POULSBO — The North Kitsap Vikings had no answer for North Thurston’s Lawyer Tillman Friday night, and it cost them 41 points.
The Rams ran all over the Vikings Friday in a 41-13 win thanks to a powerful offensive line and Tillman’s 222 yards and four touchdowns. Overall, the Rams racked up 420 yards on the ground, compared to North Kitsap’s 195.
“We didn’t play as well as we could have. They beat us pretty badly on the line,” North Kitsap Head Coach Steve Frease said. “I think their line won the game for them.”
Giving up five turnovers didn’t help the Vikings either. Junior quarterback Alex Nettleton threw four interceptions and fumbled two snaps, losing 20 yards on one and the ball on the other.
The Vikings’ offensive follies were in stark contrast to the Rams’ play. North Thurston turned the ball over only once, on a fumbled kick return, and senior quarterback Jake Klumker was 4-for-8 with a touchdown pass.
“It’s a good team, and we didn’t have any answers for them,” Frease said.
The only area where the Vikings outshone the Rams was in penalties. North Kitsap only gave up 20 yards on four miscues, compared to the 89 yards on 13 mistakes made by North Thurston.
The Rams started Friday’s game by scoring quickly on a 30-yard opening drive. When Nettleton fumbled on his own 32 yard line on the ensuing possession, the Rams again capitalized on good field position and went up 13-0 with six minutes left in the first quarter.
The Vikings found new life, though, after forcing a turnover on downs during the Rams’ next drive. Taking over at his own 35 yard line, Nettleton, along with running back Alex Fuchs and tight end Tolen McGregor, marched the Viking offense downfield. Nettleton connected with McGregor for a key fourth down conversion midway through the drive, and later on an acrobatic catch that set up first and goal on the two yard line. Fuchs then punched it in to put the Vikings on the board.
North Kitsap’s Dan Mitchell recovered a fumble on the following kickoff return, giving the Vikings the ball on the Ram 25 yard line. Nettleton took over from there, scrambling to the one foot line on first down, and into the end zone on the next play.
The touchdown knotted things up at 13, but the Vikings’ good fortune was not to last. In the final six minutes of the half, the Rams scored twice, sending the Vikings into the locker room down 27-13.
“Everything was going smooth, and then we started hanging our heads after they put a couple more points on the board, and everything went downhill from there,” Nettleton said.
The Vikings continued to slide in the second half. North Thurston scored quickly to begin the half, and again to open the fourth quarter, and the Vikings failed to move the ball.
“Unfortunately we couldn’t capitalize on a couple breaks we had,” Frease said. “I thought at points we moved the ball pretty well. The problem is that we just didn’t get consistent.”
