The Meadowdale football team started slowly but used a strong third quarter to eventually pull away and beat the visiting Inglemoor Vikings on Friday night at Edmonds District Stadium. The Mavericks scored each time they had the ball in the decisive quarter to take command of the game.

The first three possessions of the game saw both teams failing to get a first down. Inglemoor took the opening kickoff back to the 35-yard line. Three plays later the Vikings punted 34 yards and following a holding penalty on the return, Meadowdale started its first possession at its own 30. Taylor Linton came on and kicked a 65-yard punt into the end zone. Inglemoor then just missed on a third down pass and punted it 46 yards to the Maverick 40 yard line.

The Mavericks’ second drive went better as they began to open some holes. Running back Malik Braxton had a 27-yard run, followed by a Jerremiah Evans eight-yard keeper. An offensive face mask nullified Braxton’s ensuing first down run. Evans then kept it for 10 yards plus had a personal foul penalty added on, moving it to Inglemoor’s 27. On first down, Braxton ran 17 yards to the 10, followed by gains of five and four yards. On fourth down, he spun out of several tackles but was ruled half a yard short of the goal line, allowing Inglemoor to take over.

With 2:40 left in the first quarter, Vikings RB Jayden Petro broke free for 48 yards and then the Mavericks were assessed a 15-yard personal foul penalty, moving the ball to the Meadowdale 38-yard line. The Mavs defense stiffened and on 4th and 6, Inglemoor quarterback Bryce Larson was sacked for a loss, ending the threat as well as the first quarter.

Early in the second quarter, the Mavericks successfully converted on a 3rd and 18. Evans found Phillip Thomas open for a 23-yard gain and a first down on the Inglemoor 44. Braxton then ran for five yards, and Rory Spillum for four. Following a timeout, Meadowdale failed to convert a fourth-down pass and the ball went back to the Vikings.

With just under nine minutes left in the first half, Inglemoor started on its own 35. On 2nd down, following a great pass defensive play, Meadowdale was tagged with a 15-yard penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct, moving the ball up to the Vikings 47. On the next play, Larson hit Matt Vinson with a pass in the flat and after a couple of quick moves, Vinson gained 12 yards. On 3rd and 9, Inglemoor’s Larson was sacked for a loss of seven, creating a Viking punt that rolled dead on the nine-yard line, setting up Meadowdale’s next drive.

Caleb Tingstad took over at quarterback for the Mavs with less than five minute in the second quarter, and on his second play he passed to Josiah Evans for a 40- yard gain. Evans caught it on his own 35 and ran the extra 25 yards all the way to the Inglemoor 44-yard line. On second down, Tingstad tried to hit Evans, but he was interfered with on the play. After the 15-yard penalty against Inglemoor, Braxton took the handoff on the Vikings’ 25-yard and ran off tackle into the end zone, giving Meadowdale a 6-0 lead. Brett Schafer’s extra point was blocked.

The Vikings returned the kickoff to the 25-yard line with Garrett Walsh making the tackle. Following two short gains, Isaiah Lewis ran 16 yards to the 48. On second down, Larson completed a 30-yard pass to John Gardner. With a first down at the Meadowdale 20, Larson spiked it to stop the clock. Following three unsuccessful plays, Mitchell Barker’s 36-yard field goal was blocked by the Mavs’ Charlie White, picked up by Josiah Evans and after some confusion, returned 72 yards for a touchdown. Schafer tacked on the extra point, giving the Mavericks a 13-0 lead as the teams headed to the locker room for halftime.

Josiah Evans took Meadowdale’s second-half kickoff out to the 30. With Tingstad still at quarterback, the Mavericks began to move efficiently down the field. Four Braxton runs later and the Mavs had gained 43 yards, setting up first down on the Inglemoor 36-yard line. On third down, the Mavericks almost completed a 20- yard pass, but Jonathon Kim took a wicked hit and the ball was jarred loose. Meadowdale, however, was able to continue the drive on a fourth down pass to Evans. The next play was a pass to Thomas for 15 yards. Following three unsuccessful plays, Schafer came on and converted a 32-yard field goal, making the score 16-0.

Meadowdale began to pull away as Josiah Evans intercepted Thomas’ pass and ran it back 25 yards for a touchdown, extending the lead to 23 points.

On their next possession, Inglemoor gained nine yards, but again punted it away. The Mavericks took over on their own 41. Two plays later Tingstad’s pass was intercepted by the Vikings. But Inglemoor was unable to do much and following a third-down sack by Marzell Simmons, the Vikings’ fourth-down pass was intercepted by Blake Jackson.

Meadowdale’s next drive started on the Mavs’ own 25, with Evans now back at quarterback for the Mavs. In just six plays, Meadowdale found the end zone again, extending the lead to 30. The score came on a 38-yard pass from Evans to Thomas. The series also included 29-yard pass to White.

Inglemoor’s next drive started at its own 20. After a first down, Thomas was sacked by Simmons and then a screen pass resulted in a further loss as Walsh read it perfectly and tackled Jayden Petro behind the line of scrimmage. On fourth down, a bad snap led to the punter being tackled on his own 20. The Mavericks took over but the Mavs were unable to do anything offensively, and turned the ball back to the Vikings.

Inglemoor was able to move the ball all the way down to the Mavs’ 35, but failed to convert a fourth-down pass play, returning the possession to the home team. With the game safely in hand, Meadowdale brought in sophomore Max Johnson to play quarterback. The Mavericks then stuck to the ground game and basically ran out the clock to seal the 30-0 victory.

With the win, Meadowdale moves to 2-0 on the season heading into next week’s “Jam the Stands” game vs Edmonds-Woodway. That game as well as tonight’s game can be watched or listened to live or on demand on the Sound Live Sports News Network.

Josiah Evans’ Friday night performance earned him the Sound Live Sports Network /Jersey Mike’s Lynnwood Player of the Game Award.

— By Jeff Smarr