Knights return to 1A title game with 57-21 win over Freeman

MOSES LAKE – On a cold and foggy evening at Lions Field in Moses Lake, the Royal Knights clinched their sixth state title game appearance since 2015 with a 57-21 win over Freeman on Saturday.

“It feels great,” Royal Head Coach Wiley Allred said. “Nerve-racking along the way sometimes, but great. These kids have been unbelievable. We were supposed to be a little bit down (this year), we had a great group of seniors and a great team last year. These kids have worked really hard to get to the position they’re in.”

Quarterback Dylan Allred completed 13 of 20 passes for 198 yards in the first half alone, throwing three touchdowns to receiver Edgar De La Rosa of six, 52 and 10 yards through the first 24 minutes. Allred added a 33-yard rushing touchdown in the first quarter to give him four total touchdowns before the half.

“He’s pretty unflappable,” Wiley Allred said. “He threw a couple of picks, but most of them are nice balls and he does a great job. He’s been pretty unflappable, and that’s a great characteristic to have.”

Up by 15 points, the Knights came through on defense and had a long interception returned for a touchdown to go up 22-0 with three minutes remaining in the first quarter. Freeman dual-threat quarterback Boen Phelps ran in a touchdown from 47 yards out to close the gap, but De La Rosa’s second and third touchdowns of the game gave the Knights a 36-7 lead at halftime.

“The first couple ones you just have to feel into it, but after that, I got in a groove,” De La Rosa said. “I couldn’t have done it without my (offensive) line, really.”

Wiley Allred said that the Royal defense was successfully able to contain Phelps, whose dual-threat nature can create big-play opportunities for the Scotties. After Phelps’ first-quarter touchdown run, Freeman didn’t score again until the fourth quarter.

“Other than that first time that (Phelps) ran that inside zone keep, I thought they did a really great job,” Wiley Allred said. “We knew we were going to be chasing him. He had a tough time, when he got chased, completing balls consistently.”

De La Rosa finished the game with four touchdowns after a 16-yard reception in the end zone in the fourth quarter.

“We’ve been working all summer since May, just going out and throwing some passes,” De La Rosa said. “I feel like that really helped us now throughout the games, just timing and everything.”

Senior running back Kaleb Hernandez left Royal’s win over Montesano last week with an injury, but returned to the field on Saturday for the Knights.

“I just started practicing on Thursday, and Friday I went around more and it felt pretty good,” Hernandez said. “It feels good playing with my brothers.”

Hernandez gained 132 total yards and reached the end zone twice, both of which were in the second half.

The Knights will take on Mount Baker for the 1A state championship on Saturday at 12 p.m. in Henry Lang Stadium in Lakewood. Mount Baker defeated Nooksack Valley 14-13 on Saturday in the semifinals.

“You try not to have more distractions because there’s a lot going on,” Wiley Allred said. “In the past, when you’re going in the dome there’s differences, but now it’s probably going to be raining on the west side and cold. So, you got to prepare for that.”

Ian Bivona may be reached at ibivona@columbiabasinherald.com.