Pfennigs' TD boosts Trojans past Hawks in Battle of the Prairie

By JASON ELLIOTT

Sports writer

POST FALLS - They fought like neighbors for 48 minutes of football on Friday night, but in the end, it was the host school that found a way to win.

Joey Pfennigs scored on a 15-yard run with 8 minutes, 12 seconds remaining to give the 5A Post Falls Trojans the lead for good in a 28-21 win over the visiting 4A Lakeland Hawks on Friday night in a nonleague football game at Trojan Stadium.

Pfennigs opened the scoring on a 28-yard run on the Trojans' first possession of the game, only to have the game tied less that three minutes later when Lakeland quarterback Tyrel Derrick scored from 26 yards out to even the score at six after the first quarter.

Pfennigs connected on touchdown passes of 5 and 22 yards to Dalton Thompson in the second quarter to give the Trojans a 20-18 lead at halftime.

"Offensively, we didn't have to punt the ball until the fourth quarter," Post Falls coach Jeff Hinz said. "We just didn't finish our drives early on in the redzone from the 25- and 20-yard line and didn't come up with some points. We had some chances to shut the door early, but just didn't do it. But in the end, we won. I'm glad our defense stepped up in the second half. We persevered and played hard."

Pfennigs finished the game with 183 yards rushing and 124 passing for Post Falls.

"They were giving us a look on defense that we wanted and it worked out well for us," Pfennigs said. "Our offensive line did a good job and our (running) backs and receivers did a fantastic job tonight."

Lakeland had three turnovers, compared to two by Post Falls.

"In the turnover battle, we just need to quit turning the ball over," Lakeland coach Tim Kiefer said. "If we don't do that, we give them a better football game."

Post Falls has won five of the last six between the two schools separated by eight miles after Lakeland beat Post Falls on a late 46-yard field goal in the 2012 game in Rathdrum, snapping a four-game losing streak in the series.

"It's a Battle of the Prairie," Pfennigs said. "It's been an ongoing battle with us and them. It's a fun atmosphere with us and them and our fans out on the field. We've been playing them since the sixth grade and going back and forth with them. It's a really fun game to play in."

Lakeland (2-3) took its first lead of the game with 4:12 remaining in the first half on a 95-yard run by Tuekota Vandever, who finished with 204 yards on 18 carries.

"The funny thing about that play was we didn't even block it correctly," Kiefer said. "Tuekota just made a great read and made a cut and made a kid miss and he was gone. He's a quick kid and has great instincts."

Derrick broke a 53-yard run to set up Lakeland's first score of the second quarter, a 5-yard run by Vandever.

"We needed to stay more disciplined on defense and not go chasing guys around," Hinz said. "We needed to do our line assignments correctly and some of those things were missing in the first half."

Lakeland holds a 14-12 lead in the series dating back to 1987, with one tie.

Both teams travel next week, with Post Falls (3-3) at Hanford of Richland, Wash., and Lakeland (2-3) at Colville on Friday night.

Lakeland 6 12 0 3 - 21

Post Falls 6 14 0 8 - 28

First quarter

PF - Joey Pfennigs 28 run (kick failed), 9:17

LL - Tyrel Derrick 26 run (kick blocked), 6:49

Second quarter

PF - Dalton Thompson 5 pass from Pfennigs (Marc Conradi pass from Pfennigs), 9:21

LL - Tuekota Vandever 5 run (run failed), 7:54

LL - Vandever 95 run (run failed), 4:12

PF - Thompson 22 pass from Pfennigs (pass failed), 24.1

Fourth quarter

LL - FG Cade Coffey 21, 10:23

PF - Pfennigs 15 run (Pfennigs run), 8:12

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING - LL, Vandever 18-204, Butcher 5-39, Derrick 5-75, Bodak 3-1, Webb 1-2, Finlay 1-0. PF, McLeod 11-51, Pfennigs 23-185, Conradi 8-12, McKeown 1-24.

PASSING - LL, Derrick 1-6-1-24, Piva 1-1-(-3). PF, Pfennigs 12-25-1-124.

RECEIVING - LL, Howell 1-24, Derrick 1-(-3). PF, McKeown 5-64, Gomer 2-7, Thompson 4-42, Conradi 1-11.