Trojans, T-Wolves win thrillers
Any football coach worth his salt will tell you that defense wins ball games.
Post Falls coach Jeff Hinz is certainly a believer.
Most likely, so are most of the nearly 1,400 fans who packed Trojan Field to witness Post Falls’ 22-15 overtime victory over the Lakeland Hawks in Inland Empire League play Friday.
After regulation ended in a 15-all deadlock, the Trojans (3-4) got the ball first in overtime and wasted little time.
After a 6-yard carry by Dan Hamilton on first down, Post Falls ran a quick pitch to Hamilton, who found room around the right side of the Trojans line and went in untouched from the 4 to take a 22-15 lead.
The Trojans just needed one more stop by their defense.
They got it.
Starting on the 10-yard line, Lakeland running back Tyler Beck picked up 5 yards on a sweep to the right.
But on the next play, Trojans defensive back Troy Clark shot through the line and met Beck in the backfield, throwing him for a 3-yard loss.
Facing a third down from their 8, the Hawks tried to hit wide receiver Ian Kelsey in the left corner of the end zone, but the pass was broken up and nearly picked off by defensive back Derek Schneidmiller.
Lakeland (2-5) had one last chance on fourth down, but Hawks quarterback Jack Vanderlinden was sacked by Post Falls defensive lineman Jon Heffley to seal the win.
“I was just thinking to myself, ‘You gotta make the play, big boy,’ ” Clark said of his second-down stop. “I just knew I had to step it up and let it all out. Defensively, we just played our hearts out tonight.”
The win was big for the Trojans as it gives them a 1-0 record against 4A teams after struggling through a tough early schedule.
“Our defense has risen to the occasion the past two weeks,” Hinz said. “The shutout at Mountain Home last week and now (Friday). It’s been kind of a bend-but-don’t-break situation.”
That’s not to say that the Trojans were stellar all night on defense.
Lakeland was able to gain 237 yards through the air and also had 106 yards rushing.
But PF came up with the big plays when it needed to and forced three Hawk fumbles.
“Both teams had turnovers at key times and both teams had opportunities,” Hinz said. “It was just a heck of a ball game.”
PF dug itself a hole to open the game. After taking the opening kickoff to the 33-yard line, Trojans running back Bobby Kuber fumbled on the first play and Lakeland defensive lineman Lynn Mallory recovered.
The Hawks cashed in quickly. After moving to the Trojans 8, running back Beck found daylight off left tackle and scored, giving the Hawks a 7-0 lead.
The Trojans appeared to regain the momentum, marching to a first-and-goal at the Lakeland 9. But three rushing plays netted minus-5 yards and quarterback Danny Mathewson’s fourth-down pass was nearly picked off in the end zone.
PF got another chance when it forced Lakeland to punt late in the first quarter.
Starting at their 26, the Trojans completed a nine-play, 74-yard drive when sophomore quarterback Casey Dragon hit wide receiver Nick Mehalechko with a 37-yard strike to make it 7-6 just seconds into the second quarter.