Varsity football - close, but no cigar

It was a Jekyll/Hyde night for the Oak Harbor defense. The "D" shut out Lake Stevens in the first half, then allowed 28 points in the 2nd. The offense scored just before the end of the 2nd quarter, then again halfway through the 4th quarter.

The first 3 possessions of the game were all 3-and outs, 2 by the Vikings (1 featuring a great solo sack by Stephen Lewis that was featured on KING 5 news that evening) and one by OH. Getting the ball for the 2nd time in the game with 10:11 on the clock in the first quarter, OH got a drive going. Starting at the OH 41, the 'Cats spread the ball around, with receptions by Brad Farnum, Stephen Lewis and Rashaad Smith, and runs by Lewis, James Jordan and Donovan Hunt. Unfortunately, Jordan, while running in from the 12, had the ball knocked away at the 7, and was covered by Lake Stevens at the 10.

The Lake Stevens QB ran out to the 21, and then completed a pass to the 29, but it was brought back to the LS 15 after a holding call, then with the ball on the LS 44, the Vikings were called for an illegal shift. With a 1st & 15 from the 39, the Lake Stevens QB threw the ball deep, where it was intercepted by Derrick Clarit at the OH 34. The 'Cats ran one play, a run by Jordan, and the quarter ended with the score 0-0. The OH drive only went another 3 plays before Lewis punted to the LS 36. The teams traded punts after short drives, and with the Vikings driving from the OH 33, another LS pass was picked off, this one by Hunt, this one at the OH 10 with 4:43 left in the half.

The first two plays were runs by Hunt, one for a loss, setting up a 3rd & 10 pass reception by Josh Higbee at the 25, and then a long pass reception by Hunt moved the ball from the OH 27 to the LS 23. From there, Hunt caught another pass and ran it into the end zone for the first score of the game. Kevin Flavin's kick was blocked, so with 1:48 left in the half it was Oak Harbor 6, Lake Stevens 0, and that score stood as the clock ran out.

Oak Harbor received the 2nd half opening kickoff, with Hunt catching it at the 15 and returning it to the Viking 46. But after gaining only 2 yards in 3 plays, the 'Cats punted away again. This is when the Viking offense kicked into high gear. Using just over 4 minutes, the Vikings moved the ball 83 yards, capping the drive with a pass into the end zone.

Hunt again had a decent return on the kickoff, setting up the offense on the OH 25, but the 2nd play of that drive was intercepted at the OH 26, and 4 plays later Lake Stevens scored again, moving the score to 14-6 with 3:04 left in the 3rd.

The Lake Stevens kickoff was short, and was covered by Greg Goebel at the 40, but after a loss of 4 on 1st down, and a sack on 3rd down, the Wildcats punted on 4th & 22 from the 27 that was returned back to the OH 41, and again the Vikings made short work of it and scored on a pass play in just 5 plays. With the clock showing 11:48 left in the game it was LS 21 OH 6.

OH started their next drive on their own 38, and slowly started to work their way upfield. There were a couple of heart-gripping moments, such as when Jordan got sacked at midfield, but Hunt got it back setting up a 3rd & 10 at the LS 38. A scramble run by Jordan brought the ball to the 14, another run by Jordan took it to the 6, and then Jordan kept it one more time to score with 5:58 left in the game to make it LS 21, OH 13.

Lake Stevens' efficient offense went to work again, starting at their own 19, and again only used 5 plays to score once more with 3:54 left in the game. The Viking win was sealed when a Jordan pass was intercepted with just 3:09 remaining, and the Vikings were able to run the clock out.

Look for video highlights on Tuesday.