LYNDEN HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS INFORMATION DEPT.

September 22nd, 2008            Advisor: Mr. Blake Van Dalen

Co-Editors:   Adam Lewis and Ryan Seto

Lions Cruise at Home

 Lynden Lions 35 (2-1) (2-0)           Bellingham Red Raiders 14 (1-2) (1-2)

 The Lynden Lions scored early and often on their way to a 35-14 victory last Friday night under the lights of Rollie DeKoster Field.  Lynden quickly jumped to a 21-0 lead in the first half before fending off a Bellingham Red Raider rally late in the game.  The Lions scored consecutive Northwest Conference wins before they must go on the road to face the extremely talented Ferndale Golden Eagles.  Friday night’s win should help build some offensive confidence before Lynden’s toughest test of the season.

 Game Recap: The Lions took control of the game in the first quarter by jumping out to a 14-0 lead behind Jr. (QB) Jordan Hastings’ 24 yard touchdown strike to Jr. (WR/DE) Ryan Seto, and Sr. (RB/DE) David Gaylord’s 13 yard score from inside the Red Raider red zone.  The touchdown pass to Seto was a nicely thrown fade route that has become a staple of Lynden’s offense early in the season.  The Lions then capped off their scoring in the second half off after another Hastings’ touchdown pass to Jr. (WR/DE) Blair Bomber.

 After taking a 21-7 lead into the half, Lynden increased their lead on their first possession of the third quarter on a punishing five yard run by Gaylord.  Playing with resilience throughout the night, the Red Raiders answered the touchdown with a one yard run by Kris Petersen to cut the score to 28-14.  From that point, the Lynden defense stiffened and a Hastings’ five yard touchdown run capped the scoring for the night.

 The Lions’ match-up against the Red Raiders was infused with a number of players on Lynden’s side putting up some solid numbers.  As a team, Lynden rushed 37 times for 211 yards as Hastings scrambled for 19 rushes for 101 yards while Gaylord rushed just 13 times for 91 yards.  The Lions stuck to their power ground game against the Red Raiders while throwing the ball just 14 times.

 Defensively, Jr. (SS) Eric Connor had a monster game on his way to recording 12 tackles and five assists.  In addition, Sr. (LB/OL) Taylor Creighton recorded his strongest game of the year while earning nine tackles and 4 assists along with Lions’ weekly defensive award known as “Big Hit.” Friday night showed that the Lions might be ready to challenge conference powerhouse Ferndale in the most anticipated game of the year for both squads.