Lisbon dominates Class A Lion-fest

LISBON -- Sometimes unstoppable. Largely immovable.

The second-ranked Lisbons Lions had far more growl than their counterparts from No. 3 Lone Tree, dominating on both sides of the ball and skating to a 35-7 triumph in a Class A District 5 football showdown Friday night at balmy, breezy Walmer Field.

"We came out a little slow, but we picked it up as the game went on," said Lisbon lineman Tyler Smith. "We showed them what Lisbon football is all about.

"We played with passion and heart and never gave up. They punched us in the mouth early, but we got up, came back and never stopped."

Lisbon (7-0 overall, 4-0 A-5) took sole possession of the district lead and looked every bit like a team destined to play in the UNI-Dome next month.

"This team has potential," said Lisbon Coach Kent Allison. "Great potential."

Lone Tree (6-1, 3-1) stayed with the home team for a while, leading 7-6 midway through the second quarter. But Lisbon quarterback Ben Knake ran for two touchdowns late in the half as the hosts took a 20-7 advantage into intermission.

Tait Simpson added a pair of second-half touchdowns as Lisbon put it away.

These are two teams accustomed to lopsided victories this season. Lisbon continued its run.

"Good teams make big plays, and there's no doubt that (Lisbon) made big plays," said Lone Tree Coach Mike Miller. "They put us in a position we hadn't been in this season."

The final statistics were just as lopsided as the final score. Lisbon racked up 478 yards of offense and held Lone Tree to 166 (37 in the second half).

"Our defense played very well, and I have to give credit to our special teams," Allison said. "When you make a team drive 70 to 80 yards, it makes a big difference.

"I was leery about playing such a quality opponent. We got a lot of solid play from our line."

And from their quarterback. Knake completed 8 of 13 passes for 136 yards and rushed seven times for 103. Simpson's 163 yards (on 18 carries) spearheaded a rushing attack that accumulated 342 yards.

"Our line play really led us," Knake said. "And our defense came out, made stops and really set the tone for us."

Knake connected with Logan Rickard for a 33-yard touchdown pass on fourth-and-13 to put Lisbon up 6-0, then Lone Tree responded after recovering a fumble near midfield.

Levi Reitzler ran 4 yards for a touchdown to give the guests a 7-6 lead with 8:40 left in the half.

Then Lisbon scored the final 29 points.

They were sometimes unstoppable. And largely immovable.

TEAM STATISTICS

Lone Tree

Lisbon

First downs

11

18

Rushes-yards

38 - 144

42 - 342

Passing yards

22

136

Comp-Att-Int

3 - 13 - 0

8 - 14 - 0

Total yards

166

478

Fumbles-lost

1 - 0

3 - 2

Punts-average

8 - 37.9

2 - 47.5

Penalties-yards

3 - 15

5 - 52

Rushing:

 Lone Tree –

Levi Rentzler 15-59 ,

Gabe Lorack 14-52 ,

Lucas Sieverding 9-32 ,

John Hudson 3-15 ,

Colin Gibson 2--14

 Lisbon –

Tait Simpson 18-163 ,

Ben Knake 7-103 ,

Logan Rickard 2-36 ,

Nate Jubeck 9-26 ,

Skylar Ellerbach 3-15 ,

Trevor Moore 1-1 ,

Team 2--2

Passing:

 Lone Tree –

Lorack 3-11-0-22 ,

Team 0-2-0-0

 Lisbon –

Knake 8-13-0-136 ,

Simpson 0-1-0-0

Receiving:

 Lone Tree –

Rentzler 1-14 ,

Bryan Forbes 1-5 ,

Sieverding 1-3

 Lisbon –

Ellerbach 5-101 ,

Rickard 1-33 ,

Simpson 2--2

Lone Tree

7

–

7

Lisbon

6

14

8

7

–

35

LIS - Logan Rickard 33 pass from Ben Knake (run failed)

LT - Levi Reitzler 4 run (Ian Menzer kick)

LIS - Knake 44 run (run failed)

LIS - Knake 6 run (Tait Simpson run)

LIS - Simpson 20 run (Skylar Ellerbach pass from Knake)

[gallery columns="2"]

LIS - Simpson 1 run (Troy Kamberling kick)