No. 22 Bellevue (Wash.) at Lakes (Lakewood, Wash.)An early obstacle awaits nationally ranked Bellevue in its quest for a fourth consecutive
Class 3A bracket title. Lakes might be the most talented team the Wolverines have faced since their season-opening win over then-nationally ranked Oaks Christian (Westlake Village, Calif.). But, while often being neither bigger nor faster than its opponent, Bellevue and its Wing-T offense is tough to prepare for and the Wolverines rarely beat themselves. Bellevue's record under coach Butch Goncharoff is 141-12 and it has won eight state titles since 2001.
Lakes can tap into last year's 35-7 quarterfinal loss to Bellevue for added inspiration as it prepares for Friday night's contest. Intangibles aside, the Lancers have plenty of talent in their arsenal to produce an upset and move one step closer to their first state title since 1997. Quarterback
David Wood engineers an offense that is averaging 53 points per game. The 6-foot-4, 220-pound senior has 1,903 passing yards with 27 touchdowns and only three interceptions. He is protected by 6-8, 295-pound tackle
Zach Banner, a MaxPreps Top 100 recruit.
Mitch Stephens: Bellevue 35, Lakes 31
Steve Montoya: Lakes 21, Bellevue 20
Stephen Spiewak: Bellevue 38, Lakes 17
Kevin Askeland: Bellevue 30, Lakes 28
Jamie DeMoney: Bellevue 28, Lakes 20
Bellevue is looking to four-peat as Washington state champs. Friday's matchup with a talented Lakes squad stands in the way.
File photo by Jeff Napier
