DEMING – The first two conference games that Mount Baker played were decided by one score, so how about a third one?
It was a wild game, and an even wilder finish, as the Mountaineers scored two touchdowns in the final quarter to defeat Lynden Christian 34-33 at Bob Tisdale Field on Friday night.
The Lyncs started out hot, after a first down, senior quarterback Eli Maberry connected on a middle screen to junior tight end Kaden Veldman who raced 47 yards before stepping out of bounds at the Mount Baker 4-yard line. The Mountaineer defense would only allow two yards over the next three plays, and when the snap on fourth down went through the hands of junior running back Chris Kooiman, who had lined up in the wildcat position, it was recovered by Mount Baker senior Payton Zamzow.
The Baker momentum didn’t last long, as it was quickly forced to punt back to the Lyncs, but the snap sailed over the punter’s head, and as soon as he was able to corral the ball and attempt a kick he was crushed by Veldman, which knocked the ball loose, and LC had a new set of downs inside the Mountaineers 5-yard line.
This time, LC needed just two plays to get into the endzone, as Kooiman plowed through the line for a 1-yard score and the Lyncs led 6-0 halfway through the first quarter.
Mount Baker then put together an 9-play drive that covered 85 yards. 31 of those yards came on a run from senior Brice Cooper, and the drive ended with a 16-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Toga Tigilau to senior wide receiver Jet Ross. Sophomore Enoc Smith was successful on the extra point and Baker led 7-6 after one quarter of play.
Another turning point took place early in the second quarter when the Lyncs were put into a 4th-and-22 spot because of a quarterback sack split by juniors Kell Reardon and Noah Nicol-Mills. Maberry, the county’s leading punter, was able to get off a strong 41-yard punt, but it was immediately muffed and quickly recovered by Lynden Christian senior Jaxon Huleatt.
With another short field to work with, LC took advantage and scored three plays later when Maberry’s pass into the back-right corner of the endzone was hauled in by senior Boyce Robertson who used great body control to high-point the football and spin away from his defender after securing the 22-yard touchdown pass. Maberry then hit Kooiman out of the backfield for two points, and the Lyncs recaptured the lead at 14-7.
Mount Baker followed up with a big play-action pass down the field, as Ross got behind the Lynden Christian defense, and Tigilau found him for a 48-yard gain. Four plays later, Tigilau scored from a yard out, his fifth rushing touchdown of the season, to tie the game at 14-14. with 7:36 left in the first half.
The Lyncs then drove past midfield, but was eventually forced to punt the ball away. A surprise pooch-punt by Maberry split the Baker safeties and was downed at the Mountaineer 7-yard line.
After picking up a first down, the Mounties elected to go to the air once again, and as Tigilau passed the ball to Reardon on a quick-out it was intercepted by Veldman which caused the LC faithful in the stands to erupt as the junior outside linebacker took it 22 yards to the house. A mishandled snap on the extra point caused for a missed conversion try, and the Lyncs led 20-14 with 3:39 to go in the half.
Mount Baker efficiently drove 61 plays over nine plays, with the ninth being an yard scoring strike from Tigilau to Ross with 19 seconds left in the half. Smith’s kick split the uprights, and Baker led 21-20 at the half.
The Mountaineers took the second-half kickoff, and drove pas midfield, but junior cornerback Wyatt Kamphouse gave his team a major boost by stripping the football and quickly pouncing on it to give the ball back to the Lyncs at their own 44-yard line.
The height of LC’s momentum swing was not limited to the turnover as Kooiman came alive in the third quarter. He had been bottled up in the first half, with 16 yards on nine carries, but his first rushing attempt in the second half went for 36 yards. It led to another touchdown pass from Maberry to Robertson, this time it covered 23 yards.
The Lyncs forced Baker to punt once again, and promptly put together their biggest drive of the game, which culminated in a 14-yard touchdown run by Kooiman. The 6-foot-4 225-pound running back totaled 75 yards rushing in the third quarter alone, and his touchdown gave Lynden Christian a 33-21 lead with 1:40 left in the third quarter.
LC continued to dominate the third quarter, and forced the Mountaineers to punt once again, but this time the returner was stripped of the football by Reardon and Mountie junior Gunner McGrath fell on it, which gave Mount Baker possession at the Lync 36-yard line as the quarter came to a close.
Penalties put the Mountaineers behind the sticks, but a run by junior Gage Smith set Baker up with a 4th-and-1 at the LC 27-yard line. The Lyncs set up to stop the Toga-wedge run up the middle, but it was a quick handoff to Kamden Moa that picked up 12 yards a first down.
