NEW — 2:27 p.m. Sept. 30, 2015
An overtime loss is the only blemish on the Liberty High School football team’s near-perfect record so far.
The Patriots are 3-1 to start the year, with five regular-season games still to be played, including matchups against Bellevue and Mount Si.
By Greg Farrar
Joseph Cunningham (right), Liberty High School senior running back, slips past Hazen sophomore safety Jaeger Scheppe (7) to the end zone for a 3-yard touchdown run during the third quarter of their Sept. 11 football game.
Liberty began the season with a 14-6 win over Lakewood in a game that will be remembered as the debut of junior defensive end Mikey Walter. Prior to Sept. 4, Walter never played a down of high-school football.
He has made his name on the hardwood, starring on the Patriots’ varsity basketball team since he was a freshman. But this year, he decided to hit the gridiron, much to the delight of Liberty football coach Steve Valach.
In the Lakewood win, Walter caused a ruckus in the backfield, picking up three sacks in his very first game. The Seattle Times lauded his play as one of the top-10 performances of the night.
Running backs Joseph Cunningham and Dulin Hayden each had 4-yard rushing touchdowns to give Liberty all the offense it would need that night.
Liberty earned the right to chant “We run Renton” after its 28-6 win over Renton rival Hazen High School in Week 2.
The Patriots clicked on all cylinders, overcoming a slow first quarter to eventually overwhelm the Highlanders.
Quarterback Nate Solly found some success through the air, going 10 for 18 passing. But the ground game is where the Patriots truly did their damage.
Cunningham and Hayden each picked up rushing touchdowns for the second consecutive game, while senior Preston Mitsui and junior Austin Regis joined the scoring with runs of 4 and 5 yards, respectively.
Liberty’s defense held the Highlanders to just six points, with Walter again starring on the field with six tackles. Julian Bruce had four tackles, while Hayden did damage defensively, too, collecting four tackles.
The Patriots improved to 3-0 after a 38-27 win at Interlake that required a gutsy second-half comeback.
After heading into halftime down 20-10, the Patriots outscored Interlake 28-7 to clinch their first league win of the year.
Liberty’s Max Batali and Cunningham each had two rushing touchdowns and ran for more than 100 yards. Batali had 128 yards on 16 carries, while Cunningham had 149 on 23 carries. Quarterback Solly also added a 14-yard TD run.
Batali had an equally productive day on the defensive side, where he had a team-leading seven tackles. Cunningham and Walter each had four tackles and junior Juan Flores had five.
Lake Washington handed Liberty its only loss when the Kangaroos edged the Patriots, 20-17, in an overtime win on Sept. 25.
Cunningham continued his scoring streak with a 27-yard TD run in the first quarter. Solly completed a 27-yard TD pass to Isaiah Owens, and kicker Tyler Wray added a field goal to put the Patriots up 17-0 after the first quarter.
Liberty wouldn’t score again as Lake Washington meticulously chipped away at the lead. A touchdown in the second quarter, a third-quarter field goal and fourth-quarter passing TD left the score tied at 17.
In overtime, the Patriots won the toss and elected to start on defense. They held Lake Washington to a 25-yard field goal, but when Liberty’s turn came, Wray’s 40-yard attempt was no good.
Liberty, sits at 1-1 in league play.
