YAKIMA – The Lions had more rushing yards, and they had more passing yards, but the Red Devils finished with more points, as East Valley of Yakima defeated Lynden in the quarterfinal round of the 2A state tournament on Saturday afternoon at Clasen Field.
After forcing a punt on the opening drive of the game, the Lions looked sharp on the opening drive. They used the majority of the first quarter to 85 yard on 13 plays, and punctuated it with an 11-yard touchdown run by junior quarterback Lukas Lalji.
Both teams then traded punts, but the Red Devils returned their punt deep into Lynden territory which set up their first touchdown of the game, a 5-yard run.
The ensuing kickoff received a big pop from the Lynden faithful as senior Brody Price returned it 91 yards for a touchdown, but it was called back due to a penalty. The Lions shrugged it off and picked up the yardage the old fashioned way, as they powered down the field and finished the drive with a 4-yard touchdown pass from Lalji to junior wide receiver Sam Arango with little time left in the first half.
However, it was just enough time for East Valley to score once more as the Red Devils connected on a 31-yard touchdown pass just before the half. A bad snap on the conversion try nullified the extra point, so Lynden went into halftime with a 14-13 lead.
Another bad snap took place early in the third quarter, but this time it was on a Lynden punt. Junior punter Malachi Koenen wasn’t able to snag the ball that was out of reach, but he was able to corral it and get the kick away. But, it did set up another short field for East Valley.
The Lions then rose to the occasion when the Red Devils had the ball first-and-goal from the 2-yard line. Three straight stuffs led to a 4th-and-goal at the one, and the Red Devils went for it with a Wildcat play, but the snap went through the hands of the running back, and senior defensive end Max Assink fell on the ball to give possession back to Lynden.
Lalji then put together a string of elusive runs which put the Lions back into East Valley territory, but they eventually had to settle for a 39-yard field goal by Koenen, which extended Lynden’s lead to 17-13.
Four plays later, the Red Devils struck with a 27-yard touchdown pass, and the extra point gave them 20-17 led late in the third quarter.
East Valley forced another Lynden punt, and the Red Devils then went to their power-running set, and was able to advance the ball, move the sticks, and eventually get into the endzone with a 2-yard touchdown run, which put them ahead 27-17 almost halfway through the final quarter.
Now needed two scores, the Lions went to the air. Lalji faked a handoff to Assink and found Arango streaking down the right sideline. He launched the ball about 50 yards through the air, and Arango reached out to haul it in and it resulted in a 52-yard touchdown pass.
Lynden’s defense then rode the momentum, and was able to force a punt, but it was a good one that was downed inside the 5-yard line. The Lions were running out of time, and were unable to pick up a first down. The only option was to punt it back, use their timeouts, and not allow a first down.
Everything went according to plan, and on 4th-and-2, the Red Devils were stopped right near the spot to gain for a first down. As the chains were brought out, there was brief excitement by the Lions as it had appeared that it would be a turnover on downs, but when the chains were fully extended it was ruled that it was a first down for East Valley, which ultimately ended the game.
Lynden was eliminated from the state playoffs in the quarterfinal round for the third year in a row in heartbreaking fashion, and finished the season with a record of 9-3.
East Valley (Yakima) 27 Lynden 24 LYN 7 7 3 7 - 24 EV 0 13 7 7 - 27 LYN - Lalji 11 run (Mal. Koenen kick) EV - 5 yard touchdown run (kick good) LYN - Arango 4 pass from Lalji (Mal. Koenen kick) EV - 31 yard touchdown pass (bad snap - conversion failed) LYN - Mal. Koenen 39 FG EV - 27 yard touchdown pass (kick good) EV - 2 yard touchdown run (kick good) LYN - Arango 52 pass from Lalji (Mal. Koenen kick) LYN EV 36-226 Rush Att-Yards 28-150 14-19-0 Comp-Att-Int 9-14-0 133 Passing Yards 112 Individual Leaders RUSHING - LYN: Lalji 18-169, Assink 11-42, D. VanDalen 4-10, Mendoza-Batey 2-3, Mal. Koenen 1-2. EV: N/A. PASSING - LYN: Lalji 14-19-0-133. EV: N/A. RECEIVING - LYN: Arango 6-73, Price 3-10, Bedlington 2-34, Assink 2-6, Tigilau 1-12. EV: N/A.
