La Center takes a different route to give Lambert his 150th win

It didn’t come as he expected, but La Center coach John Lambert got his 150^th victory on Friday at King’s Way Christian.

And as the Wildcats did for many of the previous 149 years, they had many contributors.

Depending more on the passing of quarterback Tom Lambert than his running and the running contributions of Bryten Schmitz and Andrew Kysar, the Wildcats pulled out a 38-21 victory over the Knights in the Trico League opener for both teams.

“They didn’t account for Bryten and Andrew,” Tom Lambert said. “I think they underestimated  them. Andrew had some great runs, and our line just powered through that. They were doing some things we didn’t see yet. But our line fixed some things, and it turned out pretty well.”

Schmitz finished with 82 yards rushing and one touchdown, and he also had a clinching 12-yard touchdown reception late.

Kysar rushed for 42 yards and one touchdown, and caught two passes for 25 yards.

He gave credit to the offensive line.

“I can’t thank them enough,” Kysar said. “They do so much for me.”

John Lambert said Friday’s game was a good test for the Wildcats, knowing that opponents are going to do whatever they need to knock off the Wildcats.

“It’s almost like there’s no point watching film of teams,” Coach Lambert said. “Teams are always going to try to mix things up on us. King’s Way did that, and they did some good things. It’s just going to tell us we need to be ready for anything.”

Tom Lambert, who came into Friday’s game as the No. 3 rusher in the region with 545 yards, instead had to take to their air to keep drives going.

He finished with 179 yards on 10-of-17 passing and two touchdowns.

Through three quarters, the Knights bottled him up on eight carries for negative-15 yards before the junior broke free on a 27-yard touchdown run that put the Wildcats up 31-14.

Key moments

• The game may very well have swung on two poor snaps on punt attempts by King’s Way, resulting in either a La Center recovery or tackling the punter deep in Knights’ territory. The first came in the second quarter and set up Bryten Schmitz’s 11-yard touchdown run putting La Center up 17-7.
• The second came early in the third quarter, setting up Irving Alvarez’s 10-yard touchdown reception for a 24-7 La Center lead.
• After King’s Way closed with 31-21, Lambert hit Kysar on a 23-yard completion of third-and-16, taking the Wildcats down to the King’s Way 14. Schmitz’s 12-yard TD reception four plays later sealed the win.

Key players

Andrew Scott, La Center: Scott had three receptions for 64 yards and one of La Center’s three interceptions.

Mason Packer, King’s Way Christian: The Knights turned to Packer at quarterback for his ability to pass and run. He passed for 179 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for 75 yards and a score.

Bryson Metz, King’s Way Christian: Metz caught six passes for 160 yards and two touchdowns.

LA CENTER 38, KING’S WAY CHRISTIAN 21

La Center             10           7              7              14–38

King’s Way          0              7              0              14–21

First quarter

LC – FG Sean Fox 31

LC – Bryten Schmitz 4 run (Fox kick)

Second quarter

KW – Bryson Metz 54 pass from Mason Packer (Taylor Shega kick)

LC – Andrew Kysar 11 run (Fox kick)

Third quarter

LC – Irving Alvarez 10 pass from Tom Lambert (Fox kick)

Fourth quarter

KW – Metz 30 pass from Packer (Shega kick)

LC – Lambert 27 run (Fox kick)

KW – Packer 5 run (Shega kick)

LC – Schmitz 12 pass from Lambert (Fox kick)

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING – La Center: Schmitz 17-87, Kysar 7-42, Lambert 15-37. King’s Way Christian: Connor Delamarter 2-6, Packer 15-75, Alec Charlton 5-15, Kobi Cason 1-1.

PASSING – La Center: Lambert 10-17-1-179. King’s Way Christian: Packer 12-23-2-179; Kemper Shrock 1-6-1-10.

RECEIVING – La Center: Andrew Scott 3-64, Micah Adams 2-62, Coby Namanny 1-6, Kysar 2-25, Irving Alvarez 1-10, Schmitz 1-12. King’s Way Christian: Metz 6-160, Bryce Dodge 2-13, Ty Snider 2-16, Cason 3-0.