Powerful Lake Stevens trounces Monroe in Wesco 4A clash

LAKE STEVENS — Lake Stevens coach Tom Tri said his team’s goal was to not punt once. They didn’t. In fact, with the exception to running out of time at the end of each half, the Vikings scored touchdowns on each of their other nine possessions.

Lake Stevens’ offense was nearly flawless, pounding Monroe’s defense with its run game and dissecting the Bearcats secondary through the air with precision all night. The end result was a 73-28 league-opening Wesco 4A win over Monroe on Friday night at Lake Stevens High School.

“Our offensive goal ultimately is to be as balanced as we can be,” Tri said. “We want to run the ball between the tackles. We want to run the ball to the edge. We want to throw the ball outside. We want to throw the ball intermediate, and we want to throw the ball over the top. I felt like were able to accomplish all those things tonight. I don’t know what the total numbers were tonight, but I felt like we did a good job of mixing it up.”

The numbers were gaudy.

Lake Stevens (3-0, 1-0 Wesco 4A) piled up 661 total yards of offense behind quarterback Tanner Jellison’s 17-of-19 passing for 290 yards and three touchdowns and running back Dallas Landeros’ 218 yards and four TDs on 25 carries. The senior back also caught four passes for 67 yards and a score.

The win was Lake Stevens’ 13th in the past 14 meetings with rival Monroe (1-2, 0-1).

Despite the lopsided end result, Monroe hung with Lake Stevens throughout the first 18 minutes.

The Bearcats answered each of the Vikings’ first two touchdowns. Each time the Bearcats didn’t score, though, Lake Stevens further distanced itself.

Bearcats receiver Trey Lane hauled in a 38-yard TD reception to cut the Vikings’ lead to 28-21 with 6:51 remaining in the second quarter, but Lake Stevens closed the half with 17 unanswered points.

The Vikings extended their lead to 52-21 with a Landeros 1-yard rushing score with 6:10 play in the third and rolled from there.

KEY PERFORMERS

Dallas Landeros, Lake Stevens — The senior running back racked up touchdowns and yardage. Landeros finished with 285 total yards and five TDs.

Tanner Jellison, Lake Stevens — Jellison was in great command of his offense all night, recording a pass-completion percentage of 89% (17 of 19). The QB totaled 290 yards and threw touchdowns to Joseph Gonzalez (two) and Landeros.

Gio Fregoso, Monroe — The Bearcats’ senior quarterback put together a solid game, completing 13-of-20 passes for 199 yards and two touchdowns.

Trey Lane, Monroe — The Bearcats have some speed, and Lane showcased his Friday night. The junior receiver caught three passes for 131 yards and scored twice.

PLAY OF THE GAME

Although the game was most likely out of hand, Monroe scored off an electric 86-yard run by Efton Chism III to trim Lake Stevens’ lead to 52-28 with 5:19 to go in the third quarter. On the ensuing kickoff, Vikings standout Kasen Kinchen had a quick response, churning out 86 yards of his own a kickoff return for touchdown.

KEY STAT

661 — Total yardage by the Lake Stevens offense.

UP NEXT

Lake Stevens hosts Mount Vernon at 7 p.m. next Friday, while Monroe hosts Mariner at the same time and date.