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CONTACT THE ENTERPRISE Jocelyn Robinson, News editor jrobinson@heraldnet.com

Royals win first game in two years

By David Pan
Enterprise Sports editor

All the hard work the Lynnwood football team put in this season finally paid off.

Senior running back Typhis Cochran scored two touchdowns on the ground and caught two passes for scores to lead the Royals to a 34-32 victory over Sedro-Woolley in a non-conference game Oct. 29 at Edmonds Stadium.

Lynnwood scored 20 points in the fourth quarter to overcome a 12-point defecit to record its first victory since September 2007 against Shorewood.

The comeback made the win even sweeter for Cochran.

“It was a great feeling,” he said. “I don’t think we would have had the same reaction if we blew them out. … We never gave up. We stuck together.”

Cochran caught six passes for 142 yards and two touchdowns and also ran for 91 yards on 17 carries and scored two more TDs. Cochran caught a 30-yard pass from quarterback Michael Stanley early in the fourth quarter and then added scoring runs of 3 and 6 yards late in the game.

“At the end of the game, it’s about players not plays sometimes,” said Lynnwood coach Dorian Manza. “I knew if we were going to win that game I was going to put it in Typhis’ hands and let him do the rest and that’s exactly what happened.”

The Cubs beat the Royals 66-6 last year and that blowout loss was on the minds of Lynnwood’s coaches and players.

“It’s the culmination of a tough season and a lot of losses,” Manza said. “To be able to put it together and beat a team like that is huge. A big part of that feeling great about winning was the fact that was a solid football team we beat.”

Lynnwood (1-8 overall) struggled early on as it has all season and trailed 13-0 after the first quarter.

The Royals went into halftime down 26-14.

Manza and his players regrouped at halftime and came out with a strong defensive stand to start the half.

“I knew we were all right as long as we weren’t giving up big plays,” Manza said.

After allowing only four touchdowns in the first half, the Royals limited Sedro-Woolly (4-5) to just one TD in the second half.

“We came back out and stopped them,” Cochran said. “That pumped us out and we kept going.”

Stanley completed 15 of 24 passes for 335 yards and three touchdowns.

“He’s throwing the ball really well these last few games,” Manza said. “It’s nothing we’re doing differently as far as our routes are concerned. He’s getting to the point where he’s reading the coverages better. He’s making better decisions.”

The defensive standout was Jacob McCann, who recorded 13 solo tackles and 11 assists.

“He just has a really big nose for the game,” Manza said. “He’s not a big or fast guy. He does a great job. He has all season.”

Lynnwood forced and recovered three fumbles, including one during the Cubs’ final offensive series.

Sedro-Woolley was driving with 20 seconds left in the game when Lynnwood’s Jordan Thomas sacked Peter Janicki on Lynnwood’s 27-yard line, causing a fumble which McCann recovered to seal the victory.

Lynnwood closes out the regular season against Shorewood at 8 p.m., Thursday, Nov. 5 at Shoreline Stadium.

“There’s going to be a lot more confidence, especially in the red zone,” Stanley said of the upcoming game. “We should be able to score more.”