NOOKSACK – It was thought to be a somewhat close game, but Nooksack Valley put that to rest right off the bat after scoring the first six touchdowns of the first half against Meridian in a 48-15 victory over the Trojans at Sid Lambert Field on Friday night.
It’s the first time that Nooksack Valley has started 5-0 since 1975.
Junior quarterback Joey Brown started off the scoring for the Pioneers with a 7-yard touchdown run early in the first quarter, and it was followed up by a 10-yard touchdown run by junior running back Skyler Whittern and a quick-strike from Brown to junior wide receiver Jackson Bennett who then took it 55 yards for a touchdown.
Brown kept his big night rolling when he outran the Trojan defense around the left side, and somersaulted over the pylon to avoid the final defender, and scored a touchdown on a 48-yard scamper.
Meridian then went on its first strong drive of the game, getting the Pioneer 2-yard line. But, on a running play up the middle, Nooksack Valley junior inside linebacker Daemion Perez knocked the ball loose from the Trojan ball-carrier, and sophomore strong safety Colton Lentz picked it up and sprinted 99 yards for a touchdown.
Lentz then scored on a 36-yard touchdown run with 3:53 left until halftime, and one play after gaining 41 yards on a powerful run. He finished with a team-high 99 yards rushing on just five carries.
Trojan sophomore running back Landen Downey scored from a yard out to get Meridian on the scoreboard with nine second left in the first half.
Brown scored his third touchdown of the game, this time from 44 yards away, in the third quarter. The 6-foot-3 signal caller totaled 96 yards on the ground, and 124 yards passing.
Meridian sophomore quarterback Jaeger Fyfe connected on a 75-yard touchdown pass to senior wide receiver Hunter Jones late in the fourth quarter. Fyfe finished with 225 yards passing on 17 completions, while Jones had a gigantic game with seven receptions for 148 yards.
The Pioneers (5-0) will have a huge conference game next Friday when they go on the road to take on Lynden Christian (4-0) at 7:00.
Nooksack Valley 48 Meridian 15 MER 0 7 0 8 - 15 NV 21 20 7 0 - 48 NV - Brown 7 run (Vigre kick) NV - Whittern 10 run (Vigre kick) NV - Bennett 55 pass from Brown (Vigre kick) NV - Brown 48 run (Vigre kick) NV - Lentz 99 fumble return (kick blocked) NV - Lentz 36 run (Virge kick) MER - Downey 1 run (Jensen kick) NV - Brown 44 run (Vigre kick) MER - Jones 75 pass from Fyfe (Elmer run) MER NV 34-87 Rush Att-Yards 23-226 17-34-1 Comp-Att-Int 7-14-0 225 Passing Yards 124 Individual Leaders RUSHING - MER: Elmer 12-38, Castaneda 12-38, Downey 6-18, Fyfe 4-(-7). NV: Lentz 5-99, J. Brown 8-96, Whittern 5-46, Brisky 1-2, O'Bryan 2-(-1), Huante 1-(-6), E. Brown 1-(-10). PASSING - MER: Fyfe 17-34-1-225. NV: J. Brown 7-12-0-124, E. Brown 0-2-0-0. RECEIVING - MER: Jones 7-148, Elmer 4-30, Jensen 3-20, Nagra 2-27, Downey 1-0. NV: Olney 3-20, Bennett 2-80, Bravo 1-30, Whittern 1-(-6).
