TACOMA – Scheduling each other made sense, as both Lynden and Franklin Pierce are teams likely to make the 2A state playoffs, and a win over either one would look fantastic in the eyes of the seedling committee when it comes to that time.
The Lions ended up being just one point better as they went on the road to defeat the Cardinals 21-20 on Saturday afternoon.
There was extreme action right from the opening kickoff, which was taken by Lynden senior Dani Bowler who then raced 88 yards for a touchdown. The Lions jumped ahead 7-0 with their first kickoff return for a touchdown since 2021.
Franklin Pierce went three-and-out, and was forced to punt, and Lynden rebutted with a decent drive. Unfortunately, for the Lions, the drive ended with an interception in the end zone.
The Cardinals then meticulously drove down the field, and drained a lot of the play clock by doing so (this would become a theme), but were turned away on fourth down in the red zone.
A few plays later, junior quarterback Gordy Bedlington threw a strike down the left seam to Bowler, who leapt in the air to snatch it and then he broke away from the defenders for a 70-yard touchdown. Bedlington started in place of injured quarterback Lukas Lalji.
Even though they were down 14-0, the Cardinals wouldn’t abandon their deceptive running attack, and was able to work their way down the field once more, but it was a 38-yard touchdown pass that got them into the endzone for the first time.
Lynden went to the air, but a Franklin Pierce interception near midfield ended the Lions’ chances of another score before halftime. The Cardinals drove to inside the 10-yard line of Lynden, but couldn’t get any points on the board before the clock showed all zeroes which represented the midway break.
The Lions then executed a perfect onside kick to start the second half, which was also recovered by junior kicker Malachi Koenen, but the referee pointed out that it was a double-kick, and the Cardinals took possession near midfield.
Another time consuming drive took place, and it ended with a Franklin Pierce touchdown, and the game was tied at 14-14.
Lynden struggled to move the ball, and was forced to punt. A short punt gave the Cardinals great field possession, and the momentum was definitely on the side of the home team.
It shifted back towards the Lions when junior defensive lineman Zach Dykstra forced an errant throw, which was intercepted by senior safety Brody Price. However, a flag nullified the play, and Franklin Pierce was awarded with a first down.
Moments later, Price made another play as he broke up a pass play on fourth down, which gave the ball back to Lynden.
Now in the fourth quarter, and the game tied, it looked like one big play would mean the difference, and on 4th-and-2, the Lions made a huge one when sophomore quarterback Austin Postma threw a pass over the middle to Price who ran untouched for a 42-yard touchdown. Koenen’s kick gave Lynden the 21-14 edge.
The Cardinals then took over possession at their own 20-yard line after the Koenen touchback, and they used the vast majority of the fourth quarter to drive down the field, one running play at a time. Franklin Pierce finally sprung one run, and it went 21 yards for a touchdown, and with 1:06 remaining in the game, the Cardinals were down by one point, and kept their offense on the field to go for the win.
It was nothing new for Franklin Pierce, who hadn’t tried to kick an extra point all game, but the run came up short as Koenen blasted through the hole to make his 15th tackle of the game.
The fans for Lynden erupted as the stop was made, but were quickly silenced when the Cardinals executed the perfect onside kick and took possession with a minute left in the game.
Now resorting to a pass game, to try and get yards quickly, Franklin Pierce appeared to be a little out of its element as Lynden senior outside linebacker Dane Marti had back-to-back quarterback sacks on first and second down. The Cardinals threw a desperation pass on third down, which was intercepted by senior safety Lofa Tigilau, and the win belonged to Lynden.
By the end of the game, Franklin Pierce ran 73 plays, and the Lions had ran just 27 plays.
Lynden (2-0) will be the road next week to face Marysville-Pilchuck (0-2) at 7:00 on Friday.
Lynden 21 Franklin Pierce 20 LYN 7 7 0 7 - 21 FP 0 8 6 6 - 20 LYN - Bowler 88 kickoff return (Mal. Koenen kick) LYN - Bowler 70 pass from Bedlington (Mal. Koenen kick) FP - 38 yard touchdown pass (2pt run good) FP - 3 yard touchdown run (run failed) LYN - Price 42 pass from Postma (Mal. Koenen kick) FP - 21 yard touchdown run (run failed) LYN FP 18-65 Rush Att-Yards 59-221 5-9-2 Comp-Att-Int 5-14-1 132 Passing Yards 68 Individual Leaders RUSHING - LYN: Assink 9-44, Bedlington 9-21. FP: N/A. PASSING - LYN: Bedlington 4-8-2-90, Postma 1-1-0-42. FP: N/A. RECEIVING - LYN: Bowler 2-81, Price 2-47, Tigilau 1-4. FP: N/A.
