After an emotional win over Edmonds-Woodway last week, Mountlake Terrace showed no signs of slowing down on Friday night as the football team pummeled the winless Shorecrest Scots 44-7 at Shoreline Stadium.

The victory pushed the Hawks overall season record to 4-1, the best start at the school since 1972. Terrace is 3-1 in Wesco 3A South action and is in second place.

Terrace dominated the first half of the matchup with the Scots (0-3, 0-5), scoring touchdowns on each of their five offensive possessions and picking up a safety with its special teams play. Not to be outdone, the Hawk defense held Shorecrest to -8 yards of total offense in the first half.

The Scots started a first-time sophomore quarterback, Jack Koss, and were without their top running back Tyree Jones, who spent the game in street clothes on the Shorecrest sidelines.

The changes in the Scot lineup with more inexperienced players caught Terrace coaches a little by surprise. “They had a couple guys that must be either out because of grades or injury,” said MTHS coach Tony Umayam. “There were a couple guys there that we didn’t see a whole lot of on tape. We were able to take advantage of it and make some nice plays on defense. And the offense was a nice juggernaut in the first half.”

“Shorecrest is playing a little short-handed,” Umayam said.

The Terrace offensive explosion in the first half included touchdown runs of 37 yards and 21 yards by Ryan Lacasse, and 9 yards and 10 yards by Malcolm Johnson. Lacasse also blocked a Shorecrest punt attempt in the second quarter that resulted in a safety for the Hawks.

Terrace closed out the first half scoring when, on fourth down and ten yards to go, senior quarterback Justin Hopkins connected with Colin Rucker for a 40-yard touchdown pass. The score came with just 55.7 seconds left in the half and put the Hawks up 37-0.

“I believe you play everything, all the cards on the table, first half and maybe in first series of the second half,” Umayam said. “And then you start looking at keeping guys healthy and getting some of your second and third string some time.”

Terrace starters Lacasse and Johnson picked up rushing yardage totals of 108 and 84 respectively, almost entirely in the first half. Due to the lopsided score, Hawks Rucker, Sammy Abraha and Javon Ned were all able to pick up some rushing attempts in the second half, while sophomore Garrett McDowell got some work in at quarterback.

The Terrace defense was responsible for the only MTHS points in the second half. At the midway point of the third quarter Gabe Brady picked off a pass attempt by Koss and returned the interception 52 yards for a touchdown. The score pushed the Terrace lead to 44-0, resulting in the remainder of the game to be played with a running clock until the final whistle.

The matchup ended up being an opportunity for Terrace to not only flex its muscles but also to prepare for a big game next week against Glacier Peak. “It’s a game where we had to initially come out and have some focus,” Umayam said. “We also put some wrinkles in so we could figure out what we need to work on.”

“I like where we’re at going into Glacier Peak,” Umayam added.

The Hawks and the Grizzlies face off on Friday, Oct. 10, at Edmonds Stadium; Glacier Peak sits a half-game behind Terrace in the Wesco League South Conference. Meadowdale leads the division with a 3-0 mark after its 28-21 victory over Shorewood on Friday.

– By Doug Petrowski

MTHS football vs Shorecrest

Terrace          14        23        7          0          —          44
Shorecrest       0          0        0          7          —            7

First Quarter
8:20  Malcolm Johnson (MTHS) 9-yard TD run; PAT kick good
:46   Ryan Lacasse (MTHS) 37-yard TD run; PAT kick good

Second Quarter
8:38  Ryan Lacasse (MTHS) 21-yard TD run; PAT kick good
6:13  Ryan Lacasse (MTHS) blocks Shorecrest punt attempt in end zone for safety
3:53  Malcolm Johnson (MTHS) 10-yard TD run; PAT kick good
:57   40-yard TD pass from Justin Hopkins to Colin Rucker (MTHS); PAT kick good

Third Quarter
7:57  Gabe Brady (MTHS) 52-yard TD interception return; PAT kick good

Fourth Quarter
11:03  25-yard TD pass from Jack Koss (SHS); PAT kick good

Records: Mountlake Terrace 3-1 in the Wesco 3A South, 4-1 overall; Shorecrest 0-3, 0-5

MTHS next game: vs. Glacier Peak, Friday, Oct. 10, 5:00 p.m. at Edmonds Stadium