West Branch wakes up in second half, pulls away from Bellevue

WEST BRANCH - After a sloppy first half, Butch Pedersen had a few words for his team in the locker room.

'We got chewed out, but we deserved it,” quarterback Lucas Lamont said.

The Bears sure responded.

Lamont totaled four touchdowns and No. 5 West Branch scored 24 unanswered points in the second half in a 38-7 victory over No. 10 Bellevue in a battle of unbeatens Friday night at the Little Rose Bowl.

The Bears (5-0, 2-0 1A District 5), who celebrated homecoming and the 25-year anniversary of their 1989 state championship team, are the only undefeated team left in the district.

'Huge game for us,” Pedersen said. 'We're in the driver's seat and we plan on staying there.”

West Branch's Luke Lenoch rushed for 190 yards. Lenoch left in the fourth quarter with a knee injury, but Pedersen said he could have returned.

Lamont completed 8 of 10 passes for 149 yards. The senior connected with Devin Kindon on a 10-yard touchdown in the third and a beautiful 70-yard toss to Matt Shawver in the fourth.

Bellevue (4-1, 2-1) made a big stop inside the 10-yard line at the end of the second quarter to keep the halftime score at 14-7.

The Comets even got the ball to start the third quarter with a chance to tie.

But West Branch was too tough on defense. Bellevue was forced to punt on its first three possessions of the second half. Then the Comets coughed up a fumble deep in their own territory.

Lamont and the Bears took advantage, scoring on their first five drives of the half.

West Branch held Bellevue to 180 yards despite missing two defensive starters.