Hawks win Battle for the Prairie

Down goes the 5A giant! The Post Falls Trojans(3-2) lost their three-game win streak on Sep. 23 against the Lakeland Hawks(5-1) in an offensive shootout that ended 31-28 in favor of Lakeland on homecoming night in Rathdrum, Idaho. 

Lakeland hadn’t beaten the Trojans since the 2012 season, and improving to 5-1, the Hawks are now the third-ranked 4A team in the state of Idaho. 

The Hawks had seemingly only about half of the number of bench subs as the Trojans. In order to win, the Hawks needed multiple guys to play both sides of the ball all game. This clear difference in roster size forced Mike Schroeder’s team to play a perfect football game in every aspect. 

Led by the spectacular coaching staff, Lakeland’s offense was able to put up 21 points in the first half. 

“The game was easier than I thought. We honestly should’ve won by more. Glad we got the win in the end. It’s a good win for the Lakeland community, and it’s always good to beat a 5A as a 4A,” said sophomore guard Carter Vanek.

The Hawks now have a 2-1 record against 5A opponents on the season; Schroeder’s team continues to rise to the occasion and play impressively against top-tier teams. 

Senior lineman Preston Jeffs said, “I think we did really well as a team. Personally, I could’ve played better, but overall, we did solid. They came out harder than I expected, and I think we let off a little in the fourth quarter. It got close at the end, but we did enough to get the win in the end.”

John Cornish struggled with cramps throughout the game, but Calder and Cornish led the offense, as usual, scoring a pair of touchdowns each. Following Owen Forsman’s second-half field goal, the Hawks led 31-14. 

However, following a Thomas Calder fumble that was recovered by Post Falls’ Cooper Craig, the Trojans ran the ball with star runningback Jake Bustamante and made it a 31-28 game with just minutes remaining. 

The Hawk’s defense got a huge fourth-down stop to clinch the homecoming win against the bitter Trojans, who just suffered a heartbreaking loss.