Inglemoor Echoes '93 Team's Thunder -- Vikings Follow Path That Led To Title Game

The comparisons get louder with every week that sixth-ranked Inglemoor beats up on another KingCo Conference opponent.

How good is this 4-0 Viking team? Good enough to make the state playoffs for the third time in five seasons? As good as its 1993 predecessor that played in the Class AAA state title game?

"Too early," Coach Frank Naish said.

It may be too early to know. But the similarities between the teams are too tempting to ignore.

The Vikings (2-0 in Crown Division), who play at Redmond (2-0, 4-0) tonight at 7:30, have outscored opponents by an average of 31-6 this year. The '93 team had an early-season stretch of four games in which they outscored KingCo teams by an average of 25-2.

Like that team, this one has an experienced quarterback (Justin Stolmeier), two quick backs (Lamar Hicks and Tim Kim) and a bruiser of a back who doubles as a bruising linebacker (Kip Andersen).

"This team works as hard in practice," Naish said. "This team has good leadership, and the '93 team had good leadership. And we've got another team with a bunch of wrestlers, and those kind of guys usually bring a lot of leadership."

Among this year's crop of wrestling football players: Andersen, linemen Curt Armstrong, Mike Martinsen, Dave Martinsen and tight end Carlos Moreno.

Perhaps most important in the comparison, this, too, is an odd-numbered year. Since 1990, the Vikings are 23-4 in odd years, 9-9 in even years - with state-tournament appearances in '91 and '93.

"Hey, it's an odd-number year - you've got to like it," Naish said.

But Naish takes the comparison no further.

"When you think of the '93 team, you think of the playoffs, of the Bellarmine game and Lakes game, and playing Gonzaga," he said. "What happens when you get to that point in the year is a team get on a roll. No team is that good now."

Inglemoor has a hard time seeing down the road to the playoffs with such heavy thunderstorms in its path as Redmond this week, Eastlake (4-0) in three weeks and bitter Northshore rival Woodinville in four weeks.

While offense has been a defining force for the Vikings, who lead KingCo in scoring (122 points) and rank second in total offense (328 yards per game), defense is likely to define tonight's outcome.

Redmond ranks third in KingCo with 156 yards allowed per game, but more impressive is the Mustangs' scoring defense. Inglemoor hasn't allowed a touchdown since its opener, and two of the three it allowed to Newport that week were against the second string.

Meanwhile, Redmond leads KingCo in total offense but has struggled to score enough to win its past three games - coming from behind to beat Mercer Island by a field goal, then beating Woodinville 3-0, then beating 1-3 Lake Washington 20-19.

"One of my question marks coming in was our linebackers, and all four had a good game last week," Naish said of Andersen, Kurt Sherwood, Travis Law and Ryan Brown. "As a team we're running to the ball real well."

Up front are two more keys, big and small: 6-foot, 215-pound Armstrong and 5-10, 177-pound defensive end Hicks.

Armstrong wreaked havoc in a 28-3 win last week over Juanita with three sacks, a fumble recovery and an Inglemoor-record 36 defensive points. Naish uses a system based on the University of Washington football team's formula of points awarded for such things as solo tackles, assists, sacks, interceptions, etc. The old Viking record was 32.

Hicks is a converted defensive back who gets penetration up front by simply running around blockers- another idea picked up from Washington's quick line during its championship years.

"We don't have anybody who can block him in practice," Naish said. "They can block him if he runs right at them, but his quickness is so good, he usually gets by them."

The Vikings will find out if that's enough to offset Redmond's quickness and multi-faceted passing attack.

"We've been holding up well in the secondary," Naish said. "We'll be tested against Redmond."