Royal Knights roar back, 41-0, over Omak

ROYAL CITY - If you wondered what was wrong with Royal High School football after the season-opening loss to Cashmere, the answer is: Nothing.

Facing an even tougher opponent on the road last Friday, Royal roared back with a 41-0 white-washing of Omak. The Knights avoided the first 0-2 start in coach Wiley Allred's 12 years.

"I think they had a lot more resolve," Allred said. "We all had more resolve."

Another reason the Knights came to life, Allred believes, was heart-breaking news the team got just before game time. Because of a neck condition, all-conference first team lineman Tanner Whitaker had to end his season.

"He's done for the year. He'll never play football again," Allred said.

The news about Tanner started to develop about two weeks ago, according to Allred. Coaches, players and Whitaker were waiting for the final word from doctors on Friday. He will remain a member of the team and a captain.

"He's worked so hard for four years," Allred said.

The Knights turn to their home opener tonight against South Central A Conference East opponent Burbank. It will also be Mongolian Barbecue Night.

The annual pre-game feed is a fund-raiser of Royal Youth Boosters, which supports sports activities for youths aged K-6. It also supports high school sports through facilities improvements. It awards two $1,000 scholarships a year.

The barbecue will start at 5 p.m. and go until game time. New members will be encouraged to sign up.

Most resolved in Friday's game was the defensive line, five boys who rotate at four positions. Cristian Fernandez, Carter Christensen, Kent Christensen, Reed Lefler and Abel Castellon had at least one tackle each.

These five spearheaded a defense that held Caribou Trail League 2010 player of the year Dylan Green to 53 yards and the entire Pioneer offense to 82 yards.

"(The Pioneers) helped by dropping the ball a few times," Allred said.

But Omak's fumbles weren't just drops. They were caused by the hard-hitting Knights.

Fernandez led the defensive front with three tackles and three assists. Kent Cristensen had two tackles, one assist, one sack and two fumble recoveries. Lefler had two tackles and one fumble recovery. Carter Cristensen had two tackles and one assist, and Castellon had one tackle.

"Mostly they were a dominating force," Allred said.

When these five weren't making tackles, they were directing all Omak traffic to the linebackers. Brady Dixon had seven tackles and two assists, Justin Edwards went 5-2 with a sack, and Marcos Morales made six tackles.

On offense, the Knights were hot as they exited the bus. They took the opening kickoff and charged down the field in 10 plays to score. Quarterback Alex Myrick completed all five of his pass attempts, and running back Alex Ramirez scored from six yards.

The offensive line - Collin Christensen, Kent Christensen, Castellon, Carter Christensen and Uriel Carmona - blasted big holes through the Pioneer defense.

The defense stuffed the first and second Omak drives, and the offense raced to a 21-0 lead after one quarter. The score mounted to 35-0 at the half.

"When the score gets to 21-0, everybody is encouraged," Allred said.

The rest of the scoring was a 7-yard run by Ramirez, a 51-yard run by Damien DeLaRosa, a three-yard run by Myrick, a 24-yard pass from Myrick to Danny Vermeer and a three-yard run by Myrick.

Myrick finished the night with 10 completions in 17 pass attempts for 132 yards, and he was not intercepted. He added another 64 yards on 10 rushes.

DeLaRosa led the rushing with 80 yards in seven carries. Ramirez had 76 yards on 16 rushes. Laddie Goroski carried twice for seven yards.

Vermeer had seven catches for 74 yards, DeLaRosa had two for 20, Ricky Ramirez 1-15, Dixon 1-18 and Alex Ramirez 1-4.

After two weeks on the road, the Knights will have a welcome home opener this Friday. The opponent is 2-0 Burbank in the first South Central A Conference East game.

"They run a spread passing game pretty well," Allred said.

Quarterback Heath Lawrence of the Coyotes passed for 307 yards and three touchdowns last Friday. He completed 15 or 29 passes and was not intercepted.