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CONTACT THE ENTERPRISE Jocelyn Robinson, News editor jrobinson@heraldnet.com

Big plays lift Mountlake Terrace past Lynnwood

Anyimah rushes for 107 yards, two TDs in Hawks’ 29-6 victory

By David Pan
Enterprise Sports editor

EDMONDS

Big plays made all the difference in Mountlake Terrace's season opener against Lynnwood.

The Hawks executed a number of them, while the Royals did not, as Mountlake Terrace prevailed 29-6 in a non-conference football game Sept. 5 at Edmonds Stadium.

Mountlake Terrace senior running back Percy Anyimah rushed for 107 yards on six carries and scored two touchdowns, including a 70-yard run. Teammate Nick Deller was the defensive standout with two interceptions in the fourth quarter, one of which he ran back 30 yards for a touchdown.

"It feels good," Anyimah said of the victory. "We started off the season right. Now we're ready to go."

Mountlake Terrace coach Tony Umayam noted that his team was forced to send out a few younger players on both sides of the ball after injuries sidelined some starters.

"We played a lot of guys, a lot of young guys in spots they had minimal practice at and they really did a nice job of stepping up," Umayam said. "It was nice we were able to get the big play. I talk about that all the time. Not every play is going to go but we just kind of hang in there, pretty soon one of our backs will get loose."

The final score was somewhat misleading as the game was close late in the fourth quarter. Mountlake Terrace (1-0) led 15-6 with just under two minutes left in the game when Deller picked off his second pass of the night and ran it back for a touchdown to extend the Hawks' lead to 22-6.

Lynnwood (0-1) fumbled the ensuing kickoff and Mountlake Terrace recovered on the Royal 37. Junior running back Casey Ellersick scored on a 37-yard run on the next play to push the final margin of victory to 29-6.

"We battled with them the whole game," said Lynnwood coach Dorian Manza. "Our defense was playing tough all day. I'm really proud of our guys. … We were right there."

The Royals only suited up 24 players and were missing three starters.

Lynnwood was never able to get on track offensively. Its lone touchdown was set up by a botched punt attempt by Mountlake Terrace.

Lynnwood senior running back Geoff Meinken rushed for 73 yards on 12 carries but was generally contained for most of the game.

"Defensively I think we did a nice job swarming to the ball," Umayam said. "That's something we tried to emphasize all the time and we were able to get a lot of guys around a big strong back in Meinken."

Still, Manza was impressed by his senior running back's 6-yard per carry average.

"I should have given him the ball more," Manza said.

"I believe the difference tonight was the defense," said senior linebacker Billy Lechtenberg. "We just fought through all adversity."

Mountlake Terrace finished the game with two sophomore reserves at linebackers.

The Hawks' pass rush made life difficult for Lynnwood quarterback Jared Shippey. Manza noted that his quarterback was sacked on four out of his first 10 passing attempts.

"We really need to improve our offensive line," he said. "We weren't staying on our blocks. We got beat off the ball and overpowered."

Added Umayam, "Our pass rush was pretty good. They did a nice job of adjusting to the different places we were sending pressure from. But we were able to get a little bit of pressure on him (Shippey). That really helps in the secondary."

Manza was pleased with the play of his defense, especially Meinken, who he said is the heart of the defensive squad.

Though the Hawks' special teams had their share of problems, they also had some successes. Kicker Chaz Dalton booted a 42-yard field goal less than a minute into the second quarter to give Mountlake Terrace a 3-0 lead.

Anyimah scored on a 1-yard run with 47 seconds remaining in the first half to boost the lead to 9-0 at halftime. The extra point was missed.

Midway through the third quarter, Anyimah ran for a 70-yard touchdown as the Hawks' lead grew to 15-0.

"It was great blocking by the O-line," Anyimah said. "They did their part. I found a seam and I took it to the house."

Later in the third quarter, an errant snap enabled Lynnwood to tackle the Mountlake Terrace punter at the Hawk 16. Six plays later, Shippey threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Michael Stanley to cut the lead to 15-6. A 2-point pass attempt was unsuccessful.

Umayam is concerned about the play of the Hawks' special teams.

"We need to make sure that we solidify on special teams," he said. "We had a couple of errant snaps that put our defense in a real bad situation and them a short field. Lynnwood took advantage of that."

Manza, who now works at Lynnwood High School, expects two or three starters to be back this week and is working hard at increasing Lynnwood's overall numbers.

"We'll have a lot more numbers as the season progresses," he said.

Hawks down Royals

•Senior running back Percy Anyimah rushed for 107 yards and scored a pair of touchdowns to lead Mountlake Terrace to a 29-6 victory over Lynnwood in a non-conference game Sept. 5 at Edmonds Stadium.
•Hawk senior linebacker Nick Deller intercepted two passes and returned one 30 yards for a touchdown in the fourth quarter.
•Mountlake Terrace takes on Mariner at 7 p.m., Friday, Sept. 12 at Goddard Stadium. Lynnwood hosts Arlington at 8 p.m. at Edmonds Stadium.