Football starts with a win

The Lake Roosevelt Raiders opened their season with a victory against Waterville, defeating the Shockers on their home field 41-7.

“Overall it was a successful night,” Raider Head Coach Loren Endsley said. “We had a lot of players step up and make some huge plays for us. They played as a team and that was great to see as a coach.”

Sophomore quarterback Steven Flowers led the Raiders, passing for 155 yards, including a touchdown pass to senior wide receiver Tyrell Kiser, and rushing for 154 yards, including a touchdown. Flowers also had eight tackles on defense, including four for a loss, plus an interception.

Sophomore running back Tony Nichols rushed for three touchdowns and led the defense with nine tackles as a linebacker. Senior running back Nathaniel Hall rushed for 114 yards on 17 carries, an average gain of 6.7 yards, and had three tackles on defense, including a sack.

On defense, the Raiders caused four turnovers. Darian Lindsey caused and recovered a fumble. Kolby Picard caused a fumble, recovered by Casey Cleveland. Flowers and Lucas Bird each intercepted a pass.

“It is very important to start off a season on a positive note,” Endsley said. “The boys have worked extremely hard for that moment and deserved to put their hard work on display for everyone. The team energy before, during, and after the game was great. The boys had a ton of fun, but at the same time knew that it was time to perform. Instead of just celebrating and focusing on the win, a lot of them asked questions and wanted to fix the mistakes that took place. That is a real sign of maturing as a team.”

The Raider coach was impressed that many fans from the Coulee made their way to Waterville to support their team. “The community support was amazing,” he said.

The Raiders’ first home game will be this Friday, Sept. 9 at 7 p.m. against Manson.

“Manson will be a great game,” Endsley predicted. “They have some talented athletes and they are a well-disciplined team.”

Lake Roosevelt vs Waterville

Scoring Summary

LR 6 16 6 13_41

WV 0 0 7 0_7

First Quarter

LR_Hall 30 run

Second Quarter

LR_Flowers 4 run

LR_Nichols 1 run

Third Quarter

LR_Nichols 4 run

Waterville 47 pass

Fourth Quarter

LR_Kiser 15 pass from Flowers

LR_Nichols 10 run

LR INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

PASSING_Flowers 10-155

RUSHING_ Flowers 16-154, Hall 17-114, Nichols 10-37, Kiser 3-22,

St. Pierre 2-16, Picard 1-4

RECEIVING_ Picard 1-49, Nichols 3-47, Kiser 3-35, Hall 2-16, Bird 1-8

DEFENSE _ Nichols 9 Tackles, 1 TFL; Flowers 8 Tackles, 4 TFL, 1 Int.;

Lindsey 6 Tackles, 3 TFL, 1FF, 1FR; Clark 4 Tackles, 2 TFL; Hall 3 Tackles, 2 TFL, 1 Sack; Harris 3 Tackles, 2 TFL, 1 Sack; Cleveland 3 Tackles, 2 TFL, 1 FR; Picard 3 Tackles, 1 FF; Ruiz 3 Tackles; Kiser 1 Tackle; Steinert 1 Tackle, Bird 1 Int.