On an otherwise ceremonious night honoring late defensive coordinator Dave Snyder, North Kitsap’s early season struggles continued with youthful inexperience and a persistent passing attack from the visiting 1A Lynden Christian, which sank the Vikings 26-15 in Week 2.

Coach Jeff Weible had hoped to see his team dig itself out of its rut following a 40-7 beatdown from WF West in Week 1. The Sept. 13 contest, a tribute to Snyder, who died suddenly this summer while attending an offseason camp, and the custom jerseys created just for the occasion might have served as added motivation.

The move appeared to work early on, the Vikings scoring on its opening drive on a 29-yard field goal from junior placekicker Andrew Knott. The special teams then pinned the Lyncs at their own 15-yard line, and back-to-back stops from the defense forced third down.

Then Lyncs quarterback Eli Maberry found what would be the crushing flaw of the evening: the Viking pass defense. A 40-yard connection to convert that third down was the beginning of a drive that ended with junior Boyce Robertson running it in to put LC up 6-3.

NK never saw the lead again, though the chances to regain momentum were there. LC turned a Viking turnover on downs in the second quarter into another productive drive, but penalties created a third and 23. But Maberry passed to Robertson on what would be the second of three TDs on the night.

“We still have a lot of inexperienced guys, a lot of young guys,” Viking senior Carter Dungy said. “They’re learning the game better, though I didn’t feel like we made a huge jump from last week to this week.”

Dungy kept the Vikings in the game on his first score of the year, following a deep connection between junior quarterback Dawsyn Anderson and junior wideout Cooper Anderson, with a 30-yard run to the endzone.

The 12-9 score wouldn’t last but three minutes as Maberry found senior wide receiver Mick Owen for 8 yards and another six points. Anderson tallied another TD run in the third quarter from 7 yards out, but a 78-yard TD by Robertson on yet another pass from Maberry all but sealed the Vikings’ fate.

The loss gave NK its first 0-2 start since 2013, but Dungy thinks his team will improve. “We just got to clean up the little mistakes, and we’re gonna prepare for future weeks like we do with any other game,” he said.

Weible declined to comment after the game.

The Vikings begin their league schedule Sept. 19 at Olympic High (2-0).

Love for neon

Viking Stadium was filled with a sea of neon. It was a fandom that Snyder’s wife Michelle had never quite wrapped her head around, but to see that same passion put into the love and care he had for his athletes, students and family, it was a love she embraced daily. “He just came home one day, and he’s like, ‘This is great!’” she said, managing a chuckle. “He turned us all into neon lovers.”

Snyder was further solidified in NK history several times over in pregame and halftime ceremonies. The tributes included a mural honoring his famous equation “E+R=0+1”, the renaming of the school’s annual track and field Lil Norway Invitational to the Dave Snyder Memorial Invitational, the creation of an annual scholarship for a senior football player and creation of “The Ring of Honor” at the stadium.

Michelle found herself in tears once again, hugging just about everybody in neon as she could. “It still doesn’t feel real,” she said. “It’s amazing with the turnout, but it’s still hard.”

Dungy added: “He really impacted me in a real positive way. I always think of him in hard situations to kind of get me through.”

A mural honoring the late Dave Snyder at NK High School.

NK sophomore Evan Williams lines up for a tackle on special teams.

Viking junior Tanner Bacchus makes a nice tackle against the Lyncs.