Te time: RB leads Lakeview to win

By Jim Flick

LIBERTY — A game that started with a first-quarter shootout turned into a defensive struggle that resulted in a 21-14 Lakeview victory over Liberty.

Lakeview (5-2, 2-1 All-American White Division) held a 14-7 lead after the first quarter, but defense dominated the remaining three quarters of the game.

The weather conditions limited both teams’ offensive efforts, Lakeview coach Tom Pavlansky explained. Rain fell Friday afternoon, drenching the field. Only light fell during the game, but the playing field remained wet and slippery.

Pavlansky added that despite the weather, he knew he could count on senior running back Te Elias.

“There’s no secret about it, Te Elias is getting the ball,” he said.

Elias led the Bulldogs’ offense, gaining 132 yards on 33 carries and scoring a touchdown in the first quarter on a 4-yard run.

Lakeview scored the game’s first points the first time the team touched the ball.

Liberty (4-3. 1-2 All-American White Division) took the opening kickoff, but held onto the ball for only five plays before punting. Tyler DeWeese of Lakeview fielded the punt and returned it 82 yards for a touchdown.

Liberty responded with a five-play, 82-yard drive that ended with Charles Perdue’s 55-yard jaunt into the end zone. But that was the only touchdown scored by Liberty’s offense all night.

Elias’ touchdown put Lakeview back on top, and the Bulldogs held the lead for the rest of the game.

Both teams were scoreless in the second quarter, and at halftime Lakeview held a 14-7 lead.

Lakeview extended its lead on the first series of the third quarter. Matt Beaman, a junior, scored on a 26-yard pass from sophomore quarterback Anthony Franco, ending a four-play 46-yard drive. Clint Hess’s third extra point of the night boosted the Bulldogs’ lead to 21-7.

When Lakeview kicked off after Beaman’s score, the ball landed out of bounds, resulting in a penalty and forcing a second kickoff. Liberty’s DeAndrey Abron fielded the second kickoff and returned it 82 yards for the final touchdown of the night.

Both teams’ defenses continued to frustrate the opposing offenses for the rest of the third quarter and throughout the game’s final stanza.

Lakeview seemed ready to put the game out of reach in the fourth quarter, when the Bulldogs had a first-and-goal at Liberty’s 6-yard line. But the Leopards’ defense beat back the Bulldogs, finally stopping Elias on a fourth-down run from the 2-yard line.

Liberty seemed to have a chance at a last-minute rally. After stopping Lakeview deep in the Liberty end of the field for a second time, the Leopard took possession of the ball at their own 35-yard line with less than two minutes remaining.

After a first-down pass attempt fell incomplete, Liberty tried a second pass. But Lakeview’s Michael Prindle intercepted the second pass and returned it to Liberty’s 3-yard line with 49 second remaining. Franco ended the game by twice taking the snap and putting a knee to the ground.

“We haven’t been as explosive as we’d like to be,” said Liberty coach Jeff Whittaker.

Liberty’s offensive leader was Perdue, who gained just 56 yards on nine carries.

“Lakeview played an outstanding game,” Whittaker said, adding, “their backs made some great cuts in tough field conditions.”

Lakeview’s Elias, the Liberty coach added, “gets a nice burst and he’s a very physical back. He’s got good hip movement, good vision of the field.”