BY MAKAYLA SPARKS – For Whatcom Preps
LYNDEN – With conference play coming to an end, collecting one more win was the last task on the checklist for the Lynden Lions. That they did, defeating the Burlington-Edison Tigers 31-7 on Friday night at Roland Kirkby Field.
The Lions kicked off the game and quickly stopped the Tigers. Soon after, senior quarterback Brant Heppner found senior tight end Isaiah Oudman on the Lions sideline. Oudman hauled the ball in near the 20-yard line and rumbled the rest of the way to the end zone for a 7-0 lead.
That was far from the last time fans would hear his name called.
The two seniors connected again with 5:20 to go in the first half. The short pass took Oudman into the end zone for his second touchdown of the game.
After struggling to get much going against the Lynden defense, the Burlington offense put together its strongest drive of the first half, powering deep into Lion territory. However, it wouldn’t last.
Lynden junior defensive back Lofa Tigilau dove in front of a Tiger pass and collected an interception, that was tipped by Oudman, on the Lion seven yard line with around a minute to go in the half.
A couple quick passes later, Lynden was knocking at the door of the goal line. They settled for a 28-yard field goal and sophomore kicker Malachi Koenen kicked the ball through the center of the uprights, giving Lynden a 17-0 halftime lead.
The Lions weren’t done yet. Just when it looked like penalties might slow them down, junior running back Max Assink jumped through a hole created by the left side of his offense line and rumbled 18 yards to put the Lions back into a favorable position. A couple plays later, Oudman took a direct snap and carried the ball across the goal line.
Three and a half minutes later, Oudman collected a 33-yard pass from Heppner, where he stiff armed a defender and raced into the end zone. In doing so he held up four fingers, signaling his fourth touchdown of the night.
With the Lions up 31-0, the Tigers snuck into the end zone on a three-yard run early in the final quarter of play but Lynden had already done what it needed to do. Letting their second-stringers run out the rest of the clock, the Lions secured their 6-1 conference record with the 31-7 victory.
The Lions (8-1) will await their draw on Sunday which will determine their opponent next week.
Lynden 31 Burlington-Edison 7 LYN 7 10 14 0 - 31 B-E 0 0 0 7 - 7 LYN - Oudman 52 pass from Heppner (Mal. Koenen kick) LYN - Oudman 14 pass from Heppner (Mal. Koenen kick) LYN - Mal. Koenen 28 FG LYN - Oudman 1 run (Mal. Koenen kick) LYN - Oudman 33 pass from Heppner (Mal. Koenen kick) B-E - 4 yard touchdown run (kick good) LYN B-E 38-124 Rush Att-Yards 24-124 17-30-0 Comp-Att-Int 8-24-1 298 Passing Yards 99 Individual Leaders RUSHING - LYN: Assink 13-63, Heppner 7-30, Lalji 10-15, Mar. Koenen 2-7, Mendoza-Batey 4-6, Oudman 2-3. B-E: N/A. PASSING - LYN: Heppner 17-29-0-298, Lalji 0-1-0-0. B-E: N/A. RECEIVING - LYN: Oudman 6-141, Arango 5-64, Assink 3-43, Price 2-36, Tigilau 1-14. B-E: N/A.
