Knights face Lynx, big learning curve in opener

PALMER —Before Colony opened its 2011 season against the Dimond Lynx, head coach Brian McIntosh asked his athletes to raise their hands if they’d played in a varsity game before Friday night.

Two players raised their hands.

“We’ve got a lot to do, a lot of learning,” McIntosh said after Colony’s 31-0 loss to Dimond Saturday night at Colony High.

Dimond posted four first-half rushing touchdowns en route to the victory, as virtually every Colony player in uniform made their varsity debut. McIntosh said the Knights simply have to chalk the game up as a learning experience.

“There were a lot of mental mistakes, lot of physical mistakes,” McIntosh said.

McIntosh said the Lynx came out with the game plan the Colony coaching staff expected. The Lynx used its speed and a big offensive line to run for more than 250 yards and four touchdowns.

“They’re big and they’re fast. Dimond didn’t do anything we didn’t anticipate,” McIntosh said. “Not to take anything away from Dimond, but on any given play, at least one kid made a mistake. You can’t overcome that with good teams. Dimond’s a good team.”

Colony struggled early, but McIntosh said he thought his team’s play improved over the course of the game and he saw much better things in the second half.

Junior running back Wyatt Peltier rebounded from several carries for a loss during the first half and broke free for a 21-yard carry in the second half. Junior Rob Loretnz threw three interceptions in his debut as Colony’s starting signal caller, but also completed nine passes for 106 yards. Simon Root led the Knights with three catches for 46 yards.

Dimond used a half-dozen running backs in the win. Nathan Stephens led the Lynx with 93 yards and a touchdown. Jim Chong, Elijiah Pili and quarterback Ryden Hines also ran for touchdowns in the win.

“Dimond milked the clock, but we like what we saw in the second half,” McIntosh said. “The best thing, the kids didn’t give up. It was a great effort. Once our nerves settled, we didn’t quit.”

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com and follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/matsu_sports.

Dimond 31, Colony 0

Saturday, Colony High School

First quarter

Dimond — Chong 4 run (kick failed) 7:51.

Dimond — Hines 2 run (kick blocked) 00:05.

Second quarter

Dimond — Stephens 7 run (kick blocked) 9:26.

Dimond — Pili 5 run (Corral kick) 1:10.

Third quarter

No scoring.

Fourth quarter

Dimond — Smith 31 pass from Hines (kick blocked) 11:39.

Individual statistics:

RUSHING — Dimond: Stephens 12-93, Pili 10-44, Chong 9-38, Hines 5-27, Griffith 5-10, Smith 4-10, Deldonno 2-1, Pulu 1-9; Colony: Peltier 16-22, Niver 4-23, Lorentz 4-(-43).

PASSING — Dimond: Hines 3-8-0—101; Colony: Lorentz 9-21-3—106, Niver 1-5-0—15.

RECEIVING — Dimond: Smith 2-71, Pili 1-31; Colony: Root 3-46, Bilafer 2-17, Compton 1-19, Hall 1-15, Pritchett 1-15, Farber 1-8, Peltier 1-1.