game’s scoring at 28-7, with 3:30 left.

   Kevin Lanto’s interception, which he returned 36 yards to the Stanwood 36, came just 22 seconds before the end.
   Dolphin finished with 68 yards in 14 carries, Nelson with 84 yards in 13 carries.  Nelson threw just nine passes, completing five (with no interceptions) for 58 yards. 

   Stanwood completed two of its three passes for 38 yards, with one interception.
    Lake outgained the Spartans overall by 219-129.

    Viking middle linebacker Korey Young had a dominating game, being credited for 24 tackles (just two short of the team record).  Young now has 115 tackles for the season.

    Eklund had 11 tackles, Daggett, Berg, Brandon Belcher and Tupen had nine each.