Lakewood’s starting quarterback Justin Lane didn’t play against King’s because of an injured shoulder but Plan B worked just fine for the Cougars.
Lakewood went to a four-back, full-house backfield and backup quarterback Saul Velasco ran 26 times for 155 yards and three touchdowns as the Cougars ended King’s win streak at three, Friday, Sept. 26 at Dick Cardinal Stadium.
Velasco’s 2-yard touchdown run in the final minute gave Lakewood the lead for good, 25-22.
Lakewood took a 11-0 lead in the first half on a 1-yard run by Velasco, a two-point conversion by Velasco and a field goal.
King’s coaching staff tried to counter what Lakewood was doing but didn’t fully adjust until the second half.
“It was nothing we had seen before,” King’s coach Jim Shapiro said. “Hats off to them for installing a new offense in a week.”
King’s committed its first turnover of the year before the half when quarterback Thomas Vincent threw an interception that ended a drive inside the Lakewood 10-yard line.
“They really chewed the clock and managed the ball well in the first half,” Shapiro said.
But King’s Nick Swanson generated some excitement on the second half kickoff, returning it 97 yards for a score. After Vincent’s two-point run, the lead was cut to 11-8. Vincent added a 32-yard touchdown run later in the quarter to cap a 60-yard drive and King’s had it’s first lead 15-8 after Zack Berg’s extra point.
Velasco scored in the third to give Lakewood the lead, but John Burley hauled in a 35-yard touchdown pass from Vincent in the fourth to King’s up 22-18. “It was a really competitive back and forth second half,” Shapiro said.
Lakewood’s final drive and the lead it built in the first half proved to be the difference.
“For us we weren’t quite on that first half execution-wise,” but things in improved in the second half, Shapiro said.
Vincent rushed 22 times for 131 yards and completed 9-of-18 passes for 66 yards. On defense, linebacker Paul Lutgen led King’s with four solo tackles and 10 assists.
King’s hosts Cedarcrest at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 3.
“We know we’re heading into the heart of the league season against some quality 2A teams,” Shapiro said.
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