LYNDEN HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS INFORMATION

December 5th, 2008                 Advisor: Mr. Blake Van Dalen

Co-Editors: Adam Lewis and Ryan Seto

 Lions Ready For Showdown with Prosser

The Lynden Lions (11-2 Overall) (7-1 NWC) return to the State Championship for the second time in three years this Saturday to take on the undefeated Prosser Mustangs at 1:00 p.m. at the Tacoma Dome.  Lynden rides a 9-game winning streak into the biggest game of their season.  Prosser, however, plays in a weak league that has allowed them to blowout teams in a majority of their wins this season.  Both teams head into Saturday’s contest trying to win a State Championship for the second time in the past three years.  Tomorrow’s match-up may go right down to the wire as Lynden and Prosser feature some of the best playmakers in the state.

Game Capsule: Last year, the Lions and Mustangs played in an epic contest in the 2A State Semifinals.  Prosser won 47-30, however the game was closer than the score indicated.  The Lions pulled the score to within 3 points midway through the 4^th quarter at 33-30 before some key Prosser 3^rd down conversions helped the Mustangs score their penultimate touchdown and seal the win.  This year’s contest shapes up differently, as the Mustangs no longer feature Sr. (WR/DB) Cody Bruns.  Bruns played sparingly this year for an 0-11 University of Washington team, but containing his athletic ability last year was the focus of Lynden’s defense.  That opened up the running game for former Prosser running back Drake Washington and allowed Sr. Kirby Moore to sneak behind Lynden’s secondary.  This year the focus will be shutting down Moore and stopping a potent Prosser running game.

What’s At Stake: Lynden High School and Prosser High School reside in small-town communities with the football team at the center of its focus.  Both teams have been preparing for tomorrow since the end of last season in the weight room and with conditioning.  The Lions went as far as to implement an offseason running and conditioning program after weight training sessions this summer after players and coaches felt they ran out of gas on defense in the 4^th quarter of last year’s game with the Mustangs.  Time will tell if Lynden’s hard work results in head coach Curt Kramme’s third state championship in his decorated tenure at Lynden High School.

What to Expect: The Lynden Lions are 11-0 this season when scoring 21 points or more.  They will need to score points in bunches to keep pace with an explosive Lynden offense.  However, if Lynden can take an early lead like they did in last week’s 21-13 win against the Archbishop Murphy Wildcats, they can implement Sr. (RB/QB/DE) David Gaylord at quarterback and pound an undersized Prosser defense.  Prosser’s defense gave up 58 points against Redmond earlier in the year, and the Lions have been studying film all week to try to exploit some of their weaknesses.  In addition, the Lion defense will be pushed to its limits as they try to stop Prosser’s Sr. (QB) Jordan Durbin, who has thrown for prolific numbers and has an array of talented wide receivers to throw to. The bottom line is that there are a variety of ways this State Championship game may play out, and the Lions and Mustangs will be playing with reckless abandon to capture a gold ball.

Notes: The Lions are 1-3 all-time against the Prosser Mustangs.  Their only victory came in 2003 when Lynden defeated Prosser 21-18 in the season opener.