Colville Football Falls to Lakeside in 29-28 Loss

For most of the game, records in the NEA League didn’t matter. Lakeside and Colville were locked in a dogfight like they had been many years before. A furious fourth-quarter comeback, however, led to a 29-28 defeat for the Crimson Hawks on Friday, Oct. 23. Colville jumped out to a 20-0 advantage in the first half and carried a 28-16 lead into the fourth quarter before the Eagles scored 13 unanswered points to come away with the win. The Crimson Hawks got off to a fast start when Colton Hansen returned an interception 19 yards for a touchdown in the opening quarter. Sam Miller added the extra point to give Colville an early 7-0 lead. Quarterback Gunnar Baker then connected with Baxter Phipps on a 27-yard touchdown pass, with Miller again converting the extra point to push the advantage to 14-0. Colville continued its momentum into the second quarter when Phipps broke loose for a 27-yard touchdown run, extending the lead to 20-0 after a failed two-point conversion attempt. Lakeside finally got on the score- board with a 3-yard touchdown run and successful two-point conversion, trimming Colville’s halftime advantage to 20-8. The Crimson Hawks answered in the third quarter with a 1-yard touchdown run, followed by Baker’s successful twopoint conversion run, stretching the lead to 28-8.

However, the Eagles refused to go away, connecting on a 46-yard touchdown pass and adding another twopoint conversion to close the gap to 28- 16 heading into the final quarter. The momentum shifted in the fourth quarter when Lakeside returned an interception 77 yards for a touchdown. Although the two-point conversion failed, the defensive score brought the Eagles within six points at 28-22. Lakeside completed the comeback with a 70-yard touchdown pass, followed by the extra point, to take its first lead of the game, 29-28. Despite the loss, Colville controlled much of the game offensively, outgaining Lakeside 315-284 in total yards. The Crimson Hawks relied heavily on their rushing attack, piling up 216 yards on the ground. Jayson Clark led Colville with 114 yards on 21 carries and a touchdown, including a long run of 33 yards. Phipps added 61 rushing yards on seven attempts, averaging 8.7 yards per carry. Baker contributed another 21 yards rushing on five carries. Through the air, Baker completed 9 of 15 passes for 99 yards and a touchdown, although he was intercepted twice.

Phipps was also a contributor in the passing game, catching three passes for 41 yards and a touchdown. Jeff Sears added four receptions for 41 yards, while Sam Sears caught two passes for 17 yards. Defensively, Colville came up with several big plays, including two interceptions and a fumble recovery. Bryant Lopata led the Crimson Hawks’ pass rush with two sacks and two tackles for loss, while Toby Fowler recorded a sack and a tackle for loss. Jeff Sears finished with three solo tackles and five assists, while Sam Sears contributed three solo tackles and two assists. Colville’s defense held Lakeside to just 122 rushing yards, but the Eagles found success through the air, finishing with 162 passing yards. Both teams finished with three turnovers, while Colville converted just three of its 10 third-down opportunities and two of six fourth-down attempts. The loss dropped Colville to 1-7 on the season, while Lakeside improved to 5-2-1.