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“It’s not how I wanted it to end,” Gueller said following the Bearcats’ 17-7 loss to top-ranked Lynden at the Tacoma Dome. “I’ll be able to look back on it someday, and think about it being one of the greatest moments of my life.”
The loss ends the season for Chehalis (10-3), while Lynden (13-0) advances to the 2A state championship game, where it will face Archbishop Murphy at 10 a.m. next Saturday at the Tacoma Dome.
Lynden will be in its fourth state title game since 2006; the Lions have won three state crowns during that span.
Not many expected Chehalis to make it very far in the playoffs, given the Bearcats’ third-place finish in the 2A Evergreen Conference.
The Bearcats exceeded expectations, and actually kept up with the Lions and their multiple offensive weapons.
Their defense held Lynden, which averaged 42 points in its 12 previous games, to a season-low 17.
Only North Thurston came closer to Lynden than Chehalis’ 10-point margin of defeat. The Rams lost to the Lions, 29-26, in the first round of the playoffs on Nov. 12.
Coach Bob Wollan called his defensive unit’s performance the best of the season and an overall “inspirational” effort. The Bearcats forced Lynden into two first-half turnovers and punts on both of its third-quarter possessions.
“I cannot be more proud of the group,” Wollan said. “I know they’re heartbroken because they felt they could win this game when nobody thought they could.”
With the game tied at 7 going into the fourth quarter, Chehalis had a chance to take the lead on a 22-yard field goal attempt by Kyler Huang with 11 minutes, 2 seconds remaining. But the kick did not reach the goalposts.
Lynden took over with a first-and-10 from its own 20, and needed only 1:18 go to 80 yards on five plays. Quarterback Josh Kraght found Dak Shagren for a 46-yard touchdown pass to give the Lions a 14-7 lead with 9:46 left.
On their next two possessions, the Bearcats’ momentum burst with two fumbles, one of which led to a Lynden field goal – a 22-yarder by Santiago Lopez.
Kraght completed 11 of 22 passes for 183 yards and one touchdown with one interception. He also rushed for 42 yards on 12 carries.
“They’ve got so many weapons,” Wollan said. “Games like this come down to one or two big plays that we didn’t quite make and they (Lynden) did.”
Chehalis’ workhorse in these playoffs was Gueller, who will play baseball next season at Washington State. He came into the game with 659 rushing yards in three playoff wins over Hockinson, Sequim and Lakewood.
Lynden held the 6-foot-3, 205-pound senior to 70 yards on 16 carries, but he proved to be a playmaker in other areas.
He passed for 93 yards on 7-of-15 accuracy.
The offense also got a big boost of production from Keylen Steen, who rushed for 56 yards on 12 carries, and Colton Watson, who scored the team’s lone touchdown in the opening minutes of the second quarter for a 7-0 lead.
“Everybody believed,” Gueller said. “There was nobody that was doubting ourselves. We gave it the best effort we could.”
Meg Wochnick: 360-754-5473
mwochnick@theolympian.com
