Laker football beats rival Pacers in battle of the lakes

Last Friday, Nov. 1 the Lakers traveled across the lake to play cross town rival the Lakeridge Pacers. Coming off the disappointing loss against Tualatin last week, the Lakers dominated as they won the battle of the lake 41-14.

In the first quarter, the Pacers started the game with a 67 yard touchdown on the fourth play from scrimmage. And just like that, it was 7-0 Pacers roughly one minute into the game. However, the Lakers would not give in. They answered on an 80 yard drive that ended with senior Casey Filkins running the ball into the end zone from 17 yards to tie the game at 7-7 about mid way through the first quarter. 

Filkins scored again on a 10 yard run, on a drive where Filkins tore apart the Pacer’s defense, running 7 times for 62 yards. The Pacers answered back with a field goal after failing to score a touchdown and having to settle for three points. In the ensuing possession for the Lakers, junior quarterback J.J. Woodin led the offense 65 yards down the field, connecting with senior Jonas Hunter on fourth down for a nine yard touchdown that gave the Lakers a 20-10 lead at halftime. 

Coming out of the locker room, the Lakers carried the momentum big time into the second half. Their 65 yard opening drive in the third quarter was capped off by Filkins running into the end zone for 10 yards to extend the lead to 27-10. With three minutes left in the third quarter, the Lakers extended the lead to 34-10. However, the Lakers were not done yet. After sophomore Gabe Olvera entered the game for Filkins, he ran seven times for 55 yards and punched it in for a one yard touchdown to make it 41-10. Filkins led the way for the Laker offense, racking up 251 yards and five touchdowns on 36 carries.The Pacers scored again to make it 41-17, a huge win for the Lakers, as they ended the season in second place in the league with a 4-2 league record and 7-2 overall. The third seed Lakers look forward to using the momentum Friday, Nov. 8 at 7 p.m. against #30 Grants Pass at home in the first round of the state playoffs.