5 takeaways from Lincoln’s historic win over Marysville-Pilchuck in the 3A state quarterfinals
The Lincoln High School football players rallied together after a historic win Saturday afternoon in Tacoma.
They whooped and hollered at the lively crowd that traveled to Lincoln Bowl to cheer them on, and congratulated each other, knowing there will be a next week.
And then several of them picked a jug, ran back onto the field and joyfully doused their coach with ice water. Does Masaki Matsumoto know just how much his players love him?
“Well, I love them,” he said tearfully. “This community, these families, this school and these players deserve this. We told them that there’s a lot of negative things that get labeled with Tacoma — especially the east and south side — and I told them this is a chance to give ourselves and these people some hope.
“I know it’s a football game. But … we all know it’s more than football. They put in the work. We just want to give them hope and something to celebrate. Our kids did that. I’m so proud of them.”
For the first time in school history, the third-seeded Abes are headed to the Class 3A state semifinals after routing sixth-seeded Marysville-Pilchuck, 56-21.
Here are five takeaways from the emotional win:
ABES END HALF A DECADE OF FRUSTRATING FINISHES
Lincoln has now advanced to the state playoffs for six consecutive seasons.
Jon Kitna took the quarterfinals in 2014 — just the second state trip in school history, and first since 2003 — before leaving for another high school coaching job in Texas.
Matsumoto took over the team in 2015, and the Abes have returned to the state playoffs in every season since.
But, each of the five state trips prior to this one have wrapped up sooner than anticipated, and each ended in a crushing one-touchdown defeat.
Eastisde Catholic won 28-21 in Kitna’s final season in 2014. Bonney Lake stunned the Abes, 35-28, Matsumoto’s first. Lincoln lost a 28-20 heartbreaker to O’Dea in the 2016 quarterfinals. Garfield prematurely knocked the Abes out with a 44-41 win in the first round in Tacoma the following season, and Rainier Beach did the same with a 14-7 win last year.
“I told them in past years, when we’ve felt like we’ve come short of our goals — it’s on me,” Matsumoto said. “I’ve done, and I’m still trying to do, everything I can to learn from those mistakes and not let them down.”
He hasn’t.
This season, Lincoln can finally celebrate overcoming the early-round hurdles with its first state semifinals berth.
“We just believed in ourselves from the beginning,” Abes junior Julien Simon said. “We thought this team was going to be able to do it. We knew this team was special.”
TACOMA IS WATCHING
Saturday’s win is significant in Abes history, but has greater meaning for the city as well.
Lincoln is the first Tacoma Public Schools program to advance to the state semifinals since Wilson — led by former NFL player Marcus Trufant and current Rams coach Amad Robinson — played for a state title in 1998.
“It means a lot,” Abes senior Abner Sio said. “To be the first (Lincoln) team to ever make it to the semis is huge. We had to make a statement. We have the whole city that’s counting on us and, yeah, we did that today. I’m very proud of my team.”
Here’s a quick breakdown of how TPS programs have fared in the semifinals:
Foss: One state semifinals appearance. Won a state championship in 1975, beating Richland.
Lincoln: One state semifinals appearance. Plays No. 2 Eastside Catholic next week.
Mount Tahoma: Three state semifinals appearances. Advanced to the state championship game in 1974, losing to Bishop Blanchet. Won back-to-back state championships in 1979 (beat Rogers of Puyallup) and 1980 (beat Issaquah).
Stadium: Has never advanced to the state playoffs.
Wilson: One state semifinals appearance. Advanced to the state championship game in 1998, losing to Pasco.
THERE’S NO STOPPING SIMON
Simon, a five-star recruit who will have his choice of Power Five programs when he wraps up his high school career, is still one of the most exciting players in the South Sound.
He showed why again against the Tomahawks.
Simon gashed Marysville-Pilchuck for 164 yards and three touchdowns on just five catches. His three touchdown grabs — for 56, 49 and 57 yards — came in space, and Simon turned up his sneaky speed to beat defenders to the end zone.
“He just has that next gear,” Matsumoto said. “He really does. We saw it a couple weeks ago when he tracked down a kid from Bethel on a hitch, and we were like, ‘OK, he can really run.’ We knew that, but he showed that today for the crowd, which is really great.”
Simon was the top target for Abes quarterback Caden Filer, who finished 16-of-25 passing for 294 yards, four touchdowns and one interception. Filer also added a rushing touchdown.
All of Simon’s touchdowns receptions and Filer’s touchdown throws came in the first half. Jasiah Snow-Marshall caught Filer’s fourth passing touchdown, snagging an 11-yard pass in the back of the end zone and just keeping his toes in bounds to give Lincoln a 42-21 lead at the break.
“Words can’t even explain how proud I am of my guys and making history,” Simon said. “We said this week that we wanted to do so, and we came out and did it.”
DEFENSE HAS BIG UPS, SOME DOWNS
Lincoln’s defense forced three turnovers — two interceptions and a fumble recovery — to keep the Tomahawks at a comfortable distance most of the way.
On Marysville-Pilchuck’s second drive, Abes safety Jeddiah Hayes made perhaps the play of the game, snaring Jake Elwood’s tipped pass and returned it 56 yards for Lincoln’s second touchdown.
“He’s so important,” Matsumoto said. “He makes all the calls. He knows the defense inside-out and he’s so irreplaceable.”
Jaylen Clark added a second pick for the Abes later in the first half, and the Tomahawks — though a run-first team — managed just one completion in the game.
Troy Atkin added a fumble recovery in the second half as Lincoln pulled away.
But, the Tomahawks did have some success on the ground, piling up 244 yards on 48 attempts (5.1 yards per carry). Their three touchdowns cut what was once a 21-0 Abes lead back to 28-21 near the end of the first half.
Jordan Justice led the way with 98 yards — including two scoring runs of 24 and 53 yards — on 10 carries, while Dylan Carson had 80 yards on 19 carries.
But, Lincoln responded in the second half, shutting Marysville-Pilchuck out the rest of the way.
“We made a couple of adjustments for that (delayed counter) play, and kids responded,” Matsumoto said. “We give them college-level game plays and they study it, and they know it, and that’s credit to them.”
ABES HAVE A ‘DEADLY’ OFFENSE
Simon’s dazzling plays in space and Filer’s four touchdown throws through the air were the highlight of Lincoln’s offense, but Sio again proved just how effective the Abes’ rushing attack can be.
The sturdy running back piled up 121 rushing yards on 18 carries, and added a 31-yard scoring run in the second quarter.
“It makes our offense really deadly,” he said. “Teams have to game plan against which one they want to stop — running or passing — and if they stop the run, we’re open to the pass, and if they stop the pass, we’re open to the run. It’s just like pick your poison.”
Lincoln finished with 29 carries for 151 yards (5.2 yards per carry) and punched in three of their touchdowns on the ground. The Abes tallied 441 yards of total offense.
This story was originally published November 23, 2019 at 10:49 PM.
