Lynden Makes the Most of Unfortunate Circumstances

BY MAKAYLA SPARKS – For Whatcom Preps

LYNDEN – What do you do when your opponent forfeits and no else wants to play you? You rally around your seniors and put on a show for your community.

That was what the Lynden Lions did when they turned the unfortunate circumstances into a night of festivities, including a 7-on-7 tournament, 40-yard dash and weightlifting contests, a lineman fair catch challenge, and a Koenen brother kicking competition.

Lynden was scheduled to host Burlington-Edison, but the Tigers forfeited just two days before game night because of numerous athletes that broke the athletic code.

“We made the most of it and still got to do something,” junior quarterback Brant Heppner noted after the event.

The evening started two hours before the original planned kickoff with an NFL style walk-in parade and tailgate put on by the Lynden parents. The players took the field an hour and a half later for their senior night presentation, honoring all the senior football players, cheerleaders, and band members.

Soon after, the 7-on-7 tournament, 40-yard dash contest and weightlifting competitions began simultaneously on various parts of the Lynden campus. Both the JV and varsity squads were competing in their own 7-on-7 tournament, with each squad being spilt into three separate teams. The 40-yard dash was being run directly in front of the stands in lane one of the track. And to the right of the field, the weight lifting contest was happening inside of the Lynden weight room.

In between the three rounds of 20 minute 7-on-7 games, things got a little wild. During the first break in action, Freshman kicker Malachi Koenen faced his little brother Markus, an eighth grader at Lynden Middle school, in a field goal competition. The younger of the two won at first but when Malachi decide to challenge his little brother by moving back to the 40-yard line, he showed off his powerful leg. Malachi spilt the uprights on the 50-yard attempt and went home with the longest field goal of the night.

During the second break, it was time for the lineman to shine. The west end zone filled up with Lynden’s offensive and defensive lineman as they attempt to make fair catches on Malachi Koenen’s and junior punter, Isaiah Oudman’s punts. Meanwhile, Lynden’s cheer squad and mini-cheer squad performed for the stands full of fans.

The event ended with a lineman versus student section tug-of-war that result in a rope break and a debatable win for the student section.

By the end of the night, it was the community that everyone was thanking for such a great night.

“It was a once in a lifetime experience. This only happens in the town of Lynden. Our community, our fans, our family, this is something that can only happen at Rollie Dekoster Field,” Senior wide receiver Cooper Moore stated about the evening.

Coach Vandalen had a similar sentiment. “The band showed up. The cheer showed up. Parents showed up. We are really blessed to be in this community and we handle adversity as well as anybody.”

The most notable outcome of forfeit was the guaranteed playoff spot for Lions. Cementing one of the two playoff berths, Heppner says is just one more step in his team’s journey.

“It’s one checkbox, but the job is not finished. We still have more ahead of us.”