West Sound domination

There’s no hiding the domination of the West Sound Saints’ 56-7 victory against the Snohomish County Vikings in Northwest Football League play Saturday at Silverdale Stadium.

It’s all in the numbers.

Specifically, the stat sheet reflects the Saints’ success on both sides of the ball, limiting Snohomish County (0-3) to 86 yards and using a diversified offensive arsenal to compile 389 yards.

“Unstoppable,” said West Sound running back Sidney Orange, who rushed for 54 yards and two touchdowns on 10 carries. “We had our starting line and the fullbacks did their job. Our commander (center Rod Willson) wasn’t there last week.”

West Sound (3-0) needed only eight minutes to build a 14-0 lead. Caleb Eastman, who completed 9 of 12 passes for 137 yards and four touchdowns, found fullback Mike Reed for a 27-yard touchdown pass on the Saints’ opening drive and Julian Williams for a 10-yard score on their ensuing possession. The Saints increased their lead to 21-0 when Eastman found Jakoba Square, who had three touchdowns, for a 7-yard score.

It didn’t get much better for the Vikings after that.

West Sound free safety Darnell Curry intercepted Vikings’ quarterback John McCourt, who completed 7 of 18 passes for 46 yards, and returned the ball to the Snohomish County 6-yard line. But a Jason Farrar fumble the ensuing play was scooped up by Nate Pirak and returned 94 yards for Snohomish County’s lone touchdown with 37 seconds left in the first quarter. The score cut West Sound’s advantage to 21-7.

That’s as close as the Vikings would get, though, as the Saints added three touchdowns in the second quarter to increase their lead to 42-7. A common theme in the quarter was field position — West Sound’s worst start was at the Snohomish County 35. Square scored the first touchdown on a 5-yard pass, while the second touchdown was set up by a 30-yard completion from Eastman to Andre Edwards that brought the ball to the Snohomish County 3. Orange ran it in for a touchdown on the ensuing play. The Saints’ following possession offered a similar scenario with Edwards breaking a 47-yard run to the Vikings’ 3. Following a 5-yard penalty, Orange ran it in for an 8-yard touchdown.

“I really didn’t have to work too hard with the holes our line is opening,” said Edwards, who rushed for 111 yards and a touchdown on seven carries.

The large lead at that point allowed Saints’ coach Steve McDaniel to sit Orange, who suffered a left hip-pointer during the game, for the second half. Orange said he expects to play next week.

“Our focus in games like this is to get everyone in the game,” said McDaniel, who also sat Eastman and other key contributors in the second half. “We like to take this opportunity to get the second platoon (playing time).”

West Sound scored its final two touchdowns in the third quarter. The first came on a 13-yard touchdown run by Eastman early in the third quarter and the last one was on a 5-yard run by Edwards.

The Saints have outscored their opponents 136-13 this season.

“You have to keep going,” McDaniel said. “Just because you’re winning (big) doesn’t mean you slow down.”

One aspect of the game McDaniel would like to improve is the Saints’ execution. West Sound committed 13 penalties for 85 yards, which negated some big plays on offense and kept a few Viking drives alive.

“We need to focus on making less mistakes,” McDaniel said.

The Saints don’t play this weekend and then travel to Bellevue’s Juanita High School for a game against the Eastside Hawks at 6 p.m. July 10. The Hawks are owned by former Seattle Seahawk defensive tackle Sam Adams, who now plays for Buffalo. West Sound returns to Silverdale Stadium on July 17 to face the Multnomah County Bucs.

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