2A Teams Eye Defending Champion Pullman

GNL football

The Great Northern League made its debut last year in the new 2A classification with a splash.

The emphasis was on “great” in a number of sports; football was no exception.

Pullman made it to the state title game, knocking off rival Medical Lake in the semifinals. Those two teams tied with Chewelah for the league championship.

For Deer Park, Lakeside and Riverside to battle for one of the three playoff spots, all three are going to have to build depth.

“We’re all chasing Pullman, they have so much speed,” second-year Lakeside coach Brian Dunn said. “Chewelah, I’m sure, will be huge. After that, we’ll all fight for that third playoff spot. We’re all pretty capable. Looking at our schedule, I don’t see any easy games.”

Deer Park, Lakeside and Riverside have many two-way players. Chasing the lightning-fast league-favorite Pullman Greyhounds and battling the always-big Chewelah Cougars is tough for players who don’t get a break.

The Eagles open at home against Holy Cross, a team from Surrey, British Columbia. Deer Park goes to Davenport and Riverside is at St. Maries. All games are at 7 p.m.

Deer Park continues to improve

The Stags made great strides under first-year coach Doug McGill, and they hope to continue the improvement with six starters and 15 lettermen back.

“We have improved in almost all areas from last year,” McGill said.

Senior Brad Martin, a three-year starter who threw for more than 1,100 yards last year, is back with his favorite target, senior Jesse Frickey, who had 40 catches for 450 yards to earn second-team all-league honors.

Junior Ty Thompson could also see time at quarterback to spell Martin.

The running backs are young: junior Roger Henry, who has a year of starting experience, and Chris Wilden, a junior, who will also see time at wide receiver. Zack Axel, a sophomore, will start at wide receiver, spelled by senior Jeremy Morse.

Ryan Mayberry, a junior, is the tight end.

The offensive line is bigger and stronger this year. Seniors Rafe Hoerman, at center, and Eric Eide, at strong tackle, are three-year starters, and senior Ryan Coles is a two-year starter at strong guard. Senior Hans Ellefsen is at quick tackle and junior Jeremy Lewis is at quick guard, along with senior Jesse Collins.

Many players double on defense, led by Martin at middle linebacker. Ellefsen and junior Colby Perkins are also linebackers with sophomore Craig Phillips in the rotation.

The starters on the defensive line are Coles and Lewis at tackles with Eide and Mayberry at end. Wortman is also an end and Eddie Lewis, a sophomore, is a tackle as well as offensive guard. Another key is senior Jacob Stillman at offensive tackle and defensive end.

The backfield includes Fricky at free safety with Henry at strong safety, and Morese and Wilden at cornerback, along with Axel and junior Steve Barclay, who also fills in at fullback.

Sophomore Luke Langbehn is the kicker, and he is battling with Mayberry to punt.

Sophomore Willie Soelter could also figure in at tailback or cornerback when he returns from Australia.

Lakeside short on depth

The key for the Eagles is good health.

“We have some talented kids but we don’t have a lot of depth,” Dunn said. “We have too many going both ways.”

Linemen going both ways are senior guard-defensive end Jason Cummings, junior guard-defensive tackle Chad Charbonneau, senior center-defensive tackle Kevin Downey and junior tight end-defensive end Patrick Clocherty.

Fullback Matt Westenfelder, a senior, also doubles at outside linebacker, and starting cornerbacks, junior Pat Day and senior Adam Christen, a second-team all-league pick, will carry in plays as slot receivers. Senior split end Will Noland is also a safety.

Rounding out the defense are Dave Wilkes, a senior outside linebacker, and senior inside linebackers Jeremiah Johnson and Dan Thorpe. Junior Jason Brown will also see time at safety.

Offensively, junior Cody Brown and sophomore Mike LaFontaine are battling at quarterback. Senior Mike Mortlock is the tailback.

Josh Dugan, a senior tackle, rounds out the line. Junior Chris Perkins is a key reserve on both lines, and junior Brandon Hopkins backs up about six different positions, Dunn said.

Riverside is inexperienced

The Rams lost 21 lettermen from last year’s 3-6 team so they will be young and inexperienced this year. Although a number of seniors will start, they will be backed up by sophomores.

“We’re young,” coach Allen Marin said. “Many sophomores will start or play, and our juniors and seniors had limited playing time.”

Dustin Dinning, a three-year starter, is the leader. He plays offensive guard and linebacker.

Dinning is joined at linebacker by senior Derek Leighton, the all-league punter last year, senior Craig Alexander, junior Kevin Hersom and junior Aaron Stapleton.

The defensive backfield includes senior Jay Patton and sophomores Jake Moug and Brian Crance.

On the defensive line are seniors Greg Petropoulous and Matt Weed and sophomore James Nuesse.

Weed is also the center on offense, with senior Dustin Lafayette and Dinning at guard, and Stapleton and junior Logan Krohn at tackle. Petropoulous will also rotate in at guard and tackle.

Alexander is the tight end with Hersom giving him some rest.

Quarterback Seth Schurtz is a returning starter, but sophomore Stewart Bullen could see some action. Junior Casey Bullen is the tailback with Leighton at fullback.