Game Story: Vikes Battle, Fall Short At M-P

From left, Brandon Preslar, Garek Stuart and Joey Dosen celebrate a big play last Friday at Marysville's Quilceda Stadium. Photo by Rob Carlson/Sportsmedianorthwest.com

IMPROVED VIKINGS LOSE AT MARYSVILLE, 36-20

By Mike Anderton
Journal Contributing Writer/Purple and Gold Pigskin


The effort, and for the most part the execution. were vastly improved over the previous week's collapse against Jackson but Lake still lost at Marysville last Friday, 36-20.

Three turnovers by Lake made the biggest difference, two of them foiling Viking drives and the third resulting directly in a Marysville touchdown. Still, Lake moved the ball effectively, especially through the air, to prevent the undefeated Tommies from cinching the game until late in the going.

With Bryson Daggett pitching for 278 yards (completing 22 of 35, for two touchdowns, with two interceptions) and Brennan Frost, returning from a one-week injury-related absence, netting 142 yards in 14 carries, Lake stayed competitive throughout.

Defensively, Lake stacked the box and gang-tackled Marysville's Austin Denton, the state's leading big-school rusher (averaging 233 yards per game), holding him to 66 net yards in 14 carries in the first half. But Denton, behind a big, physical offensive line, busted loose for a 63-yard touchdown the first time he touched the ball in the second half and ultimately finished with three touchdowns.

On the next play from scrimmage Siti Tamaivena intercepted a Daggett pass and, with some nifty broken-field running, returned it 55 yards for a touchdown, expanding Marysville's 9-0 halftime lead to 22-0, less than two minutes into the second half.

Ball game over? Not quite. Lake fought its way back into contention behind Daggett's passing and Frost's rushing and had either of two onside kickoffs in the fourth quarter succeeded, the Vikings may well have inched to within a touchdown of the top ten ranked Toms.

Far from a blowout, the stats were virtually dead even. Lake finished with 416 total yards, Marysville 415. Each team earned 17 first downs. A key difference was the above-mentioned Viking turnovers.

Lake missed a chance to score the game's first touchdown. After the Vikings held Marysville to three-and-punt on the game's first series, Daggett connected on three straight short passes, setting up Frost for a 47-yard run to the Marysville 14. But on the next play Frost fumbled on the 12 with Tyler Thompson recovering for the Toms.

Marysville turned that into a touchdown four plays later when quarterback Zack Hanson rolled right on a keeper and scampered 67 yards virtually untouched. Kyle Bluhm's PAT kick failed when the snap was bobbled and Lake's Jake Bennett smothered the ball. 6-0 Marysville, 6:27 left in the first quarter.

Lake moved the ball well for the remainder of the half but lost a chance to take the lead in the second quarter when a Daggett pass was intercepted by Dane Widness on the Marysville two yard line.

That led to a 14-play Marysville drive which consumed all but five seconds of the first half, culminating in a 27-yard Bluhm field goal, giving his team a 9-0 halftime lead. All of the 75 yards in that drive were via the rush -- in fact Marysville did not complete a pass the entire game, going zero of three.

After Marysville's two-touchdown flurry to open the second half, Lake put together a comeback which saw Frost gain 34, 15, 11, and three yards to give Lake a second down on the Marysville 8 where three straight Daggett passes fell incomplete.

Five plays later, Jason Mendel recovered a fumble giving Lake possession on the Marysville 42 and on the next play Daggett tossed to Tyler Reside for a 42-yard touchdown. Arvid Isaksen added the PAT kick to make it 22-7 with 5:31 left in the third quarter.

Marysville then drove 60 yards in 9 plays, with Denton scoring a 25-yard touchdown and Bluhm adding the extra point for a 29-7 lead with 1:16 left in the quarter.

Lake struck back on Daggett's 52-yard pass to Brandon Preslar for a first down on the Marysville 4 on the first play of the fourth quarter. The play saw a perfectly executed fake handoff to Frost, leaving Preslar wide open. Chameron Lackey scored two plays later from the one. With Isaksen's PAT Lake drew within 29-14 with 11:09 left in the game.

Marysville recovered the onside kickoff at midfield and scored eight plays later, on Denton's 10-yard run. 36-14, with 7:21 left.

Five completions in six Daggett throws, to four different receivers (Lackey, Isaksen, Reside and Preslar), plus an 11-yard Frost run, gave Lake a touchdown with 4:40 left. The 66-yard, eight-play drive ended with Isaksen's 7-yard touchdown reception. Isaksen's PAT kick was blocked by Garrett Davis, leaving the score at 36-20.

Lake stopped Marysville on downs with 1:05 left when Bennett tackled Kyle Miller for a 5-yard loss on the Viking 39.

Daggett completions of seven yards to Reside, plus 14 and 16 yards to Isaksen gave Lake a first down on the Marysville 25, but Daggett was sacked by Brennan Steinbaugh on the game's final play.

Leading Viking tacklers were Brandon Belcher with 14, Lackey 13, Mendel 12, Garek Stuart 11, Alex Moon 10, and Ross Jones 8.

The loss left Lake with a 2-1 record in Wesco North, 3-3 overall, and kept Marysville perfect at 4-0 and 6-0. With three league games remaining and two State Playoff berths at stake (Marysville has virtually clinched the first of Wesco North's three berths) every game is essentially a Playoff game for the Vikings from now on.