Lions repeat: Lynden mounts game-winning drive to outlast North Kitsap in 2A championship

Isaiah Stanley couldn’t hold back the tears. He was moments removed from, doubtlessly, the biggest moment of his football career.

When the stage was biggest and the lights were brightest, Stanley, Lynden’s senior receiver, hauled in three consecutive fourth down receptions and propelled the Lions to a game-winning score with a minute remaining. Stanley soared for a fourth catch on the drive — a leaping grab that put Lynden on the one-yard line in a tie game.

“I want to perform for everybody else in this black and green over here,” Stanley said. “I love every single one of them like they’re my blood.”

Quarterback Brant Heppner pranced untouched for the game-winner, and the Lions defense recovered a championship-sealing fumble on the final drive. For a second straight year, the state title trophy heads back to Lynden.

Stanley sat in the locker room at halftime when Lynden lead comfortably, 17-3 lead. Head coach Blake VanDalen looked to his senior receiver: “Hey, this is going to be your half.”

“And I didn’t believe him at first,” Stanley said, joking through the tears. “But it just kept rolling and rolling and rolling.

“It meant more to me because of everybody else.”

Lynden officially renewed its status as the 2A’s top dog, outlasting No. 3 North Kitsap in a battle of powerhouses at Sparks Stadium in Puyallup on Saturday night.

“It’s just family,” Stanley said. “Junior varsity practices with varsity every day. Iron sharpens iron.”

Stanley had just two catches in Lynden’s 41-14 semifinal victory over No. 4 Enumclaw last weekend. He failed to grab a single reception in a quarterfinal win over No. 8 Highline on Nov. 18.

“To be honest, it was bound to happen when it needed to happen,” he said. “I knew I was going to have a game, but I didn’t know what game it (would be).”

Heppner, the six-foot-six signal caller, finished with three rushing touchdowns and sung the praises of Saturday’s hero.

“He’s so good,” Heppner said of Stanley. “Just putting the trust in him to go make plays. That’s what he does. He makes plays.”

VanDalen couldn’t believe Heppner’s picture-perfect throws to Stanley on the closing drive, threading perfect spirals into minute pockets down the sidelines.

Said Heppner: “I love how the coaches just put all of the trust in us.”

North Kitsap led early, 3-0, thanks to a fumble by Lynden’s Kaeden Hermanutz on the opening kickoff. But Lynden’s Collin Anker soon blocked North Kitsap’s second field goal try, and Troy Petz dashed 67 yards for the game’s first score.

Lynden never trailed again.

Anker’s block flipped the momentum and marked his second-consecutive week with a blocked kick.

“Standing up after blocking that, and seeing my teammate run down the field for a score… it was exactly what we needed,” Anker said. “I knew (Petz) was going all the way.”

Petz, the do-it-all senior, then drilled a 24-yarder of his own as Lynden’s kicker that put the Lions up, 10-3, in the second.

Moments before halftime, Heppner took off in soft coverage and converted a 3rd and 8 with his legs. Lynden’s third unanswered scoring drive ended on the final play of the first half – Keppner dove over the pile to score a one-yard keeper with no time on the clock.

“Confidence in your kids,” VanDalen said. “They put the sweat in the bucket, and we’re going to go down swinging.”

North Kitsap jogged into the away locker room at halftime with 39 total yards of offense, but turned the tide and unleashed a pair of scoring drives in the third quarter for lengths of 80 and 81 yards, respectively. Both ended with rushing scores by Benen Lawler, the latter lasting 17 plays.

Lawler hauled in a five-yard score to open the fourth quarter, good for his third touchdown of the game. Lynden’s lead, and momentum, had evaporated and morphed into a 24-24 tie.

Still, the Lions only needed one more scoring drive for the state title, and got it.

“It means everything, man,” Anker said. “Obviously, the (title) last year was amazing, but to do it my senior year, and finish out like that with my brothers that I’ve been growing up with, is just the best feeling in the world.”

Stanley hauled in crucial receptions on three consecutive fourth down conversions, helping control the clock into the final seconds. Heppner’s third score – all rushing, all from the one-yard line – was the game-winner.

Lynden’s win streak extends to 24, and entering Saturday’s contest, had won each of its three prior state contests by 27 or more points.

The Lions are now ten-time state champions: eight times in 2A and twice previously in 1A.

“They do it the right way,” VanDalen said. “They’re good kids. They treat people with respect. They’re kind.

“But they kick tail on the field, too.”