The Arcata Tigers smothered the Mckinleyville Panthers on Friday night with a 51-0 win. The Tigers advance to 5-0 on the season, and 1-0 in conference, while the Panthers drop to 0-5.
To open the game up, Senior Alex Greenway ran in for a touchdown, and not long after, Senior Tony Buchanna ran in his own.
Buchanna is a transfer from Providence Hall in Herriman, Utah, and played his first game with the Tigers last night per CIF transfer rules. After not playing a game since last season Buchanna proved he will be a reliable addition to the team, alternating as running back with Greenway.
“He’s gonna have a big difference in our team,” senior Jackson Strand said. “Him and Alex offer a dynamic duo of Alex being more of a power back and Tony being a speed back.”
An interception from Senior Lennon Gieder at the end of the first gave Arcata the ball to start the second, and the Tigers quickly used that opportunity. Junior standout Luke Lemke ran the ball in for his first touchdown of the night with ten minutes to go in the second. Lemke didn’t stop there, he ran in two more touchdowns just minutes apart.
“He’s electric as usual,” head coach Matt Magers said.
Lemke is already deemed to be one of the best players in the HDLN, and he’s only a junior.
“I’m excited to see what’s in store for me next year,” Lemke said.
To end the second quarter, senior Cal Tucker grabbed an interception and quickly after caught a touchdown from Lemke. Lemke found Greenway for the two-point conversion to put the Tigers ahead 43-0 at the half.
To round off the scoring, Strand added a 75-yard touchdown and then Lemke and Tucker completed the two-point conversion in the third.
While the Tigers had a lot to celebrate, they also had some extreme lows in this game.
“We have so much more potential,” Strand said.
Arcata was given five unsportsmanlike calls, three were given to players, and two were given to a coach.
“I got one and I’m pretty ashamed about that,” Lemke said. “You got to find the balance between aggressive and too aggressive.”
In the third quarter, defensive coach Eddy Vainuku was given two back-to-back unsportsmanlike calls which resulted in an ejection from the game, and because of CIF rules, he won’t be able to coach in the upcoming game.
“[It’s] unacceptable,” Magers said.
The Tigers will travel to Hoopa Valley to play the Warriors in a conference game. Arcata is expecting a good clean game and is looking to advance to 2-0 in the conference, and 6-0 in season.
“We still haven’t played a full game of football,” Magers said.
