Freshman QB Sione Kaho has Lincoln back in 3A state football tournament
Sione Kaho didn’t get a soft landing as the Lincoln High School starting quarterback this year, his freshman season. Actually, the first test came before he even began taking high school classes.
In spring ball, the first opponent he played against in a scrimmage? The Yelm Tornados, the reigning 3A state champions. It was eye opening.
“Scrimmaging them first was pretty crazy,” he said. “I think that helped me a lot. There was a lot to prove after that.”
It didn’t get much easier at the start of the season, since Lincoln schedules the nonleague portion of its schedule aggressively. Lincoln faced 3A state tournament opponent Auburn Riverside in Week 1, a good Tualatin (Ore.) team in Week 2, 4A state tournament team Camas in Week 3, then opened league play the next week against Mount Tahoma, which went on to win the 3A PCL with an undefeated record.
After beating Auburn Riverside narrowly, Lincoln lost the next three. After four weeks, the Abes found themselves in unfamiliar territory, with a 1-3 record.
“(My confidence) was kind of low,” Kaho said. “But I trusted the coaching staff that our outcome would be better than how we feel now. Just working and keep on grinding.”
Kaho’s patience was rewarded. Lincoln coach Masaki Matsumoto and his staff worked on simplifying the offense and the Abes started rolling. They’ve won six straight, including a 56-22 win over Auburn in the playoffs last week, which sent Lincoln back to the 3A state tournament.
Matsumoto knew Kaho would go through some predictable freshman growing pains. He also knew it’d be worth it.
“We knew he was going to be good, we knew he was going to be special,” Matsumoto said. “We knew he was going to be the best option. With that, you have to take the good with the bad.
“No matter how special you are or how mature you are for your age, you’re still going to have to go through freshman experience, mistakes and failures. We knew we were going to have to endure that. … At the same time, he gives us the best chance to win. He’s developed greatly.”
Kaho has completed 162-of-235 passes this season for 2,296 yards, 18 touchdowns and seven interceptions. The highlight came in a Week 7 win over Silas, when he threw for six touchdowns, four of which he threw in the second quarter. In a three-week span facing Bonney Lake, Stadium and Silas, Kaho threw for 12 touchdowns.
His confidence grew as he adjusted to the speed of the game at the high school varsity level.
“The game speed, for sure,” Kaho said was his biggest adjustment. “Jumping in as a freshman on varsity is very, very different compared to youth ball. I think just having a feel for the game over time has grown a lot.”
Even after the 1-3 start, Matsumoto wasn’t worried about Kaho, citing maturity and poise beyond his years. He knew things would get better.
“He started doing better once we simplified it after the Mount Tahoma game,” Matsumoto said. “If you’re a freshman, that’s what you want. You don’t want things to be overcomplicated. He’s still learning the game, growing, developing, maturing. Since he did that, he has excelled and taken what we’ve given him and had some amazing games, amazing halves.”
Now Lincoln finds itself in the state tournament once again. The Abes are the No. 13 seed and will take on perennial title contender Eastside Catholic, the No. 4 seed, on the road at 1 p.m. on Saturday. Given how much Lincoln had to replace from last year’s team — 23 seniors, one of whom was TNT All-Area player of the year Gabarri Johnson — being back in the state tournament is an accomplishment.
“A lot of people counted us out,” Matsumoto said. “I understand why, we lost a great group of 23 seniors. We have not just a freshman quarterback but a lot of positions where it’s their first year on varsity. I’m super proud of what they’re doing.”
For Kaho, it’s another test in his promising young career.
“It’s very exciting,” he said. “Even being able to play a program like Eastside Catholic, it’s very exciting and I’m grateful for the opportunity.”
