Knights close another successful football season

MOSES LAKE - The Royal Knights season came to an end two weeks earlier than hoped after a 28-10 quarterfinal loss to the Colville Indians in the class 1A prep football playoffs last Saturday.

The Knights knew they were in for a stiff test against the Indians. Colville was undefeated and had cruised through its regular season schedule without any significant challenge.

Colville struck first on its opening possession. A 66-yard run on the first play from scrimmage by Colton Vining paved the way for a 1-yard touchdown plunge by Justin Dragovich a few plays later. After a failed 2-point conversion attempt, the Indians led 6-0.

The Knights returned fire on their first possession. Miguel Ayala netted the first 25 yards on three consecutive carries.

Kaden Jenks completed all four pass attempts on the drive, including a 12-yard reception by Joe Lang. Lang was hit late after the play, which moved the ball to the Colville 15-yard line.

From there, two receptions by Jose Ponce got the Knights into the end zone. A successful extra point kick by senior Cesar Bernal gave Royal a 7-6 lead midway through the first quarter.

The Indians got the ball deep inside Royal territory twice in the second quarter, but great defense prevented them from scoring.

On the first trip, Dragovich was met at the 2-yard line and fumbled into the end zone. Senior Kai Jenks recovered the loose ball and gave the Knights possession.

On the second trip, the Knight defense forced Colville into a 4th and Goal situation from the 9-yard line. Tyler Ward caught the pass at the 1-yard line, but the Knight secondary was able to prevent him from gaining the final yard.

Royal got the ball on the 1-yard line after the stop with 3:50 remaining in the first half. The offense then embarked on a 14-play drive that culminated with Bernal putting a 34-yard field goal through the uprights on the last play of the half to give the Knights a 10-6 halftime lead.

Unfortunately, that would be the end of the scoring for Royal. In contrast, the Indians scored three touchdowns in the second half to secure the win and move into the semifinal round.

"In the second half we didn't play as well as we could have. Looking back, there are some things we would have done differently on offense," head coach Wiley Allred said. "But give credit to Colville, their defense played well and created a lot of problems for us."

Despite the disappointment, the Knights had a very successful season and represented themselves and our community in a manner that we have grown to expect and appreciate. Royal finished the season with a 10-2 overall record and brought home the SCAC East league title.

Standout senior linebacker Gerard Weyns finished the contest with 12 total tackles, bringing his season total to 121. Senior Teddy Mead finished his campaign with a season total of 93 tackles and 12 quarterback sacks. Ayala finished close behind with a total of 87 tackles.

Ponce recorded eight interceptions for the season, and Lang and Carson Gilbert recorded four each. Linebacker Darrin Miller recorded 72 tackles, including more than 10 tackles-for-loss.

A balanced offensive attack was led by Ayala's 1,362 rushing yards. He scored 16 touchdowns and maintained an average of 8.0 yards per carry.

Ayala will be remembered as one of the most physical runners in Royal Knights history. It seems he punctuated every game with a highlight run that left would-be tacklers flat on their backs or stiff-armed straight to the ground. He put together a string of eight consecutive 100-yard rushing games.

Miller also had a successful season in the backfield. He scored 17 touchdowns, 15 rushing and two receiving. He finished this season with 966 total yards of offense and will surely build on that as a senior next season.

Sophomore quarterback Kaden Jenks threw for 1,847 yards on 109 completions. He compiled an impressive 29 touchdowns against just 7 interceptions.

The majority of those completions were to favorite targets Ponce and Lang. Ponce caught 42 passes for 704 yards and 14 touchdowns, including two punt returns. Lang secured 22 passes for 513 yards to average more than 23 yards per catch.

Ponce and Lang will return next season alongside junior Sam Christensen, who was injured much of this year but made solid contributions in the few games in which he played.

Seniors Teddy Mead, Payten Stakkeland, and Tony Mercado were the nucleus of an offensive line that made great strides throughout the season. Their blocking execution was key to Royal's success. All three received all-league honors.

Coach Allred remarked about his seniors: "They are a great bunch with a collective toughness and are the highest quality of young men, on and off the field. Even as freshmen, they showed they were willing to work hard, and they really got the most out of themselves to become great football players. Their leadership and work ethic will be missed."

Others donning Knight gear for the final time were Robert Martinez, Gregory Scroggins and Francisco Marmolejo. Although used sparingly in game action, their dedication on the practice field and their passion to be Knights was a contribution that cannot be overestimated.

Jacob Lee and Carter Christensen were seniors who were not able to finish the season due to injury, but their football careers will not be marred by those injuries. Rather, we will remember them for the all of the years they have dedicated to the program from the very first time they wore black and gold in the third grade.