The Auburn Trojans did everything Kentwood expected them to do on the football field last Friday night.
And the Trojans just kept on doing it all night long.
Auburn ran the football 48 times, and moved forward on 44 of those carries. By the end of the game, the Trojans had outgained Kentwood by nearly 300 yards, and had outscored the Conquerors by three touchdowns, posting a 28-7 South Puget Sound League North Division victory at Auburn Memorial Stadium.
“We just knew all week we had to be on them the whole game,” said quarterback Carlo Lavoie, who was more than happy to hand off the ball – including 12 times to Jeff Gouveia for 129 yards and two touchdowns, 10 times to Chris Young for 87 yards and one TD, and three times to Austen Embody for 83. Lavoie capped the scoring with a 40-yard TD run of his own with 1:45 left in the game.
“We had a good practice week, and it carried over tonight,” Lavoie said.
Auburn (2-0, 2-0), which knocked off defending North champion Federal Way by a 21-14 score in last week’s league and season opener, was credited for 408 yards. Kentwood (0-1, 1-1) logged just 116.
“How often does Kentwood give up even 200 yards, much less 400? Our kids did a good job of blocking,” Trojans coach Gordon Elliott said. “As many young guys as we have playing (Auburn has at least half a dozen sophomores on the field almost every play), they’re getting used to high school football real quick.”
Taking possession at the outset of the second quarter on a Kentwood punt, the Trojans went 36 yards in four plays. Gouveia took it the first 24 yards in three plays, including runs of 18 and 13 yards, then Young went the last 8 yards, finally leapfrogging a Conquerors defender into the end zone for a 7-0 lead with 10:06 left in the first half.
Auburn then went essentially the length of the field – 99 yards – to make it 13-0 shortly before halftime. Young got the big gainer, a 17-yarder from the Kentwood 22 all the way to the 5. The Conquerors were flagged for a facemask on that play, moving the ball to the 2 1/2. It eventually would up back at the 6 1/2 on a Trojans penalty, but Gouveia took it in from there for a 13-0 lead.
“They’re well coached, and they kind of play to their strengths,” Kentwood coach Rex Norris said after his came up short in its league opener. “Any time you have big, strong kids like that, they’re going to make plays. They didn’t do anything we weren’t expecting. We had some interior problems, but we fixed that, then (the Trojans) adjusted.
“It was hard even to get the ball,” Norris added.
Kentwood made it into the end zone just once all night – and that came when the Conquerors’ defense was on the field.
Down 13-0 at halftime, the Conks took the second half kickoff, moved from their own 24 to their 49 in eight plays, but had to punt on fourth-and-7. It put Auburn in business on its own 28.
This time, Lavoie launched a first-down pass toward the right flank. KW’s Darrius Coleman stepped in front, picked it off, and rambled down the sideline for the touchdown. Matt Bell’s PAT brought the Conquerors within 13-7.
That was still the score at the outset of the fourth quarter when Kentwood had to punt it away. Auburn converted, going 61 yards in eight plays to make it 21-7. Austen Embody had the big run, going 22 yards down the right side before being knocked out of bounds at the Conqueror 1. A penalty flag was thrown, but Auburn took the play, and Gouveia finished the drive on the next snap to make it 19-7. Young then ran in the two-point conversion, pushing it to a two-touchdown margin with 7:35 left.
“We’ve played two real good football teams,” Elliott said of Auburn’s rugged opening schedule. “They were physical, and our kids did a good job both weeks of staying physical. … To be able to hold a team like Kentwood from the end zone (aside from the interception return) is tremendous, especially when we have four sophomores on defense.”
Kentwood had a couple of near-misses, including a pass off the hands in the end zone, and a big run by Darrius Coleman that was called back because of a holding penalty. Coleman had taken the ball from the KW 28 all the way to around the Auburn 30 before getting shoved out of bounds by Lavoie when the flag flew.
“We missed two wide-open touchdowns,” Norris said. “If you don’t take advantage of those, you’re going to get beat.”
SPSL NORTH
FOOTBALL STANDINGS
TEAM LG. OVERALL
Auburn 2-0 2-0
Kentlake 2-0 2-0
Tahoma 2-0 2-0
Aub. Riverside 1-1 1-1
Kentridge 1-1 1-1
Federal Way 0-1 1-1
Kentwood 0-1 1-1
Jefferson 0-2 0-2
Kent-Meridian 0-2 0-2
LAST FRIDAY’S GAMES
Tahoma 21, A. Riverside 17
Auburn 28, Kentwood 7
Kentlake 20, Kent-Meridian 14
LAST SATURDAY’S GAMES
Kentridge 33, Jefferson 8
Federal Way 31, E. Ridge 7 (NL)
THURSDAY’S GAMES
Tahoma at Kentwood, 7 p.m.
FRIDAY’S GAMES
Auburn at Kent-Meridian, 7 p.m.
Beamer at Aub. Riverside, 7 (NL)
Kentridge at Federal Way, 7 p.m.
SATURDAY’S GAME
Kentlake at Jefferson, 7 p.m.
