After weeks of coming up just short of their first win of the season, the Lyman High School football team finally broke into the win column Friday, spoiling Kemmerer’s Homecoming with a 42-0 rout.
Weather became a factor, as a lightning strike forced a halt to the action midway through the second quarter. The Eagles were able to weather the storm, however, and put together their most productive outing of the season, on both sides of the ball.
“I thought the kids performed pretty well,” said LHS head coach Dale Anderson. “We started to get a little bit of a rhythm, then had a 45-minute lightning delay. You just never know how kids are going to respond from that — things are going fairly well, then you have to go sit for 45 minutes. But the kids handled it well, and came out ready to go. It’s a credit to them, to be able to refocus, and get going again.”
The Eagles’ defense once again proved stout, holding the Rangers to just 55 yards of total offense, while the offense racked up almost 300 yards, 213 of those on the ground.
“The defense played well — they’ve been playing well all year,” Anderson said. “It was good for our offense to be able to contribute a little more than we have been, and our special teams did a nice job, as well. It was a pretty balanced game for us.”
After a scoreless first quarter, the Eagles finally broke the stalemate when Hugh Willie scored the first touchdown of the contest on a 4-yard run. Later in the second quarter, quarterback Jagger Heaton threw a 23-yard touchdown pass to Gavin Johnson to give the Eagles a 13-0 lead; that would end being the halftime score.
Lyman exploded for 22 points in the third quarter, beginning with an 8-yard touchdown run by Jevin Maxfield. That was followed by an 18-yard touchdown pass from Gage Bradshaw to Dallin Smith; Smith would catch another touchdown pass later in the quarter, this time a 4-yarder from Cameron Tucker.
The Eagles scored once more in the fourth quarter, a 1-yard touchdown run by Willie, his second of the contest. When the dust finally settled after a prolonged 48 minutes, Lyman returned home with their first win of the season, 42-0.
“Offensively, we have some different things we’ve been working on — trying to get a few more kids touches,” Anderson said. “We have a couple of kids that are fairly quick, and we’re just trying to get them the ball in positions where they can use that quickness. But it all comes back to our offensive line — that’s the focal point. When we run the ball, that sets up our ability to throw the ball a little bit. We just had a few things kind of come together, and we’re hoping to build on that, moving forward.”
The Eagles finished with 213 yards rushing led by Joey Bluemel and Gage Bradshaw, who gained 48 yards each on three carries and 10 carries, respectively. Willie finished with 29 yards on nine carries and two touchdowns, while Maxfield carried the ball four times for 23 yards and a score. Gavin Johnson carried the ball once for 19 yards,
Under center, four different quarterbacks took snaps, led by Cameron Tucker. Tucker completed 5-of-6 passes for 31 yards and a touchdown, while Heaton and Bradshaw completed one pass each for 23 and 18 yards, respectively; each went for touchdowns.
Dallin Smith caught two passes for 22 yards and two touchdowns, while Gavin Johnson caught one pass for a 23-yard score. Brady Morrison (10 yards), Willie (10 yards), Bluemel (6 yards) and Nate Neilson (1 yard) caught a pass apiece.
“Dallin Smith had a couple of nice catches, and played well at the defensive end spot,” Anderson said. “We’re rotating about four different kids in at quarterback — a couple of young kids, a couple of older kids — they all have a little different skill set. The kids running the ball are doing what they need to do. It’s a team thing, but there are a few kids we’re hoping can emerge as leaders, and take charge on both sides of the ball.”
Willie led the charge defensively with 17 points (7 tackles, 4 solo, .5 sack, 1 pick), followed by Everett Lee with 12 points (7 tackles, 3 solo, 1.5 for loss, .5 sack) and Gage Bradshaw with eight (3 tackles, 1 fumble recovered). Trason Henderson also had an interception, while Dallin Bradshaw forced a fumble; Colter DeWitt had a fumble recovery.
“Defensively, Colter DeWitt is really starting to come around, and play well,” Anderson said. “Everett Lee hadn’t played linebacker before, so it’s been a learning process for him. Both of those guys are big anchors for us on defense, and on the line, as well.”
Anderson also credited his defensive coordinator for having the defensive unit ready to play, week in and week out.
“Clint Bradshaw — our defensive coordinator — does a great job with our schemes,” Anderson said. “He always has a good plan in place. But a plan’s only as good as the execution, and the kids have done a great job with figuring some things out. Earlier in the year, we had some kids playing some new positions, experimenting with some stuff. I think the kids are starting to get settled into spots, and starting to feel comfortable there and starting to play with a little more confidence.”
The Eagles are back on the road this week, this time at Hot Springs County to take on the undefeated Bobcats (5-0, 4-0 in 2A West).
“We have Thermopolis this week — undefeated, ranked No. 3 in the state,” Anderson said. “The west side of the state is unreal, how tough it is this year — there’s not a week where you can catch your breath. It’s a dog fight every week, and that doesn’t change for the next three weeks.”
The Bobcats run an offense Lyman isn’t accustomed to, so Anderson said practices will be geared toward learning what they can before stepping on the bus Friday.
“Thermop runs some option stuff, which is something we don’t see a ton of,” Anderson said. “And they’re obviously a good team. They’re solid defensively — they don’t give up a lot of points, and they have athletes. They have decent size and speed, and they’re well coached. We’ll have our work cut out for us.”
