BY MAKAYLA SPARKS – For Whatcom Preps
NOOKSACK – Sid Lambert Field at Nooksack Valley High School can feel like the Field of Dreams meets high school football during this time of year with the corn fields being the backdrop of the north endzone.
Friday night, with the newly unveiled artificial turf and packed grandstands, it looked like a movie scene. And the Pioneers got their storybook ending to the night with a 34-15 win over Okanogan.
With all the pregame festivities, which include a tailgate and a ceremony thanking those who helped fund the new turf, it’s no surprise that the Pioneers started off hot. Sophomore quarterback Lucas Woodrich connected with junior receiver Tyler Martin for a 43 yard pass before finding junior running back Treven Scheenstra out of the backfield for a 4-yard score. Nooksack Valley took the 7-0 lead just over three minutes into the game.
Scheenstra then found the endzone to end the first quarter, sneaking in from a yard out to double his team’s lead.
Okanogan then found themselves facing a fourth down inside the red zone when the Pioneer defense came up huge. Martin grabbed the pass attempt and raced down the home sideline 87 yards to the house for a pick six.
Nooksack senior defensive back Max Lautenbach joined in on the fun with 10 seconds left in the half when he grabbed an interception of his own and sent the Pioneers to the locker room with the 21-0 lead.
Martin started the second the half the same way the first half ended, with an interception.
The third quarter was then witness to a deep pass down the home sideline from Woodrich to senior wide receiver Trace Palumbo which covered 73 yards and resulted in Nooksack Valley’s fourth touchdown of the game. It happened at just the right time, because not long after that, Okanogan started to come to life.
The Bulldogs scored two quick touchdowns, one on a pass before completing a two point conversion and another on a 97-yard strip fumble recovery and return.
All of a sudden it looked like they were about to cut the lead all the way down to one score when they intercepted a Pioneer pass and took it to the house but Nooksack Valley caught some luck in the form of a penalty.
While the score was nullified, the turnover meant that the Pioneers still had work to do. Multiple stops in the backfield by junior linebacker Suylas Tijerina and senior defensive end Trevek McMillen, and a pass break up from Martin, did the job and Nooksack Valley regained possession of the ball.
With 1:11 to go the game, the Pioneers had just enough time to run one play and one play was all they needed. Scheenstra took the handoff and raced 75 yards to the endzone to cement the 34-15 victory.
McMillen led Nooksack Valley defensively with nine tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks and a forced fumble.
The Pioneers (2-0) will travel to King’s (2-0) on Friday to take on the Knights at 7:00.
Nooksack Valley 34 Okanogan 15 OK 0 0 8 7 - 15 NV 14 7 6 7 - 34 NV - Scheenstra 4 pass from L. Woodrich (Leyerly kick) NV - Scheenstra 1 run (Leyerly kick) NV - Martin 87 interception return (Leyerly kick) NV - Palumbo 73 pass from L. Woodrich (kick failed) OK - 19 yard touchdown pass (2pt pass good) OK - 97 yard fumble return (kick good) NV - Scheenstra 75 run (Leyerly kick)
OK NV 32-122 Rush Att-Yards 21-164 15-33-3 Comp-Att-Int 12-17-3 186 Passing Yards 247 Individual Leaders RUSHING - OK: N/A. NV: Scheenstra 9-129, Heutink 8-16, Berends 1-14, Martin 1-5, L. Woodrich 2-0. PASSING - OK: N/A. NV: L. Woodrich 12-17-3-247. RECEIVING - OK: N/A. NV: Martin 4-62, Jones 3-54, Ackerman 2-32, Scheenstra 2-26, Palumbo 1-73.
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