Prep Football Roundup: Four Whatcom County teams advance as paths to state titles get tougher
It’s not uncommon for Whatcom County to have four survivors in the first round of the state football playoffs. But what faces the quartet of this year’s winners, all on Saturday, is truly an extraordinary challenge, one of the toughest in county playoff history.
Sehome will have to face 2A top-seed Tumwater (11-0). No. 4 2A Lynden must play No. 5 Archbishop Murphy (10-1) a second time after the Lions took a surprising 7-3 win in the league season. No. 5 1A Nooksack Valley takes on No. 3 Cashmere on the road. No. 8 1A Lynden Christian has the toughest challenge of all — a road game against top-seed Royal (10-0).
Nooksack Valley 23, Zillah 12: The Pioneers (9-2), in the state playoffs for the third consecutive year for the first time, turned to one of their most experienced players, all-league wide receiver/defensive back Cory Olney, to play running back for the first time at Nooksack.
All-state running back/linebacker Colton Lentz could not play because the team lost a protest over what seemed like an unjustified ejection of Lentz in the previous game -- the first of his athletic career.
Olney ran the ball 31 times for 166 yards and all three touchdowns, plus a two-point conversion run.
“I never expected to do anything like that,” said Olney, who scored on runs of 11, 2 and 11 yards, with the last two scores coming after Zillah (9-2) took a 12-7 lead at halftime. “This (the Lentz dilemma) lit a fire under us.”
Lentz and his cousin, all-league lineman Brady Ackerman, could not have been happier that Lentz’s absence did not cost the team a place in the quarterfinals. Lentz will be back against Cashmere.
“We have a lot of studs on this team!” Ackerman said as Lentz nodded happily in agreement. He spent his week as a scout team contributor, then helped on the sidelines at Civic Stadium on Saturday.
When it was suggested in good humor that Olney should go by the name Cory Lentz, the personable senior burst into a laugh.
“What I liked most was that we persevered,” said Nooksack coach Craig Bartl. “We just did what we practiced in a great week of work.”
Senior backup Colby Martin contributed 51 yards rushing on 11 carries and said the challenge was “super fun.” With an attitude like that, it’s no wonder the Pioneers refused to give in to bad fortune.
With Zillah up 6-0 after its first series, Nooksack responded with a 68-yard drive. Evan Bravo began the drive with an inspiring 18-yard run and Olney soon ran the ball seven times in a row for 45 yards, including an 11-yard touchdown.
Freshman kicker Tyler Martin then followed with an extra point the distance of a 40-yard field goal, because of two penalties against Nooksack.
When Zillah went up 12-7 in the third quarter, Brava made a brilliant 33-yard run after a short pass from Evan Brown. Then Olney ran five times in a row and scored from the 2 before running for a two-point conversion for a 15-12 lead.
Olney also ran seven times for 44 yards in the final five minutes and scored from the 11 on an inspiring tackle-breaking burst with 33 seconds left to remove all doubt.
To set up the clinching touchdown, Ackerman swatted down a pass and Lance Vanberkum made a fourth-down sack to cap an excellent defensive effort.
Sehome 22, Othello 21: Third-year junior quarterback Nolan Wright threw a short touchdown pass to Andre Watson, then made good on an all-or-nothing two-point conversion pass to Watson with little more than a minute left.
“I told Nolan that when we scored, we were going for two points,” said Sehome coach Brian Young of the exciting finish before a largely disappointed crowd in Othello. “He just said, ‘OK, Coach.’ Then he found Watson wide open for the touchdown with the calmest pass I’ve ever seen him throw.”
Young praised Tyson Goodman for blocking a punt, setting Sehome up for about a 30-yard drive for the winning score.
“Al Miller made a couple of first-down catches on that drive,” Young said of the fast-improving junior. “Al played by far his best game. Andre made a reverse-pivot on the two-point conversion and Nolan found him perfectly.”
Miller scored Sehome’s only touchdown of the first half on a short toss from Wright.
Down 21-7 late in the third quarter, Wright threw the first of his two touchdown passes to Watson and Grady Evans kicked the second of his two all-important conversions.
“Finn Seitz Gregoire made a sack on fourth down to effectively end the game in the final seconds,” Young said. “So many of our players made great efforts in our comeback.”
Wright’s three touchdown passes improved his season total to 33 and his career count to 69 to go with nearly 6,000 yards passing. Watson’s two touchdown catches increased his season total to 23 and his county career record to 46 to go with more than 3,000 yards receiving.
The Mariners (8-3) will play at Tumwater (11-0) at 3 p;.m. Saturday. Tumwater displayed its power with a playoff-opening 44-0 win over Cedarcrest.
Lynden Christian 40, Cascade Christian 14: Junior quarterback Eli Maberry threw four touchdown passes and sophomore Chris Kooiman ran for two touchdowns for the Lyncs (7-4).
Maberry completed 17 of 26 passes for 229 yards with one interception.
Boyce Robertson caught seven passes for 158 yards including touchdowns of 3 and 39 yards. Trey Bosman grabbed four passes for 39 yards, with a 9-yard score. Jayden Huleatt scored on a 6-yard pass.
Maberry improved his school record season totals to 2,390 yards and 24 touchdown passes.
