WILLITS — Back at you, buddy.
One year after absorbing a 52-27 drubbing at the hands of Willits at Gordon Sadler Field, the Lower Lake Trojans returned the favor, sending the Wolverines to a 33-26 homecoming loss at Maize Field, and in the process knocking them out of a first-place tie with Middletown atop the North Central League I varsity football standings.
The Trojans’ third straight league win combined with Middletown’s 20-6 victory at St. Helena leaves Lower Lake (3-1 league, 5-2 overall) and Willits (3-1, 5-2) tied for second place, one game behind the Mustangs (4-0, 5-2). Middletown travels to Willits next week while Lower Lake plays at Kelseyville (1-3, 2-5).
“We beat them up pretty good, too,” Lower Lake coach Jeremy (Jay) Jakubowski said of the Wolverines. “They tried to be physical with us and we answered every punch. To go up there against a 5-1 team as their homecoming opponent and beat them after what they did to us last season at our place, it feels great.”
Jakubowski said the Trojans were able to keep their cool down the stretch and with the game on the line.
Tied 19-19 at halftime and after three quarters, it was the Trojans who finally pushed ahead on quarterback Vann Wilkins’ fourth touchdown pass of the night, a 14-yard strike to Makhi Johnson that put Lower Lake in front 26-19 as Lorenzo Zuniga kicked the extra point. On Willits’ next drive, Aries Brooke intercepted a pass and returned in 36 yards for what proved to be the game-winning touchdown.
“I ran down the sidelines after him like a little kid,” Jakubowski said of his reaction to Brooke’s pick-six.
Willits answered with its own touchdown to make it 33-26 with a little more than six minutes remaining. The Wolverines picked off Wilkins with four minutes left but couldn’t do much with the ball and ended up throwing an interception of their own on a fourth-and-11 pass that Johnson stepped in front of. Lower Lake gained two time-consuming first downs courtesy of Willits penalties before taking a knee and running out the clock.
“We tried to do a little too much on defense in the first half,” Jakubowski said. “We went back to basic stuff and let the kids play in the second half. They had to fight through a lot of adversity, but they handled themselves like true champions.”
Nearly all 298 of Lower Lake’s yards were the result of Wilkins’ passing. He completed 23 of 34 passes for 257 yards. His four touchdowns were distributed among four different receivers — Zuniga on a 15-yard strike in the first quarter, Brooke from six yards out and Semaj Clark from eight in the second quarter, and Johnson’s 14-yarder in the fourth quarter.
Wilkins also had 29 of Lower Lake’s 41 rushing yards.
Gavin Watson (nine catches for 104 yards) and Clark (six for 75) were Watkins’ were go-to receivers on this night.
Lower Lake’s three remaining league games are next Friday at Kelseyville, home Oct. 25 (homecoming) against Clear Lake (1-3, 2-5), and on the road Nov. 1 against St. Helena (2-2, 5-2), which has pretty much played itself out of the league race following back-to-back home losses to Willits and Middletown.
Willits defeated Lower Lake 20-14 in the junior varsity game.
Game notes: Lower Lake had a pair of touchdown passes — one to Clark, another to Watson — wiped out by penalties.
