BY MAKAYLA SPARKS – For Whatcom Preps
LYNDEN – Not one, not two, not three, but four. That’s the number of school records that senior running back Chris Kooiman broke as he helped Lynden Christian defeat Meridian 48-18 on Friday night.
LC got things going quickly, scoring on its first drive when Kooiman rambled for an 18-yard touchdown and took the early 7-0 lead.
Meridian responded with a 27-yard rushing touchdown from senior quarter Trey Alexander. To keep the momentum going, the Trojans kicked an onside kick on the ensuing kickoff and junior Mason Simmons fell on top it, giving Meridian possession again.
But it wouldn’t last. Lyncs sophomore defensive back Will Macomber stepped in front of Meridian’s pass on the next play and raced 49 yards and deep into Trojan territory. Senior running back Chris Kooiman followed it up with a 3-yard score and the Lyncs pushed to a 13-6 lead.
With twenty seconds left in the first quarter, Alexander pulled down an LC pass attempt and headed the other direction with it. However, it was still the Lyncs striking first in the second quarter as Kooiman raced 49 yards for his third score of the night and the two score lead for LC.
His touchdown broke the school record for career rushing touchdowns, which was held for 29 years by Greg Dykstra.
Lyncs linebacker Gavin VanLoo got in on the interception party with three and half minutes left in the first half and Alexander returned the favor for Meridian, grabbing his second interception a minute later.
In the third quarter, things calmed down some but the Lyncs did get into the endzone yet again. Hintz powered in from a yard out to make the score 28-6. His touchdown run was set up by a 34-yard run by Kooiman, and during the run he broke his second school record of the day by surpassing Lance Bosman as the school’s all-time leading rusher. Bosman’s school record stood for 31 years.
Two seconds into the final quarter, the Lyncs scored on another 1 yard rush, this time from sophomore running back Mason Berendsen.
From there, things get cranked back up. Alexander connected with Trojan senior receiver Kayson Culp on a 50 yard pass and score.
Kooiman then picked up his fourth rushing touchdown of the night from seven yards away.
Alexander responded with an 80-yard rushing touchdown to pick up his third touchdown of the game, which left him with 180 yards rushing on the night.
Kooiman also had a 46-yard run on his final carry of the game, and by doing so, he broke his third school record of the game as he finished with 286 yards on the night. The previous record was also held by Bosman, who ran for 242 yards in a game against King’s in 1995.
Even so, the Lyncs weren’t done, as junior quarterback Kellen Blankers hit senior tight end Justin Kuik on a six yard touchdown with just over six and half minutes left in the game.
Sophomore defensive back Grant Adams sealed the deal for the Lyncs as he picked up two interceptions in the final three minutes and five seconds of the game. His first was on the one yard line and his second was inside the endzone with only six seconds on the clock.
Once the game was over, Kooiman’s fourth school record was officially established by averaging 17.9 yards per carry in the game. The previous record was held by Kade Eldridge who averaged 16.2 yards per carry in a 2021 stats playoff game against Tenino.
Also, the Lyncs as a team established a new school record by rushing for 441 yards. The only other time that Lynden Christian surpassed 400 yards rushing in a game was in 2002 against Life Christian with 404 rushing yards.
The Lyncs (4-1) will host Archbishop Murphy (4-1) on Thursday night at 7:00, and the Trojans (2-3) will travel to Blaine (2-3) on Friday to take on the Borderites at 7:00.
Lynden Christian 48 Meridian 18 MER 6 0 0 12 - 18 LC 13 8 7 20 - 48 LC - Kooiman 18 run (Yun kick) MER - T. Alexander 27 run (kick failed) LC - Kooiman 3 run (run failed) LC - Kooiman 49 run (Kooiman run) LC - Hintz 1 run (Yun kick) LC - Berendsen 1 run (pass failed) MER - Culp 50 pass from T. Alexander (kick blocked) LC - Kooiman 7 run (Yun kick) MER - T. Alexander 80 run (pass failed) LC - Kuik 6 pass from Blankers (Yun kick)
MER LC 23-221 Rush Att-Yards 35-441 22-43-4 Comp-Att-Int 6-14-2 237 Passing Yards 42 Individual Leaders RUSHING - MER: T. Alexander 16-180, Pfannenstiel 7-41. LC: Kooiman 16-286, Hintz 6-65, Berendsen 9-64, Blankers 2-21, S. Senti 2-5. PASSING - MER: T. Alexander 22-43-4-237. LC: Hintz 5-12-1-36, Blankers 1-2-0-6. RECEIVING - MER: Brzozowski 7-61, Culp 4-91, Harris 4-44, Crabtree 2-23, Pfannenstiel 2-6, Brennan 2-4, J. Alexander 1-8. LC: Kuik 2-13, Yun 2-6, Moorlag 1-16, Kooiman 1-1.
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