Hollis Owen carried 15 times for 80 yards, including a 40-yarder that set up a score against the Cougars (7-4). Kooiman’s 12 carries for 62 yards and two scores helped the Lyncs build a 33-7 advantage.
“Our guys were just so physically tough,” said LC coach Greg Terpstra. “They embraced the elements.”
He happily rattled off the names of his dominant offensive linemen: Nico Brommer, Kyler Sterk, Luke VanRooyen, Eli Stamps and Justin Kuik.
LC will face the state’s hottest team in Royal, which has scored at least 70 points in all of its previous four games. Royal hasn’t lost since the Lyncs took a fourth-week non-league victory in 2022. Royal has won four consecutive state 1A titles and seven of the past eight.
“Our guys aren’t afraid of them,” Terpstra said. “This is a game where we will embrace whatever comes our way.”
Lynden Christian will play at 2 p.m. Saturday at at Royal in Royal City.
Lynden 38, Fife 6: Fourth-year quarterback Brant Heppner threw touchdown passes of 51 yards to Samm Puello Arango and 5 yards to Isaiah Oudman, who also scored on wildcat runs of 8 and 1 yard to help the Lions take a 35-0 advantage at Ferndale Stadium.
The Lions (10-1) will be back at Ferndale on Saturday at 2 p.m. against Archbishop Murphy (10-1), which beat Orting 31-0. Anacortes also posted a shutout, 46-0 over Bainbridge, giving the four NWC state playoff qualifiers a first-round sweep of eight wins.
Junior running back Max Assink picked up 105 yards on 18 carries and scored on a 4-yard run for his 13th touchdown of the season. Reserve quarterback Lukas Lalji gained 63 yards on six carries.
Malachxxi Koenen kicked a 30-yard field goal — his sixth of the season. Koenen kicked all five extra points and is now 38 for 39 during a remarkable season for the sophomore.
“What we wanted to do in the rain was establish a 50-50 offense,” said Lions coach Blake Van Dalen. “We did that with 228 yards rushing and 222 yards passing.”
Defensively, the Lions had four three plays-and-out series and Grady Van Dalen had his first interception on the varsity.
Happner completed 10 of 20 passes for 215 yards, improving his season totals to 2,535 yards and 22 touchdowns. His career totals are 5.411 yards and 54 touchdowns, with only 11 interceptions.
Van Dalen praised Arango, a sophomore, for making a season high of 165 yards on six catches. Oudman improved his touchdown total to 16, with four rushing in the wildcat formation and 12 receiving. The senior tight end has 980 yards receiving.
In other playoff openers, Tumwater shut out Cedarcrest 44-0; Franklin Pierce beat East Valleyt Yakima 40-21; W.F. West defeated Olympic 33-7; and West Valley Spokane upended Prosser 29-28.
All-NWC 2A Selections
Whatcom County Players (as voted by coaches)
Offensive MVP
- Brant Heppner, Sr., Lynden QB
Coaches of the Year
- Blake Van Dalen, Lynden
- Dalton Schwetz, Burlington-Edison
Assistant coach of the year
- John Dumas, Anacortes
First team offense
- QB -- Nolan Wright, Jr., Sehome
- RB -- Marcus Nixon, Sr., Squalicum
- WR -- Andre Watson, Sr., Sehome
- TE -- Isaiah Oudman, Sr., Lynden
- OL -- Zach Dykstra, Soph. Lynden
- OL -- Cole Turrell, Jr., Sehome
- OL -- Joseph Boyd, Bellingham, Jr.
First team defense
- DL -- Parker Williams, Sr., Lynden
- LB -- Laki, Fagaautua, Jr., Squalicum
- DB -- Brody Price, Jr., Lynden
- DB -- Hudson Neff, Jr., Sehome
Second team offense
- RB -- Max Assink, Jr., Lynden
- WR -- Samm Puello Arango, Sioph., Lynden
- WR -- Joe Harward, Jr., Bellingham
- OL -- Carter Vrieling, Jr., Lynden
- OL -- Josh Kroll, Bellingham, Jr.
Second team defense
- DL -- Finn Seitz-Gregoire, Jr., Sehome
- DL -- Zach Dykstra, Soph., Lynden
- DL -- Bryce Vereen, Jr., Squalicum
- LB -- Isaiah Oudman, Sr., Lynden
- LB -- Fisher Hall, Sr., Sehome
- LB -- Marcus Nixon, Sr., Squalicum
- DB -- Joaquin Ortiz, Sr., Squalicum
- DB -- Coleby Chambers, Sr.,. Sehome
- DB -- Bly Henderson, Sr., Bellingham
State Playoffs – Saturday
Class 2A
- Lynden vs. Archbishop Murphy, 2 p.m. at Ferndale H.S.
- Sehome vs. Tumwater at Tumwater Stadium, 3 p.m.
Class 1A
- Nooksack Valley vs. Cashmere, 1 p.m. at Wenatchee’s Apple Bowl
Lynden Christian at Royal, 2 p.m.
This story was originally published November 18, 2024 at 8:45 AM with the headline "Prep Football Roundup: Four Whatcom County teams advance as paths to state titles get tougher."
