LYNDEN – Even without three key players, the Lyncs still looked dominant as they defeated La Center 24-0 at home on Saturday afternoon.
Seniors Kaden Veldman, Wyatt Kamphouse and Eli Stamps were all on the sidelines with various injuries, but actively participated by as assistant coaches throughout the game.
Lynden Christian got started right away as senior safety Dawson Hintz intercepted a pass on the third play from scrimmage, and the Lyncs set up shop at the Wildcat 45-yard line.
Nine plays later, Hintz, who was now at quarterback, scored on a 4-yard run on what looked like a broken play.
La Center came back with a decent drive, but a deep pass toward the goal line was picked off by sophomore cornerback Josh Senti, and the Lyncs were back in business again.
This time with Kellen Blankers leading the charge behind center, the junior quarterback found Hintz who was now split out wide on multiple occasions as Lynden Christian matriculated the ball down the field. Blankers was also aided by numerous powerful runs by senior running back Chris Kooiman.
It was a time consuming drive that ended with a 26-yard field goal by junior Jackson Yun, his fifth of the season. The school record for field goals in a season is six, which was accomplished by Travis Korthuis (1993), Clint Bosman (2001) and Eli DenBleyker (2019).
The Lyncs were able to force a Wildcat punt late in the first half, and a huge 28-yard return by junior Trey Moorlag put Lynden Christian at midfield. Hintz quickly went to work and found Yun on a 15-yard completion, and it was followed up by a 35-yard touchdown pass down the seam to Kooiman and the Lyncs were able to extend their lead to 17-0 right before the half.
Lynden Christian also received the second half kickoff, and went back to Kooiman on the ground. The drive took nearly six minutes off the clock and was punctuated by an 11-yard touchdown run by Kooiman. He finished the game with 132 yards on 21 carries.
The Lync defense continued to stifle La Center, and it happened with two new inside linebackers. Junior Gavin VanLoo and sophomore Mason Berendsen stepped into the starting role and combined for 11.5 tackles. Sophomore Grant Adams also played both corner and safety in the defense, and he finished with six tackles and two passes defended.
Lynden Christian (3-1) will begin conference play on Friday when it hosts Meridian (2-2) at 7:00.
Lynden Christian 24 La Center 0 LAC 0 0 0 0 - 0 LC 7 10 7 0 - 24 LC - Hintz 4 run (Yun kick) LC - Yun 26 FG LC - Kooiman 35 pass from Hintz (Yun kick) LC - Kooiman 11 run (Yun kick)
LAC LC 20-36 Rush Att-Yards 35-159 14-25-2 Comp-Att-Int 14-26-0 123 Passing Yards 154 Individual Leaders RUSHING - LAC: N/A. LC: Kooiman 21-132, Berendsen 4-16, Blankers 5-7, Hintz 5-4. PASSING - LAC: N/A. LC: Hintz 7-14-0-80, Blankers 7-12-0-74. RECEIVING - LAC: N/A. LC: Kuik 3-36, Hintz 3-30, Moorlag 3-22, Kooiman 2-41, Yun 2-22, Roosma 1-3.
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