Nooksack’s county-leading rusher Colton Lentz met one goal, but he’s not done yet
Colton Lentz already achieved one dream when he surpassed his father’s touchdown totals at Nooksack Valley. Even more important for the Northwest Conference’s 1A Offensive Player of the Year, he wants to match the sports history his older sister helped the Pioneers achieve.
If Lentz can help lift the Pioneers to their first state football championship, the elusive power-running junior will be the second Lentz with a Nooksack first.
Taylor Lentz played an important role in helping the Pioneers beat Lynden Christian last season for Nooksack’s first state girls’ basketball title.
“Oh, yeah, we talk about that,” he said with a grin.
What the Pioneers aren’t talking about yet is the 1A state final. That’s a no-no, since Nooksack (9-2) must beat Lakeside (12-0) from Nine Mile Falls in a semifinal Saturday. Kickoff is at 1 p.m. at Union Stadium in Mead, a small town just north of Spokane.
Lentz says he is not only grateful to be part of a state semifinal for the second consecutive season — a football first for the Pioneers -- but also for having a multitude of teammates of distinction alongside him.
The 6-foot-2, 210-pound athlete developed a passion for football when he was a tyke who constantly talked tactics with father Britt Lentz, a former Nooksack Valley and Eastern Washington University standout who has served as a Nooksack assistant coach for more than two decades.
At home with parents Ella and Britt Lentz, Colton would talk about being inspired by the current senior class when they went undefeated as eighth-graders and had the school district buzzing about their potential.
“I remember when Colton would sit on my knee watching football with me,” Britt said. “His love of the game is his own love of the game. Football has always been his favorite sport. I’ll always remember how he accompanied me when our 1997 national finalist at Eastern was inducted as a team into the university’s Hall of Fame.”
Now Colton says he wants his family to come see him play in college, possibly in the Big Sky Conference like his father did as a starting linebacker in his junior and senior years.
“Colton has a work ethic second to none,” said fourth-year quarterback Joey Brown of Lentz, who was voted a co-captain as a junior. “And he is such a good teammate.”
Of all the thousands of boys who have attended Nooksack, he has rushed for more career touchdowns (44) than any of them including his father’s 40, according to the records kept by the Whatcom Preps website. He also has three touchdown receptions from the talented Brown this season, giving him 47 total touchdowns.
His father’s 20 scores as a senior in 1994 had been tied at the top for a school season rushing best. Colton has run for 24 this season and has scored 27 in all for a county best.
“It feels awesome,” Colton said. “There’s definitely a sense of accomplishment. It’s a win-win for us.”
Colton will talk all day about the jumbo-sized interior line — seniors Duke Halaapiapi, John Stremler, Dalton Hickey and Cian Coppinger and junior Brady Ackerman — because he knows they have been the prime movers in leading Nooksack to 545 points even though the starters have played a full game only five times.
“Colton’s drive for excellence is just amazing,” said head coach Craig Bartl said of Lentz, who leads the county with 1,268 yards rushing, according to Whatcom Preps. “Everything he does is a competition. And he’s really a good person. He leads by example.”
“Everyone on our team strives to be a leader by example,” Colton said.
Colton also feels “incredibly fortunate” to have Brown (more than 1,800 total yards with 22 touchdowns produced passing and running); senior Skyler Whittern (more than 1,100 yards rushing); two of the league’s best and most explosive receivers, senior Jackson Bennett and junior Cory Olney (more than 800 yards between them); and senior county kick-scoring leader Jorgen Vigre (81 points with five field goals and 66-for-67 extra point accuracy).
Colton was especially proud of the Pioneers’ 47-14 win in the quarterfinals over Lynden Christian, which won the NWC 1A title by the margin of a 21-20 last-minute win over Nooksack in Week Six.
Nooksack’s other loss was a late-game non-league 28-26 setback to state qualifier King’s, so the Pioneers have consistently been about as competitive as Bartl could ask.
Lakeside beat explosive Lynden Christian 14-8 in a season-opener, so the Pioneers’ offensive stars know “we will have to be at our best,” as Lentz said.
One thing’s for sure, he feels: They won’t lack for effort.
ALL-NWC 1A
In addition to recognizing Lentz, the five coaches voted Lynden Christian’s Kayden Stuit as Defensive Player of the Year, Blaine newcomer Andy Olson as Coach of the Year, and LC defensive coordinator Kent Bouma as Assistant Coach of the Year.
Their selections, according to Whatcom Preps:
Offense
QB — Joey Brown, Nooksack, Sr.
RB — Lentz; Skyler Whittern, Nooksack, Sr.; Josh Elmer, Meridian, Sr.; Dylan Moa, Mount Baker, Jr.
WR — Dawson Bouma, LC, Sr.; Tyson Bajema, LC, Sr.; Jackson Bennett, Nooksack, Sr.
TE — Kayden Stuit, LC, Sr.
OL — Brady Ackerman, Nooksack, Jr.; Duke Halaapiapi, Sr.; Alex Maloley, Mount Baker, Sr.; John Stremler, Nooksack, Sr.; Malachi VanderMay, LC, Sr.; Dalton Hickey, Nooksack, Sr.
Defense
DL — Halaapiapi; Maloley; Ackerman; VanderMay.
LB — Brody Bouwman, LC, Sr.; Jeremiah Wright, LC, Sr.; Stremler; Trey Bosman, LC, Jr.
DB — Bouma; Bennett; Mick Owen, LC, Jr.; Cory Olney, Nooksack, Jr.
PK — Matthew Hayes, Blaine, Sr.
P — Maloley.
ALL-NWC 2A
Whatcom County selections
First Team Offense
RB — Charlie Ayres, Lynden, Sr.
WR — Andre Watson, Sehome, Jr.
TE — Isaiah Oudman, Lynden, Jr.
OL — Kuyper Assink, Lynden, Sr.; Bennett Roorda, Lynden, Sr.; Colby Lewis, Squalicum, Sr.
PK — Grady Evans, Sehome, Jr.
P — Malachi Koenen, Lynden, Fr.
First Team Defense
DL — Assink
LB — Ayres
DB — Brady Elsner, Lynden, Sr.; Marcus Nixon, Squalicum, Jr.
Second Team Offense
QB — Brant Heppner, Lynden, Jr.
RB — Deandre Dunmore, Squalicum, Sr.
WR — Elsner
TE — Brad Duckworth, Sehome, Sr.
OL— Jesse Harwood, Bellingham, Sr.
Second Team Defense
LB — Dunmore; Oudman; Duckworth.
DB — Zack Welch, Lynden, Sr.; Hudson Neff, Sehome, Fr.; Cooper Moore, Lynden, Sr.