Another Baker penalty pushed the ball back five yards, and the Mounties went to the air twice more, but came up with two incompletions. Following a Cooper run, Mount Baker was again faced with a 4th-down situation, but this time needed to pick up 12 yards. The Mountaineers lined up in twins left, and with Ross commanding so much attention, it left Gage Smith open on the left sideline. Tigilau found him, and Smith picked up the first down by a yard.
Tigilau hit Ross on a quick-out on the following play, which was good for a 5-yard touchdown connection. Enoc Smith’s kick lessened LC’s lead to 33-28 with 7:19 left in the game.
Kooiman continued his tough running in the fourth quarter, as he crossed midfield to pick up another first down for his team. He finished with a game-high 106 yards on 18 carries.
An incomplete pass on fourth down gave the ball back to Mount Baker at its 37-yard line with 3:43 left in the game, and down by five points.
An 11-yard run by Gage Smith was followed by a 10-yard run by Moa as the Mountaineer line was taking control of the game. After the Mountaineers picked up their third first down of the drive, Tigilau went to the air and completed a seven-yard pass to Ross on an out pattern. Because it wasn’t a first down, and he was tackled in bounds, Mount Baker then called a timeout with 50 seconds left in the game.
After just running a quick out, it was the perfect time to go to the out-and-up, which Tigilau and Ross ran to perfection. Not only did the two connect for their fourth touchdown of the game, this time from 23 yards out, but Ross also broke the school record for touchdown receptions in a season. It was a record that was held for 39 years by the late, great, Roger VanWeerdhuizen.
Ross finished with eight receptions for 123 yards.
Mount Baker then attempted to go for two points, but the pass to Reardon over the middle fell incomplete, which kept Baker’s lead at 34-33 with 44 seconds left in the game.
Enoc Smith’s kickoff bounced on the Tisdale turf and skipped through the endzone for a touchback.
The Lyncs began their drive with a 36-yard strike down the middle of the field from Maberry to Kooiman, and before you could blink, LC was setting up shop in Mount Baker territory with 36 seconds left. Maberry then hit Robertson for a six-yard gain, but he was tackled in bounds, which forced the Lyncs to take a timeout with 20 seconds left.
Maberry completed a middle screen to Veldman which covered 13 yards and a first down, which put Lynden Christian at the Mount Baker 25-yard line. The Lyncs followed up with a 4-yard completion to Veldman who got out of bounds with 7.6 seconds left on the clock. At this point, it was decision time. As the play clock wound down, LC ultimately decided to attempt the 38-yard field goal at that point.
The ball was snapped, and Yun nailed the kick, but it was called off as the play clock has expired nearly five seconds before the ball was snapped. A delay of game penalty was called, and the Lyncs then decided to try and get those yards back with another quick pass play. They did just that, as a quick toss from Maberry to Robertson covered five yards, and the senior receiver, who had just caught his eighth pass of the game, was able to get out of bounds with three seconds left on the clock.
Yun lined up once again for the game-winning 38 field goal attempt, but this time he was wide left, and the last of the Whatcom County unbeatens had finally fallen.
The Mountaineers (6-1) will travel to Blaine (2-5) on Friday to take on the Borderites at 7:00, while the Lyncs (6-1) will host Meridian (5-2) on Friday at 7:00.
Mount Baker 34 Lynden Christian 33 LC 6 14 13 0 - 33 MB 7 14 0 13 - 34 LC - Kooiman 1 run (kick blocked) MB - Ross 16 pass from Tigilau (E. Smith kick) LC - Robertson 22 pass from Maberry (Kooiman pass from Maberry) MB - Tigilau 1 run (E. Smith kick) LC - Veldman 22 interception return (pass failed) MB - Ross 8 pass from Tigilau (E. Smith kick) LC - Robertson 23 pass from Maberry (run failed) LC - Kooiman 14 run (Yun kick) MB - Ross 5 pass from Tigilau (E. Smith kick) MB - Ross 23 pass from Tigilau (pass failed)
LC MB 22-91 Rush Att-Yards 42-199 18-24-0 Comp-Att-Int 11-19-1 244 Passing Yards 146 Individual Leaders RUSHING - LC: Kooiman 18-106, Hintz 1-(-6), Maberry 3-(-9). MB: Cooper 17-97, Moa 11-69, G. Smith 5-38, Tigilau 8-23, bad snap 1-(-28). PASSING - LC: Maberry 18-24-0-244. MB: Tigilau 11-19-1-146. RECEIVING - LC: Robertson 8-89, Veldman 5-83, Kooiman 2-42, Kamphouse 1-16, Hintz 1-10, Huleatt 1-4. MB: Ross 8-123, G. Smith 1-13, Reardon 1-12, Cooper 1-(-2).
